What was your very first leather jacket

[Dav]

Oh it isn't, leather is rubbish really and it's far too small now, it's a 36 if I recall. Make's me smile actually, when I used to wear it I thought I was the man, now I realise I hadn't even finished growing yet.

 

[El Marro]

My first leather jacket was a second hand Harley Davidson cafe racer style that my mom purchased for me in 1988 when I was 13. I remember that we found it at a really cool vintage clothing store and I begged her to buy it for me. It was $70 and she finally agreed.
That was in the middle of summer in Davis, California where it was at least 90° every single day. I remember putting that jacket on in the early morning when it was coolest and trying to wear it around for a bit until the sun came up. This prompted my stepmom to comment that the only people who she saw wearing jackets or sweaters in that type of weather usually had mental health problems. If only she could see me now...

 

[Carlos840]

My first leather jacket was a Schott 644, i bought it in NYC at Kaufman's Army & Navy store back in 2013.
I don't really wear it as often as i used to as i now prefer cross zips, it's basically my beater leather jacket...

 

[handymike]

First one (1984):

 

[Edward]

I've toldc the story better and at greater length elsewhere on TFL, but for now... My first leather jacket was a Perfecto style. Actually, Santa brought me what can only be described as..... a blouson - I mean it was in serious Jeremy Clarkson territory - but I knew that in those days the only leather jacket was a black Perfecto type - which, having never heard of a Schott, we called a "biker jacket". Yeah, a "biker jacket" - and there were two types: one was the Perfecto style, the other was pretty much the same...except it had side-buckles. Heh. Mine was acquired the week after Christmas 1990, after Santa returned the Blouson. It was black, a szie 38. Nice thick leather. Quilted black liner with a pocket in the liner, leather trimmed, stud fasterner in the middle top. Probably got photos of it somewhere, but nothing digital / scanned...

I can never remember the brand, yet if I close my eyes I can so easily picture the label: an oblong of leather or leatherette, white paint on black leather. It had the legend "New York City" on it, some kind of, I think, traffic light logo, and "Genuine naked cowhide". In 1990, my Dad paid £72 for it (£165 in today's money), but to me it was utterly priceless.

Loved that jacket, wore it everywhere I could, despite (or possibly in part because of) my parents' conviction it was going to get me into trouble. (It never did.) I grew out of it by the time I was eighteen, and sold it for £35 (well over the going rate for a second hand jacket in those days, but it was a good one) to a girl who might well still have it for all I know. That was it til I was twnety-one. This time my parents bought me a "real" motorcycle jacket that looked a lot like the one Arnie later wore in T3.... This was 1992, and although I'd never have phrased it like that, my taste in leather jackets still was very vintage.... and it went back to the shop. For a while I had a Highwayman-style jacket that I never really loved back then (it was too boxy for twenty-one year old me - I think I'd been hoping more for Sid Vicious' Dominator look, though I wouldn't have known that in those days). THen for a tenner in a charity shop I found another P-type (though this one, depsite being otherwise identical to a Perfecto, had side-buckles, big ones, one on each side). That got worn until the tail end of my 20s, when - replaced with another Perfecto copy (this one still in my wardrobe, dedicated to 'costume' now, with the BRMC logo stneciled on the back) - it served first as "Leo's" jacket when my Rocky Horror cast had a go at Grease, then from 2006 (with sleeves removed - still got them, though!) as a replica of the jacket worn by Eddie in the 06/07 production of the Rocky Horror Show. In that form it's also still in my wardrobe...

In early 1999, I had moved to London with that second P-type; Also bought a barnstomer-style black leather knee-length jacket in Camden market for £30. Lovely vintage piece... still got that, too. I soon asked my parents to send over the forgotten Highwaymanish, which I wore to work for a year or two (and even in Las Vegas), til the lining wore and it needed a new zip on the pocket. No point paying more than the jacket was worth for that, so I sold it for twenty quid on eBay and bought myself a very nice American-made cafe racer. Wore the CR to work on and off for a couple of years, but I never was quite convinced it was just right with the mandarin collar and a shirt collar and tie, so it was sold off in order to fund a replacement which was to be an Indy from Wested in brown and maybe black.

And then I discovered this place, and the rest is history and lots of Aeros....

 

[TREEMAN]

Bomber jacket ....don't remember the brand, purchased on Orchard st in Manhattan NY. Early 70's

 

[handymike]

Bomber jacket ....don't remember the brand, purchased on Orchard st in Manhattan NY. Early 70's

That place is probably still there...Orchard is one of those few NYC streets that has mom-n-pop stores left.

 

[JMax]

First one (1984):
View attachment 242580

I would imagine 1984, or thereabouts, held a bunch of different "first ones". Very cool picture.

 

[lina]

I bought a Wilson mall jacket, probably around 1989, for I guess $100, which was very expensive indeed at the time for me. It was brown leather, with a button front. To be honest, it was a great jacket! I wore it every winter for over 20 years until it finally gave up the ghost, and then I immediately started trying to recreate it in a better jacket. Tried an Aero Maxwell, which didn't quite work for me, then eventually got my Dave Sheeley custom. Don't have a pic unfortunately..

 

[Robbie79]

My first leather jacket was from brand "Gipsy by Mauritius" about 20 years ago (I can't find an image) and my first "quality" leather jacket was an Aero Highwayman (brown "Storse" as far as I know) which I sold about one year ago as I lost weight.

 

[dudewuttheheck]

What made u decide to go for a real leather jacket? Was the Diamond Dave jacket the jacket that sparkled your interest in premium jackets?

No it was stuff from Freewheelers, RMC, Flat Head, and Himel that sparked my interest in high end leather jackets. I just decided that I couldn't wait for what I actually wanted so I went for a cheaper option... which was a mistake. Needless to say I have not made that mistake again.

 

[ton312]

LOL. Still for sale on eBay. This was the one. I was stunned leather could even be like this. Mine had black plastic zips and I thought it was the coolest thing ever.

 

[navetsea]

cyborg!

 

[Marc mndt]

LOL. Still for sale on eBay. This was the one. I was stunned leather could even be like this. Mine had black plastic zips and I thought it was the coolest thing ever.
View attachment 242709 View attachment 242710

Is the padding actually functional? Or just for showing off the biker look

 

[Superfluous]

My first leather jacket was from . . . don't laugh . . . Wilsons Leather.

 

[zebedee]

First one was a pigskin suede jacket with cargo pockets that went with me on my first job in Korea. After that, I've never been without a leather jacket when I travel or relocate (except once to Vietnam where it's too hot to ever need one in the south). Got a high-end one (my first Aero Highwayman) about ten years ago, and have only bought Aero and a single Simmons Bilt since then. Something like a HWMN or a 50s Half-Belt I find indispensable for travelling.

 

[Seb Lucas]

My first leather jacket was bought in 1984 or 5 - custom made Highwayman style in black 2.5 oz cowhide and a satin lining. Made by one of several leather jacket artisans in town (all gone now). It cost around $250 and I had it until last year when a relative threw it out. It still fit me well but I hadn't really worn it for 15 years it as it had a short back length. It never had any conditioner and the leather looked as good as it did when new.

In those days, it was still possible to buy a quality hand made jacket directly from the maker for less than a department or mall store leather jacket.

 

[Fishbutcher]

First two leather jackets where perfecto knockoffs, sold of pretty quickly ,
Next leather jacket was brought while living in the Uk, Camden markets ,perfecto knockoff, reasonable leather and great silver zips
Followed by a super heavy car coat, also Camden markets
Then a denim jacket style in blue black leather whole living in Cardiff, Wales.
All jackets sold off while back living in Australia, last year after discovering this site
Eastman Californian from American classics in London,
Mister Freedom campus jacket from eBay
Aero highwayman also from eBay.
Aero and mister freedom worn as much as possible in sunny Brisbane

 

[Fifty150]

 

[Doctor Strange]

After Raiders of the Lost Ark in 1981, I NEEDED a leather jacket: I was 26 and had only owned crappy vinyl knockoffs. My first jacket was thin black cowhide with a brass zip, only vaguely like the Indy jacket (the right shirt-style collar and barrel sleeve cuffs, but slash pockets, no windflap, no action back) imported from Argentina that cost around $40 at Alexander's, a common discount department store in the NY area at the time. Alas, no pics.

My first GOOD leather jacket was a bit later, 1984, a brown Schott 674 bomber, the variant with the faux fur collar and white pile lining. I got it at a long-gone clothing store in Lower Manhattan on sale for $99, and pretty much wore it out over the next decade.