Teacore leather jackets - post yours here!

[Furrowson]

Actually, the concept of teacore is fairly old, and can be also referred to as Chashin. This post on Reddit gives a very brief introduction about Chashin, if anybody is interested.

Interesting read, thanks for sharing. Man the tea core/chashin on those Japanese boots is lush.

Eh. “Tea core” in the way the online fanbase of leather jackets uses it is not the same as how the Japanese originally used it to describe a specific core colour that had that tea tone.

They use it to mean leather with a darker topcoat designed to chip away. Which is why it’s now used to market leathers that never went by that description.

What sorts of leathers have that original tea core quality?

I had a black CXLFQHH jacket recently whose top coat wore off way too quickly for my liking. It felt and looked artificial in "ageing" like that. I hear it varies a lot though and see some lovely examples online.

 

[Aloysius]

What sorts of leathers have that original tea core quality?

It was a just a description the Japanese collectors had for vintage jackets with a core that sort of resembles the reddish brown colour of brewed tea.

These terms generally don't make sense outside of their vintage picking context, and some of them are outright broken English that has unfortunately entered the western workwear community as though they're real terms (and they'll fight you for saying they're not lol).

For example, single breasted leather jacket becomes "single rider" and double breasted leather jacket becomes "double rider", regardless of style or anything to do with riding. To be clear, I don't blame them for having their own Engrish terms, plus "singaraida" and "dabaraida" are much easier for a Japanese speaker to pronounce. What's weird is when these then get taken up by westerners!

 

[Furrowson]

It was a just a description the Japanese collectors had for vintage jackets with a core that sort of resembles the reddish brown colour of brewed tea.

These terms generally don't make sense outside of their vintage picking context, and some of them are outright broken English that has unfortunately entered the western workwear community as though they're real terms (and they'll fight you for saying they're not lol).

For example, single breasted leather jacket becomes "single rider" and double breasted leather jacket becomes "double rider", regardless of style or anything to do with riding. To be clear, I don't blame them for having their own Engrish terms, plus "singaraida" and "dabaraida" are much easier for a Japanese speaker to pronounce. What's weird is when these then get taken up by westerners!

Ah okay, gotcha. Thanks for clarifying.
Yeah that makes sense. Okay 'tea core' round these parts means what I thought it did. The etymological back and forth is quite funny I think, just silly when people get pedantic over it.

Different point, I think I fancy black jerky for a """"tea core"""" jacket, but I'm struggling to find well worn examples. Some great pics of seal showing that base layer but hardly any of black. Anyone please point me in the right direction?

 

[Aloysius]

Different point, I think I fancy black jerky for a """"tea core"""" jacket, but I'm struggling to find well worn examples. Some great seal examples but where's the black?

The black should look pretty similar except being black as the top coat. I really love the jerky horse. It feels very much like a real 30s-50s vintage horsehide, except new.

 

[Canuck Panda]

Tea core? Tea base?

To me, tea core wears grey first and then brown and then grey again. Tea base wears brown no grey. Modern black through wears grey no brown.

I also seen very few actual tea core on the market right now, mostly tea base, so it's brown / veg tan on the reverse (flesh) side. Teacore, to me, is still drum dyed like modern black through, but not quite through so there is a sliver of veg section in the middle, or it's dyed by hand from both sides which is too labor intensive and not cost effective, but achievable in a home setting. Top finish can be aniline or pigment depending on what is the purpose, naked or finished. But it would fade grey first like black through before it gets brown, and then grey again if really worn down.

As with all finishes, it's still up to one's personal preference. Whatever you prefer best would be best.

 

[Furrowson]

The black should look pretty similar except being black as the top coat. I really love the jerky horse. It feels very much like a real 30s-50s vintage horsehide, except new.

I'm sure you're right.

i guess I wonder how it looks with the higher contrast against black. I've seen some wear spots on zippers and cuffs that look... abrupt. Like it's just black and then sort of beige.

.Glad to hear you're a fan. I love the look from what I see and since I'm planning an Aeromarine the real vintage feel is nice too. Although I think a 1920s jacket would have been veg tanned.

Regardless, it's nice and doesn't cost extra.

 

[Aloysius]

Although I think a 1920s jacket would have been veg tanned.

Almost certainly not.

 

[Furrowson]

Tea core? Tea base?

View attachment 598961

To me, tea core wears grey first and then brown and then grey again. Tea base wears brown no grey. Modern black through wears grey no brown.

I also seen very few actual tea core on the market right now, mostly tea base, so it's brown / veg tan on the reverse (flesh) side. Teacore, to me, is still drum dyed like modern black through, but not quite through so there is a sliver of veg section in the middle, or it's dyed by hand from both sides which is too labor intensive and not cost effective, but achievable in a home setting. Top finish can be aniline or pigment depending on what is the purpose, naked or finished. But it would fade grey first like black through before it gets brown, and then grey again if really worn down.

View attachment 598963

As with all finishes, it's still up to one's personal preference. Whatever you prefer best would be best.

I see what you mean. Do you think modern leathers tend to be dyed all the way through when they're drum dyed so you don't see the tea core you're referring to?

 

[Canuck Panda]

I see what you mean. Do you think modern leathers tend to be dyed all the way through when they're drum dyed so you don't see the tea core you're referring to?

Yeah a lot of the modern leather I get are dyed in the drums, makes a more consistent product. They can be either wet blue (chrome) or wet white (chestnut) before the drum dyeing.

I do have a theory of the teacore in the old days. I don't have proof just a theory. That production was mostly rushed during war years, that's why some leather weren't dyed all the way through to the center, making it teacore or bluecore. Drum dyeing has been around for a long time, it just went from wooden barrels which some are still being used to metal barrels now. Surface dyeing (spray booth) is actually more of a modern thing imo, to achieve certain surface aesthetics, the core or base can be any color depending on the designer specs. For example one can have a blue dyed through (drum) leather with a black top surface spray dye. So as the the black wears it becomes grey first as the black gets thinned out, then shows the blue base underneath. So many possibilities. Up to the designer really.

 

[Fonzie]

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View attachment 599134 View attachment 599135

That looks absolutely gross.
Seeing those pictures before wearing a leather jacket is akin to doing a stopover into an abattoir on your way to your favourite steakhouse.

 

[Aloysius]

Looks pretty clean to me.

 

[zebedee]

I've been wearing the hell out of my Plainsman in black jerky. I thought it would go russet-y as it wore through, but it's more a sandy base when the black dye gets worn off and impacted into it. I'll post some pictures later - I'm looking forward to its development.

 

[Fonzie]

Looks pretty clean to me.

Those blue cakes of dripping wet skins look gross to me.

 

[Furrowson]

I've been wearing the hell out of my Plainsman in black jerky. I thought it would go russet-y as it wore through, but it's more a sandy base when the black dye gets worn off and impacted into it. I'll post some pictures later - I'm looking forward to its development.

Oh yes pics please when you have time!

Aero's description says they started using a darker base layer more recently. Maybe that's for the brown jackets.

How do you like your plainsman?

 

[Canuck Panda]

Black jerky is an under rated hide in Aero's offering. I have had the Indian Ranger in both jerky and vicenza and I do prefer the jerky for that jacket, except I have the vicenza jacket because of sizing, and at some point in the future I would probably trade it up for a jerky one again.

Jerky hide used to be no up charge, and now they're £50 upcharge for the grainy ones, which I thought is fair, compared to the £75 for the Vicenza.

I have read through many threads about Jerky vs Vicenza here, and some would say one is stiffer than another and vice versa. Which was confusing to me at the time. FWIW, I have had two jerky jacket/vest, and both drapes on the softer side. In comparison, I have had more than a handful of Vicenza jackets, and the variation is wide on them, from thin stiff to medium weight soft to thick and stiff, it really varies a lot from jacket to jacket and batch to batch.

It's also quite confusing as I've seen jerky here that fades very fast, but mine doesn't, not as fast as my vicenza. It would be most beneficial to get a cut of sample of the hide they would use for your jacket just to see.

 

[zebedee]

Oh yes pics please when you have time!

Aero's description says they started using a darker base layer more recently. Maybe that's for the brown jackets.

How do you like your plainsman?

Hello,

I'll get these up when there's some good lighting. The base layer is russet and wears down to a beige/brown. The Plainsman itself is a really cool pattern which goes with anything. Jerky is a great hide with good drape and softness, although it's as durable as any of the other medium HH offerings. It is going to wear down and patina far more dramatically than Vicenza blackened brown (I have a Café Racer in it); I'd advise to go with that hide if in doubt, as it's 'safer' and isn't going to age as drastically. Jerky seems to be in the top rank of 'ages-so-it-looks-WWII-vintage' leathers.

 

[zebedee]

As you can see, you'll either love it or hate it. This is just a few months old.

 

[Bfd70]

Tea core is my new least favorite term

 

[regius]

That looks absolutely gross.
Seeing those pictures before wearing a leather jacket is akin to doing a stopover into an abattoir on your way to your favourite steakhouse.

I invite you to a traditional veg tanning tannery and experience the aroma

 

[navetsea]

I suspect the "tea core" effect on older jacket is the result of bone yellow or grey core from hasten drum dyeing like Canuck said, and then with exposure, than faded part become brown from oil exhaust or dirt and grime and oxidation and UV tanning or combination of all those, who dyed leather tan and then overdye it with black in the old days??, people in the old days don't like faded leather, they just come to accept it while waiting until they can afford to buy new jacket, the same with jeans, nobody like dirty faded jeans in old days, people just come to accept it as workwear and replace it from time to time, only since the 80's people started to get creative with bleach and pre faded denim, and only recently "tea core" is a thing to pursue in leather as the equivalent of sick fades on leather like it's on raw denim.