Precision shrinkage

[Risu]

So I finally decided that I'm going to soak my Wested to shrink it. I like the look the jacket gets once it dries, the sleeves need stretching, and the body needs shrinking, so this should take care of all of my problems. So from what I've read, I have to soak the jacket for several minutes in the bath tub, then wear it while it dries. Is it true that heat makes the jacket shrink more? Somebody suggested I wear it and have someone use a hair drier on it, particularly on the back panel, to make it shrink a lot, maybe even get an 80s fit. Does this sound viable?

[PLATON]

If you have seen a tag in the jacket when it was new that read "Shrink to fit" like those good old Levi's jeans, then go ahead, soak it and wear it.

From personal experience though I would say that if you wear it you are going to stretch it whether you want it or no, and stretching it will make it more loose.

If I were you, I would soak it (in hot water) leave it to dry in the sunlight, (laying flat) and when it got dry, I would soak only the parts that I need stretched and then while wet I would pull them hard to stretch them.

But, that's only what I would do.

[Risu]

So hot water shrinks more than cold?

[PLATON]

All I know is that hot water makes the leather softer than cold.

[Risu]

OK, good to know I guess. The most important thing for me is shrinkage though, as the jacket is a size too large and cut for a much heavier person.

[rick5150]

Proceed with caution! Check the jacket frequently while using any heat source to shrink it (including sunlight). You may find that it is shrinking more in one direction than another or that part of the jacket is shrinking at a different rate than another part. Or that the lining is shrinking more than the jacket and causing odd wrinkles. Or that the lining is NOT shrinking, but the leather is. I have had a few jackets where the lining sticks out of the cuff becuase of this.

[Risu]

While watching Last Crusade last night I was hit by the impulse to take the dive and hopped into the shower wearing my Wested. After a couple minutes getting the jacket thoroughly soaked, I brought it back in, toweled it off, and hung it in front of my heater. For the next hour I rotated the jacket every 5 minutes to make sure it was evenly heated, but kept the sleeves clear by draping them over the top of the hanger. I went ahead and scalloped the pockets a bit more while they were wet, although my jacket luckily came with pretty darn SA pocket flaps to begin with. After that I spent a good half an hour drying the jacket with a hair dryer at close range, going inch by inch over the entire body of the jacket. After completely drying the liner with a small wind machine (literally, it's for movies) I tried it on and stretched the sleeves to a better length and then gave them the ToD wrinkles.

So I'm going to let the jacket air dry the rest of the way and in a few hours it should be good to wear. The final verdict: I'm much happier with the sleeves and I'm glad I gained some experience in soaking. However, it does not appear that the body shrank much at all. I'll measure it across the chest later.

[Arca Perdida]

Risu, I did the same thing last month (see thread and pics) to my US Wings Lamb.

http://indygear.com/cow/viewtopic.php?t=28023


I was after the same results (body shrinkage, same or longer sleeves). While I love what it did to the collar and pockets (I reshaped them while wet), I don't think it did anything to the size one way or another.

Good luck and post some pics when you get a chance!

[Risu]

Ampit to armpit: 23"
Sleeves: 25.5"
Flat width of bottom: 20"

I believe that is a bit slimmer and longer than normal. I really need to coat this thing in Pecard's tonight though, it feels like it's gonna crumble into pieces it's so dry.