In Review: Love at Last Sight - Fine Creek & Co. Roberts Leather Jacket

"I don't like it." 

These were my first thoughts on Fine Creek Leathers' new leather jacket, the "Roberts," as I came across some pics earlier this year on Styleforum's leather jacket thread - a place where clothing nerds gather to discuss issues such as fit, debate proper jacket hangers, and display a shocking degree of unfamiliarity with the female anatomy. I was actually set on buying either a Mister Freedom black Stallion Campus Jacket (I still am) or the Fine Creek Leathers "Eric" jacket this year, but after letting my Himel Bros Kensington go, I simply never had the opportunity to try those jackets out in person due to the global shutdown or to buy them online with the security of a possible refund.

As luck would have it, though, Philadelphia was starting to ease restrictions on business operations as cases of COVID calmed down in early July. One of my favorite local shops, Franklin & Poe, just happens to be one of the only stores in the U.S. that carries Fine Creek Leathers, and during their July 4th weekend sale the brand was also eligible for discount - a fairly unprecedented sale on arguably heritage leather jackets' hottest brand right now. F&P only had a larger Leon double rider and the Roberts in my suspected size, but I decided to just hop on over to try on the Roberts for funsies as well as inquire if they were going to stock the Eric in the future. 

What followed when I slipped the Roberts on in the store mirror for the first time was one of those record-scratching "oh, sh*t!" moments. I mean that in more than one sense of the phrase, actually - both "oh, sh*t! This is awesome!" and at the same time "oh, sh*t! I did not budget for this at all." After a day and night of soul searching, teeth gnashing, and wife placating, I brought home (in the dead heat of the summer) the most expensive jacket I thought I didn't like.

I love it.

Design

The most iconic leather jacket designs generally come from the 1930s through the 1950s. This is where you'll find the Schott Perfecto double rider and some of the older more period-specific classics like the 1930s aviator-style Real McCoys jacket I own. To this point, I've mostly been interested in models that derive from those eras. 

 

The Roberts, though, is an homage to Vanson's 1970s Race Jacket. At its core, the Race Jacket is basically a later variation on the classic cafe racer style - itself an evolution of single breasted leather jackets originally called "racing shirts" from the 1920s-1930s. Per Dave Himel's blog: "cafe racers refer to a British or European style of simple sleek leather jacket particularly functional for racing. Minimal pockets and impediments were left off, and tight fitting military style cuts, with a mandarin collar were the norm. [The] final racing style became common in the 1960s and 1970s, made by such great companies as Lewis Leathers, Beck, Brimaco, Score and Buco." Of these, the Buco J-100 is, by far, the most well-known and generally viewed as the archetypal model of its category. If you spend time looking at vintage jackets or flip through an archives book, however, you'll quickly find a deep pool of variations. I have to say, though, the original Race Jacket is not my favorite one. 

 

Vanson Race Jacket (RJV)

A multicolored single-breasted style with a contrast inset bib, arm stripes and a white band collar, the Race Jacket probably would look right at home on the race track, but completely alien off of it. It doesn't help that available fit pictures aren't particularly inspiring. But somehow, designer Yoshikatsu Yamazaki has been able to distill this reference into his updated version, the Roberts, with shocking success. You know those 90s movies starring the "dorky" unpopular girl with a heart of gold, where all she needs is the right person to see her for who she is and just take her glasses off or something? This is the leather jacket version of that girl.

 

 

 

The result is a sleek pared down version of the Race Jacket with all the same basic elements of design, but the overall impression is completely different. I think the effect is similar to how superhero outfits have been updated for the modern era. If we compare Batman (or "The Bat-Man," as he was called in 1940s) to today's versions, they're both instantly recognizable despite one looking like a kindergarten Halloween costume your mom made you for the school parade. The soul and anchoring design elements are still both present, and such is the case with the FCL Roberts.

Gone are a few riding-specific details like the underarm ventilation grommets and bulk of a bi-swing back, as well as the leather wind flap and reinforced double leather elbows. Absent is the multi-color palette, replaced with a murdered-out black on black monochrome. However, you'll still find the same beefy brass center zipper with side slash vintage-style zipper pockets, signature inlay bib (with an interesting raw edge), arm band racing stripes, two-way snap stand collar, and long swooping lines of the back paneling. It's a much meaner, cleaner look, and - dare I say - almost elegant. 

Materials and Construction

A few months ago, Clutch magazine interviewed Yamazaki-san where he mentioned using seven (seven!) different types of horsehide this year, all with slightly different qualities and ageing properties. The leather is sourced and custom tanned in Himeji, Japan, the same region Shinki tannery resides. If you ever wondered why people get so hot and bothered about Japanese attention to detail and craftsmanship, this sort of thing is why. Some of FCL's hides become more matte with wear, some shinier, thicker/thinner, more/less varied in grain, etc. depending on the specific jacket model and desired effect.

 

The 1.5 mm leather on the Roberts racer is lighter weight than some of the heavier 1.8-2.0 mm jackets like the standard Perfecto-style Leon, and it displays a subtle silvery sheen in light with a moderate stiffness that I find quite satisfying (though I also like the feel of crispy new jeans, so take that for what it's worth). It's beautiful in person - less reflective and slightly smoother than the Shinki horsehide from my late Himel jacket, though with hides of this level it all comes down to preference what you like better. Similarly, the hardware feels substantial and very sturdy in hand. I personally like the choice of brass vs. silver hardware as well, in this case.

 

 

Construction is extremely fine and clean. I've seen high quality Japanese jacket stitch-work described as "laser precise," and I have to say my personal experience backs this up. In fact, this jacket is among the finest stitching density I've encountered on a leather jacket to date, including every jacket I've reviewed here or handled in person. It's a little bit more consistent than my Himel and very close on the Real McCoys jacket, but I'd still give the Fine Creek jacket the slight edge in this instance. The Himel I had did have a few skipped stitches here and there, whereas the Roberts is clean all around to my eyes. I will say, though, there are a few places on the jacket where a turn or curve results in some minimal variation in the stitching allowance from the edge. It's the one thing I'd dock construction for, though I'm really picking nits now. And no one even knows what a nit is, honestly.

 

Left - Fine Creek, Middle - Schott, Right - Real McCoys

Fit and Styling

"It looks like a jacket Wolverine would wear."
"Slightly Power Ranger-y. In a good way."

The real question: is there a good way to look like a Power Ranger? Those are some of the comments I got when asking a couple of people for opinions on the jacket when I was agonizing over whether or not to buy it.

While one could see this as a potential weakness, you could also consider it its greatest strength; it's hard to nail down the Roberts to a specific genre. A lot of vintage and vintage-inspired clothing falls very squarely into a rigid workwear/repro vibe, which is fine if that's what you are going for. Somehow, though, the Roberts looks at once both vintage and modern - perhaps even futuristic - in the right context. That's why you can imagine vintage Hugh Jackman riding a bike in it just as easily as you could picture it in Tron: Legacy. And despite the slightly polarizing detailing, those aspects of the jacket I'd argue don't affect its wearability at all.

 

Jeans, a tee or henley, boots, and the mild affectation of a bandana are easy to pair with almost any leather jacket. This is no exception. Head-to-toe black in a more modern flair is as equal a no-brainer. What I'm wearing here is also more heavy denim/heavy boots heritage style, but it does just fine with a sleek pair of black jeans and a light turtleneck. I should also note that I wear leather jackets without riding in mind, as I suspect most people do these days. For a motorcycle, most advise a longer sleeve length and more freedom through the body for movement, likely in the form of a bi-swing or action back. All of that adds bulk, though, so there's always a trade off.

I'm 5'11" and 145 lbs, an American 36R, alpha size small in tops, and I sized the Roberts in a 38. I think it fits perfectly at this size, which for me means it is snug but not confining when worn over a single layer. The sleeves also fit slim, which, combined with the quality of the leather, has resulted in some really nice sleeve creasing already forming with minimal wear. Note that this particular jacket probably fits a size larger than the Leon, of which I'd probably take a 40. Luke, at Franklin & Poe, showed me the fit of his Perfecto-style Leon No Star vs. the Roberts in the same tagged size, which wore a size too large in the same size all around. I suppose this could work for you if you want to layer a hoodie underneath, but then you'd then be that guy with the hoodie underneath your leather jacket. It's just the worst.

Conclusions

"They don't think it be like it is. But it do." - Oscar Gamble

I haven't been more wrong about a first impression since Birkenstocks, grilled cheese with mayonnaise, or when I believed Game of Thrones was going to be the best show of all time. I think the experience highlights a few things - how a picture on a screen is no substitute for seeing clothing in person, how important local brick and mortars are, how much fit matters, and again how fucking bad Game of Thrones got in the end. Despite leather jackets falling mainly into a few basic designs, it's true that the devil is in the details, and getting all of those exactly right is a heavy ask. 95% of people would never notice or care, but it's one of those things where once you know, it's really hard to divorce from your mind. From design to materials to craftsmanship, end-to-end, Fine Creek keeps pace with anything I've come across.

At around $2000 USD, an FCL jacket is a lot of money for just about anyone, and it's the most I've spent on one piece of clothing outside of a wristwatch. Relatively speaking, though, Fine Creek are slightly cheaper than some other high end makers like The Real McCoys, Himel Bros, and Freewheelers. In addition, I bought my jacket on sale at a screaming deal. It's extremely rare that this type of sale occurs - I've actually never seen FCL on sale before and wouldn't count on it again - but even at full MSRP, you know exactly where your money went.

 

 

The older I get, the more I subscribe to the philosophy that we should buy less and buy better, especially in these times. This comes on the back of hundreds, if not thousands, of wasted dollars in personal lessons to that effect. I'm not saying everyone should go out and buy a $2000 leather jacket, but consumers frequently view price as the first priority over quality and/or design when it should be the other way around. The fact of the matter is you cannot buy a decent leather jacket new for under ~$500-750 unless you are diligent and quick on the draw during end of season sales (the few that make it are typically gone in the first hours of the sale). It's not uncommon to find cheap leather jackets posts on Reddit's r/frugalmalefashion where guys will talk about bad fit, misunderstood materials ("buttery soft leather" is a pet-peeve of mine), and design problems - then summarize their thoughts with something along the lines of "but for $200 on sale, this is an amazing deal!" This is the wrong way of thinking about anything you buy. For $200-300, that money would have been put to much better use buying pre-owned/vintage, putting that cash towards a better garment (such as Aero or Schott, at the lower price points), or paying a stranger to slap you every time you're tempted to throw your money away on garbage.

If you are interested in purchasing a Fine Creek Leathers jacket, you can find them at Self Edge (which just got a batch of Roberts jackets in that had been delayed for months now), Butterscotch LBC, Rivet and Hide, and my personal favorite, Franklin & Poe. So much has been said lately about buying from small independent businesses, and personally I can attest to Self Edge and Franklin & Poe having a great combination of knowledgeable and extremely welcoming staff, even to the habitual cheapskate blogger who comes by now and then just to "check things out." Fine Creek's IG accounts (Fine Creek Leathers and Fine Creek & Co for the more "edgy" designs like the Roberts) regularly showcase their new models and enviable jacket patina shots as well, so they're definitely worth a follow. Otherwise, I'd keep your eyes open on secondhand sites like Grailed and eBay, or better yet buy from an established member on forums like Styleforum or The Fedora Lounge.

For others in the range, The Real McCoys, Himel Bros, and Freewheelers are the most obvious alternatives. Past that, Y'2, Rainbow Country, Addict Clothing, Lewis Leathers, Ooe Yofukuten, Iron Heart, Nine Lives, Freenote Cloth, Tenjin Works, Simmons Bilt, Aero, and Schott round out things down the line. I've also been really impressed recently by newcomer Field Leathers' work, headed by Greg Field, who cut his teeth at Aero for 8 years before starting his own business a bit on the higher end. 

Because A Fine-Tooth Comb seems to be at high risk of becoming a full-on leatherdaddy site recently, the next review will be focused on something entirely not leather-based instead of the leather chaps and gimp suit I had originally planned. See you next time.

Fine Creek Leathers

Here's a parting shot of my crotch. Farewell, friend.