My name is Electrum and I used to like LVC but now I don't really like it anymore...

[cash]

^Wait a second, that's not what you said in the first post. You waltzed in saying, at least asserting, that you could get a better 201 than LVC for $60 plus fabric. You didn't say you had some non-English speaker nodding along with your rants about how the LVC 201 is nothing like the original. Which is it? Stitch-for-stitch authentic for less than a bar tab or something else?

[Paul T]

No chainstitch machine and I'm not sure about the single needle or double needle stitching bit, the guy is Asian who doesn't speak very good English so it's hard for me to convey these details to him -- I just point and he says yes, yes. He might end up doing a real hack job I just don't know since I've never used his services before. Anyway it's going to take a while for me to get the denim cuz I'm trying to shoot for some deadstock denim that's shows up on ebay every now and then. 3.5 yrds of '40s deadstock redline sold recently but I passed because the dude didn't know the weight. But yeah, once I have them made I'll post pics...just wondering if I'll get busted by LS&Co for trademark infringement using a copy of their patch, arcs and logos?

Electrum, save yourself a world of pain and buy a pair of duck diggers . They're lovely jeans, the same vibe as the 201, greencast denim and some chunky cuts.

I'm worried that if you go ahead with your plans there will soon be as big a rift between you and your Asian neighbors as there is between you and Levi's. INternational relations will suffer and bad karma will abound.

[rnrswitch]

Electrum, save yourself a world of pain and buy a pair of duck diggers . They're lovely jeans, the same vibe as the 201, greencast denim and some chunky cuts.

I'm worried that if you go ahead with your plans there will soon be as big a rift between you and your Asian neighbors as there is between you and Levi's. INternational relations will suffer and bad karma will abound.

I thought warehouse did away with the duck diggers.

[Paul T]

I thought warehouse did away with the duck diggers.

I've seen some on rakuten recently altho not the 20s versions.

[Christmas In A Submarine.]

I can only imagine the shit storm Electrum will unleash on the AsianTailor message boards when things inevitably go slightly awry...

[electrum]

With LVC prices rumored to be going up, is the new and improved XX Netherlands LVC Group or whatever going to finally create real vintage reproduction Levi's classics or are consumers going to continue paying top dollar for jeans with denim, buttons, buckles, thread and patches that look like some plastic shit found at the bottom of a Cracker Jacks box?

[erk]

With LVC prices rumored to be going up, is the new and improved XX Netherlands LVC Group or whatever going to finally create real vintage reproduction Levi's classics or are consumers going to continue paying top dollar for jeans with denim, buttons, buckles, thread and patches that look like some plastic shit found at the bottom of a Cracker Jacks box?

is that even a real question? do you actually think anyone here actually knows the answer?

its like a broken record contest around here. did you think airfrog was getting too much attention?

lets see those jeans you got your buddy the tailor to work up.

[dr.house]

With LVC prices rumored to be going up, is the new and improved XX Netherlands LVC Group or whatever going to finally create real vintage reproduction Levi's classics or are consumers going to continue paying top dollar for jeans with denim, buttons, buckles, thread and patches that look like some plastic shit found at the bottom of a Cracker Jacks box?

arrrrghhhh...

One last word to the wash/ no wash discussion. Don't you guyz agree that washing/soaking is a main factor of the progress after creases are set? And yeah, very few of us are miners (even if my garden looks like a mine ) but I'm sure it's nevertheless possible to get a real vintage look on your LVC if you just don't baby them. Wash and wear for easy care or just wear them dry til you die but : WEAR THEM.

[Charlie Delta]

Electrum, dude, are you continuously on your period or what?

[Paul T]

Here're my 201s just got from Cultizm--super jeans! Colour is dark phthalocyanine blue(blue/green). Close up, the indigo is very dry w/ a dull chalky appearance yet shows a faint rich luster from a distance. Inside-out the denim has a rustic unbleached grey mossy green tint. The denim has a series of well defined asymmetrical diagonal and horizontal threads throughout creating a plane of complex textural variations -- I can gaze at it all day. Needle work is very crude adding much detail and character. Back pockets are huge w/ a whopping 7.5'' opening. Construction is crude yet solid and flawless. Completely blown away by the quality and the sinister almost spooky appearance-- they look and feel like a relic. They're so phenominal they make my '33s hang their head in shame, have my '37 '555' begging for attention and caused me to cancel my search for the '555' 20 201 version. Price $220 is a bargain -- even w/ the added 19% VAT taht EU customers have to pay they're still a bargain.

Pockets are big enough for a cold one and a pack of smokes. The arc cuts across the pocket serving more as an added reinforcement rather than just decoration. I can picture a '20/'30s steel worker, coal miner, tobacco cutter or share cropper using those giant pockets to hold tools -- they really give these jeans an authentic historic vibe.

Patch graphics are dark, but detailed. Note it's trimmed back to the stitching like some original samplesI've seen pics of @ Marvins-JP.com.

Note the well defined series of threads shown running diagonally in this pic and how the back pocket stitching runs perfectly parallel with those streaking threads. The denim is absolutely incredible!

Please can we have this electrum back?

And seriously, electrum, why not try out some Warehouse? Would love to see your views on them, partly becuase I can't afford a pair at the moment myself.

[SLAB]

Warehouse denim is amazing; I have three pairs myself and extremely satisfied with them (wish I could say the same about my experiences with LVC denim but Im not out to start another net war on here)

I'd love to see the warehouse interpretation of a Levis 1933 model.

and a shameful plug; I just received my LVC shirts; dice pullover shirt fits like a glove but unfortunately my 1920's dark chambray work shirt (medium) is too big. Looking to get what I paid for it 70 pounds + actual shipping costs

[electrum]

This board is a virtual encyclopedia full of detailed technical info about history, model cuts, fit, fading and shrinkage, yet no one seems to know anything about how LVC vintage reproductions are made and whenever the subject is brought up everyone is mum as if it's a taboo subject. I challenge anyone here to explain how LVC s are made and what exactly makes them worth 200-300$? Tell us what materials are used (type of cotton, metal alloys, dye, etc..), where those materials come from (manufacturer sources) how those materials are made and where the jeans are manufactured using verifiable documented LS&CO sources rather than unsubstantiated opinions and/or hearsay???

Not one pair of LVC jeans I've encountered tells me any of these important details that I'm paying a high price for. It's like LVC is selling high quality diamonds without listing clarity, weight, origin or authenticity, they simply attach a huge price tag on it and if you buy one and it breaks or it's flawed, well too bad it's your loss, they're not liable cuz they didn't disclose anything about the stone.

[airfrogusmc]

This board is a virtual encyclopedia full of detailed technical info about history, model cuts, fit, fading and shrinkage, yet no one seems to know anything about how LVC vintage reproductions are made and whenever the subject is brought up everyone is mum as if it's a taboo subject. I challenge anyone here to explain how LVC s are made and what exactly makes them worth 200-300$? Tell us what materials are used (type of cotton, metal alloys, dye, etc..), where those materials come from (manufacturer sources) how those materials are made and where the jeans are manufactured using verifiable documented LS&CO sources rather than unsubstantiated opinions and/or hearsay???

Not one pair of LVC jeans I've encountered tells me any of these important details that I'm paying a high price for. It's like LVC is selling high quality diamonds without listing clarity, weight, origin or authenticity, they simply attach a huge price tag on it and if you buy one and it breaks or it's flawed, well too bad it's your loss, they're not liable cuz they didn't disclose anything about the stone.

OK so you don't mind paying at least twice that for Japanese jeans that not only have the wrong hardware but also have the wrong denim? Whats the point of your post? I mean its not 18 or 19 whatever anymore so some of the material and such are just not available. I agree the leather patch from a few years ago sucked but the patch on my 47s from earlier this year is really nice. The new Cone denim is very impressive. I don't know what your beef is? I mean are these repros perfect NO but it seems the LVC as of late has been trying to get things right and they have made some very good repros. I mean the 333s the 209 coveralls and the 20s 201s are great as is the 1955s. The 55s are as good as any repro jean out there bar none and they are cheaper than many of the others that aren't as accurate.

[roy6]

This board is a virtual encyclopedia full of detailed technical info about history, model cuts, fit, fading and shrinkage, yet no one seems to know anything about how LVC vintage reproductions are made and whenever the subject is brought up everyone is mum as if it's a taboo subject. I challenge anyone here to explain how LVC s are made and what exactly makes them worth 200-300$? Tell us what materials are used (type of cotton, metal alloys, dye, etc..), where those materials come from (manufacturer sources) how those materials are made and where the jeans are manufactured using verifiable documented LS&CO sources rather than unsubstantiated opinions and/or hearsay???

Not one pair of LVC jeans I've encountered tells me any of these important details that I'm paying a high price for. It's like LVC is selling high quality diamonds without listing clarity, weight, origin or authenticity, they simply attach a huge price tag on it and if you buy one and it breaks or it's flawed, well too bad it's your loss, they're not liable cuz they didn't disclose anything about the stone.

. . . .

[cash]

^Shit, out of rep.

[electrum]

....Whats the point of your post? ....I don't know what your beef is? I

I don't have any beef and I'm not trying to make any kind of point Airfrog. I'm just offering up an interesting topic for new discussion. After all, this is the LVC thread and I happen to think that more attention and research needs to be focused on the details surrounding LVC vintage replicas that we're paying so much money for. Sure would be a helluva lot more interesting than talking about sizing and fading day in and day out. Hell you can do that with a pair of $30 501s.

[electrum]

. . . .

Look roy6 I'm tired of your subtle pussy jibes you've been tossing my way everytime I post. You want to talk trash then talk trash to my face punk. Who the fuck are you anyway? I mean you show up here outta nowhere about 9 mo's ago acting like you're the grand poobah of the vintage fashion world with your creepy b/w pose pics in your $2000 three piece shit "vintage" wardrobe, some tub shots of '33s, old cowboy pics and a bunch of pretty boy glamour shots of yourself in "cool" urban settings. In other words you haven't contributed shit to this thread Then you go bumpin yer gums at anyone you think don't fit your lame idea of cool. A pack of hoods need to roll you up in a filthy piece of carpet and kick yer poke ass raw til you finally realize that you ain't all that!

[jstavrin]

Dude.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=IUH3JQjcweM

(I'm on Team Roy btw)

[ChuckO]

C'mon, c'mon. Easy Electrum.

Everybody layoff Electrum he's making a valid point. Don't be a bunch of candy asses just 'cause somebody is frustrated by LVC.

[Bamahater]

C'mon, c'mon. Easy Electrum.

Everybody layoff Electrum he's making a valid point. Don't be a bunch of candy asses just 'cause somebody is frustrated by LVC.

We get he is making a valid point, it is just that we do not need that hammered down our throats all the time. It's a broken record.

[airfrogusmc]

I don't have any beef and I'm not trying to make any kind of point Airfrog. I'm just offering up an interesting topic for new discussion. After all, this is the LVC thread and I happen to think that more attention and research needs to be focused on the details surrounding LVC vintage replicas that we're paying so much money for. Sure would be a helluva lot more interesting than talking about sizing and fading day in and day out. Hell you can do that with a pair of $30 501s.

If you remember I have also pointed out things wrong with some LVCs but I also know some of their models are really good. And this new commitment form cone and the new denim I've seen is really good. The 1880 knappaves are real gems. Not cone denim but still real gems.

[roy6]

Well, it's flattering that you've been paying such close attention to all of my posts.

I'm not being a pussy, I'm trying to let you know in a humorous way that you are making yourself sort of unpopular with your long, repetitious rants about LVC.

You have some valid points, I think everyone would agree. LVCs sizing is seriously fucked, not only on jeans, but on shirts and leather jackets as well. I've handled and worn almost all of their leather jackets, and I think out of 11 exactly three of them that fit me (what I imagine is) correctly were marked medium. They deserve every bit of scorn you want to pour on them for their consitant inability to size their expensive clothing correctly.

But I feel like you're taking it too far painting all of their products as over-priced, historically inaccurate, and shoddy. I know from my own experience that this just simply is not true. And you say it over and over again without actually bringing up any new points.

Things like "where is the metal used for the rivets sourced from" is not really a decent point. Who cares? The metal was originally mined in the southwest or western USA by immigrant Chinese labor. Do you want LVC to re-implement this program to satisfy your idea of what constitutes an acceptable reproduced garment?

Most of LVCs stuff is well-designed, well-chosen, comparable in quality to most high-end clothing manufacturers (not BR & Sugarcane, no),and in the close-ballpark of historical accuracy. With high and low points.

You don't have to like it, but don't expect everyone to act like you've said something new and provocative every time you say the exact same thing: that LVC is lame.

Look roy6 I'm tired of your subtle pussy jibes you've been tossing my way everytime I post. You want to talk trash then talk trash to my face punk. Who the fuck are you anyway? I mean you show up here outta nowhere about 9 mo's ago acting like you're the grand poobah of the vintage fashion world with your creepy b/w pose pics in your $2000 three piece shit "vintage" wardrobe, some tub shots of '33s, old cowboy pics and a bunch of pretty boy glamour shots of yourself in "cool" urban settings. In other words you haven't contributed shit to this thread Then you go bumpin yer gums at anyone you think don't fit your lame idea of cool. A pack of hoods need to roll you up in a filthy piece of carpet and kick yer poke ass raw til you finally realize that you ain't all that!

[Dom]

That would definitely be an improvement.

They should also figure out a way to do vintage inspired jeans that could be the 2010 model of the future. Nothing too wacky. I personally don't want anything goofy just to be goofy. Maybe look outside of Levi for some small long gone companies for ideas. Be a little less insular. Celebrate what they started even when another company had a good idea.

Looks like they got a 201XX for 2010 - inspired by... 201XX of the olden days...

Maybe electrum can pick it up.

http://us.levi.com/product/index.jsp?productId=4086257&kwCatId=&kw=levi+vintage&origkw=LEVI+VINTAGE&sr=1

Oops... Looks like someone already posted it in the STF... Thread... Weird no one mentioned the Tobacco STF that's new....

http://us.levi.com/product/index.jsp?productId=4064004&kwCatId=&kw=tobacco+shrink&origkw=TOBACCO+Shrink&sr=1

[electrum]

....you are making yourself sort of unpopular with your long, repetitious rants about LVC.............................

I feel like you're taking it too far painting all of their products as over-priced, historically inaccurate, and shoddy. I know from my own experience that this just simply is not true.

"Rants"? Like I said to Airfrog, I was just suggesting a new topic for discussion, if you want to call that a rant then that's your problem. The only time I rant is when either some jerk continuously throws unwarranted cheap shots my way or when I get screwed out of several hundred dollars by one of LVC's products.

"Repetitious"? Well, there's nothing more repetitious than reading the same posts about sizing, shrinkage and fading, but that doesn't bother me, I think people have the right to talk about whatever they want as often as they want.

As far as you thinking that I'm "taking it to far" about over pricing, inaccuracy and shoddy quality, from my personal experience I know that I'm being truthful and accurate. I'd like to to repeat my experiences again to back myself up, but I don't want to offend anyone by being repetitious. Let's try this instead, you tell me about your "personal experience" that proves why you think that my personal experience with over pricing, inaccuracy and shoddy quality is is as you said, "not true"?

[LandoCal126]

Easily my favorite thread right now! Roy, you up? Gotta hear the response... Oh and Electrum, is this for real?!?

"Look roy6 I'm tired of your subtle pussy jibes you've been tossing my way everytime I post. You want to talk trash then talk trash to my face punk. Who the fuck are you anyway? I mean you show up here outta nowhere about 9 mo's ago acting like you're the grand poobah of the vintage fashion world with your creepy b/w pose pics in your $2000 three piece shit "vintage" wardrobe, some tub shots of '33s, old cowboy pics and a bunch of pretty boy glamour shots of yourself in "cool" urban settings. In other words you haven't contributed shit to this thread Then you go bumpin yer gums at anyone you think don't fit your lame idea of cool. A pack of hoods need to roll you up in a filthy piece of carpet and kick yer poke ass raw til you finally realize that you ain't all that!"

[electrum]

Looks like they got a 201XX for 2010 - inspired by... 201XX of the olden days...

Maybe electrum can pick it up.

http://us.levi.com/product/index.jsp?productId=4086257&kwCatId=&kw=levi+vintage&origkw=LEVI+VINTAGE&sr=1

Oops... Looks like someone already posted it in the STF... Thread... Weird no one mentioned the Tobacco STF that's new....

http://us.levi.com/product/index.jsp?productId=4064004&kwCatId=&kw=tobacco+shrink&origkw=TOBACCO+Shrink&sr=1

Very interesting, those are the same 201's that I paid $220 for. The only differnce is that they don't have a patch, have double needle stitch arc and added the red tab, oh the buckle appears much nicer than mine and i bet they shrink-to-fit ...mine didn't. They probably cost Levi's around $15-$20 to manufacture for them to be asking $50 retail. I guess I had to pay an extra $170 for the patch and single needle embellishments that came with my LVC pair. Great reference post Dom, it is definitive proof that LVC jeans should be fairly priced at around $50 retail. Thanks.

[erk]

Very interesting, those are the same 201's that I paid $220 for. The only differnce is that they don't have a patch, have double needle stitch arc and added the red tab, oh the buckle appears much nicer than mine and i bet they shrink-to-fit ...mine didn't. They probably cost Levi's around $15-$20 to manufacture for them to be asking $50 retail. I guess I had to pay an extra $170 for the patch and single needle embellishments that came with my LVC pair. Great reference post Dom, it is definitive proof that LVC jeans should be fairly priced at around $50 retail. Thanks.

I'm pretty sure those are made with really crappy denim and made in mexico...therefore not proof LVC should be priced at $50.

[electrum]

I dunno Erk, they're selvage and they're 201's, my USA made 201s don't look any better than those imports. So you're saying that made in the USA justifies a $170 premium? I don't think so, hell, I'd bet that made in Mexico might even be better. You say probably made with really crappy denim, well, you haven't experienced the Houdini denim on my LVC 201s, it is really crappy denim no probably about it.

[beautiful_FrEaK]

then buy it and be happy

[electrum]

Easily my favorite thread right now! Roy, you up? Gotta hear the response... Oh and Electrum, is this for real?!?

Maybe a bit over the top, but just to prove I'm not such a hot head all of the time, I jumped on the bandwagon and gave roy6 all of my reps.