Buco Jacket Restoration

[Camaro1967]

Oh, and if anyone has any recommendations or insights from the first post, that'd be great, too. Thanks!

 

[Will Zach]

^^
You should see discussions about audio equipment, lol.

Here we wear what we like except mall and fashion jackets.

Everything else is a fair game, lol.

 

[Will Zach]

1)There was a thread by @technovox on his Kehoe restoration. Put resurrection in the search field and it should pop up. Awesome, awesome job.

 

[Monitor]

We will have to agree to disagree.

The Buco J-100 is not the product of a single mention buried within a single, obscure book that is read almost exclusively by jacket enthusiasts. Likewise, the popularity of the Buco J-100 did not begin in "the 2020's," as you incorrectly suggest. To the contrary, repro manufacturers have been reproducing the Buco J-100, and Buco jackets in general, for many, many, many years -- long before "the 2020's." Moreover, and illustrative of the popularity of the Buco designs, repro manufacturers have been replicating -- and in the case of RMC, licensing -- Buco labels for many, many years. To my knowledge, no other motorcycle jacket label has been so frequently replicated by repro manufacturers.

I agree that the A-2 is also an iconic design -- even more so than the J-100 -- and certainly more historically significant. However, my comments were intentionally and expressly limited to motorcycle jackets

I also agree that the Perfecto is an equally iconic and praiseworthy design -- again, perhaps more so than the J-100. That said, I personally prefer the J-100, and hence my gravitation in that direction.

In my prior post, I fully acknowledged the over-hyping of Buco jackets, and I do so again here. I also fully acknowledged that there are many other outstanding, historically noteworthy vintage brands. Buco does not deserve to be exalted over all other vintage brands. On the other hand, Buco also does not deserve to be belittled as an insignificant, non-deserving byproduct of 2020's celebrity patronage, with no independent historical significance. Frankly, I doubt that celebrity patronage has had much, if any, impact. I am only aware of one or two celebrities that don Buco jackets and the general public has no idea who manufactured the "old" jacket captured in the ephemeral TMZ image. Separately, there is a reason why Rin Tanaka lauded Buco in his obscure book that no one but true enthusiasts have ever seen, and it was not because he owned stock in the deceased company. There is a reason why repro manufacturers have been reproducing Buco jackets with greater frequency than any other vintage motorcycle jacket brand for many, many, many years -- including the Buco labels. There is more to it than the superficial notion of "2020's" celebrity patronage.

Like I said upfront, lets simply agree to disagree. You are MUCH more knowledgeable than I regarding these matters. I am not interested in debating the issue and I will not respond to further suggestions that Buco is nothing more than a byproduct of 2020's celebrity patronage.

I hope you are safe and healthy. Cheers.

First off, I apologize in advance if my previous post came off as aggressive or baiting. Not my intention. Just that I never heard of Buco prior to the Japanese obsession with it + Tanaka's book, which is why I genuinely am interested why is it that you say the style is so iconic and influential. I want to learn. I'm not tryina turn this into a debate, that's for sure.
TBH, the cafe racer style in it's most simplest, most classic form as we know it today (J-100, Brooks, Fidelity, etc.) was actually very new to me back when I got into this hobby. I have seen the half belts, the cross zips, the truckers, the A-2's, etc. prior to that, done by quite a few different repro makers of the 80's and the 90's, most of which disappeared, like Lee Trevor, but the J-100 was a big news to me.

To my knowledge, Schott was among the last makers still producing the style until the 80's, when they dropped it in favor of the CR they make today, the 141 and the 641 but all this time, the J-100 and it's older counterpart (H-D Sportster, for instance) fell off the radar. I'm not sure when was it that the RMC picked up the J-100 but it couldn't have been earlier than the late 90's. Maybe someone more knowledgeable of RMC's history can actually shed some light on that?

Celebrity patronage definitely plays a major, if not the most important role for the popularity of any piece of clothing, leather jackets most of all.
Google any good looking guy in Hollywood, I'd be willing to bet you'll find at least one photo of him dressed up in a two chest pocket, mandarin collared, vintage jacket. I can't recall off hand who is it that wear the J-100, Depp I think? Momoa? But anyway, at one point the classic CR x jeans became the Hollywood male actor style. You will also notice that it's usually just the J-100 that gets identified online which immediately reflects on to eBay auctions, regardless whether the person actually wears, say, a Brooks. What happens then? You got tons of eBay auctions for Brooks, Fidelity, Excelled, etc. listed with the mention of J-100 somewhere in the title or the description. This isn't because of the RMC. It's because people wanna look like Momoa and Momoa wears a Buco.

RRL played a major part in the popularity of Buco as well. You recall their Peterman-esque tales of how they stumbled upon a J-100 in an old vintage shop and blah blah. RRL is fashion. Anything RRL does will first get endorsed by celebrities and the copied to hell and back.

Let's face it. Brando made the MC jacket what it is today. I honestly don't think it would've stuck around for as long or even represent what it does today (though that changed throughout the years) if it wasn't for The Wild One and it is for that same reason that Rin Tanaka and consequently the RMC (or the other way around?), chose the J-24 as their flagship jacket...

....which brings me to why the Buco J-24 was chosen... My theory - and I'm merely speculating here - is because it simply isn't Perfecto - That's what I'm referring to the style simply for the sake of simplicity, I don't claim Schott invented this jacket but for all intents and purposes, it does belong to them.
It is for that same reason that many people who get into this hobby chose the D-pocket over the Perfecto. It makes them feel as if it's making more of a statement, with all the cool of the classic MC jacket. People feel it makes them stand out of the crowd of punks, metalheads, bikers, skinheads, gay leather scene guys, fashion enthusiasts, movie gangs, cosplayers, etc., etc.

I was there, too.

What I'm saying is... Buco sure doesn't deserve to be belittled but there's also a reason why it is exhausted as something entirely special and why it dictates the crazy prices it does, and neither the quality or the history of the piece has anything to do with it. H-D was making basically the exact same jackets sans one pocket a decade earlier, dozens of makers would make the exact same jacket at the same time and for decades later. Shoulder gussets or angled pockets don't make a difference. It's the same jacket. So there has to be a reason... And whatever the reason was, well, it sure hasn't been around for a very long time.

Ugh, I hope any of that makes any sense. I'm a bit plastered TBH.

 

[Seb Lucas]

I agree. The simple lines of the J-100 are safe and easy to wear. All of my leather jackets have clean lines, and are simple and unadorned. Thats what works for me.

FWIW, I prefer the look of cross-zips -- and sometimes even complicated cross-zips -- ON OTHER PEOPLE. When I scan photos of vintage jackets, I consistently veer towards cross-zips. I love the bold look -- on other people. That said, I do not like wearing cross-zips for two reasons: (1) excess/superfluous material when unzipped (which is most of the time); and (2) I personally associate cross-zips with bikers and rockers, I cannot pull off the biker/rocker look, and I feel like I am projecting a disingenuous image that does not befit me. I know the second point is rather silly and there are many simple, unadorned cross-zips that do not scream biker/rocker. Unfortunately, the first point remains the primary obstacle. IMHO, cross-zips look incredible when zipped, but less so when unzipped. The excess material bothers me and, IMHO, detracts from the look. I wear my jackets unzipped most of the time. Therefore, straight zips better suit my personal preferences.

I share these observations. I also think they look good hanging up as displays of great craftsmanship.

 

[lina]

It’s interesting that in the pics of the 60s rockers/cafe racers in the UK they are almost always wearing Brando style cross zips (by Lewis Leathers no doubt). Mandarin collars (aka “cafe racer” style) seem in the 60s still to be mostly the provenance of track or TT racers (often as part of a full leather racing suit). Probably someone here knows this, but I wonder when the mandarin collared jackets started actually being referred to as CRs..

 

[ProteinNerd]

It takes a lot for me to get into a cross zip these days

 

[Blackadder]

Correct me if I am wrong didn't the Buco J-100 and the HD Sportster both first came into the market in the 50s?
An interesting note is that when RM first reproduced the J-24 style, it was sold as a RM x HD because they had the license to do HD repros but have not yet registered the Buco trademark.
A listing of the first RM repro model of the J-24
https://page.auctions.yahoo.co.jp/jp/auction/j557638909

 

[ton312]

Let’s not forget the CAL six panel racing shirt. That’s the original CR!