S&J 38 in Cow a tad too fitted

[Heyjude7]

Hey fellow Indy fans.
Recently got a Steele and Jones Crusade jacket in cow and it’s a tad bit fitted. Overall it’s amazing just a smidge too tight.
I wanna be able to wear a thicker sweater in it.

Any suggestions on stretching it ?
Was lookin around and saw the water treatment works for some.
Any suggestions or recommendations would be great.
Thank you and happy new year!

[Illinois_Jones]

Put the sweater on and wear it. Wear the **** out of it around the house, flexing where you need it bigger.

I wouldn't necessarily recommend water; it could actually shrink it once it dries and not to mention it tends to bring the wrinkles out. That's not really the look of the LC jacket like on the Raiders (if screen accuracy is important to you).

So yeah, the best advice I can give is the same for any leather jacket: wear it. Force it over that sweater and do some yoga poses or something. It'll stretch how it needs to.

[drewgarcia618]

So, I also have this “problem”, but mines a Cowhide ToD. The ToD is obviously a bit more fitted than other jackets, but I’ve also gained some weight since it was made thanks to a surgery that kept me on my butt longer than anticipated. Anyhoo… my jacket had a major mishap on New Year’s Day and I washed it in the washing machine. Here’s what I did to insure it didn’t shrink (and as a result it molded/stretched in a few spots):

1: Turned the jacket inside out.
2: Washed the jacket through a Delicate Wash on the Tap Cold setting using All Free & Clear detergent. No softener or laundry sanitizer. Washer is a front loader.
3: Turned the jacket back so it was no longer inside out.
4: Put the jacket and two towels through the Air Dry/No Heat (No Heat is VERY important) setting on my dryer for 45 min. After 45 min, I took it out and checked on it to see how much water had been knocked out. Ran it on the same setting for 45 min again.
5: Put on a couple of extra layers to wear under the jacket. Prepared to be mildly uncomfortable the rest of the day.
6: With the jacket no longer dripping wet but still damp, I put it over the layers I had on and zipped it up. Wore it like this for the rest of the day.
7: Turned the jacket inside out again and ran it through the dryer on the lowest heat setting to dry liner that last little bit. Maybe did two or three 5min intervals.
8: Let it sit overnight and condition when the leather is completely dry the next morning.

In your case I’d probably use this method as a last resort. My jacket needed this to clean the leather and the lining, and I don’t have a professional cleaner near me. It was a risk that paid off for me, but I was VERY attentive and EXTRA careful. Also, this is truly an all day process. I did it on a weekend, started first thing in the morning and only stopped when I showered for bed. I had no issue with the cowhide shrinking, and it actually molded, creased, and had grain pop in ways I wasn’t expecting.

As with everything in life: YMMV. Good luck!

[Rhenvar]

I also have the same problem, I received my first S&j Riders size 38 and the jacket it's amazing but it's too tight. It's very cool to see with a t shirt but is a little uncomfortable with a sweater. I hope it will expand a little as time goes by, because it's really beautiful..

[Heyjude7]

Anyone else have any good experience with jacket upsizing ?