Vintage tux help

[thunderw21]

I found a vintage tux jacket and vest today for $35 that fit me quite well. I'd like to buy them but unfortunately the jacket has two moth holes in the back. I don't plan on wearing it anywhere but if I did I wouldn't want those nips showing. Is there any way to repair moth holes so they aren't visible?

I spotted another 1911-dated tux jacket and vest for a bit more (they too fit me well) but it also has a single moth nip in the back. Everything else is perfect. :rage:

Also, how difficult is it to find tux trousers?

Thanks for the help,
Billy

 

[Tomasso]

Is there any way to repair moth holes so they aren't visible?

A quality reweaver will have little trouble repairing the holes but it will likely cost more than the coat.

Also, how difficult is it to find tux trousers?

It is virtually impossible to find matching trousers for any orphaned jacket.[huh]

 

[slicedbread]

If it's a tux with tails, isn't it customary to wear striped trousers with it anyways?

 

[Orgetorix]

If it's a tux with tails, isn't it customary to wear striped trousers with it anyways?

No, an evening tailcoat should have matching trousers with a double silk stripe, or "braid," down the outside leg seam, like this:

Sometimes people confuse the evening tailcoat with a morning coat, which is the formal daytime equivalent. That is worn with striped, (or, less commonly, checked) trousers.

 

[Marc Chevalier]

I found a vintage tux jacket and vest today for $35 that fit me quite well. ... I don't plan on wearing it anywhere.

So, what do you plan to do with it? Put it in a frame? Use it as a tablecloth? [huh]

.

 

[Fletch]

A quality reweaver will have little trouble repairing the holes but it will likely cost more than the coat.

I'd go for the second coat myself. One nip might cost $30-40 to reweave, but he's still only in for $100.

I would however be concerned that a nearly century-old tux might be ready to shred its lining.

It is virtually impossible to find matching trousers for any orphaned jacket.[huh]

Black formals may be the one exception. Especially barathea (that heavy soft finish serge of the 40s and before) and lightweight oxford weaves of later on. I've managed it more than once.

 

[thunderw21]

Thanks for the replies thus far, they have been enlightening. The 1911 tux is nice, but as was said trousers would be difficult to find, especially for one from the turn of the century. I don't know the age of the one I'm looking at buying, perhaps from the 1930s or 40s.

As for wearing it, I don't have any specific reason to though I'm sure an event will come that I will. It's just something you don't wear everyday, especially when you are still in college. Still, it'd be a nice piece to begin collecting vintage suits with.
More comments welcomed!

 

[thunderw21]

Here is the jacket and vest, I picked them up today for $30. They fit me somewhat well, maybe a bit short on the waist but not bad. The jacket is wool, lapels are grosgrain. The vest is not wool, it's some kind of smooth shiny material. The color is black. There are no tags anywhere so I don't know maker or date, I'm guessing 1920s-1930s. The jacket has two very small holes in the back but they are nearly invisible and will eventually be fixed. I'm still on the lookout for trousers.
Pictures:

Billy