Cold Summer

There's not actually any denim in this photo, but it's too good not to share. From Traces Of Texas on FB/IG. I especially like the hats and outerwear.

I got an iPhone 6S when it came out in fall 2015, and used one all the way until fall 2021. Then I got an iPhone SE, which is pretty much the same form factor as the 6S, just with newer hardware inside. It's still going strong so I suspect I'll keep using it until something catastrophic happens or it's no longer supported. I've never felt like I needed a bigger phone with tons of cameras or other features. I feel like a bigger, fancier phone would just tempt me to use it more, which isn't really appealing since I waste enough time on the phone as-is.

Interesting discussion on the hemming. My FC 1108s did have a nice, narrow hem width. Ditto for my WH 1001xx, maybe my favorite narrow hem ever. However, the hem on my WH 800xx was different, and maybe the thickest width of any of the Japanese repro jeans I've had. It's similar to the hem on my TFH 3005, etc. But the TFH denim and WH 800xx denim is 14.5 oz, so I think the heavier weight is probably why the hem is a bit thicker on those. In other words, if you like that really clean, narrow hem, 14 oz or lighter denim is more likely to have it. Being quite a tall fellow myself, I almost never need my jeans hemmed. The only pair that really needed it were my Samura S710xx. I wore the factory hem for probably about 4-6 months, before I had them hemmed at a Flat Head Dessert Hills Market store in Ueda, Nagano in 2013. To my surprise, this new hem had a ton of roping, even though the denim had long since fully shrunk before that. This made me wonder if there was something about that particular 43200G machine (or maybe just the inexperience of my coworker, who was working at the store that day and operated the machine, clearly having a hard time hemming the 19 oz denim.)

That's right, the D11... jeans are the Zimbabwe cotton denim which is completely different from the 3000-series. I haven't handled this denim personally, but it seems nice. I like that Flat Head only has a couple of great denim fabrics, as opposed to other prominent brands that constantly churn out new, and in my opinion rather gimmicky, denim. TFH used to make 12, 16, 18, 19, and 20 oz denim, plus some others (anybody else remember the Kevlar blend denim?!) but most of them were just slight variations on the usual 14.5 oz fabric with heavier weights, and maybe slight changes to the weave. They all looked like TFH denim, for better or worse. This rather conservative approach to their denim may have contributed to the decline of TFH's prominence in the international denim fan community, but when your core denim is as good as Flat Head's, I really don't think it's a problem. It has a refinement I find lacking in a lot of trendier brands' exaggerated fabrics. Actually, I now quite like the old 5000-series fabric TFH used to make in their 2000s heyday, similar to the 14.5 with a strong vertical fade, but slightly lighter weight at 14 oz and lighter color with fewer dips than the 14.5. I wouldn't mind if they brought that one back.

Not sure. I've seen that phrase "doshaburi" on Flat Head's social media but I think it's some sort of slogan rather than a description of any objective aspect of their jeans. I've seen some people say that Flat Head's 14.5 oz. denim has changed, but I haven't handled any TFH jeans from the reorganized/revived version of TFH so I actually don't know how it differs from the "old" denim, if at all. I'd have to defer with somebody with hands-on experience. I really regret popularizing the terminology of calling it the "Pioneer" denim way back when. Before <10 years ago everyone called it "3XXX", which I found to be an eyesore and disliked (Plus, how do you even say that? "three ex-ex-ex"?) Long ago on TFH's site (and other retailer sites in Japan), the 3000-series jeans were called the "Pioneer" series, to differentiate from the "Frontier" series consisting of the F310, F380, and a couple more obscure models like the F370 and F350. But it's not even a good descriptor since both the "Pioneer" and "Frontier" lines actually used the same denim, and TFH stopped using Pioneer/Frontier terminology a long time ago, AND many TFH jeans that didn't even start with the "3" used that denim, too. Nowadays, I just call the 14.5 oz their usual/signature denim, for whatever that's worth. Kind of an off-topic rant, but something that's been on my mind lately.

I'm pretty sure those are almost the same and just minor seasonal tweaks/variations, since things like thread color can vary. TFH has been using the "FN" prefix for everything since they reorganized a few years ago. "XXX" connotes the overseas version of their jeans which has the F-stitch rather than the "Levis"-esque arcs on the JDM 3000 series jeans. For instance, I have two pairs of 3005s, one a 3005XXX bought from Self Edge, the other 3005s a JDM model from 2014. They have different stitch colors and patches, but the denim and cut are the same. It's hard to compare from those two pics because the lighting and such is totally different. They have the exact same patch, it just looks different due to the light, and it's hard for me to say if the denim is different. That being said, I've never seen the "FN-3005 N1 XXX" before so I'm not sure what exactly "N1" indicates, whether it's an actual difference or just a slight, seasonal variation of the product name.

Here’s my other pair of 3005, my main jeans at the moment. I think these have been worn about ten months. Washed three times.

My 1001s, from back in 2014: And a grail-level pair of 1005s I photographed at TFH headquarters back in 2013:

Posted an update of my 3005XXX jeans in the Evo thread, check it out. I also started wearing the 1005s I got about a year ago. Compared to my 3005s in the same tag size 32, these are slightly more relaxed, which I like. After a warm wash with other denim laundry, the inseam shrank from almost 38" down to 35", making these quite pleasantly long with some modest stacking for some Dad Fit vibes overall. This is the first pair I've begun wearing since I stopped cuffing my jeans and putting wallets or other stuff in the back pockets, so it'll be nice to see a little different evo on these compared to my past pairs. Very comfy jeans from day one, thanks to the fit. Back in 2013-14 I wore the 1001, so I have some familiarity with the 16 oz denim. It's imperceptibly heavier than TFH's usual 14.5, but it feels like a slightly looser/stretchier weave, and has a slightly rougher hand. In my experience with the 1001, I felt that this 16 oz denim aged much faster than the 14.5 oz, which is one of the slower-fading fabrics out there unless you're wearing your jeans super tight like in SuFu's late 2000s heyday. I got great fades out of my 1001 despite a fairly frequent washing schedule of every other month. With this pair, I'll probably hold off as long as I can before the first wash for some rather different evo. Otherwise, the main things that stand out with this pair is that the back pockets are larger than other TFH jeans, giving a slightly different impression; and the front pocket openings are also larger, making this the easiest TFH pair for me to fit my hands into. Unlike my second pair of 3005s, these don't have the double poly-cotton/cotton stitching on the front pocket openings and back pocket edges, so we'll see how long that stitching lasts. For what it's worth, in the nine months of wear I put into my 1001s, the back pocket edge stitching didn't break at all.

Flat Head 3005XXX. Worn since August 2018. I lost track of wear time, but I think they’re around 20 months of actual wear. Easily my most worn jeans ever, and washed countless times. I wore these jeans the most over the past summer. I stopped cuffing them and wearing a wallet in the back pocket in this same time. Still tons of life left in these. The hem, knees, and rear end/back rise seam all need or will soon need repairs. The jeans were previously repaired at Indigo Proof in 2020 or so, where the front pocket openings were expanded, the pocket bags replaced with deeper ones, back pocket stitching repaired, and cuff tears repaired. It's been quite impressive that I managed to wear these for so long without the knees blowing out, though they're pretty close now.

Nailed it. One of the interesting things that's happened as I've become aware of all this, is how much it feels like our whole Left vs. Right dichotomy is a bit contrived and involves a lot narrative-manipulation on both sides. Eventually you (or, well, me) come to the conclusion that the "free market" and corporations are bad, international finance is bad, government is bad, and the whole thing is just this big mess that can't be tidily distilled down into a prepackaged political position. This results in me feeling like I'm the most extremist maniac of anybody I know, while also paradoxically being able to sympathize with the average person's position regardless of where they fall on the spectrum. It's a bit of a strange and lonely place to be. Oh, I'm talking more about on the level of the auto industry and its moves, more than a push directly on consumers.

I think a lot of people feel this way and that's why the average car age in the US is at an all-time high. 90s and 2000s cars were generally well made and reliable so I think that's also a big part of why so many are still on the road in the US. Exactly. Driving and maintaining an old car is better for the environment than building a new electric car. And when you consider that the electricity that powers the EV battery is often generated by methods that aren't great for the environment either, the whole battery-powered car push really does just seem like kicking the can down the road, at best. If people decide an EV is best for their use case that's fine, but the whole societal push to impose them on everybody smacks of ulterior motives. Forget time travel and hoverboards, the technology from Back To The Future I most want is the "Mister Fusion" car-reactor that turns trash into energy! What a great concept. Maybe any kind of reactor-powered car is a pipe dream but I find it more compelling than battery-powered cars. The thing that really struck me as crazy when I drove my dad's truck is that it's got this absurdly huge blind spot in the front, the super-tall fenders, big wheels, and ride height all contribute to a massive zone where you just can't see anything in front of you. In my wagon I can easily see anything in any direction, down to the height of a toddler, but in big tall cars the visibility plain sucks. My CR-V fares somewhat better, but it's still not great.

Personally, I would take a principled death in my wagon than ignobly survive an accident in a giant SUV. Besides, making stratospheric monthly payments on the big SUV would just make me wish I was dead anyway! @Double 0 Soul Back when I lived in northern Japan in 2011-12, I drive a Suzuki kei car, a front wheel drive box that probably produced less horsepower than a ride-on lawnmower, and I literally drove the thing on solid ice roads for about six months a year with virtually no issues at all, my town was literally buried in snow constantly and I never had any problem getting around in that tiny car or thought what I really needed was a big truck. The truck/SUV crazy in the US is rooted in pure crony capitalism. Government regulation loopholes incentivized auto makers to build big trucks and SUVs because they're subject to less strict standards than smaller cars since they're categorized as "light trucks," which was intended to apply to commercial work vehicles; and thus, this makes them more profitable. And then, through the magical influence of advertising, American consumer taste was sculpted toward these big, profitable vehicles by selling an image of rugged toughness. Once upon a time, men aspired to own a car like a Buick or Mercury that signified you were sophisticated and classy, or a Cadillac/Lincoln if you really wanted to exude rich man vibes. Today, it's all about projecting the image that you're the most braggadocios asshole possible. What's funny is that it's all pretty superficial, my area is chock full of these angry bro-dozer trucks, but they seem like perfectly polite drivers for the most part despite the machismo, and their trucks rarely look like they've ever left the road or carried anything in their beds. I never feel unsafe driving around in my wagon in day to day life. I'm not dunking on any of y'all here who've given pretty reasonable explanations for whatever you drive in this discussion. Just sharing my observations on the general culture and all that.

Late to the car talk, but here it goes... As you'll see a couple pages back, I bought myself a a ~30 year old car earlier this year to be my personal/"fun" car. My other vehicle is a 2015 Honda CR-V. The CR-V is great for day to day family activity and convenience, and course has modern safety features, which is nice when you're transporting two kids. But when it comes to comfort and general driving experience, the Olds wagon absolutely stomps the CR-V, it's not even close. The Olds just floats down the road, it's such a smooth and pleasant car to drive, the seats are cozy velour and it's spacious inside, with a bench seat, no giant center console, and with surprisingly little cabin noise. The 3.1 L V6 has plenty of power, and combined with the four-speed automatic, offers a very satisfying drive. It's nice sounding engine too, the CR-V's engine sounds like a lawn mower in comparison. The CR-V has a much higher quality of fit and finish, and there are some materials and build aspects of the wagon that feel a bit cheap but overall it's sturdy and robust in the same way as a vintage Fender amp I used to own. I absolutely do not like the high-riding feel of SUVs and trucks at all. When I drive the CR-V, it feels harsh and twitchy, and I feel like I'm being laterally jostled around in a way that's totally absent from my wagon, and I think the center of gravity has a lot to do with it. Last weekend I went on a trip with my dad and drove his Ram pickup he got in the last two years or so. It rode pretty decently, but again, there was that annoying lateral rocking. If all you ever drive are trucks you probably don't notice it, but driving an actual car has completely spoiled me. That trip would have been more pleasant in a classic American land yacht like a Chevrolet Caprice Classic or Ford Crown Victoria, or heck, even a Toyota Avalon. If it weren't for child safety aspects I would love to only drive older, pre-2003 cars. New cars, besides being absurdly expensive and almost universally ugly, inspire distrust in various ways: the absurd volume of fragile electronics, giant screens replacing buttons and controls that can be operated by touch while driving, over-the-air "updates," poor visibility, general plasticy cheapness, and so on. Planned obsolescense has been a thing for a long time but it's a lot more glaring now, if something on my wagon breaks I'm much more confident that it can be affordably fixed or replaced than on a new car. Really the only downside to my wagon is safety, and the fuel economy is a bit lacking compared to a comparable modern car. There's something satisfying about driving around in a car with a design I actually like. Maybe it's just because I grew up in the 90s, and still hold 80s/90s cars as my base point of reference, but modern cars look so strange to me. They all have giant wheels, thin sidewall tires, absurdly tall fenders, and tiny, squat little windows with bad visibility, and comically angry expressions on their front ends, and this seems just as true of modern sedans as larger vehicles. What's puzzling to me is why everything has to be a sports car with twitchy handling, harsh suspension, and hard bucket seats, and nobody makes comfortable cars anymore. Even a friggin' Toyota Camry looks and drives like an angry sports car now. I'm not a race car driver, I'm not an angry macho man, I'm just a suburban dad with needlessly nitpicky taste in everything, and nobody makes a new car for people like me. Or at least, not one I could afford; I'm sure I'd love a Volvo V90 if somebody gave me one for free. So I'm completely happy driving an old one.

Wait, what? Didn't Full Count dump their arcs and tabs over five years ago? Did Levi's build their own time machine so they can sue temporal offenders at will?