My Wested Custom

[sliuman]

Hi,

Been wandering around these parts for about six months and thought it was about time I joined the party properly. I can't promise to be super active, but now I've made a start hopefully this will lead to bigger things.

I was back in the UK in June and after having promised myself a proper Raiders jacket since discovering Peter Botwright and his clothing line, I made my way down to the Wested ranch and ordered one.

I have a Disney jacket that I bought about 12 years ago while on holiday in the US, and while I like it, there was always something about the jacket that stopped me wearing it more than a dozen times in public. It didn't help that the sleeves appeared to be made for someone with 22-inch biceps -- despite the jacket being marked as a medium. I recall the sleeves being at least 4-5 inches too long. But that will be explained below!

Of course, sizing is relative depending on where you are. Here in Hong Kong where I live, I'm considered extra large. In the UK, I would be a large. And based on Japanese clothing I have tried on, I would be XXXL!!

At Wested, I decided to go for the novapelle just because the leather looked nice after Peter showed me what he said was a darker shade than normal.

I'll admit I should have spent more time getting the sizing correct -- but an impatient wife and my dad were waiting (I don't drive, so he had to do the honours!) -- so the rear panel probably came out a little wide.

Please bear in mind that I'm 5 feet two inches, weigh about 170lbs and have a 46 inch chest with a 32 waist. As you can see, not exactly the measurements for a typical adventurer. Still, I'm happy with what arrived in the post about 10 days later. It was quite stiff and fairly weighty, but having worn it a few times it has loosened up. I doused -- not soaked -- the jacket in cold water to help give the sleeves that "look". Oh, and those are about 1-1/2 inches too long ... probably because my chest measurements may have given the cutter the impression that he/she was dealing with a giant, therefore the shoulders hang a little.

Anyway, the back panel is huge...and probably makes me look like I'm flying. Will wetting the jacket improve matters here? Can I get some advice on the best course of action?

Hopefully, the next time I'm back in England, I'll take it down to Wested and get the shop to have a look at what can be corrected. And this time I'll make sure I spend the time to do it right within the limits of my body shape and the fact that I will never look like Harrison Ford!.

I'll include a couple of photos. Hope they work.

Opinions of any sort welcomed.

Cheers

sliuman

I have revised previous multiple links to now point to a small album. Cheers

http://imageshack.us/g/861/imgp1937resize2.jpg/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[IndyBrit]

Looking good!

[kwad]

Welcome sliuman!

With exception of the sleeve length, I think it looks good.
That is the darkest Novapelle I've seen yet. I like it!

Indy jackets have the sleeve openings pushed forward on the body, which causes the back to look wider and the chest to be narrow. It is just part of the "look".

Once it breaks in a bit the leather will drape down and conform to your shape better.
Getting the leather wet and wearing the jacket until it is dry will help speed up the process.

[lantzn]

The photos only show white box with red "?" marks.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

[Indyzane]

Very nice looking jacket! Thanks for sharing and Welcome to the club!

[Indiana Strones]

Never seen a novapelle like that before! Shiny and dark chocolate.

[Kt Templar]

Yeah, you need a good couple of inches taken off the sleeves. If you need to turn you wrists not to get the hands covered then they are too long IMO.

The back panel is interesting and too wide and I'm sure Peter will adjust it for you. Send em some pics before you next go back. The front chest looks like it fits well.

I'm about the same height as you and he can fit people our size!

I can't imagine you'll get a big window of opportunity to wear this in HK tho! I took a lambskin to HK last time I was over a couple of years ago in April.... not a chance to wear it at all! Only time I needed it was getting off the plane in the early morning back at Gatwick!

[raider7]

I gotta agree with KT, the sleeves are too long and the back panel is definitely too wide - assumning your not hunched over taking the pic, if you stand up straight and its the same, then yeah - far too wide. If you send it back - send the pics as KT suggested and Wested should sort it for you based on those. Any item of clothing should be comfortable to wear and look good on - it doesn't, although I'd agree that the front looks fine. I am not being rude - just honest and it's only my opinion, I think you'd feel and look better with the corrections as KT mentioned.

Not trying to put a downer on your purchase but it's easier to get in touch with Wested and sort it sooner than later.

[raider7]

Is that really Novapelle? I gotta say it looks a lot like the Wested horsehide - had one of those - same colour and sheen to it.

[Tibor]

Sliuman, that's excellent. Did you request the dark zipper?

[Alathea_Squared]

Sleeves are long, but a tailor can fix that right quick for you. That back panel may be right depending on his shoulders, though-if he has huge shoulder width, and a narrow waist the jacket would be have to be made that way, right?

[sliuman]

Well, TBH, I wouldn't really call it a narrow waist...my ###### belly can get in the way!

At work at the mo, so will provide more details on the jacket when I get home.

[sliuman]

Oops, the naughty police struck out a word...apologies. I didn't realise there was a language policy.

[Alathea_Squared]

I know exactly how you feel, waist wise. I have a 50 ish inch chest, but unfortunately a 54 inch natural waist that ive been fighting with for a long time. (army injury, rehab, medication, etc etc-yarrggghh). Get those sleeves done up (cost me about 25.00 US, in the States) and you'll be on your way, unless you are returning it.

[sliuman]

Hi KT,

I'd hoped you might chime in, having seen pics of you and your previous jackets, I figured we might be similar in shape and you know what you're talking about when it comes to these jackets. In fact, I did throw your name into the conversation when I was talking to Peter. Just keepin' your rep alive!

Yeah, the wrist turning is something I have to do now and again...sometimes I just fold the cuffs inside and then the length seems perfect.

Here is HK it's about 12 degrees Celsius and was about 8 yesterday. You just came too late on your last trip...the winter months here usually last from November to March. But this year has been warmer, sadly...

I'll definitely get the jacket fixed up next time.

I also think the pleats are too big, even though I've read that 1.5 inches is correct. Also, the jacket is marked as a 44 (even though I'm sure I was measured at 46) and while it's not tight across the chest when zipped it could do with being roomier. That's why I don't understand why the back is so large, but of course, I'm no tailor so I'll just have to rely on Peter to take care of it when I go back.

I'd like to get a screen accurate lambskin one day and hopefully I won't be afraid to give it a bit of a thrashing to get the look right...the trouble is, I tend to favour darker colours and from what I have seen the lamb may not suit my tastes.

Cheers

Yeah, you need a good couple of inches taken off the sleeves. If you need to turn you wrists not to get the hands covered then they are too long IMO.

The back panel is interesting and too wide and I'm sure Peter will adjust it for you. Send em some pics before you next go back. The front chest looks like it fits well.

I'm about the same height as you and he can fit people our size!

I can't imagine you'll get a big window of opportunity to wear this in HK tho! I took a lambskin to HK last time I was over a couple of years ago in April.... not a chance to wear it at all! Only time I needed it was getting off the plane in the early morning back at Gatwick!

[sliuman]

Hi Tibor,

So much information to take it and so little brain power to assess it all.

I wasn't aware of making a specific choice regarding the zipper. I know that the Hero is supposed to be nickel, is this correct? My jacket is an ROLA Custom...

Still, I like the look of the zip. It has a dark brass look that matches the jacket well.

Now let's see if I can include the pics inline. If I'm doing something wrong, can someone let me know and I'll just add a link to the image.


Check first post for link to photos, cheers all

Sliuman, that's excellent. Did you request the dark zipper?

[wwtwo]

[quote="sliuman"]Hi,

Been wandering around these parts for about six months and thought it was about time I joined the party properly. I can't promise to be super active, but now I've made a start hopefully this will lead to bigger things.

I was back in the UK in June and after having promised myself a proper Raiders jacket since discovering Peter Botwright and his clothing line, I made my way down to the Wested ranch and ordered one.

I have a Disney jacket that I bought about 12 years ago while on holiday in the US, and while I like it, there was always something about the jacket that stopped me wearing it more than a dozen times in public. It didn't help that the sleeves appeared to be made for someone with 22-inch biceps -- despite the jacket being marked as a medium. I recall the sleeves being at least 4-5 inches too long. But that will be explained below!

Of course, sizing is relative depending on where you are. Here in Hong Kong where I live, I'm considered extra large. In the UK, I would be a large. And based on Japanese clothing I have tried on, I would be XXXL!!

At Wested, I decided to go for the novapelle just because the leather looked nice after Peter showed me what he said was a darker shade than normal.

I'll admit I should have spent more time getting the sizing correct -- but an impatient wife and my dad were waiting (I don't drive, so he had to do the honours!) -- so the rear panel probably came out a little wide.

Please bear in mind that I'm 5 feet two inches, weigh about 170lbs and have a 46 inch chest with a 32 waist. As you can see, not exactly the measurements for a typical adventurer. Still, I'm happy with what arrived in the post about 10 days later. It was quite stiff and fairly weighty, but having worn it a few times it has loosened up. I doused -- not soaked -- the jacket in cold water to help give the sleeves that "look". Oh, and those are about 1-1/2 inches too long ... probably because my chest measurements may have given the cutter the impression that he/she was dealing with a giant, therefore the shoulders hang a little.

Anyway, the back panel is huge...and probably makes me look like I'm flying. Will wetting the jacket improve matters here? Can I get some advice on the best course of action?

Hopefully, the next time I'm back in England, I'll take it down to Wested and get the shop to have a look at what can be corrected. And this time I'll make sure I spend the time to do it right within the limits of my body shape and the fact that I will never look like Harrison Ford!.

I'll include a couple of photos. Hope they work.

Opinions of any sort welcomed.

Cheers

sliuman

I have revised previous multiple links to now point to a small album. Cheers


Hi Sliuman,
Yours is a nice looking jacket. As others have noted, the sleeves are too long. I had the same problem with my Wested LC goatskin which seems to have been corrected by a hot water treatment. I'm not recommending you try this method over having a tailor alter the sleeves, but it worked well to distress AND shorten the sleeves of my jacket about an inch. I soaked just the sleeves in scalding hot water in the bathtub and wrenched the water out until they were damp. I then put the jacket (inside a pillowcase) in the dryer on low heat for a few minutes. Then I pushed the sleeves up above my elbows for about 5 hours. Finding the nerve to do this took awhile, but I'm very pleased with the results. Again, I don't necessarily recommend you doing this to your jacket as you have other sizing issues, but I thought I'd add my two cents. Hope you have luck whichever road you take. Cheers, Two

Here are pictures:

Post distressing:
http://www.flickr.com/photos/70817127@N ... 722411931/" onclick="window.open(this.href);return false;

[Kt Templar]

You're welcome. I've noticed this happen on some people with barrel chests but perhaps narrower shoulders, note that the jacket does drape quite low at the shoulder tips. I could be he needs to adjust your sizing the across the shoulder width to be able to fit you properly. (Note this may be a start again job so have a chat with Peter before you start wetting and drying your jacket).

If you do decide to get the sleeves shortened in HK, make sure you get the sleeve measured just to where your thumb joins your hand and no shorter measured from the inside of the thumb. If you go less than that once you raise your arm to drive it will feel too short. You may also want to get the sleeves narrowed at the cuff slightly to be more comfortable.... 2nd word of warning show the tailor the cuff.... show them a again make sure they understand you want NO SEAM around the cuff. I had one guy nearly ruin a jacket by sewing a stitch around the cuff of a jacket. I could have strangled him! Eventually I just took the jacket back to Peter and he ended up replacing the sleeves! One of these days I'll dig out the photos, you guys would weep.

BTW, yes I was over one year at New Years and it was about 10 degrees, with that cold Chinese wind. That coupled with peoples habit of having the windows open all the time I could have worn the jacket indoors!

[sliuman]

Just want to thank everyone for the hints and tips.

Yeah, next time I'm in London I'll definitely be popping down to Wested to get it sorted out. The wings are a niggle that I can live with until it's in the shop, then I hope for great things to come back!

Failing that, I'll just have to order another one!! I'm leaning towards a Hero, but not sure if I'm right for that jacket.

KT, I doubt I'll get the sleeves fixed in HK, too much potential for things to get messed up. I have a similar tale of woe as you described below. A few years ago I bought an off-the-rack jacket from Kenneth Cole here in HK before they closed up shop.

It was a lovely piece of leather and even better at half price. However, the sleeves were too long but the fit on my arms was fine. The shop said its tailor could shorten them. Taking advantage of this turned out to be a mistake as rather than take it up from the cuff, the tailor apparently went in at the shoulder. This reduced the width of the arms and made the jacket completely unwearable for me. The armpit area was now so tight it felt like a second skin. I have 16in arms and could barely get them into the sleeves.

The shop refused to do anything to fix it (impossible really as there wasn't any more leather to work with and it was the last in stock). So I ended up giving the jacket to my brother who was in HK a few months later and is a more average build than me.

So, I'm sure that going to Wested and the man who cut the jacket originally will solve my problems.

Regarding the hot water treatment on the jacket, this is one area where I'm reticent to go the whole hog on soaking the jacket. If the whole jacket was soaked, it might shrink too much for my tastes. I've tried to do this on the arms and also on the back, but I think I need to leave the front as it is other wise it may tighten up to much. I may still keep going on the arms though.

When, everything is sorted out, I may start on -- some-- weathering on the jacket. (But I don't think I'll be dragging it through wet mud like I have seen in some videos!) But that's for another thread.

You're welcome. I've noticed this happen on some people with barrel chests but perhaps narrower shoulders, note that the jacket does drape quite low at the shoulder tips. I could be he needs to adjust your sizing the across the shoulder width to be able to fit you properly. (Note this may be a start again job so have a chat with Peter before you start wetting and drying your jacket).

If you do decide to get the sleeves shortened in HK, make sure you get the sleeve measured just to where your thumb joins your hand and no shorter measured from the inside of the thumb. If you go less than that once you raise your arm to drive it will feel too short. You may also want to get the sleeves narrowed at the cuff slightly to be more comfortable.... 2nd word of warning show the tailor the cuff.... show them a again make sure they understand you want NO SEAM around the cuff. I had one guy nearly ruin a jacket by sewing a stitch around the cuff of a jacket. I could have strangled him! Eventually I just took the jacket back to Peter and he ended up replacing the sleeves! One of these days I'll dig out the photos, you guys would weep.