What do you think of this New Flat Head Leather Jacket

[Aloysius]

LOL, Langlitz is in no way inferior to Japanese craftsmanship. Just look at what used Langlitz sell for in Japan. They're more expensive than new Freewheelers or Flat Head in many cases. The grass is always greener.

What a lot of westerners miss is that many of the Japanese brands doing western jacket copies (that westerners import to the US because they're 'better', because they're more expensive) make those copies specifically because the American item is so expensive with import costs that the Japanese copy is a cheaper option there! So it's funny when I then see people turn around and buy an Addict jacket from the US thinking it's a superior Lewis, etc.

 

[Carlos840]

+1. Or have Vanson tweak their Chopper or Portland.

Vanson is dead...
My last 4 emails where un answered, i called asking for a refund and even that took 4 weeks and two emails to Kim before they refunded me.
I don't know what is happening to them but the customer service has gone to crap.
As a Vanson fan i am done ordering new from them...

 

[Guppy]

I don’t think I said anything about inferior, check again before trying to call someone out.

I just said the lacked a finished look, details that make them look special. This is subjective but I think the flathead took the cascade design and cleaned it up, removing the shoulder quilt and adding subtle details like a better collar, double stitching in areas, the French seams at the hem to finish out the bottom.

I don’t care about green grass or Freewheelers prices I just think Flat Head took a design and improved on it.

I'm not calling anyone out, and I don't have anything against The Flat Head. I haven't seen one of theirs in person, but they do look good.

I think you did imply something about Langlitz's craftsmanship, comparing it to THF as lesser - - unwarranted if you have any knowledge of Langlitz. The quilted padding on Langlitz jackets is an option, not standard, and not something that TFH "removed" to improve the Cascade design.

Langlitz do a lot of different options, and are made one at a time for each customer. The Flat Head does off the rack sizing, no customization, and while I'm sure they're very nice in their own right, there's no way I would put them above Langlitz. I realize without having handled one firsthand, that's perhaps a slightly risky statement, but having owned a good dozen or more Langlitz jackets, including four Cascades, three of which I still own, I feel pretty confident in Langlitz goods. I'm open to changing my opinion after handling a Flat Head if I ever get a chance to. Again, I have nothing against them, but I don't think anyone is doing it better than Langlitz have been for the past 75+ years.

Plus, you did say you didn't think that The Flat Head would fit you, but you like the design, right? Langlitz will fit to your exact measurements, customize anything you want, and they originated that design. And will probably be less expensive, depending on what options you choose.

 

[Guppy]

Vanson is dead...
My last 4 emails where un answered, i called asking for a refund and even that took 4 weeks and two emails to Kim before they refunded me.
I don't know what is happening to them but the customer service has gone to crap.
As a Vanson fan i am done ordering new from them...

According to the emails I got from Vanson recently, they're quite busy, not dead. Kim replied to me about 3-4 days after I first wrote, and thereafter was responding same day or next day. I'm expecting some leather swatches from her. They seem to be doing well...

(Albeit, there's still some, including myself, who still have concerns about the newer comp weight. It seems that they're now advertising it as 1.4mm thickness, down from 1.5mm for the OG CW. She told me to not expect it to be as stiff or to stand on its own. But she also said that if I send it to them, they'll make it out of anything I ask them to.)

 

[Damon141]

You're not wrong, but I think @Damon141 has been reading certain blogs and online posts, and is fixated on getting a Japanese jacket. (There are certain tells, like mentions of stitch count, or the notion that anyone would understand that TFH is actually a flex. Anyone outside of denim subcultures would think it's a hardware brand.)

Once he gets one, I think he will realize that, even size issues aside, there's nothing inherently better about them and get it out of his system.

This is affectionate ribbing; there are versions of this in every hobby/collection/interest. I know I certainly had my own equivalents when getting into tailoring.

And I think you have been following me and trying to pick apart what I say. Probably other members as well.

Clearly I want a Japanese jacket, I appreciate the level of detail in many of them. But since you have been watching me so closely you would see I introduced myself asking fit advice for a Himel (Canadian) dropped a deposit for 2 Field’s Leather (Scottish) had a failed attempt with Lewis Leather (English)

I appreciate your attention but prefer it from the opposite sex.

 

[Aloysius]

You're one of the very active newer posters, so obviously we're going to be responding to you and trying to answer your questions/make suggestions. This is a normal aspect of any clothes forum, not some kind of fixation on you.

You could do the same thing with denim discussions where I've suggested people pick up Wrangler cowboy cut on a budget, or Sugar Cane 1947s if they want to spend more but still have something that punches above its weight. You'll find many instances of me making such recommendations, to specific people repeatedly.


By your standard, all of us have some unrequited relationship with Zangy or Laurus or any other poster who came on for a bit and posted a ton in a short space of time.

You've been here 3 months. I've been 'Lounging' for 15 years. You start to notice patterns of people's shopping/searching at that point, or really quite a bit earlier.

 

[JMax]

@Damon141

FS: SZ44 WESTRIDE / JOHNSON LEATHERS CHP MOTORCYCLE JACKET LANGLITZ LOST WORLDS SEE

A biker & motorcycle culture focused Brand based in Niigata, Japan, Westride offers a wide range of top quality mens wears and gears. This CHP jacket was made by Johnson Leathers in San Francisco, California under Westride label. It's from the Westride's high end customizable leather jacket...

www.thefedoralounge.com

This looks nice. I’m tempted.

 

[Damon141]

@Damon141

FS: SZ44 WESTRIDE / JOHNSON LEATHERS CHP MOTORCYCLE JACKET LANGLITZ LOST WORLDS SEE

A biker & motorcycle culture focused Brand based in Niigata, Japan, Westride offers a wide range of top quality mens wears and gears. This CHP jacket was made by Johnson Leathers in San Francisco, California under Westride label. It's from the Westride's high end customizable leather jacket...

www.thefedoralounge.com

This looks nice. I’m tempted.

That is great and great price. I would fit every measurement in theory, even the sleeves are shorter for me but the chest would be too tight. Sweet to see Johnson Leathers across the world

 

[El Marro]

Vanson is dead...
My last 4 emails where un answered, i called asking for a refund and even that took 4 weeks and two emails to Kim before they refunded me.
I don't know what is happening to them but the customer service has gone to crap.
As a Vanson fan i am done ordering new from them...

I hate to hear that because I have a jacket on order from them through Butterscotch LB. I will just cross my fingers and hope it all goes well.

 

[Damon141]

I hate to hear that because I have a jacket on order from them through Butterscotch LB. I will just cross my fingers and hope it all goes well.

I spoke with the guy from butterscotch, really friendly guy which is a one man operation, I’d be willing to bet you are in good hands and he will get it accomplished for you. Positive vibes.

As a customer, maybe Carlos was just put on the back burner like me with Lewis Leathers, though with that massive collection of jackets it probably wasn’t a good move on their part to not answer for him because no doubts he would have ordered again.
I’m just thinking these shops have a direct line so to speak.

 

[dudewuttheheck]

I love the flat head, but I do not love that jacket. As others have already mentioned, there are better options if you want something in that style

 

[Damon141]

I'm not calling anyone out, and I don't have anything against The Flat Head. I haven't seen one of theirs in person, but they do look good.

I think you did imply something about Langlitz's craftsmanship, comparing it to THF as lesser - - unwarranted if you have any knowledge of Langlitz. The quilted padding on Langlitz jackets is an option, not standard, and not something that TFH "removed" to improve the Cascade design.

Langlitz do a lot of different options, and are made one at a time for each customer. The Flat Head does off the rack sizing, no customization, and while I'm sure they're very nice in their own right, there's no way I would put them above Langlitz. I realize without having handled one firsthand, that's perhaps a slightly risky statement, but having owned a good dozen or more Langlitz jackets, including four Cascades, three of which I still own, I feel pretty confident in Langlitz goods. I'm open to changing my opinion after handling a Flat Head if I ever get a chance to. Again, I have nothing against them, but I don't think anyone is doing it better than Langlitz have been for the past 75+ years.

Plus, you did say you didn't think that The Flat Head would fit you, but you like the design, right? Langlitz will fit to your exact measurements, customize anything you want, and they originated that design. And will probably be less expensive, depending on what options you choose.

I want to like a Langlitz but they are just not calling my name, I’ve watched their videos and see they have passion and they manufacture a quality product but just like people pay a little more for a luxury brand car versus a normal car that has basically the same features, it’s just about making you feel good. I drive an Alfa Romeo and every time I walk up to it I love it, great style, when I drive and head into a corner and the AWD kicks in and hugs the curve it just makes me feel good. I had a Volkswagen Tiguan before, it was nice, practical, but I just wanted to treat myself with the Alfa.

It’s the same with jackets, I don’t have an unlimited budget so when I see something just a little bit different, small details, it just makes it seem special. It’s like the J100, everyone loves it from RMC and it’s a beautiful thing, great stitching, leather etc. but my favorites are not Japanese, it’s the Himel Kensington and the ELMC J100 because of the small details like the piping along the zippers and the double stitching. Does that mean it’s better? No it’s just a preference, an evolution to the design (even though they seem to have borrowed it from an actual Buco)

 

[Carlos840]

According to the emails I got from Vanson recently, they're quite busy, not dead. Kim replied to me about 3-4 days after I first wrote, and thereafter was responding same day or next day. I'm expecting some leather swatches from her. They seem to be doing well...

(Albeit, there's still some, including myself, who still have concerns about the newer comp weight. It seems that they're now advertising it as 1.4mm thickness, down from 1.5mm for the OG CW. She told me to not expect it to be as stiff or to stand on its own. But she also said that if I send it to them, they'll make it out of anything I ask them to.)

I don't know how you came to the conclusion that they seem to be doing well...

I placed an order for riding pants the 8th of September 2021, nick got in touch and told me it would take 16 weeks, i said go ahead.

6th of December i sent an email asking if they could make me a real fur collar for my CXL Chopper to replace the synthetic one that came with it.
I sent pictures of the collar, nick answered saying it wasn't one of their collars as the underside of the leather was brown, "Vanson only uses all black leather".
I told him it was their collar, it was made from CXL, all CXL has a brown underside, sent pictures of the jacket and collar to proove it. He didn't even know Vanson had made a run of CXL jackets, that was the last i heard from nick...

Emailed 9th of december, no answer.

Emailed 10th January, no answer.

Emailed 26th January, no answer.

Emailed 25th of March, no answer.

Called early April asking for a refund for the pants, was told it would happen soon, nothing in my Paypal.

21st of April, email from Kim telling me they haven't received any leather good enough for pants in 6 months, says the money will be in my account in a few days.

2nd of May still no money, i send her the Paypal Transaction ID.

3rd of May, refund finally processed.

So an order that should have taken 16 weeks was still not delivered in 28 weeks, 4 emails where ignored and a refund that was promised in "a few days" took 2 emails to the boss and almost four weeks to be processed.

How is that a sign of a company doing well?
Even as a Vanson fanboy who has 12 Vanson jackets and has ordered a couple expensive customs i struggle to see that as a good sign.

 

[dannyk]

Well not to personally make rash decisions sounds like Vanson will be a used/vintage only company for me until they get their act together. Again so sad being such a great company for the money. They just to me hit such a perfect point of all aspects converging around the right price point for what you get. Despite all the tannery issues I think they really went downhill when Constantine left. I never paid attention nor asked why he left…..but he always answered emails within like a day and would go the extra mile to search the warehouse for something or take measurements for you. Seems like that’s severely missing at the moment.

 

[ton312]

I don't know how you came to the conclusion that they seem to be doing well...

I placed an order for riding pants the 8th of September 2021, nick got in touch and told me it would take 16 weeks, i said go ahead.

6th of December i sent an email asking if they could make e a real fur collar for my CXL Chopper.
I sent pictures of the collar, nick answered saying it wasn't one of their collars as the underside of the leather was brown, "Vanson only uses all black leather".
I told him it was their collar, it was made from CXL, all CXL has a brown underside, sent pictures of the jacket and collar to proove it. He didn't even know Vanson had made a run of CXL jackets, that was the last i heard from nick...

Emailed 9th of december, no answer.

Emailed 10th January, no answer.

Emailed 26th January, no answer.

Emailed 25th of March, no answer.

Called early April asking for a refund for the pants, was told it would happen soon, nothing in my Paypal.

21st of April, email from Kim telling me they haven't received any leather good enough for pants in 6 months, says the money will be in my account in a few days.

2nd of May still no money, i send her the Paypal Transaction ID.

3rd of May, refund finally processed.

So an order that should have taken 16 weeks was still not delivered in 28 weeks, 4 emails where ignored and a refund that was promised in "a few days" took 2 emails to the boss and almost four weeks to be processed.

How is that a sign of a company being well?
Even as a Vanson fanboy who has 12 Vanson jackets and has ordered a couple expensive customs i struggle to see that as a good sign.

This is exactly why I didn't pursue a custom halfbelt. I was worried about this exact thing.

 

[El Marro]

I don’t know what it is, I looked at the Langlitz cascade and maybe it’s just the pictures I came across but it just doesn’t have the finished look that this Flathead and this Addict has.
It’s not about Japanese versus American, it’s about craftsmanship.

You took some heat for this observation but I think I understand your point here. The Flat Head jacket you posted has a really nice detail at the waistband with the French seam and contrast stitching. The Langlitz Cascade on the other hand has a rather plain folded seam at the bottom and the odd dip in the back, like a dress shirt almost. I own a Cascade that was made for me and this is one of my least favorite details.
When I wear the jacket open it pops out at the back as if I’m wearing a leather cape.
I agree with other posters that Langlitz builds top quality jackets and if you know what to ask for you can get something really special. But sometimes it’s nice just to see a picture of a jacket you like in your size, and buy the damn thing right then and there.

 

[Carlos840]

Well not to personally make rash decisions sounds like Vanson will be a used/vintage only company for me until they get their act together. Again so sad being such a great company for the money. They just to me hit such a perfect point of all aspects converging around the right price point for what you get. Despite all the tannery issues I think they really went downhill when Constantine left. I never paid attention nor asked why he left…..but he always answered emails within like a day and would go the extra mile to search the warehouse for something or take measurements for you. Seems like that’s severely missing at the moment.

This is exactly why I didn't pursue a custom halfbelt. I was worried about this exact thing.

On top of that @red devil visited the factory last week when he was in the US, he just told me the guy who showed him around the show room had no idea what any models where, what different leathers where, apparently he was absolutely useless. (Was it Nick? We don't know).
RD had to insist on talking to someone else and they had to call Kim to the rescue.

Honestly i'm not saying all this to bash Vanson, i am just a fan that is worried to see their customer service go to crap now that Constantine is gone.

 

[dwilson]

As someone who owns two TFH leather jackets and a seemingly infinite number of their shirts there are only two ways to "flex" having TFH. Either to other clothing nerds online or if you're an insufferable ass who mentions the cost of your garments to everyone. Buy TFH because you like the designs, materials and quality and take comfort in knowing 99.9% of people you'll ever interact with have no clue who or what the hell The Flat Head is.

 

[Damon141]

Yeah nobody I know would know about Flat Head that’s for sure, i probably used the wrong choice of words but I just meant something desirable. Just like every used Flat Head 4 pocket cafe racer was snatched up quickly that I’ve seen on the used markets.

In the beginning of the thread I just mentioned that it would be nice to find an off the rack jacket with design and detail I like but know I could unload it at some point if I was tired of it without giving it away. That’s not my intention, buying abs selling jackets because you will surely loose more often than not but if it is a desirable jacket then you can minimize loss a little.,
That was just the thought because one day I will have two custom fitted Field Leather jackets which I would never intend to sell because I will be choosing every detail and if it goes well, they will fit me like a glove.
But in the meantime while I wait I would not mind just putting in my credit card and a getting a tracking number the next day.

In the end I would put money on it that the Flat Head in question would have sleeves 2-3” too long once I reach my size.

 

[dwilson]

If you have a 48 chest you’re going to have a hard time fitting into a Japanese jacket off the rack. They typically don’t build and design their jackets for large guys. Self Edge sometimes forces them into making larger than usual sizes (eg their Strike Gold t shirts that exceed the loop wheel machine) but that locks you in to only a handful. Iron Heart would probably work but they have limited designs.

I understand the desire for the simplicity of a well made jacket otr to bypass the hassle of custom made but unfortunately it doesn’t always work out