dangibbons1981
Familiar Face
- Messages
- 52
- Location
- Ontario
1. Introduction
Hi,
So after posting a picture of my MotivMfg Sidcot jacket to the “What Jacket Are You Wearing Today” thread I was asked if I would do a review of it as it seems there were some who didn’t know much about the brand or maybe have seen some of their pieces but have never purchased any before. I came across this brand while doing some searches on Chinese leather jacket makers and they were mentioned in a couple other forums, more in the context of fashion and design than any type of heritage reproduction but I really liked how their clothes took from older workwear and army clothing and seemed to combine/ tweek the proportions and details. With that I usually kept my eye out if they came up for sale second hand and found this jacket being sold in what ended up being like new condition, I paid $900.00 US. Currently these seem to go for around 2400$ US RRP so that seemed like a pretty good deal to me. This brown horsehide version is from Division Road and seems to be specific to this store/season as all other examples I can find are black.
*Side Note: Please keep in mind in my life I've really only owned 5 leather jackets, 3 of those being Aliexpress/tailor Brando level. The only other one I own of what probably is decent quality is my Black Bear Brand roughout shirt jacket so I don't have much experience in leather jackets at a hands-on level. If there is anything more in terms of details or opinions, or corrections you would like please feel free to ask because I also don't have any experience writing reviews so I'm certain there is much I may have missed *
2. Commercial Description of Jacket and Brand
As per Division Road’s Website as part of the release of this jacket:
“ As the icon of the season, we have adapted the body and fit of Motiv’s new vegetable-tanned Dark Brown Horsehide Leather Sidcot Jacket. This is one of the cleanest designed and finest crafted leather outerwear pieces one will ever experience, with inspiration and components combined from Royal Air Force Flight Jackets and 1940’s Car Coats assembled with proportional and anatomical mastery.”
Here is an example of an old 40s British Military Sidcot flight suit.
Also, this is their writeup on the brand, which seems to be consistent with other websites and how the brand markets itself:
“Created in Beijing by Daniel Gu and Samuel Wei in 2016, MotivMfg seeks to break down the duality between handmade and machine-made clothing. Based in the converted loft of a former 1950's factory, all developments, from sketch to garment, are done within the MotivMfg studio. Using European tailoring methods dating back to the 1920’s, all patterns are hand drafted then implemented with drape and baste fittings on real life models, ensuring the spontaneity of creativity. From working with the most premier and innovative natural fiber woolen and cloth mills in England and Scotland, to revered top cotton weavers in Japan, MotivMfg selects and develops fabrics with their ethos of finesse, permanence, and performance. With a unique approach of leveraging highly talented and experienced former European sample makers, MotivMfg produces clothes from start to finish that combine anatomically tailored shapes with industrial-era construction details as a rebuke to large scale manufacturing.”
3. Fit pics, sizing, details
To give some proportional context to these pictures I'm about 5'10, weigh about 210lbs and have a 44.5 inch chest and can fit comfortably into a pair of jeans that measure 37.5 inches at the waist. The jacket size is 54 (euro) so US 44 approximately.
Jacket Measurements:
23.5 inches Pit to Pit
20.75 inches for the shoulders
26 inches length from the back (the front of the jacket extends about 2.75 inches longer)
The leather is a vegetable tanned European horsehide, and it is lined in British Shetland wool flannel in the body with quilted Bemberg lined sleeves. The zipper is a Riri g*nmetal zipper and the snaps according to Division Road are a zinc Military Grade Snap. That being said the leather itself wears a lot lighter than I was expecting based on the look of the jacket but still has some stiffness to it. Not knowing the width of it or having the tools to accurately measure I would say this is a midweight horsehide based on the previous jackets I've owned. The zipper feels solid and the snaps haven't given me any issues in the year or so I've been wearing this. The stitching is very clean (at least by my standards) and the leather has a nice buttery feel to the surface.
4. Opinions
After wearing this for over a year I can say I've been really happy with it. Some of things I've come to appreciate with this jacket is that it can still keep me really warm with a sweater underneath in the winter without feeling heavy at all. The action back, wider shoulders and boxier build also give a lot of freedom of movement while the half belt back lets me sinch it in enough to retain some shape in the body. The practical parts aside I personally haven't really seen another leather jacket quite like it so it does feel like I'm wearing something a bit special. A couple things to note about the design of the jacket though is 1) When the collar is snapped up it really doesn't work comfortably if you have a beard and 2) the pockets in my opinion are really just for holding things, not for putting your hands in your pockets which I am very prone to doing.
I know there is a lot of opinions on jackets/ clothes made in China and I think this brand is a really good example of clothing made there that isn't just a straight copy of someone else's design and is also made with what seems to be a lot of care and creativity. I can see myself wearing this for a long time and budget allowing I don't think I would question buying any of their clothing in the future.
Hi,
So after posting a picture of my MotivMfg Sidcot jacket to the “What Jacket Are You Wearing Today” thread I was asked if I would do a review of it as it seems there were some who didn’t know much about the brand or maybe have seen some of their pieces but have never purchased any before. I came across this brand while doing some searches on Chinese leather jacket makers and they were mentioned in a couple other forums, more in the context of fashion and design than any type of heritage reproduction but I really liked how their clothes took from older workwear and army clothing and seemed to combine/ tweek the proportions and details. With that I usually kept my eye out if they came up for sale second hand and found this jacket being sold in what ended up being like new condition, I paid $900.00 US. Currently these seem to go for around 2400$ US RRP so that seemed like a pretty good deal to me. This brown horsehide version is from Division Road and seems to be specific to this store/season as all other examples I can find are black.
*Side Note: Please keep in mind in my life I've really only owned 5 leather jackets, 3 of those being Aliexpress/tailor Brando level. The only other one I own of what probably is decent quality is my Black Bear Brand roughout shirt jacket so I don't have much experience in leather jackets at a hands-on level. If there is anything more in terms of details or opinions, or corrections you would like please feel free to ask because I also don't have any experience writing reviews so I'm certain there is much I may have missed *
2. Commercial Description of Jacket and Brand
As per Division Road’s Website as part of the release of this jacket:
“ As the icon of the season, we have adapted the body and fit of Motiv’s new vegetable-tanned Dark Brown Horsehide Leather Sidcot Jacket. This is one of the cleanest designed and finest crafted leather outerwear pieces one will ever experience, with inspiration and components combined from Royal Air Force Flight Jackets and 1940’s Car Coats assembled with proportional and anatomical mastery.”
Here is an example of an old 40s British Military Sidcot flight suit.
Also, this is their writeup on the brand, which seems to be consistent with other websites and how the brand markets itself:
“Created in Beijing by Daniel Gu and Samuel Wei in 2016, MotivMfg seeks to break down the duality between handmade and machine-made clothing. Based in the converted loft of a former 1950's factory, all developments, from sketch to garment, are done within the MotivMfg studio. Using European tailoring methods dating back to the 1920’s, all patterns are hand drafted then implemented with drape and baste fittings on real life models, ensuring the spontaneity of creativity. From working with the most premier and innovative natural fiber woolen and cloth mills in England and Scotland, to revered top cotton weavers in Japan, MotivMfg selects and develops fabrics with their ethos of finesse, permanence, and performance. With a unique approach of leveraging highly talented and experienced former European sample makers, MotivMfg produces clothes from start to finish that combine anatomically tailored shapes with industrial-era construction details as a rebuke to large scale manufacturing.”
3. Fit pics, sizing, details
To give some proportional context to these pictures I'm about 5'10, weigh about 210lbs and have a 44.5 inch chest and can fit comfortably into a pair of jeans that measure 37.5 inches at the waist. The jacket size is 54 (euro) so US 44 approximately.
Jacket Measurements:
23.5 inches Pit to Pit
20.75 inches for the shoulders
26 inches length from the back (the front of the jacket extends about 2.75 inches longer)
The leather is a vegetable tanned European horsehide, and it is lined in British Shetland wool flannel in the body with quilted Bemberg lined sleeves. The zipper is a Riri g*nmetal zipper and the snaps according to Division Road are a zinc Military Grade Snap. That being said the leather itself wears a lot lighter than I was expecting based on the look of the jacket but still has some stiffness to it. Not knowing the width of it or having the tools to accurately measure I would say this is a midweight horsehide based on the previous jackets I've owned. The zipper feels solid and the snaps haven't given me any issues in the year or so I've been wearing this. The stitching is very clean (at least by my standards) and the leather has a nice buttery feel to the surface.
4. Opinions
After wearing this for over a year I can say I've been really happy with it. Some of things I've come to appreciate with this jacket is that it can still keep me really warm with a sweater underneath in the winter without feeling heavy at all. The action back, wider shoulders and boxier build also give a lot of freedom of movement while the half belt back lets me sinch it in enough to retain some shape in the body. The practical parts aside I personally haven't really seen another leather jacket quite like it so it does feel like I'm wearing something a bit special. A couple things to note about the design of the jacket though is 1) When the collar is snapped up it really doesn't work comfortably if you have a beard and 2) the pockets in my opinion are really just for holding things, not for putting your hands in your pockets which I am very prone to doing.
I know there is a lot of opinions on jackets/ clothes made in China and I think this brand is a really good example of clothing made there that isn't just a straight copy of someone else's design and is also made with what seems to be a lot of care and creativity. I can see myself wearing this for a long time and budget allowing I don't think I would question buying any of their clothing in the future.
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