TODD'S JACKET IS IN

[Deleted]

OK everyone the Jacket is in from Todd and I definately give it a thumbs up.

This jacket is a PROTOTYPE, Todd will fill you all in on the progress ot the actual Manufacturing aspects of all future jackets.

If you look at the pics below you may notice that there are slight variations in the color of the Lambskin (which does not really bother me as with wear it is going to fade and change anyways). One other thing you may notice is the thread used for the stiching is just a little on the light side and I think with just a little wear the stitching will darken (I thought the same about my Expedition at first too and now I do not notice it) .

Now, those are the only comments I will make that could be taken as negative points.

In my honest opinion, I Really like the Jacket. It has the 80's fit for sure. Tone.......It is a fit like the NH is in the way of THE SHIRT.

The stiching is all very well done and I beleive that this jacket can take quite a beating without falling apart. The lining is poly but all Todd's future jackckets will have the cotton.

All nickel hardware









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I cannot tell you too much more until Todd posts an update of where this project is still headed.

OK, Now I will answer any questions that I can without giving away the behind the scene info.

Cheers,
G-MANN

[IndyBlues]

I love the cut of the jacket, the texture of the leather looks amazing, nice and broken in,...and the pockets look perfect. Nice collar too, but hard to tell until it is shaped.
Only things I see that stand out as odd, are the straps. They look a bit narrow. Also, the stitching. Is it white?....or tan, maybe?
Looks like a great fit on you John. Screams Raiders!
'Blues

[Deleted]

IB,

The straps are exactly the same width as our Expeditions. The stiching is brown but a tad light. Todd has already found a darker thread for all future jackets.

Yes, the leather has a nice broken in feel already and is a bit heavier than my Wested and G&B yet it drapes just as well and wrinkles very easily.

The Pockets are perfect, however this is a medium and with the small pockets it is a tight fit to get your hands inside.

IB.........the jacket has a very Vintage A-2 kind of fit but with better moblility.

Tone.....almost "0" Flying Squirrel effect

Cheers,
G-MANN

[Prof.Wex]

G-Man I think this jacket looks great Ill definitely be placing my order real soon, the only thing I definitely want is the cotton lining...but man I love the cut of this jacket, can you tell me what the sleeve length is from the shoulder to the cuff on your jacket?

[pitfallharry]

Yeah, I really can't wait to hear all the details about this jacket. From the first set of pics you took it really does look quite nice.....and that's with poor lighting.

When I first saw the shot of G-Mann with the jacket on I thought the jacket looked an awful lot like the G&B jacket.

The only thing right now that I think looks a little off is the collar but I think that's because it's new and I'm assuming it will relax once it's worn in a little.

So far I really like this jacket.

Is it as soft as it looks?

[indianatone]

Man, the cut and drape of that thing "right out of the box" is Friggin' Incredible! 0 squirrelage is a major plus, too.

You pretty much nailed exactly the stuff I was speculating about from the pics: the thread and the patchwork color shading differences.

The thread I could live with and like you said, he's already looking into a darker thread so that's worked out. The only thing that drives me nuts is what appears to be some dye inconsistency in the color between pieces. Some are brown while others a different shade. (That might just be lighting, but it's my only pet peeve about leather jackets. All pieces need the same dye color.) But, back to all that is good here.......

The way that jacket is cut and the way it drapes (after less than a day even) is the cut you'd expect to be getting when ordering a Raiders! Looks great on you, too. I don't see this thing disappearing anytime soon and I hope it doesn't.

Something is definitely right here because it looks "Raiders" without even considering distressing. Just think of what that's going to look like in a few days after it forms a bit to you.

That is a NICE JACKET G-Mann!

Awesome of you to be the first to have taken a chance on this for the rest of us, too. Thank you!

[Deleted]

Profwex.........The sleeve length is 25-1/2" and the cotton lining will be what Todd uses in all the future jackets.

Harry..............It is as soft as it looks and does not have the Super Shine that most of the other Jackets have.

Cheers,
G-MANN

[Ragingblues]

Well, I think the darker thread will be a big improvement, and like Tone, the color inconsistencies would bug me. Some brown Pecards applied to the threads would certainly speed up the natural thread darkening and maybe even out a few spots too.

That being said.... the cut itself and texture of the leather look quite nice. I like the smaller pockets with the more rounded shape and the close-up shot of them really shows off the leather well. I also agree that for this being the first day of the jacket being put your back, it already has a lived in appearance in some ways. I think this will look mighty fine after several days of wear and the obligatory "balling up" it must go through. Considering the back story behind all this, and the fact that this is still the prototype version, I believe this will be a big seller!

Congrats to Todd for reaching step #416 of a very lengthy process, with the release of the first version of his Indy jacket. We look forward to seeing many more being worn by Indy fans the world over. Congrats to John for being the first one to pony up the dough yet again, to support hard working vendors like Todd. In doing so, you are offering an invaluable service to the rest of us and we do appreciate it!

Ken

[pitfallharry]

Yeah, I noticed that it look kind of "dull" (in a good way) in the shots you posted. That's one of the little things that bugs me about my Wested. It's still a little to "shiny" for my tastes. The Fuller's Earth kind of dulled it down a bit but it still looks brand new.

I guess the only other thing I want to know about this jacket is how well it's made and how well it will hold up after it's worn for a while.

Looking at it right now does the stitch work seem pretty solid?

I really can't believe how much this jacket looks like the G&B jacket....and it's at a price I can afford!

By the way G-Mann what size do you normally wear in "off the rack" jackets? I was wondering because I wear an extra large and I didn't know if maybe you ordered this one a size smaller to get that "slimmer fit" or not. That jacket looks like it fits perfect on you.

[Deleted]

The Jacket is put together extremely well. Nice solid stitching. It is very similar to the G&B in many ways but I think it is a slimmer fit.

As far as size I am a 40 Regular now or a Medium.

Cheers

[pitfallharry]

Oh, and I also wanted to ask if the jacket is now "officially" onsale or is it still being tweaked a bit before Todd takes anymore orders?

[Deleted]

pitfallharry said:

Oh, and I also wanted to ask if the jacket is now "officially" onsale or is it still being tweaked a bit before Todd takes anymore orders?

Harry,

I'm going to let Todd answer that one for you. But I have to tell you. In my HONEST OPINION: Start saving your money now because when Todd has the very last of the kinks worked out, this is going to be a MUST HAVE jacket for the true gearhead.

I am thrilled to have the #1 from Todd even with the few flaws it's a keeper.

Cheers,
G-MANN

[pitfallharry]

Well, one way or another I'm going to get one of these jackets down the road. The thought crossed my mind while I was writing that last post that I'd sell my Wested to get this jacket, but.....I don't think I could part with my Wested. I love it too. ;D

[GCR]

Sign me up! This jacket is lookin' good! My first thoughts based on the pics:

- The whole dye issue would probably bother me a bit as well, but that could probably be corrected after purchase (if it doesn't get corrected beforehand) with some doses of leather dressing and/or some distressing.

- The cut of the jacket looks great, along with the nice and shiny silver zipper!!! Pocket size, placement and shape all look good.

- The collar looks more like the flying wing than Indy's jacket collar, but we all know that it just needs a little curling and folding to break it in right.

- The grain of the leather is the one thing that really bothers me, even more than the inconsistent dye job. The grain just doesn't look right to me...maybe it's just me, though. Most of the lambskin jackets I've owned (both Indy and non-Indy) have had a much smoother appearance and texture...

Overall, none of the negatives I mentioned would prevent me from buying one of these. I'm still liking the looks of this jacket a lot, as well as the price.

Cheers to Todd for coming up with another superb Indy jacket option!

And cheers to G-mann for being the test-pilot for Todd's jacket project.

Now, once Todd makes those few tweaks, who's gonna get Prototype #2???

-GCR

[Ragingblues]

The choice in leather was specifically picked to give more of the distressed, worn look of Indy's jacket. Unlike the baby smooth Italian leather of most dress jackets, Indy's had a decidedly rougher look to it. So, that was actually done intentionally to set this jacket apart from the others.

Also, this was the only prototype there will be, to my understanding. From here on out, the jackets will have the same cut and pattern, darker thread, and of course... more consistent coloring throughout. The actual first run jackets will have the improvements already factored in from this prototype.

This is my understanding, based on John's conversations with Todd. He will probably be posting a few things himself, about it all very soon too.

Ken

[GCR]

admin said:

The choice in leather was specifically picked to give more of the distressed, worn look of Indy's jacket. Unlike the baby smooth Italian leather of most dress jackets, Indy's had a decidedly rougher look to it. So, that was actually done intentionally to set this jacket apart from the others.

I take it back. I just went through my personal collection of Raiders pictures and screenshots and I found just about as many instances of the jacket looking smooth as I did of the jacket with a noticeable grain or texture very similar to Todd's jacket.

Whether the film jacket had a similar texture to the leather from the get go, or if the texture was a by-product of the steel-brush / swiss army knife distressing, we may never know. My guess is it was probably a little from column A, and a little from column B.

Anyways, the grain / texture issue is no longer a concern with me, and with the dye issues and lighter stitching also being addressed before the jackets are made available to the public, I see no reason NOT to get one of these beauties!

-GCR

[Ragingblues]

I'm sure I should have worded things differently, but... what I meant to say was, Todd was looking for a more distressed looking leather to get closer to the screen look of the jacket. I'm quite sure the original jackets started out with pretty smooth lambskin, only to have their texture changed completely with steel brushes, pocket knives, and whatever else they threw at it. I believe Todd just wanted to offer something that looked more worn like the screen versions did.

Sorry if I derailed your thought process a bit there GCR.

Ken

[GCR]

admin said:

I'm sure I should have worded things differently, but... what I meant to say was, Todd was looking for a more distressed looking leather to get closer to the screen look of the jacket. I'm quite sure the original jackets started out with pretty smooth lambskin, only to have their texture changed completely with steel brushes, pocket knives, and whatever else they threw at it. I believe Todd just wanted to offer something that looked more worn like the screen versions did.

Sorry if I derailed your thought process a bit there GCR.

Ken

No sweat, I knew what you meant! In fact, it makes a lot of sense to me, for Todd to go this route and offer a jacket that doesn't have that initial smooth / shiny look like your normal brand new Wested or G&B, but instead has a more "worn" or at least "broken in" look (similar to Indy's) without the major distressing of the film jacket or the sometimes too uniform look of many "pre-distressed" leathers. Now that I know the grain of Todd's jacket is indeed accurate to many scenes in Raiders, it makes me want one even more! (I'm telling everyone right now, I've had a major case of screen-accuratitis lately and it ain't gettin' any better... ...heck, I never thought I would ever care about the grain/texture of a leather jacket before... )

-GCR

[Marc]

I really like the vest

The ONLY thing I could think of, is the collar on the left side: it should extend to the very middle of the stormflap, but otherwise: great.

I think the texture ADDS to the overall appearence of the jacket.

Todd, will you have the Platon strap configuration added? (the one piece construction)

Regards,

Marc

[Kt. Templar]

Well, you all know my position on the pricing and whys and wherefores of this jacket putting all that aside though:

I think it looks very good, there are parts of it that remind me a lot of the US Wings, the thickness of the leather and the shape of the collar.

The cut on the body is a big improvement on US Wings that is usually too loose and quite a bit loo long in the body. It sort off looks like a custom G&B.

As this is a proto we probably shouldn't make too much of the stitching, there are a couple off loose threads and the colour is off. Only time will tell as to the durability.

Leather: this actually looks a lot like some of the cowhide I've seen at Wested just less shiny.... the grain certainly looks to have that big "facetted" texture on it, Todd are you sure that is lamb and they haven't given you a cowhide instead? Other than that it looks good out of the box, I like the matt nature.

Pockets, mmm they look a little too squat and small for this particular jacket, I like the shape of the flap though, it's more curvy than I am used to but from the screen shots we have seen it appears more screen accurate.

Once it all settles down and forms to you it will be a really good fit, but you always seem to do well in that department.

All in all looks a nice jacket. If all the little things are ironed out it will be one to add to the list of choices.

Thanks G-Mann for being the first.

[Marc]

Regarding the texture... I figured I had seen it SOMEWHERE before... Can anyone of you tell me what jacket this is?



Regards,

Marc

[pitfallharry]

As far as the dye job and the threading color goes I don't really see that big of a problem with it at all even if this is just the "prototype" jacket. To me it makes it look sort of distressed and worn in. Until someone else brought it up I didn't really even notice it.

I think this jacket looks a 1000 times better than any US Wings jacket I've ever seen. Right now I'd say it's right up there with the Wested and the Flightsuits jackets. How well this jacket holds up down the road compared to these other two remains to be seen but as of right now I would like to own one myself.

If I can go out an order a jacket that looks this good in an "off the rack" size I'm all for it. I really do love my Wested but you don't know how many times I measured and double checked everything before I ordered the jacket because I was so worried the order would get mixed up and then I'd have to ship it back and wait another month or longer just to get it corrected. I'm very thankful though that my Wested arrived and it fit perfect. For me though it would have been a lot easier to order this jacket from Todd if it had been available a year ago because he's here in the US and I could have just said I need an extra large and if that was to big I could ship it right back and say give me a large and I wouldn't have to wait forever.

I don't sweat the small stuff when it comes to these Indy jackets. The only things I really concern myself with are the durability, if it's to light or to bulky , the leather , the fit and the color.....which by the way I'm hoping G-Mann will post some pics of the jacket in direct sunlight so we can see how the color looks.

I think Todd's got a hit on his hands. As long as he can keep up the quality and the consistency of the jackets I can't see any reason not to recommend it to someone.

Can't wait to get the cash to order one myself. I've got to get my Rabbit AB first.

[pitfallharry]

marc said:

Regarding the texture... I figured I had seen it SOMEWHERE before... Can anyone of you tell me what jacket this is?



Regards,

Marc

Raiders?

[Ragingblues]

You are correct sir!


Ken

[Kt. Templar]

Jumping through the truck window is my bet.