sleeve lining in leather jacket

[Lukasz69]

Hello,
I want to have the lining replaced in my cowhide Schott jacket. The current lining is some ugly polyester sateen that is showing signs of wear. A local leather craftsman has agreed to do it for me (and take in the sleeves while she is at it), but her choice of linings is limited to black and brown polyester sateen, so not much of a change.
I happen to have some nice mid-weight wool suiting fabric to hand (probably worsted, not sure). I know Aero uses tartan and even Harris tweed as lining, so I think my suiting would do the job. However, I am concerned about the sleeves. Can the wool suiting fabric be used to line the sleeves as well, or will it create too much friction and hence difficulty in putting the jacket on? This suiting fabric is the easiest choice for me, because I don't have to pay extra and I have enough for full body lining including sleeves. I am not planning to use the material to make anything else.
Thanks in advance for your input.

 

[Carlos840]

Welcome to TFL,

Aero usualy lines their sleeves in cotton drill, even when the body is wool tartan.
I would be worried that a jacket with wool body and sleeves would be very warm, and you will definitely shorten the period that you can comfortably wear it, unless you plan on only wearing it in winter.

Like you say there is also a friction factor. I had a jacket with corduroy in the sleeves, and it drove me insane because it kept pulling my jumper sleeves up during wear. I would constantly have to dig in the cuffs to pull my sleeves down, or end up with my jumper sleeves bunched up below my elbows.
I hated it, and this is the only jacket i sold on, I think wool in sleeves would do the same thing.

If it was me and i only had one leather jacket i would keep sateen all over, it will make the jacket more versatile season wise and will definitely be easier to wear.
If you want to use wool in the body, i would recommend keeping sateen in the sleeves.

 

[sweetfights]

I have nothing but sateen in all my jackets.
I agree 100% with Carlos

 

[Lukasz69]

Thanks much. I will then use the wool for body lining and have the craftswoman put some cotton sateen or viscose (I despise polyester) in the sleeves.

 

[Jejupe]

Wool for sleevelining would not be my choice. Friction and possible stretching would be my main concerns. On other hand I would not choose polyester sateen either. I find such synthetic materials to be sweaty, if I wear it against my skin.

I would choose wool for body and cotton drill for sleeves. If your leather specialist doesn't have that available, I reckon it should be easily available to buy elsewhere.

 

[handymike]

I have one with wool suiting in the body and cotton/rayon in the sleeves. This is my favorite combo.

 

[Fanch]

Everyone of my Aero jackets have sleeves lined with cotton drill that serves me well. The one exception is a Teamster that has sleeves lined with cotton sateen with no apparent difference that I can discern when I take my jackets on and off. In any case, I concur with what @Carlos840 said regarding sleeves lined with wool, corduroy, etc.

You didn't indicate where you live. If the US or Canada, I have heard very good things about Great Leather restoration in IL, although I have no personal experience with the company. If appropriate you might wish to consider her website:
http://www.greatleather.com/ship.htm

Another fantastic option would be Johnson Leather in CA.
http://www.johnsonleather.com/

Good luck with the repair and welcome to the Lounge.

 

[Lukasz69]

Thank you all. I am in Europe (Poland). I have not used that particular leather specialist before, but she has good reviews on the web.
I’ll buy some cotton drill (I don’t think the colour matters, since you hardly ever get to see the sleeve lining) and have her use that for the sleeves plus the wool suiting for the body lining.
When she’s done, I’ll report back to tell you all if it has worked for me. Thanks again for your input.

 

[handymike]

Aero's cotton drill is great, but in a jacket with slim sleeves, I'd go sateen or rayon. I wear mine with T-shirts sometimes, and tight fitting sleeves with the drill irritated my arms.

 

[Sockeye]

One of my Teamsters has moleskin in the sleeves and corduroy in the body. I do hold my shirt sleeves whenIi put it on, but it is extremely comfortable. A bit nicer than my cotton drill jackets.

 

[dudewuttheheck]

The jacket I can wear in the warmest weather is lined with silk. As such, I would definitely concur with what several others have said and suggest you get sateen, rayon, or silk.

I have a jacket lined entirely with cotton drill and it definitely is not as cool and versatile as the silk one. It's surprising how much of a difference it makes.

 

[Lukasz69]

Many thanks to all the posters - very informative input.
Currently this is my only leather jacket, but I am getting an Aero Hooch Hauler. That one will probably be lined with wool tartan; I was thinking of alpaca, but one of the fellow Fedora Loungers has suggested it might be a bad idea given that I’ll probably go with mid-weight HH (Vicenza). Seeing as I have a Woolrich down parka for serious weather (in February it can get down to 20 below Centigrade where I live), both the Hooch Hauler and the Schott will probably be worn in temperatures between 10 and 15 Centigrade over a T-shirt and 0 to 10 Centigrade over a woolen jumper plus scarf plus hat. I don’t wear leather jackets in the summer - it’s been 30 Centigrade all day today.

 

[Bobby Peru]

Simple cotton drill has always been my favorite.

 

[Poul]

Yeah cotton drill does the job before you buy make sure that the fabric is really solid and 100% cotton

 

[Fanch]

I’ll buy some cotton drill (I don’t think the colour matters, since you hardly ever get to see the sleeve lining) and have her use that for the sleeves plus the wool suiting for the body lining.
When she’s done, I’ll report back to tell you all if it has worked for me. Thanks again for your input.

Be careful which cotton drill you source as not all cotton drill is the same. I do know that Aero's current cotton drill is great, but certain others can bunch up and grab as you are putting on a jacket.

 

[Seb Lucas]

Yep, Aero use 9.7 oz drll - top quality. The cheap stuff tears in the creases too.

 

[Lukasz69]

So cotton drill seems to be most people’s favourite...
I don’t mean to be picky, but while I understand that sateen helps reduce friction, what are the actual advantages of cotton drill over wool (tartan etc.), other than cotton being less warm (if it is indeed an advantage)? Could it be that cotton drill is used for sleeve lining on account of simply being cheaper than wool?

 

[Seb Lucas]

No. Sleeves are high wear areas and cotton drill is one of the toughest materials you can get (watches won't tear it up the way they often do satin, and silk). It is also easy to slide an arm in and out of which is a critical. I once had a jacket lined in fancy Italian corduroy and could hardly get my sleeve into the jacket.

The only lining I would ever choose is cotton drill. That is the result of 30 years collecting leather jackets.

 

[Jejupe]

So cotton drill seems to be most people’s favourite...
I don’t mean to be picky, but while I understand that sateen helps reduce friction, what are the actual advantages of cotton drill over wool (tartan etc.), other than cotton being less warm (if it is indeed an advantage)? Could it be that cotton drill is used for sleeve lining on account of simply being cheaper than wool?

If you are really keen on using your existing wool in sleeves, maybe you should just go ahead and try using it? I suppose its not very expensive to replace that with another material later on, if it doesn't work for you. For me, at least, big part of this leather jacket hobby is trying out new things. Some times I make a mistake and sometimes I find something special.

That said, if you want to get it right on first attempt with minimal risk of error, stick with advise you have had from people who have combined experience of hundreds if not thousands of jackets: cotton drill works best most of the time. Reasons: durability, ease of use, comfort against skin, etc.

 

[Fanch]

Sleeves are high wear areas and cotton drill is one of the toughest materials you can get (watches won't tear it up the way they often do satin, and silk). It is also easy to slide an arm in and out of which is a critical. The only lining I would ever choose is cotton drill. That is the result of 30 years collecting leather jackets.

That's my experience too. Durability and ease of use are the keys. All of my jackets are lined throughout with cotton drill with the exception of my Teamster that has moleskin lining in the body and cotton sateen in the sleeves. As I said earlier, I am unable to notice an appreciable difference regarding ease of use between cotton drill and cotton sateen sleeve linings, although I suspect Aero's cotton drill might be more durable of the two.