20yo Wested Horsehide, Meet Pecard

[Rob]

In a recent thread I mentioned pulling my old Wested horsehide out of the wardrobe. It was very dry and stiff

So, after hitting a pair of 10yo Coyle's boots with some Pecard earlier today I thought, what the heck, and went out in the lovely winter sun to hit the horsehide with some too.

First photo - dry and stiff (honestly, it felt terrible), but still looking very cool.



A close-up on the grain, for you grain fans. The collar shows some of the best.



And we're off and running. Instantly you can see why some of the old timers around here used to call this jacket The Red One, as the first batch of Wested horsehide - and again, this is 20 years ago folks, so don't go calling Mick and asking for some - had a really nice russet undertone which really shows through when you hit it with Pecards.



Almost there...



And a few more for your viewing pleasure.

Now I just need to find somewhere to let this sit for a day or so!

[bearbeast]

Whoa, very interesting hue on the leather. Almost reddish brown. Completely different from my horsehide jacket.

Let us know if it is nice and supple after it soaks up the Pecards.

Cheers,
Bear

[Rob]

Whoa, very interesting hue on the leather. Almost reddish brown. Completely different from my horsehide jacket.

Yeah, even back in the day, it was different to horsehide jackets being made just 'a month or two' later, as memory serves.

I'm glad I took some where the leather was only half done, so people can see I wasn't using some funky filter or whatever.

Soaking in nicely. Here's a shot without direct sun from an hour or so after the originals were taken

[bearbeast]

Looks much darker without the sunlight. Once the Pecards starts drying up a bit it will become lighter again most likely. Depends a lot on the leather though.

Cheers,
Bear

[Michaelson]

If you want to accelerate the soak in, hit it with a hairdryer on low until the surface Pecards liquifies, wipe the excess off, then buff with an old cotton tee shirt.

Looks great!

Regards ! Michaelson

[Illinois_Jones]

My only question is, how are the threads holding up? Wested notoriously uses a finer thread than the should and a common problem over the years with their HH jackets is the threads snapping, especially in the shoulders.
Looks good, tho. Especially after spending so long on a hanger.

[Rob]

My only question is, how are the threads holding up? Wested notoriously uses a finer thread than the should and a common problem over the years with their HH jackets is the threads snapping, especially in the shoulders.

Threads are great! I do wonder whether my jacket is a thinner hide than later hides that experienced issues?

It certainly feels thin. I have a non-Indy jacket in cow, for example, and it seems hellishly thicker

[bearbeast]

By the way the leather drapes in the pics I would say it is a lighter hide. My horsehide is still like cardboard after around seven years. It did break in a lot since new, but still stiff, compared to lamb or goat...

Cheers,
Bear

[indianajohn007]

Does horsehide make it a fairly stiff jacket?

[Rob]

Does horsehide make it a fairly stiff jacket?

My jacket is very stiff. Even re-winding 20 years to when it was brand-new, it's always had a particular 'feel' to it, like I'm wearing body armour.

Vitally, the hides Wested gets in change over time - sometimes many times, depending on the hide - so who knows what new(er) jackets are like?

If you want a strong leather that still feels soft (which I presume via you asking about the stiffness of horse), I'd be inclined towards goatskin