Notions about fit

[Marc mndt]

The day before yesterday I received my latest highly anticipated vintage buy. As always I was somewhat worried about the 'fit'. With this one my biggest worry was about the body length being a bit short. Luckily the body length turned out to be pretty much what I would call 'perfect'. However, the overall 'fit' was a bit more generous than how I would normally wear my jackets. It wasn't bad or unwearable, it just felt a bit roomy. To be honest, I was slightly disappointed at first because the fit wasn't 'perfect'.

Later when I was editing the fit pics (my usual setup with the grey brick wall background) I realized it didn't look too big at all. The longer I looked at the pics, the more I actually loved the generous fit. Apparently @Imuricecreamman noticed the generous fit as well...

WoW! Love the fit of this, Marc. Just a bit more generous than your usual tailored looks,

Which made me wonder...

What makes a good fit, what makes a bad fit, how is a halfbelt supposed to fit, how is a motorcycle jacket supposed to fit, is there such a thing as a perfect fit?

To illustrate, here's four halfbelts ranging from 21.5" ptp to 24" ptp. If any, which one of these would you call a 'perfect' fit? How do you like to wear yours? Are some measurements more important than others (eg sleeve length vs body length)? Looking forward to hearing your thoughts.

 

[zebedee]

Unless a jacket is a couple of sizes too big or too small (and maybe not even then), fit is a personal preference. While it's true that a US physique in the US during the 30s was smaller and clothing was worn differently, it's also unlikely that people felt as caught up on fit then.

I found that Aero 30s patterns I size up on and the 'overcoat' style Aeros I size down on. I could probably not have made these choices and the jackets would still have fit, I think.

 

[MrProper]

The day before yesterday I received my latest highly anticipated vintage buy. As always I was somewhat worried about the 'fit'. With this one my biggest worry was about the body length being a bit short. Luckily the body length turned out to be pretty much what I would call 'perfect'. However, the overall 'fit' was a bit more generous than how I would normally wear my jackets. It wasn't bad or unwearable, it just felt a bit roomy. To be honest, I was slightly disappointed at first because the fit wasn't 'perfect'.

Later when I was editing the fit pics (my usual setup with the grey brick wall background) I realized it didn't look too big at all. The longer I looked at the pics, the more I actually loved the generous fit. Apparently @Imuricecreamman noticed the generous fit as well...



Which made me wonder...

What makes a good fit, what makes a bad fit, how is a halfbelt supposed to fit, how is a motorcycle jacket supposed to fit, is there such a thing as a perfect fit?

To illustrate, here's four halfbelts ranging from 21.5" ptp to 24" ptp. If any, which one of these would you call a 'perfect' fit? How do you like to wear yours? Are some measurements more important than others (eg sleeve length vs body length)? Looking forward to hearing your thoughts.

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I think there is no general perfect fit, because that always has to do with personal taste and references.

First picture: would be the best, if the jacket would be minimally shorter and the sleeves a little longer.

The second I also find good, but the front of the body and sleeves a tick too short. From behind, the length would fit me well.

The third picture is very good, although I wanted to have the waistband a little tighter.

Last picture is great, although I wanted to have the shoulders probably a little narrower.

But all this is very petty with me, because all 4 are super jackets and quite wearable.

As I like my jackets, they are certainly too tight for many. But these are the different tastes.

 

[Brandrea33]

I see what you’re getting at here Marc. To me, a jacket is outerwear and needs to be functional first. To me that means it should be comfortable enough with a tee or a sweater, so I prefer a roomier feel.

I totally understand that the fitted look (more akin to a tailored suit jacket) is what seems to be more popular here, but to me I need a little more wiggle room.

In your example above all 4 appear to be very fine fitting jackets. The last photo set looks to me like the roomier “feel” but only by a smidge. In my view the first jacket has the best “fit”ted look.

I guess maybe “fit” is more about how a jacket looks and ”feel” is more about comfort. Not sure of that’s the feedback you were looking for ….

Fantastic foursome you have there Marc. What s your favourite for “fit” and “feel”?

 

[Marc mndt]

I guess maybe “fit” is more about how a jacket looks and ”feel” is more about comfort. Not sure of that’s the feedback you were looking for ….

Fantastic foursome you have there Marc. What s your favourite for “fit” and “feel”?

If you asked me this question one year ago, I would have said the Albert Richard (first one) fits best, almost perfect. Like @MrProper mentioned, if the sleeves were a bit longer and the body a bit shorter it would have been perfect.

I would have said the third (Bon Marche) and fourth (Californian) were way too big. I probably would have seriously considered selling them.

I would have deemed the second (Windward) OK for layering.


But that was one year ago. Today I would say the Albert Richard looks a bit tight in the chest. Maybe the shoulder of the Californian looks a bit wide. Apart from that I would call all four jackets 'perfect'.

Apparently my notion of 'perfect' has shifted. I used to think there can only be one 'perfect'. Everything that deviates from that would therefore be less perfect or even imperfect. Today, looking at the four jackets above, I think that's nonsense. They're all perfect in their own way. The Albert Richard isn't 'more perfect' than the Californian, it's just a different look.

In terms of sizing I'm becoming less and less OCD. What's important imo is the overall look. And like @Brandrea33 mentioned the feel of course. If a jacket doesn't feel good, it's no good. Looks can't compensate for that.

No it doesn’t look too long to me at all. With halfbelts or straight zip jackets in general, length becomes less relevant, at least imo. There’s not enough design elements to make it look out of proportion. If it’s a little longer, it’s simply a long Halfbelt.

I couldn't have said it any better. With halfbelts there's a lot of wiggle room in terms of sizing (unlike motorcycle jackets which need to be functional on a bike). Too short is too short of course but other than that it's just a different look.

 

[Guppy]

The day before yesterday I received my latest highly anticipated vintage buy. As always I was somewhat worried about the 'fit'. With this one my biggest worry was about the body length being a bit short. Luckily the body length turned out to be pretty much what I would call 'perfect'. However, the overall 'fit' was a bit more generous than how I would normally wear my jackets. It wasn't bad or unwearable, it just felt a bit roomy. To be honest, I was slightly disappointed at first because the fit wasn't 'perfect'.

Later when I was editing the fit pics (my usual setup with the grey brick wall background) I realized it didn't look too big at all. The longer I looked at the pics, the more I actually loved the generous fit. Apparently @Imuricecreamman noticed the generous fit as well...



Which made me wonder...

What makes a good fit, what makes a bad fit, how is a halfbelt supposed to fit, how is a motorcycle jacket supposed to fit, is there such a thing as a perfect fit?

To illustrate, here's four halfbelts ranging from 21.5" ptp to 24" ptp. If any, which one of these would you call a 'perfect' fit? How do you like to wear yours? Are some measurements more important than others (eg sleeve length vs body length)? Looking forward to hearing your thoughts.

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Everything here looks as it should, and I see little room for improvement. Does it feel like a good fit? If not, it probably just needs wear to break it in.

 

[dannyk]

Sizing and fit is so hard because it varies by style and intent. Cross zips fit and look different than half belts which are different than truckers and so on. Then do we want to layer under them or just a tee? Are you using it to ride or as a fashion statement piece? Do you want to in a way look like a 30s or 50s character; or do you want a 30s or 50s style jacket in a modern fit? I get anal about fit myself a lot. Just ask my wife. I’ll ask her how anything looks and she will say honestly and not just to shut me up haha. Oh that looks great, any smaller and it would be too tight. But I get ocd about it and if they don’t fit exactly the way I prefer it bothers me. Even if the rest of the world tells me it looks amazing. So I can relate.

But I’ve been learning to let that go and just enjoy things. I’m not there 100% but I am much less ocd than I used to be. If my wife says I look good I believe her now. I just try and wear things and be happy. Unless they are obviously and significantly too small or too large it’s not a deal breaker anymore.

 

[handymike]

I think they all look great on you!
The beauty of vintage is the variety of designs and fits that evolved over the years. When we get new ones, we risk having all the jackets look alike based on our current feelings of “proper fit”. In 10-20 years we might look back and think “my jackets are all so 2020s.”

 

[morrison2951]

Marc, you've gone 4 for 4 with these jackets.

Nicely done!

 

[zebedee]

They're all perfect fits.

 

[ton312]

Agreed, everything here is exacty as it should be.

 

[red devil]

As long as a jacket sits well on you, you're fine. They all do here

 

[navetsea]

The day before yesterday I received my latest highly anticipated vintage buy. As always I was somewhat worried about the 'fit'. With this one my biggest worry was about the body length being a bit short. Luckily the body length turned out to be pretty much what I would call 'perfect'. However, the overall 'fit' was a bit more generous than how I would normally wear my jackets. It wasn't bad or unwearable, it just felt a bit roomy. To be honest, I was slightly disappointed at first because the fit wasn't 'perfect'.

Later when I was editing the fit pics (my usual setup with the grey brick wall background) I realized it didn't look too big at all. The longer I looked at the pics, the more I actually loved the generous fit. Apparently @Imuricecreamman noticed the generous fit as well...



Which made me wonder...

What makes a good fit, what makes a bad fit, how is a halfbelt supposed to fit, how is a motorcycle jacket supposed to fit, is there such a thing as a perfect fit?

To illustrate, here's four halfbelts ranging from 21.5" ptp to 24" ptp. If any, which one of these would you call a 'perfect' fit? How do you like to wear yours? Are some measurements more important than others (eg sleeve length vs body length)? Looking forward to hearing your thoughts.

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I like the fit of your 2nd jacket best

 

[Bfd70]

It seems to me that sleeve and body length are the most subjective as they pertain more to aesthetic than function. Chest and shoulder determine comfort and functional mobility and I believe are closer to objective.

 

[Canuck Panda]

All four jackets are "your size", but cut differently, design wise. It's nice to see them all in a row. Like saving the green skittles and shoving them down all at once.

This is what the LW Prince (Or has he officially ascend to the King throne?) had to say in another thread I had copied and pasted and saved as a txt file:

For me the most important measurements are the pit to pit and the bottom hem.
I am very V shaped, so i need to know if the jacket will be a bag on me before anything else.

I have 42" chest, 33" waist, i like 22.5" pit to pit, i know from experience that i can wear anything from 21.5" to 24.5" (3" range") without problems.
I then move on to the bottom hem, i know 19.5" side to side is tight, 20.5" is perfect, anything above 21 that isn't belted will look like a bag and have a massive overhang (2" range)' That to me is probably the most important measurement, it's the difference between a good fit and a bag.
I then look at sleeve length, i know that 25.5" sleeve with 19.5" shoulders will work well and give me wrist bone sleeves.
Starting from there i can extrapolate different combinations, if the jacket has wider shoulders i can afford to have shorter sleeves, if the shoulders are narrower i know i need longer sleeves. I have jackets with soulders ranging from 18.5" up to 21" and sleeves from 25" to 27.5".
Back length depends on models, but for motorcycle jackets i go 24.5-25.5, for halfbelts 26.5, for longer coats 28.5 to 30.5
IMO the less important measurement on a leather jacket is shoulder to shoulder.

An important thing to keep in mind is that numbers don't mean everything.
I have bought jackets that had "good numbers" that ended up not fitting, and i have bought jackets with numbers that made no sens whatsoever that ended up a perfect fit.

I will add that the shoulder / nape and bottom sweep / hem are my only two number metrics. If it fits in the shoulder and at the waist, then it's a go. P2P doesn't really matter much to me when those two areas are fitted. If I want to get really anal about the numbers I will throw in the arm hole height (measured from neck down to P2P). Just for entertainment purpose.

Jacket one and four looks like they are the same design but they are not. From two very different times I believe. One is pre war and four is definitely post war. Did I guess correctly?

 

[Damon141]

All look great. Especially since they are spot on in the shoulder seams, sleeve and body length. IMO not every jacket needs to be skin tight.

I love the design of the Mulholland but most of the pictures I see look like it is too tight. Which ruins the cool laid back vibe the jacket has.

I might take some heat for saying this but Style & Fit should be age appropriate. Some would say just wear what you want but I believe you should know your limitations in style based on your look and personality.

Though I ride, I know I’m not going to pull off these cool cross zips MC jackets. I love the Marlon Brando Durable jacket from Bill Kelso and Toys McCoys but it wouldn’t look right on me.

There was a thread asking fit advice for a Freewheelers Centinela and it looked horrible not only in fit but in the wearers style, body type etc. We are all not Jason Momoa after all.

When in doubt just ask a style conscious woman in your life like your wife or girlfriend or partner (it is 2022 after all)
I showed my wife a white deerskin jacket and she asked me if I wanted to look like Prince.

 

[MrProper]

I might take some heat for saying this but Style & Fit should be age appropriate.

What exactly do you mean by age appropriate?

 

[handymike]

I showed my wife a white deerskin jacket and she asked me if I wanted to look like Prince.

Was the ass missing?

 

[red devil]

There was a thread asking fit advice for a Freewheelers Centinela and it looked horrible not only in fit but in the wearers style, body type etc. We are all not Jason Momoa after all.

I do not think that Jason Momoa got a good fit out of his Centinela

When in doubt just ask a style conscious woman in your life like your wife or girlfriend or partner (it is 2022 after all)
I showed my wife a white deerskin jacket and she asked me if I wanted to look like Prince.

If people are comfortable with what they are wearing then they generally pull it off. No need to ask anyone

 

[TREEMAN]

As your leather jacket collection and your experience grows...so now does your wisdom.