What's ya'll opinion/experience on Lewis leathers sheepskin?

[Edward]

The strap at the top is designed to stop the zip falling down and opening the jacket on the bike Edward .... it was a common feature on racing suits from the early 60's and translated over to jackets from the late 60's ... a surprisingly effective feature similar to the strap across the zip at the base of the cuff ... it stops the zip puller from lifting and therefore "unlocking" the zip allowing the slider to ... ever ... slide ... and open the zip. Almost all high end leather motorcycle jackets and suits now have this feature ( though the straps are now normally secured with hook and loop ( Velcro) rather than press studs.

HTH

ah! Yes, that makes sense.... didn't connect in my head that it could perform the same function as the same on the cuffs. Still looks odd to my eye, but less irritating for being functional. Velcro, though.... brrr..... give me studs every time over that!

My bicycle gloves are made of tough sheepskin. During a spill where my wheel ate my rear derailleur, when my hands hit the ground I could not even feel the pavement, and the gloves have no marks.

Sheepskin is tougher than lambskin - Johnston & Murphy use it to line their shoes, even the insoles.

Definitely tougher than lambskin. Closer to goat in some ways in my experience, though I don't think I'd trust it for motorcycle use, unless it was dirt track motocross racing. Makes for a much lighter jacket to wear than heavy horse, though!

 

[konadog]

my light brown sheepskin Lewis Leathers Corsair just arrived yesterday. i was custom fit at The Stronghold in Los Angeles and I think they dialed it in just right. Leather is just amazing, needing very little break in.

Here are a few angles:

 

[Edward]

Very nice. You don't see many of the Lewises in thec brown colour; makes it look liked a totally different jacket in many ways. I like it a lot.

 

[konadog]

Very nice. You don't see many of the Lewises in thec brown colour; makes it look liked a totally different jacket in many ways. I like it a lot.

yeah, i had the option of all the leathers Lewis has. felt this color was the most versatile for me. it only comes in sheep, so i went with sheep.

 

[Seb Lucas]

Very cool Konadog. Are you able to compare this sheep hide to lambskin in terms of weight, feel and thickness?

 

[BobJ]

That is an awesome jacket! The color and the hat(s) make it look vintage.

How is the cut -does is have slim sleeves and high armholes? Does it have good range of motion in the arms and shoulders?

I have been toying with the idea of getting one (or maybe the Dominator) in British Racing Green, with a dark brown collar.

Does the sheepskin have grain and character?

Thanks, Bob

 

[Monitor]

my light brown sheepskin Lewis Leathers Corsair just arrived yesterday. i was custom fit at The Stronghold in Los Angeles and I think they dialed it in just right. Leather is just amazing, needing very little break in.

Here are a few angles:

View attachment 91238

You definitely made the right call with this and won the game. Whenever either Corsair or the Dominator appears in the movie, it fits exactly like your jacket does which is a good thing. As I said, LL sheepskin looks the best and this is just perfect in my opinion.

 

[konadog]

Very cool Konadog. Are you able to compare this sheep hide to lambskin in terms of weight, feel and thickness?

it's thicker and more substantial that lamb, but has about the same suppleness. it's a great right-out-of-the-box leather. it's no horsehide in terms of motorcycle riding protection, but there is little break in period.

 

[high-maintenance]

my light brown sheepskin Lewis Leathers Corsair just arrived yesterday. i was custom fit at The Stronghold in Los Angeles and I think they dialed it in just right. Leather is just amazing, needing very little break in.

Here are a few angles:

View attachment 91238

Absolutely gorgeous! splendid jacket it is! Congrats!

 

[konadog]

How is the cut -does is have slim sleeves and high armholes? Does it have good range of motion in the arms and shoulders?

Does the sheepskin have grain and character?

there is good range of motion in arms and shoulders. this is a relatively slim fit, but not tight. Lewis makes this jacket in a slim fit for the Japanese market. i have their standard fit.

this particular jacket's leather does have some grain and character. i will photo later and post pics.

 

[konadog]

here are some close up shots of the leather. lots of character in the pieces used...

 

[BobJ]

Wow! That grain and character looks a lot like capeskin.

Your jacket looks even better the closer you get. Thanks for these pics.

 

[regius]

I agree with Edward, altough the LL sheepskin is definitely not a riding jacket, i would not be afraid to wear on around.
It is much stronger leather than your average mall lamb fashion jacket, i would just not rub it on abrasive things....

my wife's mall lamb leather jacket lasted her 12 years, still going strong, and she uses it as work coat

 

[Canuck Panda]

Reviving this older thread because:

Sheepskin is NOT the same as Lambskin. And in my opinion, Lewis Sheepskin is BETTER (Grain, Softness, Thickness, Smell) than Shinki or CXL or Vicenza or Badalassi.

Yeah, Lewis Sheepskin is more like 3.5 oz (1.4mm) THICK. That's thicker than my average Shinki, CXL whatever, except Baddy, which is like 6oz. It is also SOFTER. Shinki smells like a vegan burger. CXL smells like a real beef burger. Lewis Sheepskin smells like what awesome leather would smell like, indescribable. I actually locked it in my car today and parked under the sun just to get that smell soaked into my car.

The journey I took to get here started when I bought Regius' Lewis MK1 in Brown HH.
https://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/lewis-leather-mk1-horsehide.97242/
I was so impressed with the Regius' jacket, I impulsively ordered one in green sheep from Lewis online store. It cost £832 SHIPPED from London, CHEAPER than any of my Aeros, FL, but more than SB.

The ordering experience was flawless. The London service is definitely more posh than all its Scottish counterparts. The packaging is also the best I have experienced to date. Eastman offers similar packaging experience, but still one step behind Lewis. All other British makers needs to step up. This should be standard for a £800 jacket.

The mobility and comfort of Lewis moto pattern is much better than everything that comes from the UK too, except SB's Cafe Racer based patterns, that's their one hit wonder. The larger neck hole and the larger lining/smaller shell makes this Lewis jacket very comfortable, and useful.

This MK1 pattern is from their 1930s archive, could actually be their very first moto jacket. They definitely did things better then. Not cheaping out on the button holes, they did it like mini welt pockets instead just cut a slit from some threads. There's also a wider overlap for the front panels. This was when one jacket was suppose to last you for life, and that's how it was built.

If I had got my hands on a Lewis Leather jacket sooner, my leather closet would look very different today. I guess this is just part of the journey. Here are some fit pics of the jacket. The green sheep is a custom size 40 with 42 top. The brown horse is stock 44. There is an inch difference in the chest, and two inch diff in the hem. Every other measurements are about the same.

The Lewis Horse is not so interesting. It is THICK 4oz (1.6mm), but painted finish, and no awesome leather smell. The Veg Sheepskin is much better choice for the same money.

Overall, I would rate the Lewis Sheepskin HIGHER than Shinki aniline, or Horween Chromexcel, or Vicenza / Victoria Tannery Group, or Badalassi. This also makes me wonder, would the lower priced sheepskin from Wested or even 5star be just as good? The horse and cow feels denser, but not thicker, and the sheep grain is pretty interesting too. This just opened up a whole new world for me. Thank you for reading. And go Sheepskin!

 

[Monitor]

Overall, I would rate the Lewis Sheepskin HIGHER than Shinki aniline, or Horween Chromexcel, or Vicenza / Victoria Tannery Group, or Badalassi. This also makes me wonder, would the lower priced sheepskin from Wested or even 5star be just as good?

Great review but I'm especially glad you have said that! I've been tellin' people here for ages, Lewis Leathers sheepskin is the way to go because on all the photos that I've seen, it look unprecedentedly good and I'm really happy to hear every confirmation of this. I think it'd be my primary choice when it comes to LL. Sheepskin in general isn't thin at all. it's as heavy as goat or even regular cowhide and I think LL's using the finest stuff there is.
Sheepskin is also more susceptible to processing and I've more often than not seen poorly tanned sheep. By poorly I mean fake, plasticy looking and seeing some of the hide 5*'s using, I wouldn't exactly bet on them suddenly coming up with a comparable leather. But this is veg tanned sheep so yeah. It's a premium hide. In any case, this jacket will only keep on looking better!

 

[Canuck Panda]

Great review but I'm especially glad you have said that! I've been tellin' people here for ages, Lewis Leathers sheepskin is the way to go because on all the photos that I've seen, it look unprecedentedly good and I'm really happy to hear every confirmation of this. I think it'd be my primary choice when it comes to LL. Sheepskin in general isn't thin at all. it's as heavy as goat or even regular cowhide and I think LL's using the finest stuff there is.
Sheepskin is also more susceptible to processing and I've more often than not seen poorly tanned sheep. By poorly I mean fake, plasticy looking and seeing some of the hide 5*'s using, I wouldn't exactly bet on them suddenly coming up with a comparable leather. But this is veg tanned sheep so yeah. It's a premium hide. In any case, this jacket will only keep on looking better!

Yes, Sheepskin is not thin or crappy! It definitely does not equal to mall lambskin.
Lewis did mention their Veg tan Sheepskin came from a French tannery. I am kinda hoping the budget options are just as good... haha... one can dream... I am gonna give Wested £200 sheepskin a try to see what the diff is.

 

[roadking04]

Sheepskin is NOT the same as Lambskin.

I did not know this. I just thought sheep was thin, weak, and flimsy. I hope to one day own a Lewis. Seems to be a Rock n Roll and motorcycle icon. I always thought the veg tanned cow was the most desired hide they had to offer.

Thanks for the great review. I really hope to see more LL's pop up here, new and old (especially patched up ones). Hope to see more pics of your jacket as it ages.

 

[Bahabp100]

here are some close up shots of the leather. lots of character in the pieces used...

View attachment 92124 View attachment 92125 View attachment 92126 View attachment 92127 View attachment 92128 View attachment 92129

Are some of those barbed wire marks ?

 

[Canuck Panda]

I did not know this. I just thought sheep was thin, weak, and flimsy. I hope to one day own a Lewis. Seems to be a Rock n Roll and motorcycle icon. I always thought the veg tanned cow was the most desired hide they had to offer.

Thanks for the great review. I really hope to see more LL's pop up here, new and old (especially patched up ones). Hope to see more pics of your jacket as it ages.

Lewis veg cow is really expensive, the price difference between veg cow and veg sheep is £468 for this model. I could literally buy a Lewis sheepskin jacket and a new Vanson jacket for the money of a veg cow one.
I hope by resurrecting this old thread other Lewis owners can post some of their stories too.

 

[Canuck Panda]

QUOTE="Bahabp100, post: 2827552, member: 50676"]Are some of those barbed wire marks ?[/QUOTE]
They look like stretch marks to me. Horse hides and cow have these too. But sheepskin has the unique ripple marks that are not found on either cow or horse.