Newby with Wested questions

jculpep3 · Post by **jculpep3** » Sun Feb 24, 2008 9:38 pm

Greetings everyone! A few weeks ago, after the Crystal Skulls trailer hit youtube, I started looking for a good Indy jacket. I browsed them a few years ago without getting one. This time, Indygear led me to Wested and to this forum, which I have lurked while waiting for my account to be registered. Most of my questions were answered by your posts, so I have discovered (and correct me if these are wrong):

--the "80's cut" has a slimmer fit, which is something I was looking for
--the dark lambskin is soft, lightweight and durable (not as much as horse or goat, but still very good).

So, my remaining question is can I get an off-the-rack raiders and request it in "80's cut"? I'm going for off-the-rack since cost is somewhat of an issue here--I'd love a custom of course, but if I can save a heap and still get a jacket that fits well, I'm all for it. So what do you all think?

gladd96 · Post by **gladd96** » Mon Feb 25, 2008 12:11 am

Hey jculpep3 my story is similar to yours. I decided to go with the Wested ROLA Special Offer jacket since it sounded like it had more of an 80's cut to it and the fact that it was an exceptional value. I should be receiving it soon and I'll be sure to give you the low down on the fit. My big concern is that the standard sizes are only in regular length and I wear a long jacket so I decided to size up from a 44 to a 46 to accommodate. I'm pretty sure this should do the trick and I'd certainly rather error on a the side of the jacket being too large.

My current leather jacket (it's a matador cut similar to an Indy jacket) is a heavy weight cowhide that I have had for around 10 years. It has a dark brown rub-off finish that has weathered and distressed handsomely. I'm interested in seeing how the authentic Seal Brown compares in color and how the lambskin compares to cowhide in the feel of the jacket. The heavy cowhide really feels like what an adventure would wear but the weight and stiffness also make it less comfortable so I think the lambskin will be a nice change.

I think if it wasn't for the price of the Special offer jacket I'd have to give a lot of thought on going with horse hide or goat instead of the lightweight lambskin. Somehow I have the feeling this won't be the last jacket I order so I decided to go with the budget jacket for starters.

Best of luck finding your Indy jacket.

Nobody · Post by **Nobody** » Mon Feb 25, 2008 6:04 am

The ROTLA special offer is the only Wested off the rack jacket that has the 80s cut and has quite a few details that most people ask for when ordering a custom SA jacket.

Welcome to the club

Post by **Holt** » Mon Feb 25, 2008 6:32 am

first of all welcome to the club...

the jacket that is the most closest to the custom made jacket for a raiders is the special offer ROTLA jacket...

it has most of the specs that the raiders film jacket had.

80's cut-slimmer body.tappered sleeves.more higher and more narrow armholes.no leater facings.smaller zipper

high regards
Holt

jculpep3 · Post by **jculpep3** » Mon Feb 25, 2008 10:15 am

Thank you all for the welcome and replies...I wish the Special Offer jacket came in dark lambskin! It's a good deal but I am looking for a different color...

So about the standard fit: I've read about "flying Squirrel" effects and such with the sleeves, so are the standards cut much larger than 80's, or do they still tend to fit well if the size is correct?

gladd96 · Post by **gladd96** » Thu Feb 28, 2008 3:44 pm

I just received my jacket and I must say it's all I could have asked for from an off-the-rack jacket. I had to sacrifice a little in the chest fit by up-sizing to get the sleeve and body length right and I must say the 46 was the perfect length for me (I'm 6'1" 190 Lbs) and the trimmer cut helped lessen the looseness around the chest... actually I like to have the option to wear fleece under the jacket and normally wear jackets unzipped so I actually think the 46 was the right choice from a flexibility standpoint.

Jculpep3: If the jacket pictured on the Wested sight is showing up on your screen like it did on mine, the Authentic Brown looks much lighter on screen than it does in person. I was really afraid that it wouldn't be dark enough but it is pretty close to the dark brown on my other jacket... I think the dark brown would split the difference between a black and the authentic brown which in my opinion would result only in a slightly darker jacket. Anyway the Authentic Brown looks every bit like you would expect an Indy Jacket to look.

I'm pleased with the weight and quality of the leather. This jacket compares to a jean jacket in warmth which is perfect since I was looking for a jacket suitable for mild not cold weather that transitions comfortably from indoors to outdoors.

I couldn't be more pleased with my ROTLA Special offer jacket. The only two things I'd change would be to remove the shoulder pads (does anyone know why this are in the jacket? other than the obvious.) and change out the D rings. I think I'll treat the lambskin as more of a fashion jacket and in the future I'll look into investing in a horse hide jacket to serve as a companion on my more rugged adventures. Not that the Lambskin isn't tough enough but I'd feel bad about abusing such a refined leather.

Thanks to everyone on the forum. Reading through all the post regarding the ins and outs of the jackets really helped me make an informed decision. If anyone is interested in pictures or more detail please let me know.

Scott

ortiz344 · Post by **ortiz344** » Thu Feb 28, 2008 4:01 pm

gladd96 wrote:I just received my jacket and I must say it's all I could have asked for from an off-the-rack jacket. I had to sacrifice a little in the chest fit by up-sizing to get the sleeve and body length right and I must say the 46 was the perfect length for me (I'm 6'1" 190 Lbs) and the trimmer cut helped lessen the looseness around the chest... actually I like to have the option to wear fleece under the jacket and normally wear jackets unzipped so I actually think the 46 was the right choice from a flexibility standpoint.

Jculpep3: If the jacket pictured on the Wested sight is showing up on your screen like it did on mine, the Authentic Brown looks much lighter on screen than it does in person. I was really afraid that it wouldn't be dark enough but it is pretty close to the dark brown on my other jacket... I think the dark brown would split the difference between a black and the authentic brown which in my opinion would result only in a slightly darker jacket. Anyway the Authentic Brown looks every bit like you would expect an Indy Jacket to look.

I'm pleased with the weight and quality of the leather. This jacket compares to a jean jacket in warmth which is perfect since I was looking for a jacket suitable for mild not cold weather that transitions comfortably from indoors to outdoors.

I couldn't be more pleased with my ROTLA Special offer jacket. The only two things I'd change would be to remove the shoulder pads (does anyone know why this are in the jacket? other than the obvious.) and change out the D rings. I think I'll treat the lambskin as more of a fashion jacket and in the future I'll look into investing in a horse hide jacket to serve as a companion on my more rugged adventures. Not that the Lambskin isn't tough enough but I'd feel bad about abusing such a refined leather.

Thanks to everyone on the forum. Reading through all the post regarding the ins and outs of the jackets really helped me make an informed decision. If anyone is interested in pictures or more detail please let me know.

Scott

yeah i got the biggest they offered 50 (im 6'4) and it fit fairly snuggly when i had a sweater on so i think thats perfect since mostly i wear shirts and i as well err on the side of too big, i had to jump on the special as that was the determining factor in me grabbing a wested...

jculpep3 · Post by **jculpep3** » Thu Feb 28, 2008 5:07 pm

Thanks for the info, Scott! I ended up ordering a 40 special offer after I saw Indiana Holt's pics on another thread--his looks much darker than the one pictured on wested's site, so I believe you about the color being darker than it looks.

By the way, I see you are from Arkansas, how long did it take yours to get there? It seems like Wested's ships very quickly

gladd96 · Post by **gladd96** » Sat Mar 01, 2008 12:57 am

It took 10 days for the Jacket to arrive but I think they tend to ship orders at the end of the week so I think you're looking at approximately 3 business days once the package ships. Mine came via the USPS by way of an international shipper.

I just extracted the padding from the shoulders as I have fairly broad shoulders. Really the shoulder pads were @#$% without any tapering and just looked plain bad. I hope they weren't serving any kind of a structural function.

Tron7960 · Post by **Tron7960** » Sat Mar 01, 2008 1:18 am

Who else received rectangular sliders on their special offer RotLA from Wested?

http://farm3.static.flickr.com/2197/226 ... 90.jpg?v=0

Tron

jculpep3 · Post by **jculpep3** » Sat Mar 01, 2008 11:34 am

Yeah, I've heard about these shoulder pad things...did you do the surgery yourself or find a tailor to do it? Someone should make a little tutorial on how to remove them without tearing up the jacket too much...

gladd96 · Post by **gladd96** » Thu Mar 06, 2008 3:01 am

No tailor... I just cowboyed it.

Just rip 4"-6" of the lining seam from the shoulder in. Reach in and tear the large portion of the foam then tear the smaller portion of the foam from the other side of the stitching holding it in place. Sew it back up nice and tight... using white thread like I did is purely optional but highly effective in maintaining your masculinity.

Kt Templar · Post by **Kt Templar** » Thu Mar 06, 2008 3:14 am

gladd96 wrote:No tailor... I just cowboyed it.

Just rip 4"-6" of the lining seam from the shoulder in. Reach in and tear the large portion of the foam then tear the smaller portion of the foam from the other side of the stitching holding it in place. Sew it back up nice and tight... using white thread like I did is purely optional but highly effective in maintaining your masculinity.

LOL, that's one way to do it!

Another is to turn the whole jacket inside out.

Examine the sleeve lining seams, you find that one is stitched 'from the outside' (I don't know what the technical term is!! Un-pick that and you can turn the jacket inside out from there.

You can then easily remove the pads.

.

Rom Hunter · Post by **Rom Hunter** » Thu Mar 06, 2008 6:37 am

I left this job to a tailor that is specialized in leather jackets.

He did an excellent job for $10.

Just picked the jacket up.

The strange feeling around my shoulders is gone and the jackets fits perfectly now.

Still waiting for the flat black rectangulars for the finishing SA touch.