A used Y’2 HR-55 (D-pocket) is fairly common on JP sites. One is still available on Yahoo Auction, and one was recently sold, both in my size. The more interesting model is NH-55 (D-pocket in natural horse).
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[Field Leathers] First-time full custom – D-pocket & hide advice needed
- Thread starter Quan_love_leather
- Start date
A used Y’2 HR-55 (D-pocket) is fairly common on JP sites. One is still available on Yahoo Auction, and one was recently sold, both in my size. The more interesting model is NH-55 (D-pocket in natural horse).
tuanhng614
One of the Regulars
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The sold one is in great condition, along with all the goodies (bag/hanger). It’s a very good deal to the buyer.
At his size, a galore of used D-pocket leather jackets are available on JP sites for a huge bargain. OP should not be looking at paying for custom, especially when he’s cost-conscious. He even has access to cheap local tailor who can work on leather jackets without issues.
His prior experience with Schott should not be indicative of all available OTR leather jackets out there. Schott is usually just a gateway leather jacket for most people—an entry jacket for more serious leather jackets later. Made-in-Japan leather jackets deserve high praises for good reasons. They are really detail-oriented and not skimpy when it comes to quality.
Paying $2000+ for a custom leather jacket means you are guaranteed to lose at least half of the paid price if you end up not liking it for any reasons. Paying $500-700 for a used JP-made jacket means you can recoup most, if not all, of it once you get bored of it.
His prior experience with Schott should not be indicative of all available OTR leather jackets out there. Schott is usually just a gateway leather jacket for most people—an entry jacket for more serious leather jackets later. Made-in-Japan leather jackets deserve high praises for good reasons. They are really detail-oriented and not skimpy when it comes to quality.
Paying $2000+ for a custom leather jacket means you are guaranteed to lose at least half of the paid price if you end up not liking it for any reasons. Paying $500-700 for a used JP-made jacket means you can recoup most, if not all, of it once you get bored of it.
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TartuWolf
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Here I'd disagree a bit as someone who has been monitoring 2nd hand Y2 jackets - you will only get a 60-90k price on an old / odd model that are usually not desirable. The proper models usually run around 100k at least used (with exceptions/deals obviously).
TartuWolf
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I totally understand the desire for a custom jacket, but I'm getting mixed signals between wanting a "final" jacket (which implies going all out in terms of budget) and being "cost-conscious". I agree with @jchance that getting a nice used JP jacket in good condition and then tailoring it is a pretty good idea, although I'm not a big fan of JP jackets, especially for riding. If you have a good idea of what you want I would really just skip this whole discussion and take my money to JL. I'm pretty sure you'll get exactly what you want without any compromises in quality for 1000-1500$.
tuanhng614
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You’re right on the money haha.
My reasons to suggest Y2 and second hand market are similar to that of @jchance
Furthermore, @Quan_love_leather need to define what “riding” means.
My time in Vietnam, riding is a general mean of transportation (100cc - 150c at most) and at the low speed (30km/h to 60km/h), so full riding gear isn’t truly necessary. Unless you talk about bigger motorcycles (250cc and beyond), but the speed limit in Vietnam is rather low, and you have speeding traps and cameras all over the place.
So speaking of riding functionality, unless OP defines full need, i still think it’s still more of form over function. And in that case, the higher priority would be “budget considerations”.
I agree. I’ve been to Vietnam several times, and never seen any serious leather jackets there. Leather jackets would have caught my attention, given my interests. People there wear thin nylon/cotton, sometimes linen (given the tropical climate), jackets and have no serious needs for leather protection. Their highest speed was 50km/hr on the freeways. There’s a reason we don’t see high quality leather jackets coming out of Vietnam; the market knows what it wants and serves the local customer demands.
Also, I think you meant to say “fashion over function”.
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That one that recently sold has been there for a long, long time. I saw it over and over again and wished it was my size.
tuanhng614
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And here is why the low speed even on highway
You have highway patrol’s entrapment everywhere
Quan_love_leather
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Just wanted to share a bit with everyone.
When I said “the final leather jacket,” I truly meant I’m ready to go all in — by that I mean I’m willing to spend more than I ever have on any jacket I’ve owned. I’ve been asking around mainly to gather different perspectives, fill in knowledge gaps, and learn about brands or price ranges I wasn’t fully aware of.
At this point, I’m pretty confident that my budget caps around $1500. If Johnson or Fourspeed can deliver what I want within that range, then I’m totally okay with it — simple as that, haha.
As for resale value, to be honest, I’m not thinking about that anymore. This might truly be my last jacket, since I’ll probably have to put an end to this whole journey soon. So yeah, I’m aiming for just one last piece.
To clarify the “riding” part: it’s not that I ride fast or need actual protective gear. I just want something that doesn’t soak up rain easily and allows for good mobility in daily life.
Right now, I have two jackets:
So this time, yeah, maybe I’m being picky and a bit too detailed, but only because I’ve learned from my past mistake.
Lastly, I just want to say this forum has grown on me quickly. I’ve only been here for 3 days, but I already love this place. People here really listen.
On Facebook groups or Instagram, the way I approach leather usually doesn’t get much welcome or understanding — but here, I feel seen. Hahaha.
When I said “the final leather jacket,” I truly meant I’m ready to go all in — by that I mean I’m willing to spend more than I ever have on any jacket I’ve owned. I’ve been asking around mainly to gather different perspectives, fill in knowledge gaps, and learn about brands or price ranges I wasn’t fully aware of.
At this point, I’m pretty confident that my budget caps around $1500. If Johnson or Fourspeed can deliver what I want within that range, then I’m totally okay with it — simple as that, haha.
As for resale value, to be honest, I’m not thinking about that anymore. This might truly be my last jacket, since I’ll probably have to put an end to this whole journey soon. So yeah, I’m aiming for just one last piece.
To clarify the “riding” part: it’s not that I ride fast or need actual protective gear. I just want something that doesn’t soak up rain easily and allows for good mobility in daily life.
Right now, I have two jackets:
- One prioritizes comfort and freedom of movement (a Schott 611H),
- And one with a sleeker silhouette (a Japanese jacket, I’ve posted photos earlier in the thread).
Ideally, I’d like to combine the best of both worlds for my final piece.
So this time, yeah, maybe I’m being picky and a bit too detailed, but only because I’ve learned from my past mistake.
Lastly, I just want to say this forum has grown on me quickly. I’ve only been here for 3 days, but I already love this place. People here really listen.
On Facebook groups or Instagram, the way I approach leather usually doesn’t get much welcome or understanding — but here, I feel seen. Hahaha.
Quan_love_leather
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In Vietnam, the idea of “leather jackets” in the general public’s mind is very simplistic — anything black and shiny gets called a leather jacket, regardless of whether it’s real or fake. People care more about appearance than material, and once the jacket starts cracking or peeling, they just throw it out and buy a new one.
The focus here is mostly on price — as long as they can buy several jackets for cheap, they’re happy.
I used to run a clothing store myself, selling both men’s and women’s wear, including some leather jackets. I was selling them for around 15–20 USD a piece, and four months later I went bankrupt, hahaha.
I also pay a lot of attention whenever I see someone wearing a leather jacket on the street.
Over the past six years, I’ve only counted about four people who seemed genuinely serious about leather.
So yeah — the leather jacket community in Vietnam is incredibly small.
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Pretty sure Vanson can slap a D pocket on the C pattern. You can spec the D shape as wanted. And if it is plain or with a cig/coin pocket. Etc.
Quan_love_leather
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C2 with a D-pocket is an interesting idea — I’ll give you that
If it's of any consolation, besides the ones I own, I've only seen three really nice leather jackets in the wild in Europe in the last couple years (before I might not had been noticing): A guy wearing a very nice B3, a Belstaff in a mall and a RRL in an almost luxury shop.
Quan_love_leather
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At first, I thought there would be more leatherheads in Europe… probably because most of the serious players I saw were abroad, not many in my country, so I assumed it was more popular over there. When I first opened my shop, using what I had, I genuinely wanted to shift people’s perception and raise the game in my area — but looking back, I think I took the wrong path. Nothing really changed, and I ended up having to sell at a loss. In Vietnam, most of the leather enthusiasts are up North because of the better climate. I only got to see some of them when I traveled there — most were into Hedi Slimane’s style, though there aren’t many left nowadays. Back in 2017 though, the scene was a lot stronge
Don't get me wrong, you can see lot of leather jackets and so in Europe, but most are... Well, not that good. Or just faux leather. You can find mall leather jackets, like Zara, H&M, Massimo Dutti, AllSaints and others, but usually these would only carry less than a handful of different models (which will change year to year and according to the current fashion trend), so even within this tier there's not many options. For example, last winter you could easily see people wearing shearling B3ish jackets, but not a single one was actually shearling.
To give you an idea, I've never even seen a Schott made in US jacket and the one I've seen was a Schott NYC made in Pakistan and it was only because I actually bought (and returned) it.
I think this is what makes this forum so attractive too, it is basically an oasis in the desert. I stumbled upon here as I was refusing to accept there was no leather jackets better than what I was seeing in physical stores and this was literally the one and only place I've found where they were discussed in depth (Well, there's also VLJ but I simply don't resonate with it as much as with TFL).
To give you an idea, I've never even seen a Schott made in US jacket and the one I've seen was a Schott NYC made in Pakistan and it was only because I actually bought (and returned) it.
I think this is what makes this forum so attractive too, it is basically an oasis in the desert. I stumbled upon here as I was refusing to accept there was no leather jackets better than what I was seeing in physical stores and this was literally the one and only place I've found where they were discussed in depth (Well, there's also VLJ but I simply don't resonate with it as much as with TFL).
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Quan_love_leather
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Hahaha, so it turns out Europe isn’t that different from Vietnam — you can find Zara and H&M stuff, but it’s still mostly jackets imported from China. Back in the day, Chinese leather jackets used to stink and the faux leather would peel super fast. But in the last few years, they’ve improved a lot — nowadays they take 2–3 years to start cracking, or they use bonded leather scraps to make jackets.
What really surprised me is that I’ve come across quite a few people here whose photos I’d seen on Instagram or YouTube — never expected to actually find them on this forum. At first, I found the forum interface kind of hard to use. Vietnam used to have forums like this too, but they’re all gone now. Still, I have to admit this place is fun. In other communities, whenever I asked technical stuff about leather or construction, people would just give vague answers or say I was overthinking things.
Where I live, I’m literally the only one wearing leather jackets. Everyone looks at me like I’m from another planet. At first, I was kinda self-conscious — now I just say screw it and wear whatever I want, haha
Well, consider that both H&M and Zara are European brands, so it makes sense they plague our continent too
There's also many places that have leather shops (for example, Naples has a lot of them around quartieri espagnoli) but their quality always looked suspect to. They basically take advantage of people equating genuine leather with top quality leather.
When I wear my leather jackets, people just take it as a leather jacket and that's it. I might get compliments specially from friends as they see the jacket up close or they touch it, but the average person in the street won't even bat an eye, likely won't even know or even consider if it is faux leather or not.
There's also many places that have leather shops (for example, Naples has a lot of them around quartieri espagnoli) but their quality always looked suspect to. They basically take advantage of people equating genuine leather with top quality leather.
When I wear my leather jackets, people just take it as a leather jacket and that's it. I might get compliments specially from friends as they see the jacket up close or they touch it, but the average person in the street won't even bat an eye, likely won't even know or even consider if it is faux leather or not.
Quan_love_leather
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Hahaha, same story here. Just vibing solo, appreciating the jackets on my own.Well, consider that both H&M and Zara are European brands, so it makes sense they plague our continent too
There's also many places that have leather shops (for example, Naples has a lot of them around quartieri espagnoli) but their quality always looked suspect to. They basically take advantage of people equating genuine leather with top quality leather.
When I wear my leather jackets, people just take it as a leather jacket and that's it. I might get compliments specially from friends as they see the jacket up close or they touch it, but the average person in the street won't even bat an eye, likely won't even know or even consider if it is faux leather or not.
I’d wear one of my jackets and walk past some local leather shops, and they’d still boldly claim theirs are way better than mine.
I could only keep my mouth shut and keep walking, hahaha.
My friends see me wearing leather jackets all the time and ask, “Don’t you ever get bored?” or just throw in a random comment.
But then, the moment they come over to my place, next day I’m suddenly nicknamed “one of those types” haha
Leathergato
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Nice. Which model is that Schott D pocket on the far left?
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