Looking for the jacket to best suit my needs.

[Kt. Templar]

You are welcome, I was looking at a couple of my other jackets, a US wings A2, it has a big bright brass no 10 YKK zipper, very scratchy. Definitely a grade or 2 down from the polished antique brass on a Wested.

I also have a Cooper A2 this doesn't have a number on the pull but it seems to be a 4 or 5, kinda nicer than the Wings one.

[Hemi Joe]

Apr 8, 2010 15:54:24 GMT -5 Kt. Templar said:

The gauge of the zipper is moulded on the back of the pull box. I believe the standard antiqued brass is a no 8, the silver Raiders ones are 4-5 depending on the type. The ToD uses a no 10. I have a LC/CS that has a no 5 brass. I hadn't noticed that before!

The D-rings are the simplest thing in the world to change, all you need is a pair of pliers.

Hey KT, popped into Wested last Saturday to get my D rings swapped out, and you were right. It took Peter a couple of mins with some pliers and the job was done. Didn't charge me either. . top man.
The side straps have not slipped one bit since then.

[Biker Jacket Jones]

I have a minor update for my jacket search. I'm still in the searching phase, trying to pick out the "perfect" jacket to suit my needs. I've expanded my horizons a bit, and have started looking at other jacket makers to get a wide view. My previous "beta" build I posted in my prior post (Last Crusade, authentic lamb, all cotton lining, etc.) still stands as the number one seed, but I've gather other options for various reasons. For instance, I'm still a little concerned about Wested is unable or unwilling to respond to my emails, and with the recent Iceland volcano incident, I'm worried about shipping to the United States bombing out.

First, I saw the Casino Royale Leather Jacket, and for the price, I really like what I see. It has a number of things going for it--it's lambskin, and is made in England, so I don't have the typical over-the-rack concerns I do with Wested's OTR Indiana Jones jackets. I also like the four front pockets. My questions are this. Does anyone here own this particular jacket, and can tell me anything about it? How many interior pockets does it have? What kind of lining does it have in the body and the sleeves? And what about the strange sizing? If you look at the sizing graph, you can see some interesting figures. If you compare those chest sizes to the figures at their Custom Sized section, a number of things pop out. For instance, the Medium with a 42 chest has a 26.5 sleeve length, a 7.00 shoulder, and a 27.00 back length. Those numbers match up more with a 44 long than a 42 anything. Same thing with the 38-40 small chest fit. The lengths seem particularly long, which has clouded my judgment somewhat on what size to get. My instinct is to just go with the 42 medium--The jacket will certainly fit like a long, which is really the size I need, anyway. One other thing I'm not sure about is how the double zipper on the front would work, like how easy it would be to completely unzip it, to re-zip it, etc.

Second is Gibson & Barnes, and their various offerings. Their stuff is priced higher than I would like to pay. They do have a few things going for them, though. They're a U.S. operation, so I don't have to worry about customs or $30+ shipping like I do with Wested. Now, I already mentioned that I require at least two interior pockets, or I'm going to wind up paying hundreds of dollars for something I'll never wear. G&B will put an extra pocket in their Expedition, but the total fee for the operation is a steep $56. The total cost, plus shipping, is $602.75.

However, they have another jacket that I'm seriously considering as a great alternative: The Skyliner Airline Jacket. With the extra pocket, it chimes in at $569.75, $33 cheaper than the Expedition. I'd never consider it if it cost more, but at that price, it has a few nice touches. It has the shoulder strap things that I like, and while the handwarmer pockets aren't as concealed, they still server their purpose. While it does have a waistband and cuffs, they're not knitted like A-2s, which is better. However, the one thing that stands out the most are those insanely large shoulder openings. If you compare the front and back pictures between it and the Expedition, you'll see that the shoulder openings on the Skyliner are much larger. I don't know if that's good or bad. Does anyone have experience with this particular jacket or a similar one?

Finally, another jacket maker I'm surprised even made my potential list is Magnoli. One thing that stands out is the free shipping--free shipping!! You can snag a reasonably priced garment if you get the right jacket and don't splurge on options (cowhide, for instance, always seems to ring the price up anywhere from around $100 to $395 for their higher-end jackets). I'm not sure where they're based out of, so I don't know what kind of customs issues I might face. I'm mainly considering their Royale Leather Jacket if Wested's version fails to pan out to my standards. I'm not exactly sure of how to rate the company's quality, though what I've seen from customer reviews on the website and the pictures on it suggests that it's all A+ material. I'd like some input on that. The Adventure Jacket and the Vintage Leather Jacket are both under consideration, though they'll probably be out because of the price.

EDIT: As an off-topic question, is my avatar acting up?

[mileagenotyears84]

how dark is the authentic goatskin?

[mileagenotyears84]

by wested, to be more specific, haha

[twistedotter]

The authentic lambskin is still pretty dark leather. I was concerned that it would be too light, but I was happily surprised that it is fairly dark and looks great.

[twistedotter]

Babuchanan:

So, if you want my 2 cents, go with the Gibson and Barnes. I have several Westeds and a US Wings and they are quite nice. No major complaints. But, last year I finally splurged and picked up a Gibson and Barnes, and...well...choirs of angels and all that. It is truly one fine piece of craftsmanship. Worth every single penny. I have quite a few jackets, but not a single one left the closet last/this year except my G&B. For what it's worth I have the lambskin and it is an extremely durable jacket. I've sat on it, used it as a pillow, used it as a picnic blanket, fallen off a ladder, and about 100 things I can't remember. It's been rained on, covered in mud, and thrown on the ground. Doesn't even phase it. Heck, I've even turned up the air conditioner so I wouldn't have to take it off. Sad, but true. The sales folks are also very willing to work with you to get things right. I bought an off-the-rack jacket, but they were more than happy to send me a different size if the first didn't fit (it was too big, but I washed/shrunk it to fit). Just don't take off the tag. Once the tag is removed, it's yours. I really, really like my Westeds. I love my G&B.

As for Magnoli, they are in New Zealand. I don't know anything about them other than that their prices seem a bit high. I can't imagine that they are better than G&B.

Hope this helps!

[Biker Jacket Jones]

Jun 3, 2010 15:48:06 GMT -5 twistedotter said:

Babuchanan:

So, if you want my 2 cents, go with the Gibson and Barnes. I have several Westeds and a US Wings and they are quite nice. No major complaints. But, last year I finally splurged and picked up a Gibson and Barnes, and...well...choirs of angels and all that. It is truly one fine piece of craftsmanship. Worth every single penny. I have quite a few jackets, but not a single one left the closet last/this year except my G&B. For what it's worth I have the lambskin and it is an extremely durable jacket. I've sat on it, used it as a pillow, used it as a picnic blanket, fallen off a ladder, and about 100 things I can't remember. It's been rained on, covered in mud, and thrown on the ground. Doesn't even phase it. Heck, I've even turned up the air conditioner so I wouldn't have to take it off. Sad, but true. The sales folks are also very willing to work with you to get things right. I bought an off-the-rack jacket, but they were more than happy to send me a different size if the first didn't fit (it was too big, but I washed/shrunk it to fit). Just don't take off the tag. Once the tag is removed, it's yours. I really, really like my Westeds. I love my G&B.

I would love to have a Gibson & Barnes jacket, too. I'm really eying the Skylinter Airline Jacket over the Expedition. I know it's not an Indiana Jones jacket, but it has everything the other jacket has that I care about, like two front pockets with hand-warmers (differently arranged, but hand-warmers all the same). There are also a few fitting differences, like an elastic waistband (at least it's not knitted...), button cuffs, none of the back gear (vents, s-rings, etc.) of the Expedition, and oversize sleeve openings. I also like the epaulets on top. I also just like the way it looks. And, of course, it's $30 less than the Expedition in lambskin flavor. That just looks like my jacket.

I'm also impressed by their reputation of quality, their fantastic warranties, and their customer service. I'd never worry about getting the wrong jacket, a detail wrong, the sizing wrong, etc. with them. They're based in America, so I know I'm not getting India made hoopla. And the customer service. The difference between them and Wested is so comically large it's almost sad. I've heard that Wested has some spam filter issues and they're using old computers/servers, but surely those issues can be easily fixed. There's really no excuse for that to still be going on. Wested has yet to respond to a single email or eBay message I've sent them in weeks, yet Gibson & Barnes has responded to all of my questions within 6 to 8 hours, and with the same guy (Jeremy) each time, as well.

I'd love to get the Gibson & Barnes. But it costs so much more, and I'm not exactly loaded. I'm going to want two inside pockets, and when you ring up shipping, lambskin, and everything else into the price, it costs $569.75. Car payment, anyone? I can get the Wested Last Crusade with everything I want for $287.50 (price as of May 19th, 2010), and that includes shipping from Europe to United States, but not U.S. customs. Sure, there are aforementioned quality control issues, poor customer service, not getting what is ordered, etc., but maybe that can be fixed by ordering over the phone.

Jun 3, 2010 15:48:06 GMT -5 twistedotter said:

As for Magnoli, they are in New Zealand. I don't know anything about them other than that their prices seem a bit high. I can't imagine that they are better than G&B.

I've heard nothing but good about their leather jackets, though the same isn't said of their shirts and other similar products. I'm also worried about experiences like the one covered here. To boil that mud-slinging thread down to understandable basics, while the argument that Magnoli didn't exactly promise a nylon jacket is technically correct, there was still some shady business practiced by Magnoli by making it seem like he was promising something he actually wasn't. And while I wouldn't face that issue because I would be ordering a proven pattern already made and would know a lot more about what I was getting (in this case, the Royale Leather Jacket), I'm still worried about buying from someone like that. And, of course, the jacket isn't made in the country of origin, like Wested in England, or Gibosn & Barnes in America.

The Wested Last Crusade is still the number one seed here--unless someone here has a Gibson & Barnes gift certificate he needs to unload, bids on all of my stuff on eBay, or hand me a nice donation.