Wested ROTLA Washed Goatskin:

[Captain D]

Hi all,

I did a search on Wested's ROTLA (slimmer 80s cut version) Washed Goatskin. I came across a lot of threads showing some excellent pics .

A few questions if I could please:

1.) To those who have had one of these jackets for awhile, how has the durability held up w/ regards to stitching, tearing, etc? How much abuse have they taken so far?
2.) Do Westeds tend to run on the smaller or larger size (but I guess ordering the 80s fitting, more on the smaller size in this case),
3.) Are the ROTLA Washed Goatskin jackets more on the darker brown shade, Authentic shade, or an in-between shade?
4.) I've seen posts that have mentioned that the jackets are made in India. If I wanted to request underarm gussets and the yoke panel being raised 1'' higher than the arm sleeve seam (to make it more screen-accurate), would this even be possible?

"Thank you" for any replies,
Aaron

[jnicktem]

1) I have had my jacket for 1.5 years. I have worn it a lot in that time and I must say that it has held up EXTREMELY well! The stitching hasn't broken or came loose at all, and there has been no damage to it besides the occasionaly light scratch marks in the leather.

2) I have found that Westeds run true to size. I nearly ALWAYS wear a size 42L in any jacket I wear. And that holds true with Wested. But that is just in my experiences.

3) To me the washed goat is lighter in colour than the dark brown. It's not very light- but a good inbetween colour in my opinion.

4) I am not entirely sure, but the custom jackets are made in England. At least that is where mine was made.

I hope anything I have said is useful!

[Texan Scott]

To echo j's comment, the washed goathide is not as dark as a Raiders jacket and not as light as CS jacket leather, but has a very slight greenish hue. I assume that the factory uses a chemical, possibly acid wash to create the effect. To contrast the soft goat hide, the washed goat hide is soft like lamb, but still durable.

[Captain D]

Thank you gents for the replies,

I already wrote to Wested w/ a few questions. But, I forgot to ask something in particular and maybe you guys can help double-check this for me:

On the Wested website, they have two different links to purchase the ROTLA 80s fitting jacket. The first one is for $186.21 + shipping for the Washed Goat (I'm assuming that these are the ones made in India since they're standard - ready to ship, correct?):

http://www.wested.com/raiders-rola-wash ... -177-p.asp

And the second link also says that you can purchase the Washed Goat when I clicked on the "Custom Link," but these are $245.80 + shipping:

http://www.wested.com/customrola--jacket-161-p.asp

The only primary thing that I would like to get "customized," more or less, is to have the back yoke raised 1'' higher than the arm-sleeve seam to be more screen-accurate. Underarm gussets would be cool, but this back panel is the main thing. So, I suppose my jacket would fall under the custom category. However, I kinda feel, and I believe someone else mentioned this in one of the older threads on this topic, that its a shame that Wested simply doesn't make this modification standard considering the fact that this was how the "ROTLA" jackets really were...especially if they offer a certificate of authenticity. In short, I'm paying extra for something that should already be there...I'm certainly not out to bash Wested by any means; just voicing my debate out loud whether I'll put the extra money out for something some folks may consider a waste of extra cash, lol.

BTW - For those of you guys (or gals ) who have this ROTLA style jacket, would you be able to snap a few pics of it outside in different lighting so that I may get a feel just how much lighter these jackets are in comparing them to the dark-brown goat? I think that I came across just one pic of the ROTLA jacket outside and it looked great! But any more floating round' out there by chance?

Thank you again for your time and for any responses,
Aaron

- Almost forgot to ask - I believe I read somewhere that to darken up a jacket, boot oil helps...is that accurate? And, which of the two zippers were used in Raider's and Temple of Doom: Nickle or Brass? Any of these two more durable than the other?

[Kt Templar]

This is my ToD in washed goat, it's a year and a bit old now. Love it. Nice and matt and the edges highlight nicely but it still feels like it can take the scrapes. What this doesn't show is the nice way it wrinkles when worn. But i haven't got a similar pic in good light.

One caveat on washed goat, it does sometimes have a faint dark line on it from the goat's spine. Mine has a faint line on the largest back panel. If you can live with that, then great. If not look at another skin/hide. Perhaps novapelle. It doesn't bother me in the slightest that it has it.



I wear a 40 short, so the proportions tend to look a bit stumpy on my jackets.

[Texan Scott]

D, one thing that you may or may not take into consideration is it appears that a naked hide, like a washed goat or novapelle hide works very well with the LC or CS look, while authentic lamb or soft goat works well with the Raiders look, just in terms of appearance. jmo, though.

[Holt]

woah,

that washed goat Kt is a dead ringer for the color on the temple jacket.

NICE!

[jnicktem]

Holt, my Wested washed goat leather looks JUST like that!!! Perfect!

[Captain D]

Thank you again fellas for the responses and the pic! I've handled a lot of different Indy jackets in my day, but I've gotta say, the Wested Washed Goat (particularly the 80s ROLA cut) is really beginning to grow on me, . "Thank you" again for all of the many replies and guidance!
High regards,
Aaron

[Dr. Evil]

I went to Wested and tried on many ROTLA's and ROLA's. I also tried on many of the last crusades made in-house. Every single British made jacket had a slimmer fit than any ROLA.

The ROLA OTR is amazing in quality, compared to the British made Indy jackets. Other Wested jackets, hower, seemed to be made just as good as the ROLA OTR. So, I don't know. Some of the in-house Indy jackets looked great. Others weren't so hot. I've got another type of jacket made in England by Wested and it's pretty amazing.

I'm going to have my ROLA OTR washed goat altered. I compared it to my ROTLA OTR. The front panels on the ROLA are 2 inches wider than my ROTLA OTR. By taking out this slack, my ROLA is going to look great. Perhaps you could try doing this.

[Captain D]

Thank you for your reply...It's good to hear that the off-the-rack /standard ROLA jackets made outside of Wested are just as good as far as durability sakes. Its interesting, however, that they aren't as slimmer made/cut than the Wested made ROLA jackets though...That's something certainly to consider when buying as well. But, I'm loving this washed goat for sure!!

[Captain D]

Just out of curiosity - I've seen & heard a lot about the "Custom ROLA" jackets out there from Wested throughout the threads, but any pics of the standard ones from India, overall fitting, positive & negative experiences, etc?

And, regarding the pic of Indy on the horse (posted by Holt a few posts up), I often wondered if that was Terry Leonard or Vic Armstrong. May I ask who that is?

Thanks again,
Aaron

[Noah]

If I may, I believe that is Terry Leonard. Am I right?

[Kt Templar]

If I may, I believe that is Terry Leonard. Am I right?

It is. The cute thing is, Terry is also the driver of the truck when Indy get to it.