(The Real) CiDu Leather

[jay_cali]

A Japanese Cidu reseller offers a Mulholland knockoff for $500. Probably can be found for $200 on Taobao.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/Mulholland...2349624.m46890.l49286&mkrid=711-127632-2357-0

I did Buy the horsehide Mulholland clone a while back.
https://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/chinese-horsehide-mulholland-clone.102795/#post-2755371

 

[unhatted]

I posted about a recent Cidu purchase on Chinese leather jackets

A benefit of buying from YR on AliExpress is that they offer free local returns (at least in U.K.) and sure enough I managed to return and buy a size down.

Size S feels like a 36 chest or roomy XS so I suspect size differences are less pronounced at the bottom end. I wanted to try the rather nice looking Simons Mulholland clone but the size S is more like 38 chest so it’s not an option for a small framed person such as myself!

Curphey also make one in this particular pattern, so not sure if it’s got origins somewhere else or is a shared original design.

 

[photo2u]

That is the green sheep version. But that’s a color corrected photo you have there. The real color is more Olive than BRG. There’s some weight to it but it is not like the Lewis sheepskin. There’s no crumple grain on the Cidu. I am going to guess that they shrunk lamb skin to get to this sheepskin. It uses an oversized 11 main zip. Again there’s smell from the compressed packaging.

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I’m pretty sure it’s Latigo. But customer service never confirmed.

For CXL, Aero is the unbeatable reigning champion. I looked around. But they pretty much have the Horween FQHH market cornered.

I haven’t had one real heavyweight (4.5oz or thicker) from any of the Chinese brands yet. Most of them advertise 1.4-1.6mm which is 3.5 to 4.5oz. But it’s more 3.5 / 4 oz for 90% of the jacket.
From reading through Taobao’s consumer feedbacks I don’t think heavyweight leather or grainy (scrotum) leather is a thing in China. They don’t see them as premium features. Lots of complains from too heavy too stiff too rustic. Different market different wants.
Cidu and others like Simons offers very good values for jackets that are in the ¥1,000 to ¥1,500 range ($150-$230). I can’t see the added value for the Horween name (almost double in price) when their standard leather is already same veg tan same thickness cowhide, just no Horween name.

Beautiful jacket. The stitch work is excellent.

 

[Leigh H]

I rolled the dice last year and purchased a jacket from @reb_bel on IG. My purchase was based entirely on the photos and description that Reb_bel had posted. After I dm'd them for the price ($480.00) I was prompted through the purchasing process by Andre. I was advised to order up one size (normally a medium) since this jacket was "Asian Sized". I referred to their sizing chart and concurred. They sent an invoice via PayPal and I (holding my breath) sent the funds.

Much to my delight the jacket arrived nicely packaged and properly folded, ensuring there were no creases in the leather. The quality was impressive (comparing it to RЯL jackets that I have). The hardware was superb and the pattern symmetry was spot on (big pet peeve is non-matched/non-symmetrical patterns). The leather was very robust (has taken some time to break in) and the fit was just right (as per a previous post the arms were a bit tight, but the leather stretches nicely).

I took quick note of the care tag (Italian leather) and noticed the Cidu label. Never heard of them and found very little on the internet...

Until now! Thank you for the informative post(s). I guess I'm one of the lucky ones that didn't have the chemical odor issue or compressed packaging. I plan on ordering another jacket this week and I will post a quick review. I've included photos of the Cidu purchased last year (first two photos) and the jacket (Cidu?) that I am ordering (the sleeve enclosures and hardware look the same as my jacket).

I may get burned this time ($580.00) but if it is as nice as my first purchase I will be very happy (and I will have spent a fraction of the Double RL price). Don't get me wrong - I love my RЯL, but if I can find a similar style at a significant cost savings - with the same or better quality - I'll do it all day long.

By the way, I am circa1893 on IG if anyone wants to see more pics of this jacket.
View attachment 386584 View attachment 386585 View attachment 386586 View attachment 386587 View attachment 386588

I’d avoid buying from @reb_bel he’s just a middle man buying directly from Taobao and then doubling the price. I bought the same jacket from directly from Cidu’s Taobao account for $163.

 

[afistfuloffaith]

View attachment 372809
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The Bad:
SMELLS BAD! I retract my last comments about Cidu being on par with Schott fashion or Golden Bear jackets. The construction is on par but smell is bad. I know they will air out. But it will be a while before I can actually wear these jackets where as my mall bought jackets is ready to wear on day one. Time cost money.
Sizing inconsistency - These two jackets are exactly the same tag size and design, but the Canvas one is an inch shorter in the sleeves and back length. The quality issue actually worked in my advantage to get a feel on different back and sleeve length. Silver lining.
The good:
Value, sort of. I've never had a Peter's aviator type back design. Now I know exactly how I would want it in my proper repro. I will only keep the canvas Cidu and the leather Cidu will be upgraded. I spent total under $400 on both these Peter's back jackets. Instead of botching up an expensive $1200 repro, my "fit" process cost $200, and I know for sure I will end up with a perfect repro at 1200 dollars.
I know I sound crazy. I will end up spending another 1200 dollars copying (and tweaking) a 200 dollars jacket that copied a 2000 dollars Japanese repro that copied the original vintage. The math works out for me. I would never spend the kind of money for the Japanese repro, but I would pay the price for an Aero (or equivalent). But my Aero (or equivalent) don't always work out as planned. This is how I will resolve that problem.
To me, this is the advantage of the Cidu or Simons jackets. They are very quick and good at getting different designs out to the market. The construction is good. The leather not so great. There is no way I can find a used FW for 200 dollars, let alone a real vintage Peters for even ten times more.

im planning on buying the firtst one (the black/brown),
any size/fit advice?
im a 5´5(1.68 meters) and 143 pounds(65kgs) guy,
i usually wear "small" in american {levis and wrangler denim jackets} size but the sleeves and body are always like 3 to 6 cms larger in those brands.
and XS and S(for slim fit versions) in LEE jean shirts.
im trying to have the fit that you have.

 

[Canuck Panda]

im planning on buying the firtst one (the black/brown),
any size/fit advice?
im a 5´5(1.68 meters) and 143 pounds(65kgs) guy,
i usually wear "small" in american {levis and wrangler denim jackets} size but the sleeves and body are always like 3 to 6 cms larger in those brands.
and XS and S(for slim fit versions) in LEE jean shirts.
im trying to have the fit that you have.

I don't know about sizing sorry, you gotta check with the seller.

But I will say this now, after some time has passed. SAVE UP and swing for a jacket in the $500 to $800 range. Remember that two budget jacket that gets trashed is one premium keeper jacket using brand name tannery leather. I wish I would listen and understand this concept a year ago.

 

[afistfuloffaith]

I don't know about sizing sorry, you gotta check with the seller.

But I will say this now, after some time has passed. SAVE UP and swing for a jacket in the $500 to $800 range. Remember that two budget jacket that gets trashed is one premium keeper jacket using brand name tannery leather. I wish I would listen and understand this concept a year ago.

did those jackets lasted short? :0

 

[Canuck Panda]

did those jackets lasted short? :0

The biggest difference is in the leather, or the material. There isn't a lot said about the material of the budget jackets. So there are always questions on the back of my mind about the material they used. The Taobao jackets are surprisingly well put together, stitch wise. If they were made with branded tannery leather they probably would cost a lot more, but would also be keepers. It's really a double edge sword.
It's kind of like Flame Panda boots or Grant Stone boots. Their choice to use well known material, and just put their craftsmanship on top of that. By doing so makes their prices higher, but boosts consumer confidence.
I wish there was a more scientific way of judging material other than the brand name trusts. But for a regular consumer like me, as open minded as I can be, I am still blinded when it comes to the unknown material.

 

[Blackadder]

im planning on buying the firtst one (the black/brown),
any size/fit advice?
im a 5´5(1.68 meters) and 143 pounds(65kgs) guy,
i usually wear "small" in american {levis and wrangler denim jackets} size but the sleeves and body are always like 3 to 6 cms larger in those brands.
and XS and S(for slim fit versions) in LEE jean shirts.
im trying to have the fit that you have.

It helps to go by more specific measurement like chest, shoulder, sleeve in stead of just weight and height. The sellers usually list those measurement.
e.g. Cidu listed the measurement of the black/brown one you are looking to buy
Shoulder/Chest/Sleeve length/Sleeve width/Back length

 

[jay_cali]

Cidu J100.

 

[bootsonatrain]

Happy with the Navajo blanket jacket.

 

[DamonCyclee]

These jackets are good for the money. But they are not excellent jackets. Be aware.

I mentioned transparency problem. Most of the jacket will be advertised with key words like veg tan, dyed through, aniline finish. BUT that's only part of the truth and not the whole truth.

I suspect most of the products start off with chrome tanning and are veg finished to get the brown core. But there isn't a lot of descriptions so these are my best guesses when I am looking at the products.

Also every jacket I have to date all came in with a smell. I think they spray it with some anti-fungal spray before it goes into the plastic bag. This is very popular practice with oversea manufacturers. But this is my biggest problem with them too.

I will try white vinegar spray to see if they can neutralize the smell.

don't want to necro this, but i had similar experience, does white vinegar spray get rid of the smell?

 

[Edward]

Is this Cidu?
If so, where do I find this green sheep version?
View attachment 370340

Coming in late again, I know, but interested in this stuff. I've been seeing some nice Cidu-branded goods advertised here and there; if I could find a store in downtown Beijing where I could actually look at this stuff in person, I'd love to see them. I've long been of the opinion (based on direct experience of various items I've bought and/or handled out there) that China can make pretty much anything equivalent to the West - the issue, of course, is that the West is only interested for the most part in buying down to a price point, so we don't generally get to see the best stuff here. A while back, a Chinese business was set up doing small-team, handbuilt electric guitars to a very nice standard and spec, able to bring the price in at around 35% of what the equivalent would cost built in the UK or USA. Inevitably, of course, the chorus from the online forums ran the gamut of stereotypes. Those who had tried one spoke highly of them, while many who hadn't even glanced at one howled back with all sorts of predicatable comments, from ignorance through to borderline to even open racism in some instances. China in this regard is very much where Japan was within living memory. I imagine we'll see in due course whether Chinese goods can rise up in perception the way Japanese production has. For now at least the "China makes cheap rubbish" stereotype is a definite stigma that will be a challenge to overcome. As long as the Japanese brands remain aspirational styles beyond the pocket of many of us, however, I rather suspect that niche Chinese brands could find a foothold in the West - providing they cater to larger sizes, which is my own gripe. I've admired a number of bits I've seen from Bob Dong, Bronson, and Cidu but I know from the size charts it could come down to a matter of cut whether the top end of the size range would fit me. 'Affordable' as they are, they're still all a cost I can't afford to lose should I gamble and find that their XXL really is too small for me and I need the XXXL they don't do.... Of course, to be entirely fair this is also true of many of the Japanese brands., if less frustrating with those are the retail price knocks me out of their market long before I would even consider sizing.

This green one is interesting - clearly Wrangler influenced. I'd be keen on a textile version of that - Wrangler's own rereleases of their denim originals these days are all messed about with the design - buttoned, not zipped like the original, extra length on the body, slimmed sleeves.... just enough to, in my eye, throw off the look of the design.

My quick contribution:

I ordered a Cidu jacket on AliExpress that was supposed to look like this: A waxed canvas / leather Type 2 jacket.

Instead, I got this: A waxed canvas / leather shawl style (cossack?) jacket.

Not what I wanted at all, so it'll be going back and I'll try to order again and get the correct jacket. But this screw up isn't on Cidu, it's on the sketchy AliExpress seller I chose to do business with.

Jacket pros:

Canvas material is very nice. Waxy and stiff with break-in potential, but no so waxy it feels like you're getting residue all over you. No strong smell at all.

Cuffs have two buttons for adjustable sizing - allowed me to get a better fit. In the same vein, chest side are had a cinch that allowed me to tighten the sizing a bit. Overall, looked pretty good.

Jacket cons:

Leather doesn't look very good. A friend thought it was faux leather at first. My weird lighting doesn't help, but it definitely looks a bit odd.

Huge neckhole. Was pretty sure this was going to happen seeing that it's a consistent occurrence in all Cidu jackets.

Overall, I think this will be a solid quality, unique looking jacket. The neckhole isn't a dealbreaker, and I think I could probably reduce some of the leather's appearance with some product. Going to return it and go for round two with a more reputable seller.

This does seem to be a common enough issue with resellers based in China. It happened me with a Bronson cap last year on Aliexpress; what I received was a cap of a vaguely similar (emphasis on the vague) design, not-sized but multi-size/adjustable, and not of the same quality. I think there's an element of "well, it's close enough, at this price point you can't be that fussy, you're too far away for a return to be practical" in the sales psychology - though in that instance I did get most of my money (all bar the return shipping) refunded by the Aliexpress dispute resolution system. (Ironically, the only other time I had to use that was also for a Bronson cap, from another seller - right cap, a size too small. In that case, Aliexpress' people ordered I be given a full refund *and* said I could keep it....)

All done and said, there are really very decent quality products coming from some of these companies, if there was a reliable supplier. I wouldn't see them as an alternative for the stuff I'm happy to go the extra cost for, but for things in a stylistic vein I couldn't otherwise hope to afford, or the kind of kicking about round the house clothes I can't bring myself to spend very big money on (jeans especially), ideal.

I hated the neck hole on mine. Which was a shame since all other dimensions were almost perfect. Very close to the original. Most of the (Japanese) repro makers make the body way too long nowadays.

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Really doesn't look that big to me - not disproportionately so. Could it be that it being leather it sits differently than the normal denim in this style gives it a different feel? It does look to me like a regular shirt collar (rather than a t-shirt) would readily fill up that space visually.

The long body thing is a curse - it's a major reason I didn't buy one of the Wrangler 'Icon' jackets when they last did those (the other clincher being they went with a modern style stud-button fastening rather than a zip like the 50s original). I suppose it's intended to balance out the fact that so many jeans now are cut with the "waist"band a good four inches or more below the natural waist, but all that it does is throw the whole proportion off balance and look weird imo. So many Type IIIs in particular I've seen in recent years are cut as long as a chore jacket....

The neck hole is annoying, but I have found that just wearing something else with a collar makes it look much more normal. I didn't wear it extensively since my return was approved, but today I tried it on with a collared shirt and the gap area looked much more bearable because the shirt collar was taking up most of the space, instead of the tiny, low collar of a t-shirt.

I think that's the trick. Let's not forget when the jackets that inspired this style were originally designed, a t-shirt was still underwear, and it was probably assumed there'd be a collared shirt on underneath.

 

[Edward]

View attachment 372809
View attachment 372810
The Bad:
SMELLS BAD! I retract my last comments about Cidu being on par with Schott fashion or Golden Bear jackets. The construction is on par but smell is bad. I know they will air out. But it will be a while before I can actually wear these jackets where as my mall bought jackets is ready to wear on day one. Time cost money.
Sizing inconsistency - These two jackets are exactly the same tag size and design, but the Canvas one is an inch shorter in the sleeves and back length. The quality issue actually worked in my advantage to get a feel on different back and sleeve length. Silver lining.
The good:
Value, sort of. I've never had a Peter's aviator type back design. Now I know exactly how I would want it in my proper repro. I will only keep the canvas Cidu and the leather Cidu will be upgraded. I spent total under $400 on both these Peter's back jackets. Instead of botching up an expensive $1200 repro, my "fit" process cost $200, and I know for sure I will end up with a perfect repro at 1200 dollars.
I know I sound crazy. I will end up spending another 1200 dollars copying (and tweaking) a 200 dollars jacket that copied a 2000 dollars Japanese repro that copied the original vintage. The math works out for me. I would never spend the kind of money for the Japanese repro, but I would pay the price for an Aero (or equivalent). But my Aero (or equivalent) don't always work out as planned. This is how I will resolve that problem.
To me, this is the advantage of the Cidu or Simons jackets. They are very quick and good at getting different designs out to the market. The construction is good. The leather not so great. There is no way I can find a used FW for 200 dollars, let alone a real vintage Peters for even ten times more.

These are interesting. Particularly the canvas; I don't see me in Camo, but in a khaki-tan or even maybe an olive green I could see this being a cracking alternative to leather for those May-September days that are a bit more bearable, when the beastly heat eases off a bit and I can stand to go outside voluntarily, but it's still too hot for leather....

FWIW, my experience on what I've handled at this sort of price point in China does seem to jive very much with yours - the leather isn't always great, as that's where corners can be cut, but the textile stuff can be excellent for the money.

 

[Leigh H]

I purchased a Cidu jacket a couple of years ago, lured by the cheap prices on Taobao. It didn’t last long in my wardrobe and I soon sold it on.

Not only does it smell weird which is mentioned a lot in here. But something else which isn’t really mentioned, it felt awful to wear.

The leather feels cheap, it’s stiff as a board and it just wasn’t comfortable to wear. It may look great in photos but it sure as hell doesn’t feel good to wear and i knew deep down I was wearing cheap rubbish.

Do yourself a favour, use the same amount of money on a decent vintage jacket or save the extra to buy something much better.

 

[DamonCyclee]

I purchased a Cidu jacket a couple of years ago, lured by the cheap prices on Taobao. It didn’t last long in my wardrobe and I soon sold it on.

Not only does it smell weird which is mentioned a lot in here. But something else which isn’t really mentioned, it felt awful to wear.

The leather feels cheap, it’s stiff as a board and it just wasn’t comfortable to wear. It may look great in photos but it sure as hell doesn’t feel good to wear and i knew deep down I was wearing cheap rubbish.

Do yourself a favour, use the same amount of money on a decent vintage jacket or save the extra to buy something much better.

I mostly agree, but i had 2 pieces that are legit pretty good. Specially with horween and pittards leather out of uk.

I wouldn't buy anything sub $220, (1400 rmb), those are usually local leathers. You can sort cidu by price and sale volume to see what is what.

They recently had Mulholland on horween black dublin for 3500rmb(can go lower to 3000 during tb events). They also currently have badlassai carlo leather on mr.freedom style ranch jacket. I use tb reship service $7 per kg, no tax or duty.

 

[handymike]

If the measurements work for you, and it is in a better hide for a bargain price, I’d say go for it. Mine fit me well, but I didn't like the leather (although I got it to look damn nice).

 

[Canuck Panda]

don't want to necro this, but i had similar experience, does white vinegar spray get rid of the smell?

Everything airs out, it just takes a bit of time.

I think the smell actually comes from the preservative spray they would use when they keep these jackets in storage to avoid mold in humid weather. I also buy some more expensive jackets from different stores in Japan and some too have the similar anti fungal type of smell. No vinegar needed, just air and time.

 

[Will Zach]

If the measurements work for you, and it is in a better hide for a bargain price, I’d say go for it. Mine fit me well, but I didn't like the leather (although I got it to look damn nice).

Yes you did, I remember, you stripped your Cidu and re-dyed it.

 

[DamonCyclee]

Everything airs out, it just takes a bit of time.

I think the smell actually comes from the preservative spray they would use when they keep these jackets in storage to avoid mold in humid weather. I also buy some more expensive jackets from different stores in Japan and some too have the similar anti fungal type of smell. No vinegar needed, just air and time.

Thanks for the tip. Yea, it really depends on how long these guys plan to carry/store the inventory, the horween jacket i got, they had it forever, and 100% certain it had preservative spray, it smells horrible.

While the A2 i got from Cidu smelled like heaven, probably my fav piece from them.

For those who want to grab a Cidu, try to get one of their new jackets (by sorting New on taobao)make sure it's from a renowned tannery, it wont smell bad!