Wested Horsehide details? Weight/tanning/etc.

[bluesmandan]

Does anyone here know some details about Wested horsehide? I’d like to know its weight and what kind of tanning process is used, who makes it (the tannery), and any other pieces of info that might be useful.

I sent Wested an email but didn’t get a response so I’m hoping to get the info here. (I do own a Wested horsehide jacket in size 40 Short, and it weighs 4 pounds, but I don’t know exactly what that means for the oz rating of the leather.)


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[Jägernaut]

I've only read talk of wested on styleforum.net.

 

[Seb Lucas]

Wested comes up here as a budget alternative from time to time. Maybe the folk at Club Obi Wan can tell you - it is devoted to Indy Jones jackets. This site was created by MK a long term Club Obi Wan sage and Indy Jones fan. Over the years Wested has used a range of horse hides - they tend to describe it as 'clothing grade' I'm fairly sure it's 2.2 to 2.5 oz. Wested use a lot of Italian hides but they don't always say where hides a sourced from.

 

[Doctor Damage]

Does anyone here know some details about Wested horsehide? I’d like to know its weight and what kind of tanning process is used, who makes it (the tannery), and any other pieces of info that might be useful.

Why would knowing those things be useful? Most companies, especially small ones, consider those sorts of questions an indication that they're talking to someone who will ask a thousand questions but never actually buy anything. I wouldn't expect a response, but maybe they've pulled their team off the production line and sales to carefully comb through their records to find the answers you need. Be patient!

 

[bluesmandan]

Why would knowing those things be useful? Most companies, especially small ones, consider those sorts of questions an indication that they're talking to someone who will ask a thousand questions but never actually buy anything. I wouldn't expect a response, but maybe they've pulled their team off the production line and sales to carefully comb through their records to find the answers you need. Be patient!

It’s useful for comparison to other potential weights, tanning, etc. Apples to apples. Also different tanning processes can affect the kind of care/maintenance the leather requires.

And they know I already purchased a jacket from them. And it’s been a month or two so i doubt patience will answer my questions.


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[navetsea]

just try with a drop of water, get absorbed immediately or almost immediately, then condition it every now and then with leather conditioner, don't wear it in the rain, careful with ballpoint ink, wet paint, ketchup, wine, etc.
water beads eternally, then it doesn't need much treatment.

 

[Seb Lucas]

Based on the many Wested horse jackets I've seen on COW - it is likely to be chrome tanned, 2.2 oz and won't need any care for about 10 years. Just wear it. Rain, sun or snow will make no difference to it. Some people have a superstitious, almost ritualistic attachment to dressing. Pecards especially. If it makes you feel better you can give it a LIGHT coat of this or Lexol every two years at the end of winter. Won't really need it but won't do any harm.

 

[Brettafett]

I popped into the factory near the end of last year... Nice folks... Indy jackets maybe, but stay away from A-2s...

 

[Doctor Strange]

I've never put any dressing of any kind on any leather jacket in forty-plus years of wearing them. While I don't doubt that there are dried-out old jackets than benefit from it, and changing the shade or surface texture of the hide is desirable in some cases... the extent to which I've seen it done on these forums strikes me as odd, fetishistic behavior. But hey, whatever floats your boat.

My only experience with Wested's hides are the dark brown lambskin on my vintage-2003 Raiders jacket, and black lambskin on the blouson I gave my son a couple of years ago. So I am curious how their goatskin, cowhide, and horsehide stack up against that of other low- and mid-range jacket makers. Nobody expects their leather to be in the same league as jackets costing two and three times as much, but as we all know, there can be A LOT of quality variation at lower price points. (I once gave away a US Wings Indy jacket I got on sale partly because it didn't fit me well, but also because its goatskin felt plasticky and crude compared to that of my G&B jackets.)

Anyway, I plan to take advantage of Wested's very reasonable custom-sizing again some time and have wondered what their other hides are like. Their leather guide is nice, but not very detailed.

http://wested.com/ekmps/shops/f0cb47/resources/Other/leather-guide.pdf

 

[bluesmandan]

According to Tandy leather 3 oz. leather is 3/64” thick. That’s what I measure my Wested to be... here’s a pic of the exposed raw edge under the pocket flap and then of the leather doubled over so there is 4 layers, and compressed... i measure 3/16”... 3/16 divided by 4 is 3/64.... I’ve never tried to figure the oz weight of leather before...

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[Edward]

No direct experience with their horse. Do have an Indy in their goat, and it's very nice. noticeably lighter than Aero's goat, which made for an ideal Summer leather. Taken mine travelling to both India and China, never felt any need to worry about its durability, even if it's clearly no FQHH on that score.

 

[Seb Lucas]

If it is Wested's thicker HH then you have even less reason to worry or baby it. Wear and enjoy and don't think about the hide for the next decade. Wested uses a large range of hides so if you were to order HH from them again in a year or two it is likely to have different qualities.

In metric - 1.2mm is 3oz

Unfortunately with Wested, the issues you are likely to have are rarely to do with the leather and more likely to do with the workmanship and lining. The lining fabrics used by Wested are thin and weak. The stitching may not be the best either. I had a nice goat skin jacket by them and the issues I had after a 2-3 years were lining wear and stitching coming loose.

 

[Marv]

I have had a number of Wested jackets over the years and all have been excellent with no issues thankfully.

Here are two of my current Wested wearers.

1) Skyfall - Rosetta thin cow hide (thicker than lamb but not heavy as horse) wonderfully grainy and soft.

2) Indy HERO in shrunken Lamb (nice and light but very durable) superb grain and creasing

Both jackets fit very well for my size 44" reg - the Skyfall is an off the rack and the Indy is a custom made.

 

[Doctor Strange]

Honestly, after watching this market here and on other forums daily since 2001, I have seen a lot less instances of failing stitching and linings reported for Wested jackets than seems to be the common perception.

My own 15-year-old lambskin Raiders jacket (while yes, I did once tear the back leather panel and need it replaced) has seen lots of wear, and no stitches anywhere have ever loosened or opened, nor has the (all cotton) lining torn anyplace or shown any significant thinning or stress wear.

Admittedly, their jackets are not built milspec-tough, and their materials don't compare to those on premium jackets costing two or three times as much. But they are just fine for ordinary wear, and with their reasonable prices (including for customizations) they represent really good value in a market where prices have generally skyrocketed, even for middling quality off-the-rack jackets with generic S-M-L sizing (that doesn't work for a lot of us.)