Five Star Leather Jackets

[Alphahunter]

I’ve never seen this design before, looks amazing! I could easily see this in suede or roughout.

Edit- oh, I see it’s one of the projects…
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Is the one you pictured a Kelso or 5*?

It’s a Kelso. I love the cut on this 1920’s version.

 

[Canuck Panda]

Swapped out the buttons on my 5* jacket. Old ones were too big for the button hole. Took me a while to do them all.

 

[Herrvallmo]

Swapped out the buttons on my 5* jacket. Old ones were too big for the button hole. Took me a while to do them all.
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Well done work Panda!

 

[drewgarcia618]

So, the most consistent thing I’ve learned from this thread is that reproductions are the way to go. Sending in a jacket I want reproduced is something I’m very interested in.

For those who have done so, what was your experience and what’d they do to reverse engineer your original piece?

I have a Gibson & Barnes Expedition that I absolutely love, but despite being a 44T, the arms are still so short on me. I’d love for 5star to get this recreated with 1-2inches of extra sleeve length (to account for folds and rolls and creases). Do any of you think this would be good endeavor?

 

[MrProper]

So, the most consistent thing I’ve learned from this thread is that reproductions are the way to go. Sending in a jacket I want reproduced is something I’m very interested in.

For those who have done so, what was your experience and what’d they do to reverse engineer your original piece?

I have a Gibson & Barnes Expedition that I absolutely love, but despite being a 44T, the arms are still so short on me. I’d love for 5star to get this recreated with 1-2inches of extra sleeve length (to account for folds and rolls and creases). Do any of you think this would be good endeavor?

If you like the leather, go for it. They can copy pretty well. However, because of the sleeves to be lengthened, there is a certain risk that something will go wrong and the sleeves will look less good than desired.

 

[Alphahunter]

If you like the leather, go for it. They can copy pretty well. However, because of the sleeves to be lengthened, there is a certain risk that something will go wrong and the sleeves will look less good than desired.

I have only made it to page 216 and have seen your jackets up until that point and they seemed very nice for the money that was paid. Was it the quality of the leather that stopped you from buying the Five Star line? I’m trying to find the negatives and the only thing i have ran across was their CHL Steerhide version being too thick to wear in a jacket and Shawn confirmed that or the colors being off from what Shawn would post or user error in giving the wrong measurements on a custom build. Ive seen so many positives thus far with very little negatives. What am I missing? Thank you. PS The fitment of your jackets always look spot on.

 

[drewgarcia618]

If you like the leather, go for it. They can copy pretty well. However, because of the sleeves to be lengthened, there is a certain risk that something will go wrong and the sleeves will look less good than desired.

Do you really think adding 1-2 inches to the end/cuff of the sleeve would really cause that much of an issue? I’ve seen some others have had issues arise when changing something based on a pattern or without an original in hand, but I have hard time believing there’d be too much trouble with what I’m needing.

 

[handymike]

Any deviation that requires human interpretation leaves the door open to mistakes.

 

[MrProper]

I have only made it to page 216 and have seen your jackets up until that point and they seemed very nice for the money that was paid. Was it the quality of the leather that stopped you from buying the Five Star line? I’m trying to find the negatives and the only thing i have ran across was their CHL Steerhide version being too thick to wear in a jacket and Shawn confirmed that or the colors being off from what Shawn would post or user error in giving the wrong measurements on a custom build. Ive seen so many positives thus far with very little negatives. What am I missing? Thank you. PS The fitment of your jackets always look spot on.

I thought 5* was excellent at the beginning because I could let off steam as a "jacket designer" and get quick satisfaction (short delivery time, favourable price).
The problem was that virtually no jacket was realised without minor or major faults. I might have overlooked it if the leather had been excellent. But that wasn't it. Unevenly thick/thin, defective areas smeared with top coat, top coat that is sometimes clearly too thick, no depth of colour, no shine. And when Badalassi and the like are hanging next to it, that's almost always the choice. I then gave up hope of getting a flawless jacket with great leather.
However, that was some time ago now. Perhaps the leather is better now. But the jackets are no longer necessarily a bargain due to the higher shipping costs and the sizing. In addition, customs and VAT are now added in the EU.

 

[Alphahunter]

I thought 5* was excellent at the beginning because I could let off steam as a "jacket designer" and get quick satisfaction (short delivery time, favourable price).
The problem was that virtually no jacket was realised without minor or major faults. I might have overlooked it if the leather had been excellent. But that wasn't it. Unevenly thick/thin, defective areas smeared with top coat, top coat that is sometimes clearly too thick, no depth of colour, no shine. And when Badalassi and the like are hanging next to it, that's almost always the choice. I then gave up hope of getting a flawless jacket with great leather.
However, that was some time ago now. Perhaps the leather is better now. But the jackets are no longer necessarily a bargain due to the higher shipping costs and the sizing. In addition, customs and VAT are now added in the EU.

Thank you. Appreciate the feedback. What im seeing in recent posts seems promising.

 

[MrProper]

Do you really think adding 1-2 inches to the end/cuff of the sleeve would really cause that much of an issue? I’ve seen some others have had issues arise when changing something based on a pattern or without an original in hand, but I have hard time believing there’d be too much trouble with what I’m needing.

That depends on how "creative" they are. Possible mistake: the sleeve is copied according to the original and then 2" of the same width are attached to it and the taper of the sleeve is ignored. Or they continue the taper and the sleeve becomes too narrow at the cuff. Or the elbow hangs too low or too high or ... There are no limits to your creativity.

 

[drewgarcia618]

That depends on how "creative" they are. Possible mistake: the sleeve is copied according to the original and then 2" of the same width are attached to it and the taper of the sleeve is ignored. Or they continue the taper and the sleeve becomes too narrow at the cuff. Or the elbow hangs too low or too high or ... There are no limits to your creativity.

Well, in that case, are there any others you might recommend for recreating a jacket? I’d like to get this done with as few variables as possible haha.

 

[TartuWolf]

Well, in that case, are there any others you might recommend for recreating a jacket? I’d like to get this done with as few variables as possible haha.

Johnson Leathers would be the obvious choice if you're in the US. Even though it's more expensive but you're getting the absolute best quality as far as I know.