First Aero - Leather choice

[Jason22]

Hey guys,
I took advantage of the latest offer by Aero and ordered my first Aero A2. Not sure which leather to go for as I'm unfamiliar with all of them. Badalassi, Vicenza, Pinnacle, Jerky, Goat, they all look great and I guess I can't make a bad choice here -.- I just want a nice seal colour but other than that I have no idea how they compare. What are your favourites? Any advice?

btw it's my second A2, the first one was a HH Werber from Shawn which I really enjoy but the fit was not quite right

 

[Boyo]

my vote is the jerky horsehide, I had that on a civvy Aero jacket and really thought it was nice.

 

[B-Man2]

I have a Vincenza and it’s a nice hide that will age with time and wear. The Jerky hide is nice as well, but be prepared for it to pick up a lot of surface marks and scratches. It ages quickly but looks good. Some people like that while others with a new jacket dont care for that feature.

 

[Otter]

Russet jerky, had one a few years back, sadly had to let it go after I bulked up, always regret saying goodbye to it.

 

[CBI]

I fell like the Vincenza is a little on the boutique end of authentic looking leather. The jerky is a bit more inconsistent in regards graining which looks more authentic in re period photos, hence a better look IMO. Vincenza is beautiful albeit a more modern look IMO. Badalassi does look excellent as well.

 

[Jason22]

So jerky ages more quickly you say? Which leather has the leading edge in terms of longevity, what do you think? Does it even matter because both leathers would probably outlast me?

 

[mulceber]

So jerky ages more quickly you say? Which leather has the leading edge in terms of longevity, what do you think? Does it even matter because both leathers would probably outlast me?

When we say “age” we mean developing character. Longevity won’t be a problem.

 

[Jason22]

Any experience with pinnacle already?

But I guess both badalassi and horween would push the A2 firmly to the "boutique" corner, even more than Vicenza, I assume?

 

[Otter]

At best, these were utility jackets,not made perhaps of the finest leather available, but what was acceptable and affordable.

 

[mulceber]

Any experience with pinnacle already?

But I guess both badalassi and horween would push the A2 firmly to the "boutique" corner, even more than Vicenza, I assume?

True, but Horween actually supplied leather to one or more of the original A-2 manufacturers, so there’s a lot to be said for them.

 

[Southoftheborder]

The so called Jerky is also chrome tanned which makes it more authentic since that was a requirement for originals. It is a hobby horse of mine that repro A2s cannot really be stitch for stitch reproductions of original jackets if they are made from high quality vegetable tanned aniline hide. However beautiful it looks. IMO of course.

 

[Jason22]

There is little information about aero's goat, do you guys happen to know more about it?

 

[Jason22]

Btw it puzzles me that jerky ages faster than Vicenza - I was told that chrome-tanned leather tends to develop slower than veg ... or did I get that wrong?

 

[Southoftheborder]

Btw it puzzles me that jerky ages faster than Vicenza - I was told that chrome-tanned leather tends to develop slower than veg ... or did I get that wrong?

It doesn't in my experience. Vicenza does break in quickly and lose its new look after a short time. That's true of the three or four jackets I've had in that hide over nearly ten years. But the Jerky I bought five years or so ago was very slow to break in. I put it in the washing machine which brought out the grain and softened it nicely. I would not do that with Vicenza...

Leathers change all the time so you should get current swatches from them if you haven't already. I've never bought goat from them but have heard good reports. I have had swatches and it seems nice.

 

[Jason22]

Yeah thanks for the advice, just ordered a sample of each

 

[Jason22]

In terms of looks I prefer Vicenza. I think Badalassi and Pinnacle are a little too ... "fancy" for a utility jacket ... if that makes sense ... Which leaves me with jerky and Vic and I just prefer the look of the latter. As it is a veg tanned leather I'm concerned with the weather resistance, is there anything I should be worried about? I'm not planning on wearing it through heavy rain all the time but I don't want to baby it either if it does get wet

 

[blackrat2]

I think your worrying a little to much about veg tanned leather in the wet, if anything there is often posts on here of people wearing there jackets in a rain storm
My understanding is that veg tanned will darken and soak the rain in on initial contact with rain..it will then dry back later, chrome tanned doesn’t darken so drastically in looks when it rains
Getting the leather wet is thought to help bring out the character in the leather
As for thickness, if it’s for an A-2 then there is a wide range of thickness and graininess on originals with some makers being known to have lighter weight leather on originals, I think it has been mentioned that Poughkeepsie A-2’s are in the thinner side of the scale
If you like the gnarly look on your jackets ask Aero if they will wet and dry the leather before they make your jacket, i know the hot water treatment is something some makers will do but I don’t know if Aero would offer this service, ask Denny as he is on this forum or contactable at Aero and could advise on leather choices
Horween as mentioned was used originally which is a nice thought to have that element of “originality “

 

[Jason22]

Would (lightweight) CXFQHH be a good idea for an A2? It seems to tick all the boxes for me. It's not listed as an option for A2s I reckon there must be a reason for it but if it would work well for an A2 I surely can ask for it right?

 

[blackrat2]

Give Denny a call and ask them is probably easier

 

[B-Man2]

Blackrat2 is right.
If you’re having a tough time deciding on what hide you want … deal with them directly. They will answer all of your questions .