Want to buy or sell something? Check the classifieds
  • The Fedora Lounge is supported in part by commission earning affiliate links sitewide. Please support us by using them. You may learn more here.

Lee 101J Jacket 1946 Model - to wash or not to wash?

Dagenham Dave

One of the Regulars
Messages
229
Location
Australia
Good news!!! The COLD soak worked. :D

I soaked in the bath in COLD WATER in a bath – I soaked it for 1 hour – there was no water discolouration even after the full hour:

During SOAK.jpg

I lay it flat to dry on a clothes rack on my front porch:

Flat DRT 2.jpg

I measured it BEFORE the soak and AFTER it dried. Here are the measurements (BEFORE and AFTER):

CHEST WIDTH (FRONT): from arm-pit seam to arm-pit seam
BEFORE = 23.25”
AFTER = 23"

SLEEVE LENGTH (TOP): from shoulder seam to the end of the sleeve cuff (along top of sleeve)
BEFORE = 27.5"
AFTER = 27"

SHOULDER WIDTH (BACK): straight across the back from shoulder seam to shoulder seam
BEFORE = 20.75"
AFTER = 20.5"

JACKET LENGTH (AT BACK): from where the bottom of the collar joins the back piece of the jacket down to the bottom of the jacket
BEFORE = 24.75"
AFTER = 24.75"

Here it is before the soak:

Before SOAK.jpg

And after:

IMG_4187.jpg

The denim is not as dark or washed looking as the first one I machine washed, but that's ok. It does look darker than it looked unwashed, and at least it still fits me.

And regarding the first one that I machine washed, I gave it to my 16 y/o son and he loves it. It was still a tad too big for him even after the first warm machine wash and subsequent shrinkage. So I re-washed it in the machine in HOT water and tumble-dried it, which shrunk it even further, and it now fits him exactly as he likes to wear his jackets!

Warm regards,
Dave
 

Forum statistics

Threads
109,098
Messages
3,074,100
Members
54,091
Latest member
toptvsspala
Top