Levi's Vintage Clothing

[erk]

  Shorty Long said:

The site says the denim is White Oak though...do they even produce sanforized denim?

All of Raleigh denims cone mills product is sanforized. It's the only denim they're allowed to sell to non levis customers. Cone has some sort of exclusivity agreement with levis and unsanforized denim.

[smittybat]

  Shorty Long said:

The site says the denim is White Oak though...do they even produce sanforized denim?

Yes, most of the American jeans makers who use cone denim are using sanforized (Imogene and Willie, Raleigh Denim, Baldwin, Tellason).

[setterman]

  erk said:

All of Raleigh denims cone mills product is sanforized. It's the only denim they're allowed to sell to non levis customers. Cone has some sort of exclusivity agreement with levis and unsanforized denim.

I can understand Levi's reason for wanting such an agreement, but I have trouble understanding why Cone would go along with it. You'd assume raw denim could be a pretty big market for them, but if they're only selling to Levi's (and basically only for LVC production) then they'd be pretty limited in the yards of raw denim they're going to produce annually.

[Paul T]

  setterman said:

I can understand Levi's reason for wanting such an agreement, but I have trouble understanding why Cone would go along with it. You'd assume raw denim could be a pretty big market for them, but if they're only selling to Levi's (and basically only for LVC production) then they'd be pretty limited in the yards of raw denim they're going to produce annually.

Levi's are by far Cone's biggest customer... they have, for all their ups and downs, a really good relationship. Levi's buy fabric from just about every branch of Cone, in Europe, the Far East, etc etc. Wouldn't surprise me if the agreement goes back decades.

[david_c]

  lance said:

^ Says Raw Selvage so I expect it's STF - price looks good too. Hope they will make it in 36" or at minimum 34" inseam. If it is STF, how does it differ from LVC except in price and possibly minute details?

Minute details is an understatement. I've checked out the selvedge 501's from last year and they're very short on quality. It's entirely the same as the $35 STF's except with selvedge fabric. The pocketing material is cheap, there isn't a chain stitch, the exposed selvedge lining is very fat compared to LVCs, I can go on. The Levi's line in America is very gimmicky, they should offer more for $178. On their website, most of the reviews were positive with the exception of asking for it to be made in the USA. They listened to the review and shifted production to the US but I'm sure the craftsmanship and materials put in them are identical to the $35 stf + selvedge fabric. It's also "of imported fabric" as well. I wouldn't put a value of these jeans anywhere about $100.

[setterman]

  Paul T said:

Levi's are by far Cone's biggest customer... they have, for all their ups and downs, a really good relationship. Levi's buy fabric from just about every branch of Cone, in Europe, the Far East, etc etc. Wouldn't surprise me if the agreement goes back decades.

So actually it's possible (likely?) that a standard pair of Levi's is some sort of Cone denim?

[cheapmuthafukr]

considering that cone is the worlds largest denim producer, id say its pretty likely

[Paul T]

  setterman said:

So actually it's possible (likely?) that a standard pair of Levi's is some sort of Cone denim?

I believe so - at one time, the 501 was only made with Cone, that might well have changed, Im not certain.

[Maynard Friedman]

  erk said:

All of Raleigh denims cone mills product is sanforized. It's the only denim they're allowed to sell to non levis customers. Cone has some sort of exclusivity agreement with levis and unsanforized denim.

Where does ROY get his unsanforized cone denim from?

[erk]

  Maynard Friedman said:

Where does ROY get his unsanforized cone denim from?

I think that it's on the sly. Hence the video where he says it doesn't shrink; it "reduces in size"

[attackwithstones]

I am a store manager for Levi's and in our product guide, it states that regular STF 501's are made with Cone Denim. Surprised the hell outta me.

The Made in the US 501s, 514s , 505s and 511s we make are nice to the average denim buyer. They are what they are. But to us, they aren't anything to write home about. Id buy them but I get a discount of LVC, so I wouldn't waste my money on them. Maybe it will be stepping stone. I know a lot of people at corporate want to see way more made in the US stuff being designed and produced. I hope it's not a trend.

[Maynard Friedman]

  erk said:

I think that it's on the d/l. Hence the video where he says it doesn't shrink; it "reduces in size"

Thanks Erk, but I'm still none the wiser! What does d/l mean?

[Paul T]

I think in the uk we'd say it's on the Q-T.

Cone don't supply STF to anyone else. Officially. (Actually, there are jobbers who supply it, maybe from the Cone back door, or maybe LVC are selling the overs, I don't know). I think Roy is unusual in that it's pretty open - I know Cone are huge fans of his, partly because he's done lots of promo items for them.

[erk]

  Maynard Friedman said:

Thanks Erk, but I'm still none the wiser! What does d/l mean?

down low - sly - q/t - what have you.

[setterman]

  Paul T said:

I believe so - at one time, the 501 was only made with Cone, that might well have changed, Im not certain.

Never occurred to me that Levis used Cone denim (from their US or foreign plants) for anything other than LVC. I just assumed they had gone on to other cheaper denim manufactures outside the US for the denim used in the 505s, 550s, 560s, etc that we see on department store shelves.

[setterman]

  Paul T said:

I think in the uk we'd say it's on the Q-T.

Cone don't supply STF to anyone else. Officially. (Actually, there are jobbers who supply it, maybe from the Cone back door, or maybe LVC are selling the overs, I don't know). I think Roy is unusual in that it's pretty open - I know Cone are huge fans of his, partly because he's done lots of promo items for them.

Wouldn't be surprised if Levis simply looks the other way because of Cone being a fan of Roy. They have to realize Roy and the current contest are good for Cone, and therefore good for Levi's/LVC.

[robbie]

Handmade in the USA, our button-fly 501® Original jean. This pair of Levi's® Jeans is made from ring spun selvedge fabric that was woven & dyed at White Oak Cone Mills in North Carolina on vintage shuttle looms. Hand sewn & crafted in Los Angeles is what makes this a true, authentic pair of Levi's denim jeans. It is also part of our Water initiative that minimizes the amount of water used in the finishing process. [u]Country Of Origin: Imported[/u]

this part made me laugh.

The 'hand sewn and crafted in LA' made me wonder... I thought Levis had closed all of its domestic (US) production facilities.

Also, does any know how long the San Antonio,TX facility was open?

[roy6]

I turned these up at a local resale shop last week, and I think they are a Valencia street repro of the 1890 model made for the Japanese market. Seem like a reasonable guess?

The tag is one of the silver thread bordered cloth tags, but all of the print is in Japanese.

[ktothe]

So guys who has the best selection of LVC in LA?

[Paul T]

"Hand-crafted in LA" - probabyl sewn by Caitech or Denim Tech.

@robbie - San Antonio was open for decades,that's why there was such bad blood when they closed it.

@ROy, v nice, your guess is correct. Any year visible on the tag? I would guess they're circa 2001.

[TallyHo]

  ktothe said:

So guys who has the best selection of LVC in LA?

not sure who has the "best" but these are the 3 shops that come to mind:

1. new levi's store in malibu - word is they carry the whole LVC line, so they are probably the best, but i haven't been so i can't confirm that.

2. fred segal in santa monica has a LVC store in it. they did not have anywhere near the full range when i was there, but they may have what you're looking for. more likely was just an LVC stockist, but there was a huge LVC sign and i don't remember them carrying much of anything else, except some vintage items.

3. american rag on la brea. they've carried LVC all along. not sure what/how much they are stocking currently.

if you have a particular item in mind, you should just call these shops and i'm sure one will have it.

[Stratos]

  setterman said:

Wouldn't be surprised if Levis simply looks the other way because of Cone being a fan of Roy. They have to realize Roy and the current contest are good for Cone, and therefore good for Levi's/LVC.

I don't think Levi's care too much about Cone supplying to Roy, they're kinda in a different league...more precisely: I think Levi's realize that a cottage industry with a limited production, marketing and distribution strategy are no real competitor, on the contrary.

[colgems1966]

i was under the impression cone supplied all standard 501 production since the late-20's. i think cone developed the non-selvage stf levis shifted to in 83-85. other models may be non-cone but the 501 is their flagship.

[robbie]

  Paul T said:

"Hand-crafted in LA" - probabyl sewn by Caitech or Denim Tech.

@robbie - San Antonio was open for decades,that's why there was such bad blood when they closed it.

Yeah,A friend from SA sent me a picture of the sign he found in a newspaper. He said the factory is/was still around and is apparently a MASSIVE complex . I guess his mom had worked there for a while in the 80's as a receptionist. I tried to bargain any cancelled checks or employee swag he might have to no avail.

As I was at college in TX, I always hoped to find stuff stamped from that facility but anything I found was either early 90's 517 or the occasional 505 in like a 42-30 or some godawful size stamped '6' which is San Fran, right?

[srgprod]

The What Goes Around store in Hollywood has a pretty big selection of LVC.

  TallyHo said:

not sure who has the "best" but these are the 3 shops that come to mind:

1. new levi's store in malibu - word is they carry the whole LVC line, so they are probably the best, but i haven't been so i can't confirm that.

2. fred segal in santa monica has a LVC store in it. they did not have anywhere near the full range when i was there, but they may have what you're looking for. more likely was just an LVC stockist, but there was a huge LVC sign and i don't remember them carrying much of anything else, except some vintage items.

3. american rag on la brea. they've carried LVC all along. not sure what/how much they are stocking currently.

if you have a particular item in mind, you should just call these shops and i'm sure one will have it.

[roy6]

  Paul T said:

"Hand-crafted in LA" - probabyl sewn by Caitech or Denim Tech.

@robbie - San Antonio was open for decades,that's why there was such bad blood when they closed it.

@ROy, v nice, your guess is correct. Any year visible on the tag? I would guess they're circa 2001.

Thank you Paul! No date, but these are 555s, and didn't the Valencia st. factory stop production in 1999?

[Shorty Long]

Valencia St. factory closed in 2001 I believe.

[roy6]

Thanks Shorty, I had my time-frame mixed up.

[roy6]

  robbie said:

Yeah,A friend from SA sent me a picture of the sign he found in a newspaper. He said the factory is/was still around and is apparently a MASSIVE complex . I guess his mom had worked there for a while in the 80's as a receptionist. I tried to bargain any cancelled checks or employee swag he might have to no avail.

As I was at college in TX, I always hoped to find stuff stamped from that facility but anything I found was either early 90's 517 or the occasional 505 in like a 42-30 or some godawful size stamped '6' which is San Fran, right?

In the distant past, someone, PaulT, erk or ShortyLong maybe, put up a list of Levi's factory codes. Would be good to see again.

[Dr_Heech]

  Shorty Long said:

Valencia St. factory closed in 2001 I believe.

I had a 1873 first lined jacket (555) made in 2002, plus I've seen some '47's with '02 on the inside wash tag. Could it be possible that it was in fact 2002?

I have one item left from the San-antonio factory: a pair of '55's from 2003 with 554 stamped on the button (have also owned some '44's with this #)

.