Loopwheeled/Vintage T-Shirts

[cadence]

After all the explanations I still can't tell the difference between non-loop wheel / loop wheel.

I think it would be safe to say, if there aren't seems going down the length of the tube (e.g. socks), it's loopwheeled. I think this video somewhat explains what to expect from it.

[S-Town]

If it were that easy, it wouldn't be a topic worth discussing. Hanes undershirts do not have seams. They most definitely were not produced on vintage loopwheelers.

[garden gnomes in space]

yea, my throw away american apparel shirts are seamless as well.

[itsbenhere]

What do you guys think of the iron heart loopwheeled sweats?

[garden gnomes in space]

i almost bought one, but I went with Strike Gold instead. The construction and everything is top notch

[itsbenhere]

I love the strike gold but it looks like complete shit on me. A combination of an enormous chest and the wider neck hole doesnt flatter me at all

[itsbenhere]

And you guys already touched upon this but seamless construction definitely doesn't equal loopwheeled. I think it was talked about earlier in the thread.

[misterjuiceman]

You mean I'm not wearing loop-wheeled socks?

[garden gnomes in space]

I love the strike gold but it looks like complete shit on me. A combination of an enormous chest and the wider neck hole doesnt flatter me at all

what size are you?

[itsbenhere]

what size are you?

Large

 

Wrong ben, you're a medium!

Edited July 21, 2015 by itsbenhere

[garden gnomes in space]

i just got an XL and warm washed it and it fits like a large. The large fit perfectly in the store, but because they shrink, I had to go XL. Glad I did. Now I just wash it and dry t on low and dont worry about the shrink.

[Max Power]

^^I wore an IH SW-10 last week. Was very impressed by the weight, fabric and construction. So, if you feel the sizes fit you, go for it.

^That's a fantastic fit and outfit. Can't waitt for my McCoy Hoodie to arrive.

Edited April 25, 2013 by Max Power

[garden gnomes in space]

my biggest concern with all the Japanese loopwheeled stuff is the length. If the shoulders are not perfect, or the chest is a bit big I can deal with it. If the shirt is too short, I hate it. I dont like the bottom to hit right at the waist of where I wear my jeans, as Im constantly tugging at it and fiddling with it. Iron Heart t-shirts are the only t shirts I have found thus far that I dont really need to worry about this. Well, most of their t shirts. some run a bit short, based on IHUK's measurements

[S-Town]

my beef with the Japanese brands is that while i can fit comfortably in most brands' XL sweatshirts, they rarely have t-shirts that don't look like latex paint on me, even in their biggest size..

[garden gnomes in space]

haha, I know what you mean. I desperately wanted a PBJ indigo LS t-shirt (not loopwheeled) but the size XL had a shoulder of like 16" and a 40" chest.

[S-Town]

Warehouse/Heller's always has really interesting t-shirts, but nothing that will even come close to fitting me. It really bums me out. But, their size 42 sweatshirts fit like a dream. Except, to you earlier point, they come in really short. I can fit the XL freedom-sleeve Flat Head sweatshirts as well. But for the majority of their tees that only go up to 42, ha! It's like trying to save money by buying polos in the boys' dept at Macy's. I assume they don't fit in the chest anyway, since it's almost impossible to get beyond the neck hole :-).

[themexican]

What do you guys think of the iron heart loopwheeled sweats?

I got one and love it, great weight and love the fit. It is fitted unlike most common sweatshirts. Warm and wind resistant as advertised. Wouldn't mind living in mine if the Texan summers weren't so warm. I wear a medium in everything and this fit great.

[itsbenhere]

I think I might go for it then. Could you post some pics in the IH thread? I'm a medium too. Thanks for the input by the way! Very much appreciated

[KennyBania]

If anyone's interested, Superdenim posted a couple of pictures of loopwheel machines from what I think is the Real Mccoys factory on Instagram.

http://instagram.com/superdenim#

[HoustonChris]

my beef with the Japanese brands is that while i can fit comfortably in most brands' XL sweatshirts, they rarely have t-shirts that don't look like latex paint on me, even in their biggest size..

haha, I know what you mean. I desperately wanted a PBJ indigo LS t-shirt (not loopwheeled) but the size XL had a shoulder of like 16" and a 40" chest.

God, yes. I have had to pass on so many awesome shirts because the Japanese XL is like a US medium. If the sizing went large enough, I'd have about a dozen SDA shirts- I love those Engrish graphics they do.

[themexican]

I think I might go for it then. Could you post some pics in the IH thread? I'm a medium too. Thanks for the input by the way! Very much appreciated

Yeah, I'll try to get some pics this weekend

[Shorty Long]

anyone that makes the effort to offer a "high-quality" t-shirt in terms of fabric, cut, finishing, etc., and then decides to use a side seam rather than tubular construction in the body should be taken out into the street, tarred, feathered and then beaten with a wet rubber hose

[Double 0 Soul]

Harsh but fair,

[S-Town]

I do think that there are some exceptions though. Brands like Groovers and Freewheelers do not use tubular construction, and they make some of the nicest gear in the business. I believe that they cut and sew to achieve a certain fit. When great care is taken to create a garment, cutting and sewing is much more labor intensive and expensive. Myself, i prefer the look/fit of tubular.

[Foxy2]

Not sure why that is, but it seems that in Europe at one point in time cut&sewn got a preference over tubular.

I don't recall when growing up having gotten any exposure to tubular tees or sweats.

My guess is that the slower and smaller cylinders of the old loop wheel machines in Europe got replaced through modern machines with bigger cylinders (more efficient and economic in 2 regards: machine speed and bigger cylinders for open fabric), while in the US a bigger market remained for modern circular knit machines with small, size specific cylinders remained.

I don't share the opinion that vintage loop wheel tees and sweats have to be tube construction - surely, it's nice, but not that important.

Regarding the fabric - the majority of knitted fabrics used in apparel are weft knits made on circular knitting machines.

Loop wheel machines, sinker wheel machines and the dominating majority of modern weft knit machines: are circular machines.

The majority of "loopwheeled" garments in my collection are in fact cut&sewn...

Edited April 28, 2013 by Foxy2

[misterjuiceman]

I had no idea there was even loop-wheeled stuff that isn't tube-knit (and of course there's tube-knit stuff that isn't loop-wheeled). Anyone know if Homespun Knitwear is loop-wheeled?

[S-Town]

One of the nicest loopwheeled sweatshirts I've ever handled is the Fil Melange Byrd. It's unique in that it has a side seam on only one side. I'm sure others have this detail, but I havn't seen them.

[misterjuiceman]

Anyone have any recommendations for long-sleeved loop-wheel tees? All of the big LW brands seem to do short-sleeve only.

[HoustonChris]

Iron Heart and Flat Head both do loopwheeled long sleeve tees, just not that many. Of course, you'll have to either wait for the fall or do some quality searching to find shirts from last fall.

[louisbosco]

between this 

 

http://www.misterfreedom.com/?p=3865

 

and this

 

http://www.selfedge.com/shop/index.php?main_page=product_info&cPath=92&products_id=932 

 

 

thoughts anyone? i was planning on getting either one.