What causes a perfecto leather jacket to flare out at the sides of the hem when unzipped?

[mippo]

I'm considering buying a perfecto leather jacket but I noticed that they seem to flare out at the sides when unzipped. I prefer to wear it unzipped but I don't like how it pokes out at the sides. Does anyone know what causes this? If I want a perfecto that hugs the waist when unzipped what details should I look for when buying online and can't try it on?

 

[Marc mndt]

I'm considering buying a perfecto leather jacket but I noticed that they seem to flare out at the sides when unzipped. I prefer to wear it unzipped but I don't like how it pokes out at the sides. Does anyone know what causes this? If I want a perfecto that hugs the waist when unzipped what details should I look for when buying online and can't try it on? View attachment 488284

The asymmetrical front panels push the sides out when unzipped. If it bothers you then maybe you could consider a Cafe racer (center zip) instead of a perfecto (cross zip).

 

[Carlos840]

Any asymetrical cross zip will do that when open, some do it more than others...
It doesn't depend on brand but on specific design.

My LW LT/A for example really flares open when unzipped, but it has very large lapels:

My LW perfecto does it a bit less:

And my J-24 even less:

Personally i think it just comes with the design, there is nothing you can do to make a cross zip hug the waist when unzipped, by design it wants to open.
All you can do is try a bunch of them and see which one does it least, i have maybe 30 cross zip jackets and they all flare out to some extent.

 

[Carlos840]

My Vanson CHP 2 is probably the one with the least flare when worn open:

Aero Bootlegger has also little flare:

And RMC JH-1:

From quickly looking at pics, it seems that the less overlap there is by design the less the lapels will flare open when unzipped.
These three definitely have a narrower "wind flap" on the right hand side (when worn) lapel.

 

[newtojackets]

My Vanson CHP 2 is probably the one with the least flare when worn open:

Aero Bootlegger has also little flare:

And RMC JH-1:

From quickly looking at pics, it seems that the less overlap there is by design the less the lapels will flare open when unzipped.
These three definitely have a narrower "wind flap" on the right hand side (when worn) lapel.

I would say your bootlegger actually has significantly less flare than the CHP (at least based on the photos)

 

[MrProper]

And here is one more Aero... a Ridley

 

[jacketjunkie]

Gravity. Next question!

It does not look bad though, does it? To me anyway, it fits in just right with the overall „carelessness“-flair of the style.

 

[58panheadfan]

Another factor to the mentioned front panels is how v-taper the Jacket is cut. In my opinion, the Eastman Roadstar is currently the most "aggressive" Jacket in this regard and has little to no flare... but the cut of the Jacket is not wearable for every body type.

 

[newtojackets]

Another factor to the mentioned front panels is how v-taper the Jacket is cut. In my opinion, the Eastman Roadstar is currently the most "aggressive" Jacket in this regard and has little to no flare... but the cut of the Jacket is not wearable for every body type.

View attachment 488303

Is this always true? My perfecto has a pretty mild taper but the opening does not flare out too much

 

[58panheadfan]

Is this always true? My perfecto has a pretty mild taper but the opening does not flare out too much
View attachment 488308

I'm neither an expert nor a tailor, but from a logical point of view it makes sense the tighter a jacket is cut in hip section, the less flare there is.

Btw: Your Jacket doesn't have the typical X-cut of crossed zipped Jackets, so the flare is probably not that dominant for this reason.

Here are a few more examples of Eastman Roadstar jackets with little to zero flare:

As a conclusion I would say:

A: an x-cut with an aggressive taper = little hip flare

B: an x-cut with little taper = larger hip flare

 

[newtojackets]

I'm neither an expert nor a tailor, but from a logical point of view it makes sense the tighter a jacket is cut in hip section, the less flare there is.

Btw: Your Jacket doesn't have the typical X-cut of crossed zipped Jackets, so the flare is probably not that dominant for this reason.

View attachment 488322

Here are a few more examples of Eastman Roadstar jackets with little to zero flare:

View attachment 488323
View attachment 488324
View attachment 488325

As a conclusion I would say:

A: an x-cut with an aggressive taper = little hip flare

B: an x-cut with little taper = larger hip flare

Makes sense. When you say mine doesn’t have a typical cross zip cut, do you mean the zip is more vertical or are you referring to something else?

 

[58panheadfan]

Makes sense. When you say mine doesn’t have a typical cross zip cut, do you mean the zip is more vertical or are you referring to something else?

Check out the pictures...

Your Jacket as shown on your pic has no flare on bottom. It looks like a straight zipped Jacket but set the zipper slant.

 

[newtojackets]

Check out the pictures...

Your Jacket as shown on your pic has no flare on bottom. It looks like a straight zipped Jacket but set the zipper slant.

View attachment 488437 View attachment 488438

I see what you mean!

 

[Canuck Panda]

Perfecto looks cool no matter how you wear it.

All my X-zips can look like the Perfecto overhang fit depending on how I stand when the photo was taken.

I'd be worry about all the different fit Perfectos available now. There are longer ones shorter ones slimmer ones. Makes sure you get the one you want. Can't really go wrong with the 618.

 

[Monitor]

How do you guys even notice that!

 

[Aloysius]

People are noting important stuff here about cross-zips in general but the main reason for the specific flare at exactly the hem in OP’s picture is that it's a stiff steer/horse hide that hasn't been broken in at all…

 

[navetsea]

I think it has to do with the weight of the belt hanging on the belt loop when worn open, the buckle want to hang vertically in doing so it pushes the hem of the jacket outward/ sideward creating flaring on the hemline , and also the jacket being a bit too roomy around the chest and not tapering enough around the waist, when the waist is tapered in \ / at least when flaring out it would look | | and would not be enough space to create such / \ shape,

another factor is the shoulder slope, if the jacket has sloping shoulder from the neck down to the sleeve post, if you don't have enough trapezius muscle to fill up, then when the jacket worn open the top of the shoulder will rest on your actual flatter shoulder and the rest of the jacket flaring out, you can wear scarf or vest or other mid layer option to fill up your shoulder to stuff the jacket there enough to keep it from flaring out

and also the way your posture is when wearing the jacket open, if you stand straight the jacket will hang vertically the front of the jacket is filled and supported by your chest so the rest is hanging straighter, but if your natural posture is more hunched, the the spine will push the back of the jacket and the chest is not supporting the front, so the upper half of the jacket is hanging under an angle and not vertically, so the lower half of the jacket flaring out when gravity pulls it vertically down.

This is how much different the same jacket look on me just by slight different posture, standing straight in good posture, and hunched


I was talking about flaring out on the silhouette against your actual waist size, not about center opening when worn open, as other have said center opening is affected by how slanted the zipper is , the more slanted the more X you get and the bigger the lapel when worn open. and the other way around just slightly slanted off center but nearly vertical cross zip will have smaller lapel, and overlapping front even when worn unzipped

 

[Arnold]

Any asymetrical cross zip will do that when open, some do it more than others...
It doesn't depend on brand but on specific design.

My LW LT/A for example really flares open when unzipped, but it has very large lapels:

My LW perfecto does it a bit less:

And my J-24 even less:

Personally i think it just comes with the design, there is nothing you can do to make a cross zip hug the waist when unzipped, by design it wants to open.
All you can do is try a bunch of them and see which one does it least, i have maybe 30 cross zip jackets and they all flare out to some extent.

My Vanson CHP 2 is probably the one with the least flare when worn open:

Aero Bootlegger has also little flare:

And RMC JH-1:

From quickly looking at pics, it seems that the less overlap there is by design the less the lapels will flare open when unzipped.
These three definitely have a narrower "wind flap" on the right hand side (when worn) lapel.

Digging out this older thread because of the recent discussion of length in the new tea core Schott Perfecto: @Carlos480, to me it looks like length is the strongest contributor to flare in the jackets you showed, and to be frank I think it's excessive length in some.

Look at your jeans pockets. The more a jacket covers of those, the stronger the flare. Very strong correlation.

I don't get why Stuart recommends too large sizes so often, and why so many people go along with it. IMO there's not much of the masculinity Stuart always emphasizes in a cross zip motorcycle jacket that's long enough to cover a guy's pubic bone, as if he was wearing some extremely low-rise pants with them. There are reasons we don't usally wear belts that low (except in extreme low-rise looks), and they're both ergonomic and aesthetic.

 

[Bahabp100]

I'm considering buying a perfecto leather jacket but I noticed that they seem to flare out at the sides when unzipped. I prefer to wear it unzipped but I don't like how it pokes out at the sides. Does anyone know what causes this? If I want a perfecto that hugs the waist when unzipped what details should I look for when buying online and can't try it on? View attachment 488284

Get one without a belt , the belt is pulling each side somewhat. It’s a heavy hanger pulling the center apart like gravity or Einstein or sonething