LeatherUp vs Schott
Elite HDF Member
Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 3,780
Likes: 69
From: Al Bu Ker Key, New Mexico
Clicker01, thanks for the link to Lost Worlds website. I had heard of Vanson and Langlitz but the Lost Worlds is a new one for me. This has been an informative thread. I am in the market for a new leather and am considering plunking down some serious cash for a quality jacket. A question I have for those that know is regarding the weight of these jackets. I have a brand new Harley FXRG jacket worn twice hanging in my closet. I just cant wear the jacket due to its weight. It just wears me out, the thing weighs a ton! Are these high-end jackets from Vanson, Langlitz, and LW heavy as well? By the way, my FXRG is a medium and I would be willing to part with it for 50% of current retail if anyone is interested. Ping me.
Lol, thats two of us. I just finished taking pics of my FXRG to post. I think I scored the Schott Perfecto I want and am surfing now for a Vanson to replace the FXRG in a Cafe style.
My problem with the FXRG is the weight comes from the plastic waterproof liner (not going to ride in rain) and all the armor etc.
The actual leather when you feel it feels very thin to me. I have a leather Pea Coat and it feels twice as thick and comfortable.
I want less bells and more nice leather.
$1200 bucks though. I cant imagine that ever. I do buy lottery tickets though so maybe....
My problem with the FXRG is the weight comes from the plastic waterproof liner (not going to ride in rain) and all the armor etc.
The actual leather when you feel it feels very thin to me. I have a leather Pea Coat and it feels twice as thick and comfortable.
I want less bells and more nice leather.
$1200 bucks though. I cant imagine that ever. I do buy lottery tickets though so maybe....
Elite HDF Member
Joined: Apr 2009
Posts: 3,780
Likes: 69
From: Al Bu Ker Key, New Mexico
Dortiz, I am right there with you on that $1200 price tag but considering the FXRG retails at $650 and is made in the United States of China, maybe the LW is worth it, dunno for sure. As I said, its the weight of the FXRG that prevents me from wearing it. I think the FXRG is well made and is certainly the best Harley offers in their line of leathers, I had high expectations for it and they were met, its just to damn heavy for me to wear all day. Good luck searching for the Vanson cafe style. Where did you find your Schott?
Ultimate HDF Member
Joined: Apr 2006
Posts: 6,913
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From:
I think you will find the Vanson, Langlitz and Lost Worlds jackets to be heavy. I have a Langlitz Columbia, a Vanson Genesis, Vanson Mark 2 CSRX, Vanson Mark 2 Cobra, Harley FXRG, and they all seem to weigh about the same. I have not weighed them but none of them seem overly heavy while sitting on a motorcycle. I have a Schott bomber jacket and a Brooks that are a little lighter.
Langlitz also makes their jackets in goathide which should be somewhat lighter and just as strong as cowhide. The advantage with Langlitz as compared to the others mentioned is that Langlitz is not a mass producer. They make the jacket for your specific measurements and they are great to work with. I have never heard of a complaint about Langlitz quality or customer service. I have read many complaints about customer service with Vanson and some with Schott.
Fox Creek is another good quality jacket and they supposedly have very good customer service. However, they are also a mass producer (on a smaller scale than Schott I think) and in fact are actually a seller only as they do not make their products but buy from various contractors in the US. I had a Fox Creek Grayson jacket and it was just as heavy as the FXRG. It had very thick but soft leather. Maybe thicker than the rest.
The Vanson competition leather feels the toughest of all to me but I am not an expert. Just about everything Vanson makes is now made outside the US in El Salvador except for their custom made racing suits and I understand they will soon also be made in El Salvador.
There are several very good smaller US leather shops that custom make jackets but someone else will have to name them as I have no personal experience with them.
You would be well served to call Langlitz and speak with Dave or someone else and describe what you want and hear their suggestions. It won't cost you a thing and you will learn something. Good luck.
Langlitz also makes their jackets in goathide which should be somewhat lighter and just as strong as cowhide. The advantage with Langlitz as compared to the others mentioned is that Langlitz is not a mass producer. They make the jacket for your specific measurements and they are great to work with. I have never heard of a complaint about Langlitz quality or customer service. I have read many complaints about customer service with Vanson and some with Schott.
Fox Creek is another good quality jacket and they supposedly have very good customer service. However, they are also a mass producer (on a smaller scale than Schott I think) and in fact are actually a seller only as they do not make their products but buy from various contractors in the US. I had a Fox Creek Grayson jacket and it was just as heavy as the FXRG. It had very thick but soft leather. Maybe thicker than the rest.
The Vanson competition leather feels the toughest of all to me but I am not an expert. Just about everything Vanson makes is now made outside the US in El Salvador except for their custom made racing suits and I understand they will soon also be made in El Salvador.
There are several very good smaller US leather shops that custom make jackets but someone else will have to name them as I have no personal experience with them.
You would be well served to call Langlitz and speak with Dave or someone else and describe what you want and hear their suggestions. It won't cost you a thing and you will learn something. Good luck.
Road Captain
Joined: Sep 2008
Posts: 628
Likes: 1
hoethree, go to the LengendaryUSA website and look up the horsehide D-pocket jacket. I have examined one of the L.W. jackets in the J-23/J-24 Buco style and compared it to the Legendary product, and purchased the Legendary. They appear to come from the same shop here in the USA, and are very close twins.
The horsehide seemed to be the very same and both were well constructed. L.W. is not the only purveyor of quality jackets sourced in the U.S.A., but they seem to be about the only one for direct copies of quite a few original designs from a bygone era.
When my Legendary arrived I placed it on the floor, standing straight up and zipped, with one sleeve out to the side at a forty-five degree angle, and one cocked as if holding onto the belt loop. It looked like the top half of a suit of armor. It is just that stiff. Forty-eight hours later it was still just as I had left it.
The first few weeks of wear every time I would relax, the sleeves wanted to go straight our from the sides. But it did start to break-in after awhile.
You really won't go wrong with either one, and neither weighs anything close to what the 2010 edition of the FXRG leather jacket does.
The horsehide seemed to be the very same and both were well constructed. L.W. is not the only purveyor of quality jackets sourced in the U.S.A., but they seem to be about the only one for direct copies of quite a few original designs from a bygone era.
When my Legendary arrived I placed it on the floor, standing straight up and zipped, with one sleeve out to the side at a forty-five degree angle, and one cocked as if holding onto the belt loop. It looked like the top half of a suit of armor. It is just that stiff. Forty-eight hours later it was still just as I had left it.
The first few weeks of wear every time I would relax, the sleeves wanted to go straight our from the sides. But it did start to break-in after awhile.
You really won't go wrong with either one, and neither weighs anything close to what the 2010 edition of the FXRG leather jacket does.
Wow! Saying the 600 is as good as the 1200 makes the 600 jacket very appealing. So the horsehide is that much better? Now I am just thinking screw it and get the Schott Perfecto 618 in horsehide and order it to fit.
Dang even the clothes turn expensive with these bikes!
Dang even the clothes turn expensive with these bikes!
Ultimate HDF Member
Joined: Apr 2006
Posts: 6,913
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From:
Not disagreeing about the quality of either but Legendary (made by Schott) and Lost Worlds do not come from the same shop.
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Joe Kucinski
Outstanding HDF Member
Joined: Mar 2010
Posts: 2,202
Likes: 5
From: Hudson Valley, NY
i recently sold a schott jacket on ebay that i have for a few years because i needed a bigger jacket. the leather is very nice and it's heavy and well built. i returned a pair of leatherup pants that were thin and the crotch seems split with very little force i was not impressed at all with the quality.
i recently bought a vanson model - b and really the schott now seems like little more than a fashion jacket.
i recently bought a vanson model - b and really the schott now seems like little more than a fashion jacket.