Got my Nowak Crystal skull jacket repaired today

[Bruce Wayne]

[Michaelson]

Ok, regale us again on how that happened.

Regards! Michaelson

[Bruce Wayne]

I am not sure to be quite honest. I went ot put it on after it had layed on a chair in the garage for a few days & I noticed that it was ripped. The only thing that I can figure is in our house, the interior doors had handles instead of knobs, so my best guess is that I caught it on one of those but didn't hear it rip. Other than that, you guess is as good as mine.

[Michaelson]

Really! Wow. That cowhide is heavy, and I'd think it take a pretty good, hard tug to get it to rip like that!

Well, at least it has even more character with that repair. Looks like they did a good job too!

Regards! Michaelson

[whipwarrior]

I'd rub some dark shoe polish in the repair scars to make them blend in a little better.

[Michaelson]

That, or brown Pecards leather dressing.

Regards! Michaelson

[CM]

How did it happen...? My straps get caught all the time. Car doors, drawer handles, trolleys, one time some f**** shelving. Straps are not practical. I can't imagine the trouble you can get into with jackets that have those dumb straps on their sleeves.

[Michaelson]

Oddly enough, in all the years I've worn these jackets with the stide straps (including G-8's that AREN'T Indy jackets but have the straps too), I have NEVER caught them on anything. Ever.

Action pleats? Often. Straps? Never.

Regards! Michaelson

[Zoltar]

Just a couple of days ago I got the shoulder pleat on my Wolvie jacket caught on the latch of a pub door as I entered, it nearly took me of my feet! No damage just a little embarrassing

ZOLTAR

[Indiana Jeff]

Yeah, I've been 'yanked' a time or two by catching a strap on a doorhandle or the like, but not with enough force to rip the jacket. And my Wested has the 'weaker' strap sewn into the liner configuration. Never caught an action pleat on anything.




Regards,

Indiana Jeff

[Michaelson]

Just a couple of days ago I got the shoulder pleat on my Wolvie jacket caught on the latch of a pub door as I entered, it nearly took me of my feet! No damage just a little embarrassing

ZOLTAR

Wait until you've experienced walking through a clothing department of a large mall store and hanging up your action pleat on a rack of clothes, pulling them over behind you!

Been there, done that.......several times.

Regards! Michaelson

[Hollowpond]

I would like to put in my vote for coolest jacket scar ever! Very Frankensteinish.

Travis

[afterthedog]

Tell everyone that the rips are from a knife fight.

[ron521]

I believe that in the film "Rebel Without a Cause", one of the characters gets the strap on the sleeve of his jacket caught on a car's door handle, and cannot jump from the car, so goes over a cliff...must have happened all the time to be included in the film

[whipwarrior]

In the thirteen years that I've been wearing Indy jackets exclusively, I never once had my side straps catch on anything, but I have (embarrassingly) snagged the leather shoulder strap of my Filson rucksack on stair railing and door handles.

[Bruce Wayne]

I believe that in the film "Rebel Without a Cause", one of the characters gets the strap on the sleeve of his jacket caught on a car's door handle, and cannot jump from the car, so goes over a cliff...must have happened all the time to be included in the film

I remember that scene.

[Michaelson]

Well, all that said, it actually gives your jacket character, and just makes it all that much more YOUR jacket.

Well done on keeping it up in such a manner. In this 'throw away' or 'order a new one when the other gets damaged' world we live in, it's nice to see someone have pride in ownership and attempting to keep their gear serviceable for years to come.

Most folks would have slapped on a piece of duct tape and put it up for sale in the classified or on ebay with the phrase 'an easy fix for a tailor, I'm sure', then ordered a new one.

Regards! Michaelson

[Harry Steele]

Wabi-sabi.

Harry

[ThatManFromRio]

...In this 'throw away' or 'order a new one when the other gets damaged' world we live in ...

...including wife or husband ...

[Pitfall Harry]

Just curious....Does Tony's jackets come with a lifetime warranty or did you have to pay to have it repaired? I'm REALLY shocked that happened. All of Tony's jackets to me have looked like they could withstand anything. Glad you got it fixed though.

Nothing at the moment comes to mind but I'm sure I've caught the straps and pleats on my jackets on stuff before. It makes you think though that in the real world how Indy would have faired crawling into these tight spaces and other dangerous areas wearing his jacket. Imagine the strap getting caught on something that triggered a trap and then "BAM" no more Indy!

[Michaelson]

I know when Tony was alive, he told me all seams, snaps and zips were covered for the life of the original owner. I don't know what Riley does.

Tony used the same warranty as G&B, by the way. They, too, cover zips, seams and snaps for the life of the original owner.

As to the hide itself, I don't know of any of the jacket makers who warranty the leather myself.

Anyone else?

Regards! Michaelson

[Pitfall Harry]

Well, it's unfortunate this happened but stuff like this happens no matter what kind of jacket you own and nothing, as far as I've run across , is totally invinicible. It's good to know that Tony offered the same warranty when he was with us as places like G&B do. I can't imagine Riley would change that once he took over. It would think it would just remain "locked in" with the overal customer service the company offered.

[Bruce Wayne]

The following is from memory from over six months ago. So if it seems off or odd, my apologizes.

Last year I had sent my jacket to Riley for some alterations, specifically, I wanted the sleeves two inches longer becasue they had seemed too short for my taste. I knew that I would have to pay for the shipping there & back as well as everything else involved in that. When Riley recieved it he mentioned that it needed a new zipper. I did not notice that it needed one, but I went ahead & told him to put one on. When it came time to pay, I had to call him three or four times for every one time he called me back. I do not have paypal & that is not an option for me so I sent a check. I just put it in an envelope with a note for what it was for, put a stamp on it & put it in my mailbox on the street. About a month passes with out hearing from Riley or the check being cashed Sometime during the phone tag he had changed his number & the number that I had was disconnected & no longer in service. The only reason I was able to contact him was because his new number showed up on the caller I.D. on my cell phone. Anyways, I sent a second check overnight with signature confirmation. That is the one that got there. And now I have my jacket.

Looking back on the whole ordeal & the contact (or lack thereof) Riley has with this group of fans, I will never order another jacket from him. This is in reference to him closing his doors as soon as no one orders anything else. The thing is, that is how every business operates. If anyone wants to contact him the number that I have is 310-913-4017. I wish you the best of luck in trying to contact him.

-Charlie

[Michaelson]

I'm glad Riley noticed your zip required replacing.

Tony had a run of bad zippers at the 'end', as the ones he had received didn't have the plastic shield at the bottom behind the slide that protected the cloth from being frayed. After several times being zipped, that cloth started to tear, and the zipper would eventually give way from the leather.

Toney told me this when he replaced mine with a stronger brass version just before he passed away. That zipper has worked smooth as glass.

It looks like Riley is checking that area when the old jackets come back in for work. Good for him.

Regards !Michaelson