Your opinon on Simmons Bilt?

[JMax]

An amazing jacket I regret selling. The Shinki is wonderfully grainy. The best fitting OTR jacket I ever purchased.

Please take solace in the fact that I do not regret you selling it. It is an awesome hide.

I also had a Highwayman clone I got from Jonesy. The hide on that one was insane too.

Always been a big fan of this one…have literally been waiting for years for one to come up for sale in my size. SB Shinki is Sasquatch level rare

They couldn’t have made too many. I’ll keep an eye out, but you are right, I don’t think I’ve seen one for sale in years.

 

[Bfd70]

I think they do a Lot of interesting collaborations.

 

[ton312]

I think the biggest concern I would have with SB now is the sizing. Alexander leathers, I was always a 44”. The last SB I purchased (not custom to me) in a 44” had something like a 26” p2p and felt like a 48”. It appears they have gone from sizing up one to sizing down two. The jacket patterns seem to run larger (at least on some models). I believe this has been documented by at least one other members experience. Be specific about the size. Quality would never be a concern. They are extremely well made.

 

[Peacoat]

Thanks everyone for your reply.

@Superfluous and @dudewuttheheck By your reaction, that's a no go?

There is a lot of history on this board with SB/Alexander. None of it is good.

Bartender Note: OK guys, we have done an admirable job of keeping it clean and staying on topic. Please continue to do so.

 

[Cheech]

I bought a cafe racer in SB’s natural Italian horsehide last year and couldn’t be happier with what I got. My highest priorities for a jacket are fit, leather options, and style, and, with the customization options SB offers, they fit the bill for me, particularly given their pricing. My customized cafe racer was $900, and it fits me as well as my Greg Field-made Aero Sheene, which I ordered from the highly vaunted (and deservedly so) Carrie at Thurston Bros. I currently have a heavily customized Grizzly on order from SB, for which the order sheet must mirror something more akin to what Five Star receives.

Given some others’ not-so-great experiences with SB, it seems that one should have their measurements firmly nailed down if they wish to order from SB. Communication is sometimes slow with them, but, heck, I’m the same way! I just roll with it. In any case, Debs is a delight and is thoroughly committed to getting you what you want. In that vein, if their styles don’t suit you, I can’t emphasize enough that they will accommodate pretty much any modification.

 

[nattevagten]

I think the biggest concern I would have with SB now is the sizing. Alexander leathers, I was always a 44”. The last SB I purchased (not custom to me) in a 44” had something like a 26” p2p and felt like a 48”. It appears they have gone from sizing up one to sizing down two. The jacket patterns seem to run larger (at least on some models). I believe this has been documented by at least one other members experience. Be specific about the size. Quality would never be a concern. They are extremely well made.

Can confirm this as well. It looks like they updated some of their patterns. I have a c. 38" chest, but had to size down to 36 for the Detroit, and even then there's some room for layering. Could probably even wear size 34 on a t-shirt. If you are a slimmer guy, you'll probably have to ask for a waist taper as well (might not be the case with all of their jackets).

 

[Cyber Lip]

To me their designs look like less cool versions of other makers designs, made to appeal to men that want a less cool looking jacket

 

[Superfluous]

@Superfluous and @dudewuttheheck By your reaction, that's a no go?

 

[TooManyHatsOnlyOneHead]

Never owned one before, would like to know what do you think of the Simmons Bilt build, patterns and leather? They seem to have a large range of leathers and I quite like some of the look of their jacket.

Thanks

You helped me out when I had some questions a while ago, so I'll tell you straight.

I did not have a good experience. Can't comment on the actual jacket because I never got one. I was ready to throw money at them and they just never closed the deal. To be fair, it was smack in the middle of covid, probably right before holiday season was kicking off, and I did change directions a few times. I could have set all that aside but what really had me hit the pause button was I could not get a simple answer to some sizing questions. I kept being told there was some size guru in their basement who could measure me up so to speak and pick a size. We started talking about extra custom size fees, pattern changes, etc. before I even knew what a standard size 40 or 42 was. We thoroughly went over body measurements but by this point I had a pretty good sense of what my ptp range, shoulder, etc. should be for the finished product. I just didn't feel comfortable taking the chance that the guru guy was going to know how snug or relaxed I wanted my jacket to fit. Ultimately ended up going with Field Leathers instead, just before his wait times blew up.

I will say SB leather choices and website are stellar compared to most (yeah, I'm talking about you Vanson LOL). And the jackets I've seen posted here look great. But I can't take a chance I'll get something that is most likely going to be way too big. I know that's a risk with all makers and there's plenty of stories from other makers as well. But there consistently seems to be issues with SB, especially erroring on the side of being not only big, but like way too big. And the avoidance of a simple question like what's the ptp on your size 40 XYZ model like they were guarding the recipe to some secret sauce was just pathetic.

Bottom line, if I saw one used on here and the poster listed the measurements, I would have no issue buying it if it was something I liked. But the hope and pray method ain't flying for me. Post the measurements on the sizes for each style. I think though they're trying to be that bespoke maker and give the allure that everything is being customized to your body measurements, hence the secrecy.

Anyway, this was about a year ago. Maybe it's changed. Maybe they give out more info and I'm sure (at least hope) they're a little bit more on top of things with the response times, etc.

 

[dudewuttheheck]

Thanks everyone for your reply.

@Superfluous and @dudewuttheheck By your reaction, that's a no go?

This forum has a lot of Aero fans and therefore a lot of people do not like Simmons Bilt due to the circumstances of their founding. They also have a poor reputation for customer service.

Lol, isn't it the other way around?

"Hey guys, what do you think about Simons Bilt?"

lAwSuIt
THAT jacket!!
sToLeN pAtErNs
HE WAS LIKE A SON TO KEN!!!1
court PROCEEDINGS
sToRsE!!!1

That's the old attitude and the attitude of the vocal minority. I feel that the majority of us want this question to just go away.

 

[Canuck Panda]

SB offers some very nice leather options. Their price on average is about £100 less than Aero. Their patterns are not the same. My Aero jackets have at least 6" drop from chest to hem, none of my SB jackets have this shape. My SB jackets were made in Horween LUX, Blattwerk HH, Comipel HH, and some brown cowhide. I cannot complain about any of those leather or their prices. The only thing to watch out for is their fit. Their cross zip pattern has no taper, it's straight from chest to hem. Size 40 is 22" P2P. Size 42 is 23" P2P. The SB V2 and Cafe Racer pattern has about a 4" drop from chest to hem. So size 42 has 23" P2P and 21" Hem.
I buy SB jackets because of their prices and their leather selection. My SB jackets had different lead times, from a few weeks to over a year because they didn't restock the leather until the following season.

 

[red devil]

Simmons Bilt is among the best in terms of value for money here.

 

[MoFo]

I just love my SB A-2!

You can read about it here:
https://www.thefedoralounge.com/thr...ttwerk-veg-tan-horsehide.102151/#post-2729821

 

[hondurasdave47]

I just received my second SB jacket yesterday, the IH collaboration they did in unfinished horsehide. The first jacket, a J-100 style 4 pocket cafe racer in Shinki, I purchased new about five years ago off ebay.
Both jackets are very well made, quite similar to Aero in terms of quality and construction (there, I said it!). I have not worn the first jacket whole lot but I think that has to do more with me and my style rather than anything wrong with the jacket. The new one is going to be a different story. I really love the natural horsehide they used and I plan to wear the hell out of it!

Daniel, if you ever decide to sell your J-100, DM me!

 

[El Marro]

Daniel, if you ever decide to sell your J-100, DM me!

Will do man, as I recall you and I are very close in size so it would probably fit you!

 

[El Marro]

To me their designs look like less cool versions of other makers designs, made to appeal to men that want a less cool looking jacket

Yes, as someone who struggles with being “too cool” sometimes I take solace in the fact that my SB jackets make me less cool when I wear them.

 

[Jimmy Shinki]

Re the SB patterns, has anyone experienced the same weight on the neck as mentioned by some with Aero jackets?
I recently picked up an aero 59er from Torfjord. He's an absolute gent and the jacket is as described. A great pick up at an awesome price. However, I also feel a little more weight through the neck/traps area. Not a particular concern but I'm interested to hear if the SB patterns differ enough so as to avoid this feeling. After seeing a pic of J Leather Investigater's SB in lux, I'd be tempted with a roadster in the same hide. That lux is the dogs danglies

 

[J Leather Investigater]

I have ordered several sb. And have been happy with them all. I think there patterns are better than aero because the aero is I tried were more constricting. I tried a hwmp and was surprised about the constriction. I have a sb in lux that I absolutely love. They have a variety of patterns, good leather, an good hardware

sb - riri zip- lux hh. Heavy teacore

 

[Jimmy Shinki]

I have ordered several sb. And have been happy with them all. I think there patterns are better than aero because the aero is I tried were more constricting. I tried a hwmp and was surprised about the constriction. I have a sb in lux that I absolutely love. They have a variety of patterns, good leather, an good hardware View attachment 354641 sb - riri zip- lux hh. Heavy teacore

Thats the one! Great looking jacket. The lux looks a bit like the Thedi buffalo.
J Leather, is that the SB Tail Gunner?

 

[J Leather Investigater]

Thats the one! Great looking jacket. The lux looks a bit like the Thedi buffalo.
J Leather, is that the SB Tail Gunner?

I will have to check on that. Its the jacket pattern sb did for standard and strange in natural hh