Club Obi Wan

Those Nowak Jackets are beautiful, it really make me want to have one...
The jacket is expensive but I think it's worth it from your reviews.

But I'm afraid to pay custom duty (I won't begin to imagine how much it could be...). I know with UPS I always have to paid them...

Did anyone ordered a TN outside the US ??

SpeedRcrX wrote:Those Nowak Jackets are beautiful, it really make me want to have one...
The jacket is expensive but I think it's worth it from your reviews.

But I'm afraid to pay custom duty (I won't begin to imagine how much it could be...). I know with UPS I always have to paid them...

Did anyone ordered a TN outside the US ??

I did, must say its an awesome jacket aswell.

Allthough I have just received an invoice from FEDex for £41.15 for the jacket for the duty/taxes as its described.

Allthough I have just received an invoice from FEDex for £41.15 for the jacket for the duty/taxes as its described.

Not bad! I was stung for more than that on $300 of t-shirts from the US!

unerhij wrote: I did, must say its an awesome jacket aswell.

Allthough I have just received an invoice from FEDex for £41.15 for the jacket for the duty/taxes as its described.

Well, I paid 40€ for a pair of Dr Martens in duty and these shoes cost 110€ (shipping included)

I did some maths and approximately I have to pay 195 € in duty so basically a TN would cost me 660 € ($992)...

I think I'll stick with my Wested (that I love). These duties had settled my indecisiveness.

Indiana Williams wrote:Maybe I can talk him into joining our board maybe making an appearence at the QM summit in November. I want to thank all the Nowak owners for posting great reviews and pictures. I look forward to owning one of these handsome jackets.
Best Regards,
Joe

Hi Joe

Well thats funny I sent him a email about setting up a fitting on Nov 6 when I fly in. Told him I was going to a Indy gathering on the QM then visting my brother in CA. I just hope he's not close to the 777 by the time I get down on the Nov 6.

He said np at all would even sent it to my brother house if it was done before I leave CA. Well that would then save me on duty heading back to Canada.
If you can get him to come along great maybe honored guest at dinner Sat? just thinking to myself (nothing to see here move along)

Richard

Indiana Williams wrote:Well..... I broke down and did it, Im going to order a Nowak. Ill admit at first I didnt see what was the big deal with these jackets but after reading reviews and seeing pics on here I now want one I called Tony earlier today and arranged to meet him at his shop on wednesday to get fitted.Hes only about 55 miles away from my house so I figured it be cooler to order in person and get fitted by the man himself. I plan on going in gear Ill try to get a pic or two while there. When I was talking to him on the phone I mentioned how many great reviews there were of his jacket and he sounded very flattered. I also mentioned IndyGear and he hadnt hear about it. Maybe I can talk him into joining our board maybe making an appearence at the QM summit in November. I want to thank all the Nowak owners for posting great reviews and pictures. I look forward to owning one of these handsome jackets.
Best Regards,
Joe

Be prepared for a long "fitting". He's a great guy, will talk your ear off, and will show you about 20 jackets for other movies he's working/worked on. It's a great time. Enjoy, I know I did!

- John

_ wrote:as per another thread here, I have seen the light, found redemption, and joined the church!

we haven't seen your registration fees yet _....you can paypal those to me please.

oh yeah, and there's the initiation to go through.......just remember the words, "thank you sir, may i have another?"

{ducks under _'s right hook}

I was so close this morninig to buying one, filled out the measurements, then took my son to luch and found out he car was leaking trans fluid,so I'll have to wait anthor month or so.

Demaroth wrote:

Indiana Williams wrote:Well..... I broke down and did it, Im going to order a Nowak. Ill admit at first I didnt see what was the big deal with these jackets but after reading reviews and seeing pics on here I now want one I called Tony earlier today and arranged to meet him at his shop on wednesday to get fitted.Hes only about 55 miles away from my house so I figured it be cooler to order in person and get fitted by the man himself. I plan on going in gear Ill try to get a pic or two while there. When I was talking to him on the phone I mentioned how many great reviews there were of his jacket and he sounded very flattered. I also mentioned IndyGear and he hadnt hear about it. Maybe I can talk him into joining our board maybe making an appearence at the QM summit in November. I want to thank all the Nowak owners for posting great reviews and pictures. I look forward to owning one of these handsome jackets.
Best Regards,
Joe

Be prepared for a long "fitting". He's a great guy, will talk your ear off, and will show you about 20 jackets for other movies he's working/worked on. It's a great time. Enjoy, I know I did!

- John

Im heading over there later, I cant wait. Ill try to be sure and get a pic with him.
Best Regards,
Joe

there was a question earlier about the pockets being scalloped, here is a better shot of the pocket to look at..


[/img]

#165 is now mine (my birthday is the 16th of May) I got back from Tony's shop a little while ago. He was a pleasure to meet and talk to. very friendly and personable. I got some nice pics while there. Ill put them up tomorrow. One pic Tony insisted on taking was of me wearing the Mutt jacket, cause he found out my last name is Williams .He said my jacket would be done in a week or so. I didnt get anal when it came to specs. I went with the distressed jacket with the regular personalized lining. I saw 3 jackets that were ready to go out while there. I wont mention names but they were numbers 333, 24 and 611. I tried em on too for the sizing Tony first had me try the Harrison spec then he noted what he would let out or take in. One thing I will say about his jackets that other Nowak owners have said is they are built like tanks. Cant wait to get my Nowak
Best Regards,
Joe

I haven't heard back from Tony..
That close up of the pocket looks fantastic. Just perfect.

Kevin Anderson wrote:I haven't heard back from Tony..
That close up of the pocket looks fantastic. Just perfect.

Hes a busy guy, he works till 12AM PST. Have you tried calling him?

Yeah, I did. Read a page or so back. Doesn't matter though; it sounds like a jacket I'd want fitted in person anyway. It's a lot of money (well spent!) for something to leave to chance. I'm in Australia, so I'll just make do with looking at the nice pics you kind people post!

I cant resist, here are pics of my trip to Tony Nowak's Shop Enjoy!
Heres his shop in El Segundo, CA(which is right below LAX) I sorta knew the area but I ended up driving by this place a couple times before I realized this was it
http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll30 ... G_0013.jpg
When I first got there I was an hour early then when I was suppose to meet up with Tony. He wasnt there at the time so I hung around his shop and took a couple pics. (I used my iphone camera, sorry for the poor quality)
When you walk past the waiting room, heres where all the magic happens.
http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll30 ... G_0016.jpg
There was this table with completed jackets on it. the one on top is an Indy, there were two other Indy jackets aswell as jackets from the new terminator, gi joe and few other upcoming movies.
http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll30 ... G_0015.jpg
Once Tony arrived we started talking jackets, once he found out my name is Williams he produced the Mutt jacket and insisted he get a pic of me wearing it.
http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll30 ... G_0026.jpg
Heres a pic of him with me wearing the T3 arnie jacket.
http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll30 ... G_0031.jpg
His waiting room is full of great pics of celebs wearing his jackets. And he also showed me the letter Bernie Pollack sent him thanking him for his work on the jackets. Once I tried a couple Indy jackets, Tony determined what specs he was going to do on my jacket. I didnt get all crazy with him on pocket and collar dimensions I just said I wanted a distressed SA Indy IV jacket and I have no doubt that is what I will recieve. Once we got the details on the jacket worked out then came the painful part, handing him my credit card Honestly though meeting Tony and talking to him made the hefty price all the more worth it because the guy takes an immense amount of pride in his work. to us indy is INDY but to him it was just another job that he applied his expertise and skill to. He really is a down to earth guy and a great guy to talk to.After I placed the order he gave me a tour of the jacket making process and showed me how a large sheet of leather turns into a beautiful handmade leather jacket. He showed me that when it comes to leather even on the same large piece no two sections are the same. He showed me how the leather is reinforced so it has a longer life. I wore my Goat Wested when I was there and he showed me differences between the two jackts and how he mad improvments thagt made his jacket more durable and practical. Before I left I got a pic of me wearing a CS jacket with Ford's specs and my AB.
http://i291.photobucket.com/albums/ll30 ... G_0029.jpg
It was then time for me to head home, We said our farewells and he said to come visit him again. If anyone is in the SoCal area I highly advise you to go visit his shop. He is truly a world class guy.
Best Regards,
Joe

Indiana Williams, you've completely convinced me to head on over there and get a Nowak. Dude, it is AWESOME that you document the trip with pics. Thanks !!!

Question... I know I've read here before, but what was the final price on the jacket? $670-ish

BTW, what did he say about your Wested Goat?

Hey Falco how many jackets you ordered these days??

Indiana Strones wrote:Hey Falco how many jackets you ordered these days??

Heeheee, Strones...
What can I say... the bug has hit me

I love how this jacket was heavily criticized by the majority here until it started showing up on other gearheads. Kryptonian (?) was practically martyred for his support of the Nowak jacket!

Now all you folks that have one are making my wish I could get one too...anyone have a spare $1,000 they could lend me?

Oh, COME now, old friend. That's SPP in this hobby.

If you'll recall, the exact same thing happened to _ over the Expedition, or Rundquist over his 'soft felt' theory for hats, or me anytime I post something for David Hack about a Wings offering, or......

Regards! Michaelson

You're right as always, M. Thanks for refreshing my memory.

IW...what a great story and thanks for sharing! its good to see that you ordered the TN jacket in the best possible way....in person

Looks like a great time, was Tony a pro body builder at one time, he looks so familar and with doing the bodybuliding jackets etc, he looks like someone from the early 90's late 80's or is it my imagination or does he just have one of those faces that looks like someone you know. .

jacksdad wrote:Looks like a great time, was Tony a pro body builder at one time, he looks so familar .

yes he was.

I have spoken about that with him on the phone.I had to ask..it cracked him up.

Tony is seen a few seconds in 'pumping iron' -Arnold's training movie from the 70's...

look for it in the beginning in the movie.

Arnold says' hey Big Tony' or something like that

bests
Holt

Indiana Williams wrote:I wore my Goat Wested when I was there and he showed me differences between the two jackts and how he mad improvments thagt made his jacket more durable and practical.

Hi, is it there any remarkable tip you could share, just to know in which way the jacket was improved?

IndyFalco wrote:Indiana Williams, you've completely convinced me to head on over there and get a Nowak. Dude, it is AWESOME that you document the trip with pics. Thanks !!!

Question... I know I've read here before, but what was the final price on the jacket? $670-ish

BTW, what did he say about your Wested Goat?

Your very welcome. The final price I paid was $701 including shipping.but I live in southern california just for reference. As for my got he said it was a nice jacket he just noted how his jacket is more durable and practical, like how the hand warmer pockets a deeper then Wested.

Cassidy wrote:I love how this jacket was heavily criticized by the majority here until it started showing up on other gearheads.

That is the whole reason why Tony hasnt posted on this forum yet. He didnt want to hear the critics early on, he wanted to wait till his jackets got out and let us owners do the talking, that and hes too busy at the moment to post on here. Hopefully he will start posting in here soon. He sounded really flattered when I mentioned that his jackets have alot of support on here and the people that own them love them. Also when I mentioned the QM to him he said if he isnt too busy around then he might make an appearance on Saturday probably.

Indiana G wrote:IW...what a great story and thanks for sharing! its good to see that you ordered the TN jacket in the best possible way....in person

Exactly, the guys shop is only an hour from me. why not take advantage of that.
And yes Holt is right. He does appear in 'Pumping Iron'. Arnie calls 'Big Tony' from the gym. and I believe you see him for a second in the film.

Odo wrote:

Indiana Williams wrote:I wore my Goat Wested when I was there and he showed me differences between the two jackts and how he mad improvments thagt made his jacket more durable and practical.

Hi, is it there any remarkable tip you could share, just to know in which way the jacket was improved?

Geez I feel illiterate after seeing that quote of what I typed, I was tired last night As for your question, The leather is reinforced.Reinforced stitching, the side straps are anchored with a piece of leather and the pockets are deeper. His jacket still has the basics od the Smithsonian jacket he copied. he just added a few things to make it a better jacket.
Thanks for your comments everyone. I did have a great time talking to Tony. I feel fortunate that I have had the pleasure of meeting both Peter and now Tony Nowak. I cant wait to get my jacket. I also cant wait to go visit Tony again this time wearing one of his top notch jackets.
Best Regards,
Joe

Wow! What an incredible experience that must have been! I wish I lived out there so I could go to his shop and meet him in person! Ive talked to him over the phone a lot trying to nail down the specifics of my jacket, and then we'd usually talk about something else thats going on in either movies or the world or what not. The guy is all CLASS! I feel like not only did I purchase a jacket from an experienced craftsman, but I gained a very good friend! I'll definitely be calling Tony just to chat and catch up whenever I get a chance.

Sound like you had fun Joe

Is anyone aware as to how close to the 777 make he has sold?

As I said earlier I'm coming down for the QM summit now I just paranoid that by the time Nov 6 comes around hes sold out or do you guys figure he's not even close yet to that number.

Should I phone and pay for it now and get mesured when I come down?

thanks for the input

richard

Wow Indiana Williams, I'm just jealous you managed to get him to agree to take a picture with ya! I'm probably not very photogenic, must be why...

Sounds like you had a great experience visiting Tony, and you're one of the fortunate few that actually had the chance to meet with BOTH Indy's jacket tailors! I hate you! I'm kidding, of course.

Hmm, maybe it's time I pull the jacket plug one more time...

ulldarborealis wrote:Sound like you had fun Joe

Is anyone aware as to how close to the 777 make he has sold?

As I said earlier I'm coming down for the QM summit now I just paranoid that by the time Nov 6 comes around hes sold out or do you guys figure he's not even close yet to that number.

Should I phone and pay for it now and get mesured when I come down?

thanks for the input

richard

Richard, I would call and talk to Tony. Thats the one thing I forgot to ask him, how many jackets are left? I blame my selfishness on Tony's hospitality but I would call him if I were you cause you never know. seeing as he lets everyone pic there own number.

Castor Dioscuri wrote:Wow Indiana Williams, I'm just jealous you managed to get him to agree to take a picture with ya! I'm probably not very photogenic, must be why...

Sounds like you had a great experience visiting Tony, and you're one of the fortunate few that actually had the chance to meet with BOTH Indy's jacket tailors! I hate you! I'm kidding, of course.

Hmm, maybe it's time I pull the jacket plug one more time...

Id be jealous too as for the photo he jumped when I mentioned it. He was extreamly friendly and easy going. It broke my heart when I had to go but the way I see it Im not just getting a high quality jacket I got new friend aswell. The only down side to me getting one of these jackets is I gotta part with one of my Westeds But thats how it works sometimes.
Best Regards,
Joe

What kind of leather is the Nowak jacket?

Baldwyn wrote:What kind of leather is the Nowak jacket?

Cowhide.

Jack

....it's massaged, premium-fed, butter-rubbed, grade AAA angus beef cowhide.......Tony only uses the very best

PSBIndy wrote:....it's massaged, premium-fed, butter-rubbed, grade AAA angus beef cowhide.......Tony only uses the very best

You almost made me want to eat my jacket.

I posted Monday about a Fedex package on its way. It was my Nowak jacket--#328 in honor of my daughter's birthday. I've not had a chance to post pics but I've been loving this jacket all week. It's so well constructed. It's definitely my #1 winter jacket. I had gotten it distressed which was worrying me because I had heard the stories of the distressing being over the top on early jackets. Tony's apparently really gotten the hang of the distressing thing as it's pretty subtle on my jacket, just giving it some character right out of the canvas bag. If you can get one at all, I highly recommend it.

Here's some pics (and I promise the mirror doesn't look like that without the flash! )

http://i350.photobucket.com/albums/q421 ... 140053.jpg

http://i350.photobucket.com/albums/q421 ... 140054.jpg

http://i350.photobucket.com/albums/q421 ... 140057.jpg

http://i350.photobucket.com/albums/q421 ... 140059.jpg

http://i350.photobucket.com/albums/q421 ... 140060.jpg

crismans wrote:I posted Monday ..... I highly recommend it.

Here's some pics (and I promise the mirror doesn't look like that without the flash! )

http://i350.photobucket.com/albums/q421 ... 140054.jpg

One thing I notice, and maybe it was discussed already, was that the back panel does not go all the way to the side seams. Is this an error in the manufacturing process, or the CS style?

looks great crismans!

best regards
Holt

bobjones wrote: One thing I notice, and maybe it was discussed already, was that the back panel does not go all the way to the side seams. Is this an error in the manufacturing process, or the CS style?

I know what you mean, and since all the Indy Nowaks that I've seen have the same feature, I would think it's safe to assume that it's an intentional effect.

I for one think it makes the jacket work better, by the way. Having the back panel not meet the sides completely gives some room for the jacket to 'wrap' around you, and still look pretty straight and not bunch up, which was a problem that I had on my Westeds, but not on my Nowaks.

Well, for what it's worth, I can confirm that my Nowak has the same feature, and so did photos of other TN jackets I examined before getting mine..

Jack

Castor Dioscuri wrote:

bobjones wrote: One thing I notice, and maybe it was discussed already, was that the back panel does not go all the way to the side seams. Is this an error in the manufacturing process, or the CS style?

I know what you mean, and since all the Indy Nowaks that I've seen have the same feature, I would think it's safe to assume that it's an intentional effect.

I for one think it makes the jacket work better, by the way. Having the back panel not meet the sides completely gives some room for the jacket to 'wrap' around you, and still look pretty straight and not bunch up, which was a problem that I had on my Westeds, but not on my Nowaks.

My attention to detail is not sufficient to have picked this up on my own; this was an item that had been mentioned in a thread about G&Bs/US Wings, where IIRC people had described this in the US Wings as if it were a flaw, whereas the G&B was praised as the Expo back was seam-to-seam.

That being said, as you mentioned, perhaps it isn't a flaw, but an intentional design choice to give the jacket a certain look or function.

eazybox wrote:Well, for what it's worth, I can confirm that my Nowak has the same feature, and so did photos of other TN jackets I examined before getting mine..

Jack

Jack, you may want to re-visit the pictures from the first page of this thread such as this one of the back from this post....

viewtopic.php?p=424949#424949

The other posts including pictures also show a back piece that is the full width:

viewtopic.php?p=425831#425831

http://www.flickr.com/photos/stuartjmur ... 219393246/

--------------------

EDIT:

I meant to say "is NOT the full width."

bobjones wrote:

eazybox wrote:Well, for what it's worth, I can confirm that my Nowak has the same feature, and so did photos of other TN jackets I examined before getting mine..

Jack

Jack, you may want to re-visit the pictures from the first page of this thread such as this one of the back from this post....

viewtopic.php?p=424949#424949

The other posts including pictures also show a back piece that is the full width:

viewtopic.php?p=425831#425831

http://www.flickr.com/photos/stuartjmur ... 219393246/

After looking at the mentioned photo's very carefully, I could not discover one single jacket that had a backpanel that was the full width.

As these are pictures of people wearing their jackets, the "gap" is rather easilly overlooked, but it is there if you look closely.

Regards, Geert

gwyddion wrote: After looking at the mentioned photo's very carefully, I could not discover one single jacket that had a backpanel that was the full width.

As these are pictures of people wearing their jackets, the "gap" is rather easilly overlooked, but it is there if you look closely.

Regards, Geert

I have to agree. You have to look closely at some of the pictures of the jackets being worn, but the gap does appear to be there on all of them.

Best,

Crisman

bobjones wrote:

eazybox wrote:Well, for what it's worth, I can confirm that my Nowak has the same feature, and so did photos of other TN jackets I examined before getting mine..

Jack

Jack, you may want to re-visit the pictures from the first page of this thread such as this one of the back from this post....

viewtopic.php?p=424949#424949

The other posts including pictures also show a back piece that is the full width:

viewtopic.php?p=425831#425831

http://www.flickr.com/photos/stuartjmur ... 219393246/

Yes, I did see those photos and like others I thought it was an effect of camera angles and drape, and that the gap could still be seen. I seem to recall someone mentioning this gap in one of the early posts, but I don't have the time to go back and read through them all to make sure. Maybe additional photos will show up to clarify this question.

Jack

Yes, I did see those photos and like others I thought it was an effect of camera angles and drape, and that the gap could still be seen. I seem to recall someone mentioning this gap in one of the early posts, but I don't have the time to go back and read through them all to make sure. Maybe additional photos will show up to clarify this question.

Jack

I made an error, I meant to say that the back panel of the Nowak jackets do NOT run the full width, whereas some other makers do.

Is this even an issue? I am not sure if it is even important, but as I said above, in another thread some posters did complain about the back panel on a manufacturer's jacket (not Nowak) not being the full width.

bobjones wrote:

Yes, I did see those photos and like others I thought it was an effect of camera angles and drape, and that the gap could still be seen. I seem to recall someone mentioning this gap in one of the early posts, but I don't have the time to go back and read through them all to make sure. Maybe additional photos will show up to clarify this question.

Jack

I made an error, I meant to say that the back panel of the Nowak jackets do NOT run the full width, whereas some other makers do.

Is this even an issue? I am not sure if it is even important, but as I said above, in another thread some posters did complain about the back panel on a manufacturer's jacket (not Nowak) not being the full width.

Me? I don't really care that much about it, but I am interested. In some movie stills I've seen, the gap does appear to be there but, like the photos posted here, you have to look closely. I would not return my jacket in outrage if it turned out the other way, though.

Jack

Jack

The CS jacket has the small gap and is accurate to the KotCS movie. The GB does not have the gap and is accurate to Raiders. Hence it's praise. The gap helps to keep a shallow pleat closed when not in use. The GB uses a flexible anchor material in 2 places down the pleat to aid it's closing. A trick they borrowed from their G1 and M422A. It is a design improvement that helps the jacket function as intended. However, it is not, strictly speaking, screen accurate as the Raiders pleat is open most of the time throughout the movie. Hope this clears things up a little.

Prescott wrote:The CS jacket has the small gap and is accurate to the KotCS movie. The GB does not have the gap and is accurate to Raiders. Hence it's praise. The gap helps to keep a shallow pleat closed when not in use. The GB uses a flexible anchor material in 2 places down the pleat to aid it's closing. A trick they borrowed from their G1 and M422A. It is a design improvement that helps the jacket function as intended. However, it is not, strictly speaking, screen accurate as the Raiders pleat is open most of the time throughout the movie. Hope this clears things up a little.

Thanks for the info...

Jack

Yeyyy! I got a call from Tony a little bit ago. He said my jacket is done and I should have it on Thursday. He told me 7-10 days when I ordered last Wednesday and he did it in 6. That's awesome! Can't wait to wear it and post some pics.

Great to hear Joe the photos of your trip to TN looked good

Lots of pics once it arrives

I called the other day and was told by Tony not to worry he will still have jackets in Nov so let hope so. I offered to pay for it now but he said NO to hold one.

It would be great if he could get mine done before I head back to Canada.

Looking forward to this trip