Simmons Bilt jacket advice

[handymike]

Yes, I imagine the SB Shinki is slightly different than RMC's and Goodwear and Himel. It is still great stuff though and will wear in nicely. Great choice, from your photo it looked like the best color to me.
Looking forward to seeing pics of your jacket. Measure twice

Oh, Himel visited Shinki tannery recently and made a great post toward the bottom of the page here:
http://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/simmons-bilt-shinki-hikaku-horsehide.88929/page-7

 

[The dogs bollocks]

Loving this thread...I've gone from confused to completely and utterly confused...terrific stuff!


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[Plumbline]

I have a Cafe Racer in Clayton and it's really nice leather ... much softer hand than CXL but no lighter in weight. I am not a big fan of Shinki (had 2 Goodwears in Shinki and handled 2 SB's ... it's really nice but I didn't like the top coat and it just didn't "feel" as nice as others - it has a bit of stretch to it ). The Blattwerk is amazing but I just felt it was too heavy for the Cafe Racer.

There's lots of GREAT leathers out there and much changed since the days where CXL was the leather of choice. I still think my favorite hide is CXL Steer but I am definitely moving towards more medium weight hides .... they're simply more comfortable from the off. I'm also definitely more steered towards ( no pun intended) towards steer, goat and deer as opposed to horse, though I'll see how I get on with the Clayton.

 

[Asaha]

I have a Cafe Racer in Clayton and it's really nice leather ... much softer hand than CXL but no lighter in weight. I am not a big fan of Shinki (had 2 Goodwears in Shinki and handled 2 SB's ... it's really nice but I didn't like the top coat and it just didn't "feel" as nice as others - it has a bit of stretch to it ). The Blattwerk is amazing but I just felt it was too heavy for the Cafe Racer.

There's lots of GREAT leathers out there and much changed since the days where CXL was the leather of choice. I still think my favorite hide is CXL Steer but I am definitely moving towards more medium weight hides .... they're simply more comfortable from the off. I'm also definitely more steered towards ( no pun intended) towards steer, goat and deer as opposed to horse, though I'll see how I get on with the Clayton.

Blattwerk felt softest and lightest from the bunch. It just the color is lil tan-ish for my taste, but i bet it would fell most comfortable. Shinki and italian veg horse has similar feel but Shinki's top coat is shinier..Do you think the color fades over time easily?

 

[Asaha]

Loving this thread...I've gone from confused to completely and utterly confused...terrific stuff!


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I would say, I have gone from confused to educated confused. Which in my book has much value.

 

[Asaha]

I actually received some Clayton Horsehide from SB 2 weeks ago in Burgundy. It's definitely thinner and more pliable than the Horween Sample. The burgundy was really bright, and had a lot of pull-up. I kind of dismissed it because I thought it was too bright of a color for a jacket, at least for me.

I am going to go with the Shinki Chocolate for my jacket, it just stood out to me, it had lot more grain than I thought it would, it has a shinier top coat compared to the rest. It is a tad stiffer than the Clayton which I like.

I will say though that the SB Shinki feels different than the Shinki on a RMC I felt at a local store. The RMC was smoother with less noticeable grain and an almost waxy top coat.

Just from pictures the Shinki sample looks most similar to the "medium brown horse" hide Himel offers. But then again from what I've read Himel and JC gets their Shinki done to their individual specifications.
https://himelbros.com/pages/gallery

Do you mind posting some pic of your shinki jacket if you have gotten it already? Just to see how the jacket looks in that hide.

 

[Carlos840]

I like my jacket to sit on just at my belt line. And with 20" bottom hem, i think it would give me enough room.

Check out this thread:

http://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/my-new-pair-of-aeros.87105/

The Bootlegger is 20"at the bottom hem, 26 back, reaches my belt line (33") and fits me perfectly.

The Hercules was almost the same, but the bottom hem was 21.5" i think. As much as i tried to convince myself i was OK with it, it was a baggy mess, and i never wore it once.
To me the bottom hem is the most important measurement. I would rather have a bit too much room in the chest than in the waist.

Also here is my SHinki J-100 if you want to see some Shinki grain:

http://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/diamond-clothing-buco-j100-review.83051/

 

[Asaha]

Check out this thread:

http://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/my-new-pair-of-aeros.87105/

The Bootlegger is 20"at the bottom hem, 26 back, reaches my belt line (33") and fits me perfectly.

The Hercules was almost the same, but the bottom hem was 21.5" i think. As much as i tried to convince myself i was OK with it, it was a baggy mess, and i never wore it once.
To me the bottom hem is the most important measurement. I would rather have a bit too much room in the chest than in the waist.

Also here is my SHinki J-100 if you want to see some Shinki grain:

http://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/diamond-clothing-buco-j100-review.83051/

Great posts Carlos. Thos jackets fits are perfect. I too have 33" waist and I won a jacket with 20" bottom fit perfect and comfortable to me. I agree Shinki feels great but bit too shiny, how long did it take yours to get that shine reduced?

 

[Carlos840]

Great posts Carlos. Thos jackets fits are perfect. I too have 33" waist and I won a jacket with 20" bottom fit perfect and comfortable to me. I agree Shinki feels great but bit too shiny, how long did it take yours to get that shine reduced?

Thanks.
The shine from this Shinki isn't stock, Dave puts a top coat on it.
It lost a lot of shine in the first couple months, but is still the shiniest jacket i own.
I don't wear it very often, the lining is horrible and i have other jackets i enjoy much more.

 

[Monitor]

Looks like SB works with Shinki now.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/RJL-LTD-BUC...aku-Horsehide-By-Simmons-Bilt-44/112389252357

 

[AllanP]

Do you mind posting some pic of your shinki jacket if you have gotten it already? Just to see how the jacket looks in that hide.

I actually only received the shinki sample yesterday from Debs. But that's what I decided on. I would post a picture of the swatch but I've beaten the hell out of it and sand papered part of it so it might be misleading.

 

[handymike]

So it might be perfect.
Condition half with vassoline and post it up in a few days

 

[BobJ]

Thanks.
The shine from this Shinki isn't stock, Dave puts a top coat on it.
It lost a lot of shine in the first couple months, but is still the shiniest jacket i own.
I don't wear it very often, the lining is horrible and i have other jackets i enjoy much more.

Why is the lining horrible?

BTW, I LIKE those little imperfections you pointed out. To my mind, they make the jacket better. And that leather.... nothing on this forum even comes close. One of the few jackets that tempt me to be envious.

 

[Carlos840]

Why is the lining horrible?

BTW, I LIKE those little imperfections you pointed out. To my mind, they make the jacket better. And that leather.... nothing on this forum even comes close. One of the few jackets that tempt me to be envious.

It's super SUPER thick Rayon, whatever the temperature or the weather it feels like you are wearing a sweat suit whilst standing in a sauna, it is really uncomfortable.
On top of that it is super fragile, every time i wear it the bottom hem frays a bit more and i have to constantly burn lose threads coming off.
In retrospect, I really wish i had received the cotton lining i had asked for, it would make the jacket much more wearable.

I would sell the jacket, but i bought it just before DD lowered his prices quite a lot, and if you add the import taxes, the double shipping, i ended up paying quite a bit more than what they are currently worth.
This means i would really lose money if i sold it. So i'm stuck in a weird "I don't wear it cause it's horrible, but don't want to sell it cause i spent far too much money on it" situation...

 

[Harris HTM]

It's super SUPER thick Rayon, whatever the temperature or the weather it feels like you are wearing a sweat suit whilst standing in a sauna, it is really uncomfortable.
On top of that it is super fragile, every time i wear it the bottom hem frays a bit more and i have to constantly burn lose threads coming off.
In retrospect, I really wish i had received the cotton lining i had asked for, it would make the jacket much more wearable.

I would sell the jacket, but i bought it just before DD lowered his prices quite a lot, and if you add the import taxes, the double shipping, i ended up paying quite a bit more than what they are currently worth.
This means i would really lose money if i sold it. So i'm stuck in a weird "I don't wear it cause it's horrible, but don't want to sell it cause i spent far too much money on it" situation...

Is changing the lining an option? I think you can do it rather easily at a good tailor. Unless the rayon is so thick that putting a simple thin cotton lining will alter the fit.
It is such a pity cause your jacket looks amazing.

 

[Seb Lucas]

Is changing the lining an option? I think you can do it rather easily at a good tailor. Unless the rayon is so thick that putting a simple thin cotton lining will alter the fit.
It is such a pity cause your jacket looks amazing.

Changing a lining requires skill and leather sewing equipment few people have. In Australia it costs around $300 and is generally done badly in my experience.

 

[Asaha]

Yes, I imagine the SB Shinki is slightly different than RMC's and Goodwear and Himel. It is still great stuff though and will wear in nicely. Great choice, from your photo it looked like the best color to me.
Looking forward to seeing pics of your jacket. Measure twice

Oh, Himel visited Shinki tannery recently and made a great post toward the bottom of the page here:
http://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/simmons-bilt-shinki-hikaku-horsehide.88929/page-7

So i have been playing with those leather samples last two days and so far i liked Shinki and Italian veg Steer, however after trying to destroy both, only Italian veg shows some character, but Shinki looks as it was before. Which tells me it's going to be long time before Shinki shows anything on the jacket. But between those two, i like Shinki's color better.

 

[Harris HTM]

Changing a lining requires skill and leather sewing equipment few people have. In Australia it costs around $300 and is generally done badly in my experience.

Oops I had no idea about the cost. Maybe the manufacturer can do it? Still $300 is better than a jacket permanently in the closet I guess.

 

[Grayland]

Changing a lining requires skill and leather sewing equipment few people have. In Australia it costs around $300 and is generally done badly in my experience.

It does take skill (and is probably beyond the average tailor), but it can be done much cheaper here in the US. I had my Aero relined by Shaul at US Authentic for $90 US.

 

[Carlos840]

Asaha, sorry for the slight derail, last post i swear!

As Seb Lucas said, changing a lining can really leave marks if not done by a qualified person.
I don't want to send the jacket back to Dave because my purchase was overall a bad experience and i don't want to deal with him again, it would also be expensive to send the jacket back to the US.
To be honest i am not too bothered, i don't think i would wear it more if it had a better lining.