New Wested Finally Came

[IndianaStan]

After a six week wait, my latest jacket from Wested finally arrived. If you remember, I ordered a custom Raiders jacket in goatskin back in May and not long after, placed an order for the Kingsman jacket in brown cowhide.

Out of the bag, the jacket is soft and pliable which will make the break-in process a little easier. The underside of the collar and cuffs have tan suede accenting which is a nice touch (the Mister Freedom jacket used in the film has corduroy instead). It also has a silk lining, an extra inside pocket, and sleeve gussets.

Since it’s cowhide, I’m not sure how it will patina compared to my goatskin Indy jacket but either way, I’m very satisfied with how it fits as well. I sized up from a snug 38 to my usual 40 as well as adding half an inch to the sleeves and back of the jacket for a more vintage look.

I attached a pic of it as it currently sits on my coatrack but this month I will be somewhere where the weather is cooler and I’ll update with more pics of it being worn. It’ll also come with a fuller more in-depth review once I get an opportunity to wear it more places than just inside my home.

Has anyone else gotten a Wested jacket that wasn’t an Indy style? If so, what was your experience?

 

[Peacoat]

In my limited experience, goat doesn't much show patina. So, in comparison, your cowhide should be showing some nice wear in a year or so.

 

[ton312]

I (briefly) owned a cowhide Skyfall jacket. Personally I didn't care for it. It felt a bit like purse leather and the details of the jacket seemed glossed over.

The button cuffs for example were sewn on and couldn't be undone. Not that you ever would but it still felt cheap. They were nice people though and helpful. The jacket just felt too much like a costume piece rather than a real jacket.

 

[Doctor Strange]

I got one of their lambskin blouson jackets for my son around 7 or 8 years ago. It cost $145 at the time, and I (and he) have had no complaints about materials/quality/fit. The only issue with it was that Wested mistakenly shipped us a brown one rather than the black we ordered, so a switheroo was required.



And of course, I've been wearing my custom lambskin Raiders as my "summer weight" leather for TWENTY years now, and it's held up just great. (Other than when the back panel got torn back in 2006 and required replacement - which Wested did beautifully FOR FREE!)

 

[IndianaStan]

I (briefly) owned a cowhide Skyfall jacket. Personally I didn't care for it. It felt a bit like purse leather and the details of the jacket seemed glossed over.
View attachment 537014
The button cuffs for example were sewn on and couldn't be undone. Not that you ever would but it still felt cheap. They were nice people though and helpful. The jacket just felt too much like a costume piece rather than a real jacket.

I’m curious, since your posts about this jacket come up most frequently when searching up Wested’s Skyfall, I wanted to ask you how the jacket fit for you? Did you have to size up or down for your body type? Their customer service says to stick with my usual size and that it tapers slightly more than a standard Raiders. What’s your experience with this model’ fit?

 

[ton312]

If memory serves I ordered a standard size 42" and the fit was a bit too trim to zip comfortably, but that was years ago and maybe the sizing has changed.

 

[IndianaStan]

If memory serves I ordered a standard size 42" and the fit was a bit too trim to zip comfortably, but that was years ago and maybe the sizing has changed.

Do you think sizing up would make it easier to zip? I currently wear a size 40 and have a 34-35” waist.

 

[Edward]

I (briefly) owned a cowhide Skyfall jacket. Personally I didn't care for it. It felt a bit like purse leather and the details of the jacket seemed glossed over.
View attachment 537014
The button cuffs for example were sewn on and couldn't be undone. Not that you ever would but it still felt cheap. They were nice people though and helpful. The jacket just felt too much like a costume piece rather than a real jacket.

IT's an interesting point to note. I'm a big fan of working buttons on my suit jacket sleeves, but I'd never dream f wearing them open. I agree that despite that it can feel somehow 'cheap'. I think it's fair to say that some Wested stuff does err to the costumey side, I suspect because their original focus was providing screen costumes, and subsequently a huge amount of their business has come from the 'cosplay' market. For my money, I think they do the styles that they were involved in creating - especially the Indy jacket - very well, as long as you're careful with hide selection. The ones that are imitations of other jackets sometimes look a bit.... off... to my eye. The Captain America jacket, for instance. I think it's the lighter hide they use in that one, maybe, but it does look pretty awful on the website. (The original was, of course, an Aero Bootlegger with a custom pocket layout.) I did look at their Brando one when considering a cheaper Perfecto style, but the proportions look off, too long in the body,. Same for the Snake Plisken jacket.

I did consider their das Boot / Doctor Who jacket - they made the original for both of them. I'll probably not take the plunge on that one, though, since they closed their factory shop. There's a few things I might have considered if I could try them on and get a feel for them, the available hides, and such, but I wouldn't fancy ordering blind. That said - and not to be overly negative - at some point over the next few months I will be ordering my second Wested Indy (in the distressed cow), with a view to a Temple in goat and, possibly in a few years' time, a custom made Dial jacket in the novapelle - maybe even with the 'repaired bullet hole' as an accent. One thing that I think would elevate the look of their zip-up jackets immediately would be to change the pullers. On styles intended to be more historical looking, the very modern style pullers are an instant giveaway and do, to my eye, detract from the overall look. though I suppose all other things being equal it's not a big deal to change those out.

One of the TFL crowd had them make a USN AN442 / G1 style jacket a few years ago that turned out looking really good, though, at a very reasonable price.

 

[Kunja]

People do seem to like the Wested jackets, but the Indy I briefly owned did feel like a costume jacket.