Besides (that I know of) Schott, Vanson, Johnson Leathers, Langlitz and Lost Worlds are there any other leather jacket makers in the US who make their products in the US using, primarily, local material? I know Taylor leather has their jackets made in Pakistan.
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US leather jacket makers
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mumpy
Practically Family
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Mister Freedom
Guppy
I'll Lock Up
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Cal Leather
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Passaic
Fox Creek
Nates
Passaic
Fox Creek
Nates
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Canuck Panda
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Good Wear
Norshor
Regius
Scheeley Bros
Norshor
Regius
Scheeley Bros
There haven't been many comments on any of these makers on FL. Well...besides Good Wear. I forgot to mention pasaic in my initial question. From what I've just checked, their product spectrum is quite narrow.
San Diego Leather
There’s also a place like it in Chicago. There are a lot of companies making jackets for the government contracts.
There’s also a place like it in Chicago. There are a lot of companies making jackets for the government contracts.
Canuck Panda
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The way I understand it is that there is the Rider specific jacket makers, the Repro specific jacket makers, and the big brands that tries to do it all.
Most of the rider specific makers have very narrow spectrum in design and leather options. The repro makers are the other end of the spectrum. The guys like Lost Worlds, Langlitz, and even Johnson are blurring the lines. But these ones are usually 2 to 3 times what the bigger brands like Schott or Vanson would cost. So there is the trade off in pricing.
The leather industry is still very capable in the US. Lots of tanneries have been operating since the turn of the century. The hardware is always better because there is no incentive to cheap out on material. Labor cost has always been the biggest factor. But the rest of the world is rising in labor cost too, and they tend to cheap out on small but important material.
I think there is a big opportunities in the US for the experienced sewers. The materials are already available. Can't wait for the home sewers to start their side hustle biz.
Most of the rider specific makers have very narrow spectrum in design and leather options. The repro makers are the other end of the spectrum. The guys like Lost Worlds, Langlitz, and even Johnson are blurring the lines. But these ones are usually 2 to 3 times what the bigger brands like Schott or Vanson would cost. So there is the trade off in pricing.
The leather industry is still very capable in the US. Lots of tanneries have been operating since the turn of the century. The hardware is always better because there is no incentive to cheap out on material. Labor cost has always been the biggest factor. But the rest of the world is rising in labor cost too, and they tend to cheap out on small but important material.
I think there is a big opportunities in the US for the experienced sewers. The materials are already available. Can't wait for the home sewers to start their side hustle biz.
photo2u
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I love Scheeley Bros and Good Wear!
The thing with the bigger brands is that their leather selection is not as wide as what's available by the repro ones. About a year ago I asked Vanson if they would use HH for a jacket and the response was that it would cost an additional $400 and about 3-4 months extra in wait time. So at this point one would go with the smaller volume repro maker.
Do Scheele Bros have a website? Couldn't find one when I searched the name
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photo2u
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I do not know. I just have his e-mail. Also, He does sell on ebay. https://www.thefedoralounge.com/members/maverickson.5046/
morrison2951
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Wow. Suppose I'll hold onto my HH Vansons. They are top notch from long ago.
Also a fan of US made Norshor and of course my favorite right now, a one off Civvie Good Wear.
That was a typo. It's Dave Sheeley. Absolutely beautiful jackets, complete with recreating 1930s techniques. I'd love to get a jacket from him.
If you have HH Vansons, you are among the few. They don't use hides like that anymore. I don't understand why they don't offer the option. Schott imports their HH from Italy
I saw that his jackets are offered through ebay. I guess If one wanted to have a jacket made to measure and design, should let him know through ebay messaging.
Go figure.
To be honest I prefer Horween HH ( I guess HHH?) It's uniform, and depending on weight/thickness, not particularly resistant to breaking it in. Just beautiful leather that gets all more glorious with age.
morrison2951
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I know. It's got to be cost prohibitive for them apparently.... but this HH Comet is a favorite of mine. Just awesome graining.
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You could message him here/on VLJ or email him. That's what I'd do if I were ordering. I found out about him through his forum posts, so why would I give eBay a cut of his money when they had nothing to do with my discovering his work?
