Bill Kelso Wait Times

[Vanson4thewin]

Hi, has anyone landed a BK recently? If so I'm just wondering how long it took for your order to be fulfilled.
I am fully aware of what the website says, equally, I understand that the theory and the reality don't always align.

Thanks in advance chaps

 

[Canuck Panda]

My Peters repro (archive line) was ordered on 1/20/22 and it was shipped on 8/9/22 (6.5months).
Leathertog repro was ordered on 10/19/22, and it was shipped on 4/18/24 (18 months).

If you can find your BK jacket in stock at one of the Japanese retailers that's probably the best way.

 

[Vanson4thewin]

My Peters repro (archive line) was ordered on 1/20/22 and it was shipped on 8/9/22 (6.5months).
Leathertog repro was ordered on 10/19/22, and it was shipped on 4/18/24 (18 months).

If you can find your BK jacket in stock at one of the Japanese retailers that's probably the best way.

​

18 months!?! Wow. This is the downside isn't it. The problem is they are really good at what they do (when they can finally get round to it).

I hope you are happy with your jackets CP and thank you for taking the time

 

[Bfd70]

If BK cannot give you a solid estimate it would not be a maker i’d want to deal with

 

[navetsea]

has custom outerwear fad reached its saturation point?, seems like last few years we have less and less custom jackets and more and more vintage, I remember few years ago where almost every day people order aero fqhh, and then himel, and japanese makers, and then thedi, or field or even 5*
nowadays their threads are collecting dust, I wonder if custom jacket brands are alright perhaps they cater to collab project or something hopefully

 

[Kevin Rohrer]

I ordered one last August and will start asking about it next month.

 

[Vanson4thewin]

I ordered one last August and will start asking about it next month.

Snap.

Mine went in the first week of August.

 

[Vanson4thewin]

I ordered one last August and will start asking about it next month.

Hey man, did you get anywhere with this?

 

[Xopher]

I have 3 BK jackets. A Duke, Grizzly, and A-1.

Wait times were approximately…

Duke in Victory Horse: 10 Months
Grizzly: 15 months
A-1 Liberty Horse: 10 months

That averages out to 11.67 months wait time per jacket.

I love BK jackets but the slot machine wait times are really frustrating. Especially if you are expecting 4 to 6 months when you fork over the doe. AND it’s doubly frustrating if you time your purchases so that the jacket should arrive right during wearing season.

For example when I ordered my Duke I was told 4 months. So I ordered the jacket thinking it would arrive in October…right in time to wear it……but then wait times roll on to 6 then 10 months.
By then it’s April next year before the jacket arrives and the temps are too hot to wear it….so it comes an out of the box and goes right to the closet for 6 more months…..It’s just a huge buzz kill.

If the jackets did show up in 6 months or less I’d probably order another one or two..

But because there is no telling if it’s gonna be 6 months or 16 months I find myself entertaining other makers, even if they have similar turnaround times but give accurate time quotes.

My mood phases for jacket wait times seems to be about the same for every purchase.

I find 6 months I start getting really antsy.

Then at 8 months I start getting a little grumpy.

Round about 10 months I start getting really grumpy, and wish I had just order an “off the rack”.

12 months I start thinking I’m never buying custom again.

At 15 months the jacket becomes a source of stress.
Life and interests have moved on by then and the anticipation never got to materialize into arrival day joy.

For my Grizzly jacket after 15 months the jacket arrived and I was pretty salty about it…the long wait just killed it for me because I was expecting half the time.
The jacket is really nice but that soufflé had gone cold 6 months ago. I looked at it as “just-a jacket” at that point instead of the “holy grail dream jacket” I was so excited for….
Then I put it in the closet and waited another 6 months till the weather cooled down enough to wear it. It was nearly 2 full years from the time of placing the order before I got to wear the jacket.

That said….the jackets are all great. I love the leather and patterning…..I want more jackets from BK but I just can’t bring myself to go through the open ended waiting game again for that long.

 

[Vanson4thewin]

Awesome post @Xopher, very informative.

I have emailed about it 5 days ago, naturally there's no response as of yet.

I worked out that I can stomach an 8 - 12 month wait (when it's actually an 8 - 12 WEEK wait that is advertised) but if it's gonna be over a year then I'd rather abort and take a refund

 

[Tom71]

has custom outerwear fad reached its saturation point?, seems like last few years we have less and less custom jackets and more and more vintage, I remember few years ago where almost every day people order aero fqhh, and then himel, and japanese makers, and then thedi, or field or even 5*
nowadays their threads are collecting dust, I wonder if custom jacket brands are alright perhaps they cater to collab project or something hopefully

Yes, the whole "custom" process is really not as appealing to me as it once was.

You fill out endless forms for measurements just to wait the triple amount of the promised time and get a jacket that fits less good than any OTR product .

I am half-joking, of course, but I rarely go down the custom-road anymore and if so only if there´s an experience to be had (c.f. my order with Mark Grether Leather which I enjoyed BECAUSE OF the nine month process and not so much despite it).
Truth is, there is so much stuff readily available via the web, that there´s hardly any need for a guy of average built to go through the inconvenience of a custom process.
This is true not only for traditional OTR-makers such as Schott, Y2 or RMC, but also for many makers who originally build their reputation around custom-jackets (Aero, Thedi, SB, Vanson) as they have vastly increased their retailer network around the globe.

This may also - in part - be an answer as to if and how they stay in business: I imagine a lot of work going into keeping the retailers stocked or doing side-shows for movies (Eastman, Aero) or collabs (Field Leathers, Lewis Leathers, and of course the rather large relationship Iron Heart/Simmons Bilt).

 

[El Marro]

Yes, the whole "custom" process is really not as appealing to me as it once was.

You fill out endless forms for measurements just to wait the triple amount of the promised time and get a jacket that fits less good than any OTR product

This has been my experience much of the time as well.
Regarding BK, they were still talked about quite a bit when I started hanging out here in 2015. Most of the talk was negative regarding the personality and business style of the owner. In the ensuing years, there has been very little talk of them at all, and I was kind of surprised to see these recent threads pop up because I didn’t know they were still in business.

 

[AeroFan_07]

has custom outerwear fad reached its saturation point?, seems like last few years we have less and less custom jackets and more and more vintage, I remember few years ago where almost every day people order aero fqhh, and then himel, and japanese makers, and then thedi, or field or even 5*
nowadays their threads are collecting dust, I wonder if custom jacket brands are alright perhaps they cater to collab project or something hopefully

I think your post here (and subsequent posts, thanks Xopher for your very insightful message) have a lot to say regarding just this aspect.

Truth be told - it's all these crazy wait times, Overloaded makers, Overloaded order-boards, and Lack of good help (for many places) that are contributing. So many people are following these makers (and even more so the higher end boot makers) that they simply cannot keep up. Or if they are a one-man band, they simply decide it's not worth it and hang it up.

Waiting 24 months for a pair of boots, 12+ months for a custom fit jacket, etc is crazy. I've done it (well the 12-month thing) but I will not anymore. It was also a bit of a letdown when it arrived. Now I tend to look at ebay quite a bit, and have scored some great pieces. I gave a chance to a well known Southern California company with a lot of history, and I was told that a new order would be 6-9+ Months, an NO Refunds of the initial deposit (of at least 50% of the jacket price) would be allowed. I get some of that, but in that much time - well - anything can happen.

So, all that to say, watch where you put your funds, who you do business with, and get everything in writing if you decide to proceed with an extended wait time order.

on edit - if you happen to wear a Size 38 - there's one in the Classifieds... https://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/bill-kelso-size-38.118216/

 

[Pandemic]

The Wingman shown on their site is an all-time favourite of mine, but there is no way I’m waiting over a year to get one.
My tastes seem to change (or swing like a pendulum?) every 12-18 months. If I ordered it today, chances are that by the time I got it I’d be more interested in some other style

 

[navetsea]

I think your post here (and subsequent posts, thanks Xopher for your very insightful message) have a lot to say regarding just this aspect.

Truth be told - it's all these crazy wait times, Overloaded makers, Overloaded order-boards, and Lack of good help (for many places) that are contributing. So many people are following these makers (and even more so the higher end boot makers) that they simply cannot keep up. Or if they are a one-man band, they simply decide it's not worth it and hang it up.

Waiting 24 months for a pair of boots, 12+ months for a custom fit jacket, etc is crazy. I've done it (well the 12-month thing) but I will not anymore. It was also a bit of a letdown when it arrived. Now I tend to look at ebay quite a bit, and have scored some great pieces. I gave a chance to a well known Southern California company with a lot of history, and I was told that a new order would be 6-9+ Months, an NO Refunds of the initial deposit (of at least 50% of the jacket price) would be allowed. I get some of that, but in that much time - well - anything can happen.

So, all that to say, watch where you put your funds, who you do business with, and get everything in writing if you decide to proceed with an extended wait time order.

on edit - if you happen to wear a Size 38 - there's one in the Classifieds... https://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/bill-kelso-size-38.118216/

however in boots like wesco or other what do you call them PNW? they also have long waits, but they seem to have steady market segment, perhaps because they serve a real purpose, logger, house builder, ranger, etc, need them for their professional grade function, while custom leather jackets serve no real function. I think when collectively in a forum all the members are hyping a brand or a type of leather or type of jacket then for awhile it might attract many people to order them, if these hype creating thread is getting quiet then the temptation is also not there

 

[AeroFan_07]

however in boots like wesco or other what do you call them PNW? they also have long waits, but they seem to have steady market segment, perhaps because they serve a real purpose, logger, house builder, ranger, etc, need them for their professional grade function, while custom leather jackets serve no real function. I think when collectively in a forum all the members are hyping a brand or a type of leather or type of jacket then for awhile it might attract many people to order them, if these hype creating thread is getting quiet then the temptation is also not there

Yes, Pacific Northwest - Oregon & Washington State.

In fact, its' been really challenging for the folks, such as Smoke Jumper's - firefighters and the actual working people who need these product for their jobs, as the "fashion" crowd has jumped in all over and ordered up dozens of pairs of boots. The fashion boots are just that - not "needed" to do a job just a luxury item.

I have both "luxury" and work oriented PNW boots but have tried to back off myself since others who really need a pair cannot obtain a pair right now.

 

[navetsea]

Yes, Pacific Northwest - Oregon & Washington State.

In fact, its' been really challenging for the folks, such as Smoke Jumper's - firefighters and the actual working people who need these product for their jobs, as the "fashion" crowd has jumped in all over and ordered up dozens of pairs of boots. The fashion boots are just that - not "needed" to do a job just a luxury item.

I have both "luxury" and work oriented PNW boots but have tried to back off myself since others who really need a pair cannot obtain a pair right now.

it's not so different than western/ cowboy boots right? ranch workers, country singers, harley riders, all wear same boots but probably chose different kind of leather, but wearing the same boots more or less. Engineer boots is something different I wonder what profession choose to wear them for their professional work