mpukas

IMO, it looks a bit big on you. 

19 minutes ago, unders said:

Sorry if it came off as aggressive, not my intention @mpukas

HA!, No, no, all good! I was just being sarcastic, like I needed a good slap of reality, LOL! 

6 hours ago, unders said:

If the invitation says no jeans, I don’t think you should wear jeans. It’s one day. I suspect they’ve ploughed thousands into the wedding and want it to be just so, so why risk eff’ing that up. Or at least check in with them first. 

Well, that's a good slap of reality. 

I'm struggling because I have a couple suits to choose from, but they're "old" and although they fit fairly well, they're not what I currently prefer. My general feeling is that it's Vegas, there will be a mix of family (some of which I've never met on our side) but primarily their close friends. The ceremony will be in the evening and short, followed by festivities. The initiation says "semi-formal attire (no jeans)". I'm trying to rationalize in my head that a pair of new black jeans with a new sharp jacket, white shirt and black tie would be acceptable. 

9 hours ago, Geeman said:

Buy some black trousers? 

Suggestions? 

My first thought would be to look into Banana Republic and J Crew. I would only wear them once. 

Black jeans. I'm going to a cousin's wedding in Vegas in a couple weeks. The invitation say no jeans. Well, too bad... I'm wearing jeans. I'll go so far as to wear black jeans, and I currently do not have any. Here's what I've found so far that's available in my size (honestly, I don't love any of them): 

Freenote Portola

Sugar Cane for Self Edge

Joe McCoy Lot 966BK 

Iron Heart IH-634S-142bb 

Full Count 1108BK

3-Sixteen CT-220X

Open to other suggestions. 

I thought they were Kreosote. 

^ ?

I've worn really cheap sweats for years (Costco, American Apparel). Threw down for some Reining Champ sweat pants and hoodies at regular price late fall of last year. Overall I'm impressed with the fabric, cut, construction and details. I got their mid-weight, which is not warm enough for the really cold winter days in CO. I got their regular cut sweat pants, and they're the best fitting, best looking sweats I've had. 

RC really t'd me off tho - I also bought a couple pairs of sweat pants on sale. One was supposed to regular cut in heavy weight fleece and one was supposed to be slim cut in light weight. The cut were actually reversed and not as advertised. When I inquired with them, they shot back saying there was no way their cuts were incorrect, and the heavy weight fleece seems to fit slimmer because of the heavier weight of the fabric. I took pics and measurements. The measurements matched exactly with their posted measurements for both slim and regular cuts. I emailed them back with pics and measurements, and they ignored me. I let it go. The slim cut pants in heavy weight fleece kinda suck. 

I'll prolly get more hoodies and sweat pants from them, because I haven't found another brand that I like as much. And their colors are great. I prolly won't get any tee's from them. 

I also have the Flint and Tinder 10-Year hoodie. It's bad ass. F&T seems to be a house brand for Huckberry. The 10-Year is offered in a variety of styles and colors. The fabric is thick, heavy, dense, somewhat stiff, not much stretch. 23oz 70/30 poly/cotton. Hard exterior, brushed interior. The fit is great for me - slim, athletic cut without restriction of movement. I'm 5'-11", 195lbs and a large fits well. An XL could also work, but would be a bit over sized and loose. Some years ago they did a run of sweat pants made out of the same fabric, but haven't done so since. 

Why does the left leg always twist more than the right? 

@Double 0 Soul keep it. keep it. keep it, for f's sake! That's a grail piece. Even if you only wear it once a year, or once every 10 years, it'll put a smile on your face. You'll never recoup the initial cost at this point in it's life. Is the coin you'd get for it really worth more than the value of it to you? It'd be on thing if you didn't like it, or it didn't fit, or you found something better for you. But it's none of that - it's one of the most awesome articles of clothing ever, and it fits and suits you so well. It should really be posted in the "nice things" thread. 

@Broark @Duke Mantee is the thread cotton or poly/cotton?

that belt! 

That belt + buckle is... not sure what wor(s) to use... 

@JRendon02 +2 to a great fit. Looking good 

The Flat Head CW-85W western Native Check, Size 44. I'd say it fits like a typical western medium size shirt. It's slim cut, for sure. The pearl snap are things of beauty. The fabric is gorgeous. This shirt does not have back darts. 

$220 shipped CONUS. Anywhere else pays actual shipping fees. 

Shoulder, straight across: 15.5 / 31.0

Length: 27.5

Chest: 21.0

Waist: 19.0

Opening: 21.0

Sleeve: 25.0

Cuff: 4.75

The Flat Head Glory Park 7117W western chambray, Size 44.  I'd say it fits like a typical western medium size shirt. It's slim cut, for sure. The snap are things of beauty. The fabric is gorgeous. 

$175 shipped CONUS. Anywhere else pays actual shipping fees. 

Shoulder, straight across: 15.5 / 31.0

Length: 29.0

Chest: 21.0

Waist: 19.0

Opening: 21.0

Sleeve: 25.0

Cuff: 4.75

SOLD

Samurai S0500XX. Size 34. Raw. Unhemmed. Brand new, not worn. Old stock, with red tab. Smaller than expected. With shrinkage, they'll be too small. I'd need a 35, or maybe even a 36 for a loose fit. 15oz denim. It's so so rad. Rough, uneven texture without being "slubby". 

$235 shipped CONUS. Anywhere else pays actual shipping fees. 

Waist, straight across: 16.5 / 33.0

Waist, front and back aligned: 17.0 / 34.0

Front rise: 11.25

Back rise: 15.25

Thigh @ crotch: 13.375

Thigh 2" down: 12.5

Knee @ 14" down: 9.75

Inseam: 9.25

Hem: 37.0

I placed an order directly with 2nd for some old stock and new TFH, and Samurai. After about 2 months of back and forth, account set-up and shipping, the order arrived. Much to my dismay, somethings are too small. So I'm moving them. 

First up: The Flat Head FN-3009 jeans. Size 34. On-wash. Unhemmed. Brand new, not worn. I'm surprised at how small these are. I'd the are more of a size 32, maybe a 33. I'd need a 36. No idea if the this run is smaller than other runs in the past. 

$275 shipped CONUS. Anywhere else pays actual shipping fees. 

Waist, straight across: 15.5 / 31.0

Waist, front and back aligned: 16.0 / 32.0

Front rise: 10.75

Back rise: 15.25

Thigh @ crotch: 13.0

Thigh 2" down: 11.75

Knee @ 14" down: 9.25

Inseam: 8.125

Hem: 33.75

Love both of those. @Duke Mantee your work is getting better and better with each one. 

@beautiful_FrEaK I agree w/ @Cold Summer they look great. Very hard to replace. Keep 'em! 

Manual expresso machines are way cool.  I could probably get into one of those, at some point. For now, I've ordered a cheap-ish Timemore hand grinder f/ Amazon, a cheap high accuracy scale, and a vac seal canister as well. I've got my eye Kinu M47 hand grinder - looks rather amazing. I'm leaning towards a Gaggia Classic Pro and will do a couple of upgrades. This setup will get me started making good quality espresso at home at about the lowest cost. I can upgrade in the future. I'm solo, so doing 2-4 shots per day is doable without too much time. 

There's a very good local coffee roaster a few minutes from my home, and I've never bought any of their coffee for home use. Usually I buy bulk from every one's favorite member-only warehouse. A new grinder, scale, storage + quality beans should up my moka pot brew a bit, until I get an espresso machine. 

On 2/16/2022 at 8:16 AM, Thanks_M8 said:

re Home Espresso Machines: an old Buddy of mine got one made by ECM years ago for about 2k, made great coffee with it but spent half his afternoons cleaning that thing and playing around on it to dial it in. 

This is exactly the reason I'm hesitant to get into a prosumer level machine. I can see myself spending way too much time with it. I'd be frustrated learning to use it, but I know that once I get it dialed in I'd love it. 

On 2/16/2022 at 8:09 AM, MJF9 said:

@mpukas On the filter coffee making side, imo it's definitely worth investing in a top notch burr grinder (the Commandante above is great, I grind max 42g coffee in one go, not cheap but robust, quality kit), quality beans to your taste and filtered water.  My preference for filter is a Chemex as it gives a clean cup by virtue of the bespoke filters, but I also use V60 on travels or Khalita Wave though more impressed with its looks than its performance.

I can't comment on the espresso machine side from a cost v quality perspective. My presumption has been that getting the beans, grind, water and extraction time is critical.  Get them wrong and no machine will deliver you a perfect brew.  If you want to go nuclear, I bet those home La Marzocco linea mini machines are top notch!

@MJF9 Thx for the reco on the Comandante. Finally getting a chance to look into it. I love things like this that are well designed and precise. The question is, does it grind "better" than an electric flat burr grinder? 

3 hours ago, tod said:

I’m tempted to try a pair of Lofgren combat boots, but have never tried them on.  Can anyone compare sizing to RDT Coupen boots? Thanks.

I was just about to ask the same question re: Lofgren Combat Boots, LOL! 

As I mentioned in a post above, I have JL engineer's in 9.5 and they fit well. According to JL, these are a D width on his 110 last and the combat boots are an E width on his 120 last. JL M-43 on the D width Munson last are far too narrow for me. The Combat Boots and Donkey Punchers are both built on his 120 last, so they should fit similarly (I do not have DP's).  

I was able to secure a pair of the horsebutt combat boots in exchanging the black cats. I opted to a 9.0, hoping that the wider last would suite me better without being too long. 

FWIW, in my experience, S&S sizing recommendations for JL and Viberg does not work for me. I need to go TTS at a 9.0, or even size up to 9.5.