Will my new (large-ish) jacket eventually mold to my body?

[Dennis M]

Hey lounge lizards,

Just got my 1930's half belt from the good folk at Thurston Bros. The fitting jacket was a 44 and a little tight in the chest, so I elected to have a 46 tapered down to a 44. The waist is fine but the chest feels a little roomy. As per the above question, will it eventually mold to my body, taking up some of the slack? Any experience from fellow loungers?

 

[zebedee]

If it's too big, no- but then again, do you want a leather sausage-skin fit or is it really too huge?

 

[torfjord]

Agree with zebedee, but it’s hard to tell without a fit pic. Is it just a loose fit or is it simply huge on you?

I have a dustbowl in size 42, and I could have easily fit in a size 40, but I wanted the option to layer a heavy sweater. After wearing the jacket for almost two years now, it has relaxed and molded to my body. It is still a loose fit, but I don’t think it looks too big on me even when I’m only wearing a T-shirt. Fit is subjective though, some prefer a tighter fit and some prefer a more comfortable fit.


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[zebedee]

If you put some fit pics up, people an give more feedback. Generally, though, it'll be how you feel about it that will become the deciding factor. I'm not hugely fussy about fit, though.

 

[Carlos840]

Hey lounge lizards,

Just got my 1930's half belt from the good folk at Thurston Bros. The fitting jacket was a 44 and a little tight in the chest, so I elected to have a 46 tapered down to a 44. The waist is fine but the chest feels a little roomy. As per the above question, will it eventually mold to my body, taking up some of the slack? Any experience from fellow loungers?

Slack will not go away, it might look less unsightly as it molds to you, but it won't get any smaller.

 

[Peacoat]

Carlos is right. You have to determine if you want a comfortable fit that allows for a sweater underneath, or if you want the jacket closely fitted. I prefer the comfortable fit. If the 44 was a bit tight, the 46 ought to be about right. We really need to see pictures, however, before we give an opinion.

 

[Seb Lucas]

Hey lounge lizards,

Just got my 1930's half belt from the good folk at Thurston Bros. The fitting jacket was a 44 and a little tight in the chest, so I elected to have a 46 tapered down to a 44. The waist is fine but the chest feels a little roomy. As per the above question, will it eventually mold to my body, taking up some of the slack? Any experience from fellow loungers?

These are the kinds of questions that can't really be answered with any precision. All jackets, no matter how poorly fitting, will eventually mold to the wearer. This does not mean they will shrink. Or fit properly. They will simply develop folds and bends and wear in the places you move and the leather will slacken and the jacket will stop looking flat and new. Sometimes that's all that is needed.

You write 'feels a little roomy' this has almost no objective meaning. "Feels" is different to "is". If you know what I mean. But "feels a little tight" is similarly subjective. Photos may help - however my worst fitting jacket looked great in photos.

My view is most leather jackets need to be loose enough to fit a sweatshirt or modest sweater underneath. If you can breath in deeply with the jacket zipped up, and not be constricted, it is probably not too tight.

 

[El Marro]

Pretty much agree with everything above. I will add that my biggest pet peeve is a jacket that is too large or loose through the waist. I would much rather have a good fit through the waist and a little extra leather in the chest area, provided that it did not look weird or sloppy. Post some fit pics when you get a chance.

 

[Imuricecreamman]

Pretty much agree with everything above. I will add that my biggest pet peeve is a jacket that is too large or loose through the waist. I would much rather have a good fit through the waist and a little extra leather in the chest area, provided that it did not look weird or sloppy. Post some fit pics when you get a chance.

This is pretty much what I'm going for on my new half belt. Being able to cinch the waist in the warmer months while being able to layer during spring and fall/winter. I'm hoping this gives the silhouette I'm hoping for. Ordered the stock pattern with 2 more inches in chest and waist for layering.

 

[AeroFan_07]

Fit photos help out much!

 

[itsallgood]

Go for a walk in the rain and then let it dry on you and you'll know more.

 

[HoosierDaddy]

Never could understand 'walking in the rain' with a new jacket. Why not just spray it down with a spray bottle of water then wear it until dry. The jacket is soaked...but you are not drenched along with it.

 

[FlatCap99]

As far as water treatments go, I would give the jacket time to break in. Water treatment sometimes will make it a *touch* more form fitting, but I think before you do anything with a water treatment, you will want to be sure it is a keeper and a jacket you like, so even if you don't get the result you want, you will still enjoy the jacket, but if you move it forward, the person who buys it if you decide to reorder (which I'm not recommending, but I think a lot of us here have done that at least once...I had to do it with my Aero Sheene) the person buying can have a better idea of how it will fit them since new jackets take a while to break in.

When I wet mold leather and let it dry, there is some shrinkage....maybe not Costanza levels of shrinkage, but the leather does tighten up a bit and get stiff, but that is with a veg tan leather. If your jacket is CXL, I think you may have a harder time with all the oil and wax in it, and with CXL being a stretchy leather. I tried water treatment on a buffalo leather jacket that I was having the same problem with and didn't have much luck. I just turned on the shower, soaked the whole thing, wore it a while, and let it dry. It did take to my form a little quicker, but was still just a bit too big. At the end of the day, you are also competing with all the stitching and liner that are working to hold the jacket just how it is.

Like the other said, a couple fit pics could help out. If you have a stiffer CXLHH jacket, they are stiff for a while, and you may find that it is just new jacket stiffness (unless your fit one was pretty new as well) making it feel boxy and you may enjoy it more as it breaks in!

 

[handymike]

CXL can take almost anything!
Wear it in a hot bath for an hour if you want. This worked wonders with one of mine. The zipper will come out wavy though.

 

[Carlos840]

CXL can take almost anything!
Wear it in a hot bath for an hour if you want. This worked wonders with one of mine. The zipper will come out wavy though.

I think i would get a worst reaction from my GF is she caught me in the bath wearing nothing but a leather jacket than if she caught me with somebody else!
There would be no end to the crap i would get... You are a brave man.

 

[dudewuttheheck]

It would be nice to have a couple pics to know if the fit is even an issue in the first place. It could look better over time, but it won't actually get any smaller.

 

[eugenesque]

When you zip it up does it have strange bulges along the chest area such that the jacket doesn't sit well? If so, then it is unlikely that the jacket will mold in. Some picture (zipped up and unzipped) would be helpful.

 

[itsallgood]

Never could understand 'walking in the rain' with a new jacket.

A quick internet search suggests tap water can contain: chlorine, arsenic, atrazine (e.g. pesticides), lead, nitrates, radioactive contaminants, vinyl chloride, perchlorate and pharmaceuticals. Presumably rainfall doesn't have that

 

[HoosierDaddy]

I've been spraying some of my new HH jackets with tap water when new for years. Never had one complain yet. You go ahead and walk around in the dreary wet rain if you prefer. I'll just spray my jacket down and wear until dry while watching TV.
HD

 

[navetsea]

For maximum result i wash the jacket and wear it to dry over few hours, almost like walking in the rain but without wet pants and shoes, it gives more character than spray bottle method since the sagging panel from totally drenched is a lot more exaggerated than damp leather from spraying, damp leather is useful for shaping collar etc. Drenched leather will mold your figure better and looking a lot more lived in, most miserable few hours of my life though.