Club Obi Wan

It’s been just over two years since I got my first Indy jacket, my beloved TNO CS Cowhide jacket. It is for me perfect and I still love it. The only thing that has me wanting another jacket is I wish I could wear this one longer. Don’t get me wrong this is my every day jacket for late fall, winter and early spring. Basically once it hits 10 C (50F) or under I’m usually good to go. So I do get 5 months a year out of it. Every spring I hang on as long as possible until it gets too warm and I’m forced to retire it until the fall.

I’d like to get a jacket that I could wear during warmer periods. I’ve pretty much settled on an Expedition Goat or Lambskin. But which one will allow me the greatest temperature range? Goat will be tougher and harder to break in. Lambskin is usually lighter so I assume that will make it cooler? I’ve heard some lambskin jackets referred to as leather windbreakers but I've also read the Lamb Expedition seems heftier than other lambskins. I'm thinking the Lamb is the way to go but I wanted to bounce that off folks here first as I'll be ordering it over the phone.

Tundraider’s Expedition Goat is gorgeous. I think I’ve mentioned in my original TNO post that he was largely responsible for tipping me over to Tony. Now he and several others have tipped me over to the Expedition. Thank you Sir! So now it's reallly just settling on the leather. I know temperature sensitivity varies greatly between people but I’m looking for opinions from you knowledgeable folk, especially anyone who has both types of leathers.

So which leather will extend my jacket wearing days into the warmer parts of the fall/spring…dare I hope for beginning and end of summer too.

Cheers All!

My goat Expo is a PERFECT 3 season jacket! It is perfectly comfortable on those cool spring mornings and afternoons. It is not a bulky hide at all...

At 2.5 to 3 oz goat, the expo is pretty heavy and warm for me. I can't wear it all that much in summer. It's a cooler weather jacket as far as I'm concerned. But it depends on the kind of weather you have - in summer is it humid or not, etc.

Thanks for your replies Hollowpond and CM.

Summers would generally be pretty humid. I'll be happy with a jacket I can wear through the full spring and fall. Hoping for a bit of the summer was more wishful thinking.

Honestly, NO leather jacket works for a humid summer.

You also need to keep the lining in mind too, as you can have a nice light leather, and a really clingy hot lining that will make the jacket feel even hotter to wear when the temps start to climb.

Regards! Michaelson

I live in South Texas where it is hot and humid alot and I wore my Lambskin Expo most of the time. There were times that you just couldn`t wear a jacket as Michealson pointed out but I would force myself thinking that Indy did in the jungles and it wasn`t that bad.

Yeah...once it goes upwards of 75-80 degrees, the leather hits the closet.

Swiftfoot, I don't have much I can add to the discussion, other than my experience with the Expedition in goatskin. Living in southern California, I still wear it through most of the fall, winter, and spring. When visiting family in Nebraska, I layer up under my Expedition. I wouldn't call the Expedition a "windbreaker"--if I want to wear something more akin to that in weight, I usually use my U.S. Wings Hero in Italian cowhide (it's a very thin cowhide). But presumably, your falls and springs wouldn't be too much warmer than ours here, so in my experience, an Expedition would work quite well for fall and spring weather at the very least.

If you are trying to decide between the lamb and goat Expeditions based on which might be cooler, I'm not sure if there will be a huge difference between the two (for temperatures). I very briefly tried on a lamb Expedition at G&B's store in El Cajon, but I don't remember much difference in weight. I remember a while back when researching the US Wings jacket made with the same cowhide that Tony Nowak used for the Indy IV jacket that members described it as among their warmest Indy-style jackets, so to me it sounded like the Expeditions feel at least somewhat cooler in comparison (perhaps Chewbacca Jones could speak more on this, since he has one?)

I think whatever jacket you might choose, you would not be disappointed with the quality of an Expedition--whether in goat or lamb. I personally decided on goatskin for myself because when I told Dave Marshall a bit about what I do, he recommended the goatskin. I don't own any lambskin jackets (due to durability concerns)--but if I ever decided I wanted to get a jacket in lamb, I myself wouldn't hesitate to go with G&B. Just my two cents...

Best wishes,
Nebraska Schulte

Cheers all for the feedback. It is greatly appreciated!

I did get a US Wings Antique Lambskin last December when they were on sale. The lambskin was very soft and light weight. It felt amazing on but unfortunately it was too short even though I went up a size as I really need the Tall. My wife tried it on for fun and has now inherited it. There is something just right about an oversized men's leather jacket on a woman. Make it an Indy leather jacket and the "just right" factor goes up waaay up.

I think I'm leaning towards the Lamb tonight but by Sunday I may have swung back to the Goat.

Sometimes I really hate this hobby. The decisions can drive you crazy especially when you can't see someting in person and have to order by phone or onlline.