Vanson Leather - To Patina or Not ?

[Windstorm81]

Hey guys;

So we know that Vanson Leathers are Top Grain. I know that this topics has been beaten to death but from reading all those posts, the impression I got is that Full grain leather patinas well and Top Grain does not.

So how does this apply to Vanson Jackets. I have the Octagon Model B and now a little worried if its going to age as well as an aero or other full grain jackets ?

Any thoughts ? Would love to get your guys' input

thanks

 

[Bunyip]

I've seen some older octagon that looked fantastic. I've also seen some well beaten comp weight that looked great too. I think you should be ok?

 

[jacketjunkie]

This whole top grain vs full grain argument I'll never understand nor do I care to understand but it sounds like "Mercedes or BMW" to me. Whatever the differences are supposed to be, my Vanson Stadium shows the most awesome grain out of ALL my jackets and is the reason I wear it all the time even though the fit is not to my taste at all. I think you do not habe to worry, just wear the damn thing for a few weeks and you'll see for yourself.

 

[TREEMAN]

Glad you brought this up since i'm looking to buy a Vanson. I thought they used full grain......just checked there site and they say top grain is what they use. I'll be interested in what Vanson owners have to say.

 

[TREEMAN]

This whole top grain vs full grain argument I'll never understand nor do I care to understand but it sounds like "Mercedes or BMW" to me. Whatever the differences are supposed to be, my Vanson Stadium shows the most awesome grain out of ALL my jackets and is the reason I wear it all the time even though the fit is not to my taste at all. I think you do not habe to worry, just wear the damn thing for a few weeks and you'll see for yourself.

I'm not sure showing grain is what patina is all about, the grain could have been there all along. At this point in this thread a definition of patina is needed, and also broken-in vs. patina.

 

[Monitor]

So we know that Vanson Leathers are Top Grain. I know that this topics has been beaten to death but from reading all those posts, the impression I got is that Full grain leather patinas well and Top Grain does not.

Tanning and finishing determines how any leather garment will age. You can process both Top and Full grain hide to be equally susceptible or resistant to aging.

So how does this apply to Vanson Jackets. I have the Octagon Model B and now a little worried if its going to age as well as an aero or other full grain jackets ?

These are two very different products you are comparing here. Leather Aero is using has been created with exactly this purpose in mind, to display aging quickly and well - while Vanson is primarily a proper motorcycle gear manufacturer, so aging really isn't all that high up of their priorities list.

However, Vanson jackets age and they age really, really well. But it takes time. Like, years. Decade, possibly. So yeah, your Octagon will age just as well but it will take time & some serious riding in all kinds of foul weather. Bar fights help, too.

Example.

 

[TREEMAN]

That's nice.....How old is it?

 

[Monitor]

25-30 years old. Or so. I think that one had an early, white label. These are tough jackets! During my trip to Manitoba I've worn my Mod. B almost the entire time and I don't think the jacket shows any signs for it.

 

[pawineguy]

Good point about actually defining patina... technically it's more of a darkening, and tends to happen more to veg tanned leathers that start out as lighter colors and then darken with water and sun exposure, not to mention the natural oils from your hands and body. (see Mister Freedom Campus jacket)

For most jackets, when we talk patina, it's more about "does it look really cool once it gets older?", in a more general sense, with graining, color changes, etc... Vanson will yield all of that, and the jackets are strong enough that when you wear them hard to achieve that effect, they are no worse for the wear.

The top jacket that Monitor posted was made in 80 or 81, so it's around 35 years old. Black Vanson jackets tend to show a gray layer underneath once they are well worn, and a fair amount of grain. With the Octagon, that leather is light enough in color that my guess is it will tend to darken a bit and show true "patina", but as Monitor noted, it may take a while as the leather is heavily waxed so it's pretty well protected from oil and water until you really start to break it in well.

 

[kronos77]

If you want to see broken in top grain leather look at Ralph Lauren's Langlitz. That's beyond broken in.

Also, someone on the forum has been, I don't recall who, has been trying to enforce a proper definition of "patina" on different threads. I think he is right to do so, as it does seem to be used improperly where all different types of wear are conflated into the term "patina". If a furum full of leather jacket collectors won't use the term properly, who will? I have a similar issue with the fountain pen community who continually misuse the term blue-black when describing ink.

 

[Monitor]

I always believed that ↓ this ↓ is what people refer to when they talk about patina.

I forgot to mention earlier, the topmost Vanson Enfield I posted belongs to PawineGuy, and these two wonderful brown jackets are owned by TMitchell and Dav, respectively.

 

[TREEMAN]

If you want to see broken in top grain leather look at Ralph Lauren's Langlitz. That's beyond broken in.

Also, someone on the forum has been, I don't recall who, has been trying to enforce a proper definition of "patina" on different threads. I think he is right to do so, as it does seem to be used improperly where all different types of wear are conflated into the term "patina". If a furum fulkl of leather jacket collectors won't use the term properly, who will? I have a similar issue with the fountain pen community who continually misuse the term blue-black when describing ink.

All Langlitz says about there leather is that it is " high quality"...........they don't mention top grain or full grain.......go figure!!

 

[Monitor]

Treeman, I'm pretty sure that nobody here could tell the difference. Not with an absolute certainty. Top or Full grain, there's really no debating that the leather Langlitz is using couldn't possibly be of a higher quality & I'd always take a risk with their ambiguous leather.

 

[TREEMAN]

Treeman, I'm pretty sure that nobody here could tell the difference. Not with an absolute certainty. Top or Full grain, there's really no debating that the leather Langlitz is using couldn't possibly be of a higher quality & I'd always take a risk with their ambiguous leather.

I agree Langlitz's leather is the best available.Which could be full grain ( and prob. is ) and that's why it patinas well. That being said though the OP wants to know about Vanson's top grade leather. It is believed by some that top grain leather does not patina.

 

[Rabbit]

I always believed that ↓ this ↓ is what people refer to when they talk about patina.

So did I. There's a lot of dirt floating in the atmosphere. Patina on leather is atmospheric dirt including industrial micro particles that has settled into the leather, plus the oils from the skin. Maybe discoloration from UV rays, too, like in veg tanned leather.

What we see as grain forming on the jacket is just the break of the top layer. Break is the separation of the top layer from the layers beneath, in small bits on a small scale.

 

[navetsea]

in my opinion really... only veg leather grows patina, the rest either lose color from UVray or wear at contact points, or soiled with dirt & grime.

texture wise, full grain has advantage compared to sanded top grain, because even though as new they tend to look the same probably,

but with time full grain will get its texture back, or even look buffed on wear points and where the leather is frequently stretched so the jacket appear more interesting with some grainy areas, and smooth areas in logical places giving it character since their original grain is intact only pressed and stuffed with oil at the beginning,

sanded topgrain on the other hand will stay flat character less even when they get wet or scuffed, all the small bumps on the original hide is already gone from the start.

 

[Guppy]

Hey guys;

So we know that Vanson Leathers are Top Grain. I know that this topics has been beaten to death but from reading all those posts, the impression I got is that Full grain leather patinas well and Top Grain does not.

So how does this apply to Vanson Jackets. I have the Octagon Model B and now a little worried if its going to age as well as an aero or other full grain jackets ?

Any thoughts ? Would love to get your guys' input

thanks

Just look at pictures of some old Vanson jackets, or better if you can see them in person. Then you'll have your answer.

They age beautifully, by the way.

 

[Manino]

HI Monitor,

Could you post those pics again as they have disapeared from this post I just found and would like to check them out.

cheers,
M

Tanning and finishing determines how any leather garment will age. You can process both Top and Full grain hide to be equally susceptible or resistant to aging.



These are two very different products you are comparing here. Leather Aero is using has been created with exactly this purpose in mind, to display aging quickly and well - while Vanson is primarily a proper motorcycle gear manufacturer, so aging really isn't all that high up of their priorities list.

However, Vanson jackets age and they age really, really well. But it takes time. Like, years. Decade, possibly. So yeah, your Octagon will age just as well but it will take time & some serious riding in all kinds of foul weather. Bar fights help, too.

Example.

 

[Monitor]

HI Monitor,

Could you post those pics again as they have disapeared from this post I just found and would like to check them out.

cheers,
M

Hey; I don't know what the images even were and I was probably wrong in all likelihood anyway.

 

[dudewuttheheck]

I have an old Vanson from the 90s and in some ways, it's aged beautifully. In other ways, I'm not a fan of how it's ages.

Either way, top grain vs. Full grain has nothing to do with it. This is such an annoying, overblown comparison.

The tanning and finishing matters so much more. The grain is beautiful oncmy jacket whether or not it's full grain. What I don't like is how the top coat rubs and peels off in an unsightly way. This is due to the finishing and has nothing to do with top grain or full grain.