Graytrain

6 hours ago, volvo240thebest said:

Am I the only person here unsatisfied with Tezomeya? I think they're not worth what they cost. they don't look better with wear, and they stretch too much.
I have bought two and I have regretted it, between the cost, the fact I had to pay upfront (and wait A LOT) and the customs those were a major screwup. The kakishibu one faded to a lame sort of muddy grey within a summer. My first - and last - foray into JP made tees.

They have definitely more of a wabi sabi type spirit to the whole fabric, build, dye and fit. I definitely have to be in the mood to wear them and not wanting a clean looking fit. But they definitely fit a gap that nothing else (that I am aware of) does, e.g. natural dyes in creative patterns with hand done construction. 

Like if they made Ts with the same natural dyes and pattern creativity but with Lady White type fabric even-ness and build quality, would it have the same feel? 

And I only say Lady White because it's the only non-vintage loop wheeled Ts I own. 

Crazy amount of wear @fix_me. Looks like you found them in a mine somewhere. 

On 7/9/2020 at 3:19 AM, aho said:

How come ya’ll didn’t tell me about a 25th 1000XX??

 

Man there are too many good jeans coming out. I need y'all to slow down on the excitement. 

58 minutes ago, mousemouse said:

Anyone ever have an issue of loose fly buttons on full counts? I have a 1101 from 2019 that has had this issue since new. I'm not sure if it is due to the softer than usual fabric, but I frequently find myself having 1 of the bottom buttons on the fly unbuttoned randomly. I found that when I button the fly up, the last button would come off the hole while I button the next one without much tension. 

Yes! I had this issue with mine. What I ended up doing was stitching the button hole closed a bit at the narrow end of the tear drop shape, making buttoning a bit tighter. Seemed to solve it. 

Man I haven't worn this thing in years. It's so beefy. 

The normal diggs. Air king 5500. 

The skx with a domed AR sapphire 

Should probably go in the watch thread but oh well. 

Sounds like I need to pull out my 007. A little larger than I usually wear but it's such a good watch. 

2 hours ago, aho said:

Not to mention the SKX on bund...proper!

Lol when I did the wrist check I wondered how long it would be before you spoke up! 

@Qube to third that, gorgeous photos. 

On 6/16/2020 at 9:09 AM, louisbosco said:

since everyone is on the path of nostalgia, circa 2010 TFH Type 3 Embroidery..

 

I'm a sucker for flat head pioneer denim and their embroidery. Absolutely fantastic. 

18 minutes ago, Double 0 Soul said:

Nicest dad feet ive ever seen.. what's you secret.. wax or veet?

only the natural sun and my light haired heritage!

The best way to describe my fade philosophy was said by someone long ago: 

"Using chain stitch, your train of jeans is fading wind."

I'm definitely firmly into the dad routine camp but it has taught me a lot about the joys to be released from denim when thoughtlessly washing and drying often. They may not stun from afar but close inspection has you drinking in the intricacies of puck and hige. 

20 minutes ago, BrownMetallic said:

@Graytrain I’ve been wanting to achieve  a traintrack corrugation like that.  Reminiscent of the old 501’s I had long long time ago.

The only thing is that, from experience,  to achieve that degree of traintrack puckering & contrast,  u need a frequent machine wash & dry @hi-heat.  So, downside is,  u give up the combs, fuck up the leather patch ... & consequently, shorten the lifespan of the jeans due to stitch breakage.

Train tracks are life. I wash and dry my current wear every two weeks or so. But not a comb in sight. 

I would be down with a tee as well! I love BFs idea of OD Green and TCB on it plain and simple. But I'm a simple T kind of guy. 

3 hours ago, Paul T said:

This was used quite a lot in ancient superfuture. It simply makes the whiskers sharper and crisper so more indigo chips off. You also get more of the little holes in the honeycombs as the fabric becomes more brittle. I have also seen 'pinched' fades are still fashionable in Japan, where you pinch the creases regularly to fade the highlights. That gives thinner whiskers and you don't get the rippled shading nearby . Overall if you add some starch, it can give more contrast a bit like if you wear your jeans raw, or sanforized unsoaked, but there's always a trade-off.

Yes this is the "unnatural fades" that I see often. Overly sharp whiskers, whether lap, thigh or knee. That and sanded creases. 

5 hours ago, volvo240thebest said:

Here's the pro of starch glue at work

So the dramatic train tracks are achieved by applying the starch glue after wash and before tossing the jeans in the dryer.

So wild. I would have never assumed that wasn't natural. I would have just thought they have an aggressive washer. 

34 minutes ago, Maynard Friedman said:

First - a huge contest, hopefully with newspapers.

Then - talk of starch.

Next - possible downsizing (even if accidental).

It really is like the Sufu of the late noughties all over again! 

I'm going to put some brass knuckles in my back pocket and ride a fixie for max effect. 

46 minutes ago, volvo240thebest said:

not really. the starch they use in Japan is liquid and much stronger.
they do crazy vodoo fade shit like washing jeans in a laundromat, apply liquid starch to the traintracks (outer selvedge) and then toss the jeans in the dryer. Same on other parts like the back yoke, to maximize puckering effect. I much prefer a natural evolution. I find that what makes difference is using an aggressive detergent, but we all want to use the less polluting stuff possible ain't we in 2020?

Man for all these years I have wondered WTF I was doing wrong, achieving less than godlike puckering and hige. Almost fifteen years later and I find out there's jawn juice for performance enhancing fading capability! 

3 hours ago, volvo240thebest said:

Some Japanese guys are going to use starch to indrease contrast at the beginning, it'll be cool to see the JP wash voodoos

The fuck is this?? I've never heard of that process. Is that how they get those perfect lap fades? I've always wondered. I never get any honeycomb like fades on the lap. 

12 hours ago, beautiful_FrEaK said:

Getting used again to wide and "ill-fitting" jeans

Thats the sexiest ill fit I've ever seen. 

I'm honestly blown away at the activity this drummed up. Its like the SuFu of old!

1 hour ago, Maynard Friedman said:

I assumed you used emulsion if you’re talking about your walls. I think you may need an acrylic paint for the arcs to prevent it from washing out.

Yes that's exactly what I'm talking about. It seems to stay quite well on denim as I have a pair of fullcount jeans with it all over them. Been through the wash since a handful of times and still there. I think I will give it a shot! Create a template for it, and do it. Worst case it washes out and I need to do it over with more appropriate paint. 

54 minutes ago, Maynard Friedman said:

Think about the whole rationing concept - I’d say use whatever colour you have and in the same spirit of the lottery pocket bags, even if not period correct, it will be on a moral and environmental level and will certainly capture the zeitgeist of the contest.

Well I recently painted my living room "Cotton Gray" so it sounds like some slightly off white arcs coming my way. 

1 hour ago, BrownMetallic said:

@Graytrain I am definitely painting arcs on mine.  Since there’re more eyes on this thread now, maybe I should ask again ...  

“‘Got a question about the WW2 painted broken arcs.  I noticed variants in repro arc shapes & colors through the years.  Was there any particular [official] WW2 painted arcuate?! “

 

I had the same thought. I accidentally replied in the main TCB but we will see if Paul responds. I have seen that brown gold color as well as dark green and white. 

On 6/14/2020 at 4:32 PM, BrownMetallic said:

Interesting how Hajime went over how the steel rivets & pocket come together in the [wartime] sewing production line environment. One notable feature w/c was good to know was, there was no bartack reinforcement, w/c usually occur at the beginning of attaching the back pocket flap ... before rivets installation.

‘Got a question about the WW2 painted broken arcs.  I noticed variants in repro arc shapes & colors through the years.  Was there any particular [official] WW2 painted arcuate?!

@BrownMetallic I was thinking the same thing. Maybe @Paul T could help out. 

Paul, or others, what color did Levi's originally use for the painted arcs? Was it this brown gold thread color? I think I've even seen darker green.