SUPERDENIM SMALL QUESTIONS THREAD (Use instead of making new threads)

[beautiful_FrEaK]

How much rise at which waist size do you need?

[alvin_cheong]

Hi Guys, sorry to be asking this. How do I do the settings for unread post? Seems like it screw up on me this morning.

[mlwdp]

Is brass not a readily common metal available in Japan?  It seems like even combing rakuten and small shops, something as simple as a small brass key with leather has the brass sourced from China while the leather is sourced from Japan.  I'm a little bit dusty on my Japan/Chinese precious metals, but is brass just something that comes from China entirely?  I saw a brass wallet chain from Ironheart the other day on Rakuten that claimed to be made in Japan, so I'm wondering if the brass was sourced from China but the chain was designed in Japan.

[Geeman]

Any idea why clicking on the latest post on a thread from the main page doesn't actually take me to the post everytime, sometimes opening the thread a page earlier than the latest entry?

[Iron Horse]

1 hour ago, mlwdp said:

Is brass not a readily common metal available in Japan?  It seems like even combing rakuten and small shops, something as simple as a small brass key with leather has the brass sourced from China while the leather is sourced from Japan.  I'm a little bit dusty on my Japan/Chinese precious metals, but is brass just something that comes from China entirely?  I saw a brass wallet chain from Ironheart the other day on Rakuten that claimed to be made in Japan, so I'm wondering if the brass was sourced from China but the chain was designed in Japan.

AFAIK, brass is made in Japan, but in much smaller quantities than in China and nowhere near as cheaply. Odds are, if you're buying a brass item these days, it was either made in China or has Chinese brass in it. 

[Frost]

Anywhere I can shop Needles directly from Japan online? Also, anyone has experience with their products?

[mlwdp]

13 hours ago, Iron Horse said:

AFAIK, brass is made in Japan, but in much smaller quantities than in China and nowhere near as cheaply. Odds are, if you're buying a brass item these days, it was either made in China or has Chinese brass in it. 

I see. As soon as I saw the brass wallet chain by Ironheart for $60 I knew something was off regarding the brass being sourced from somewhere else. 

[Double 0 Soul]

Brass is made all over the world, its just cheaper from China because the industry is state sponsored and they use a recycling melting process.
Smaller artisan type foundries will cast high spec quality brass ingots by melting electrically refined copper before adding small amounts of zinc, Copper has a higher melting temperature than zinc therefor you can't just melt both materials together because the zinc would be vapourised well before the molten brass was formed.
China buys a lot of the worlds scrap metals (brass included) which it uses to melt down into ingots before forming into sheet, plate, bar, wire ect. every time scrap brass is melted there's contamination from other materials and as mentioned above some of the zinc evaporates due to the high temperature of the melt therefor the brass sourced from China is of progressively lower quality but much cheaper.
More zinc = harder and stronger but harder to work. Less zinc = weaker/softer.  You can chuck other shit in there too.. lead improves machining, tin improves corrosion resistance, Iron makes the molecular grain structure smaller (when viewed through a microscope) making it withstand the heating/cooling process of forging...and so on. Alas most applications for brasses don't require such high quality and the small scale producers can't compete on price and continue to go out of business.

[Maynard Friedman]

Double 0 dropping 'da brass bomb'! Great stuff.

 

EDIT: it's so satisfying when you get a genuine expert opinion on here.

Edited January 18, 2017 by Maynard Friedman

[Iron Horse]

4 hours ago, Double 0 Soul said:

Brass is made all over the world, its just cheaper from China because the industry is state sponsored and they use a recycling melting process.
Smaller artisan type foundries will cast high spec quality brass ingots by melting electrically refined copper before adding small amounts of zinc, Copper has a higher melting temperature than zinc therefor you can't just melt both materials together because the zinc would be vapourised well before the molten brass was formed.
China buys a lot of the worlds scrap metals (brass included) which it uses to melt down into ingots before forming into sheet, plate, bar, wire ect. every time scrap brass is melted there's contamination from other materials and as mentioned above some of the zinc evaporates due to the high temperature of the melt therefor the brass sourced from China is of progressively lower quality but much cheaper.
More zinc = harder and stronger but harder to work. Less zinc = weaker/softer.  You can chuck other shit in there too.. lead improves machining, tin improves corrosion resistance, Iron makes the molecular grain structure smaller (when viewed through a microscope) making it withstand the heating/cooling process of forging...and so on. Alas most applications for brasses don't require such high quality and the small scale producers can't compete on price and continue to go out of business.

I wonder if the US will actually get tariffs on Chinese imports. 

[mlwdp]

On January 18, 2017 at 3:50 AM, Double 0 Soul said:

Brass is made all over the world, its just cheaper from China because the industry is state sponsored and they use a recycling melting process.
Smaller artisan type foundries will cast high spec quality brass ingots by melting electrically refined copper before adding small amounts of zinc, Copper has a higher melting temperature than zinc therefor you can't just melt both materials together because the zinc would be vapourised well before the molten brass was formed.
China buys a lot of the worlds scrap metals (brass included) which it uses to melt down into ingots before forming into sheet, plate, bar, wire ect. every time scrap brass is melted there's contamination from other materials and as mentioned above some of the zinc evaporates due to the high temperature of the melt therefor the brass sourced from China is of progressively lower quality but much cheaper.
More zinc = harder and stronger but harder to work. Less zinc = weaker/softer.  You can chuck other shit in there too.. lead improves machining, tin improves corrosion resistance, Iron makes the molecular grain structure smaller (when viewed through a microscope) making it withstand the heating/cooling process of forging...and so on. Alas most applications for brasses don't require such high quality and the small scale producers can't compete on price and continue to go out of business.

Insightful post!

[JDelage]

What is a recommended proxy to buy from Japan (and ship to the US)? Many thanks!

[unders]

There's a proxy thread in this forum which should sort you out. 

[JDelage]

Ah, I couldn't find it because I was used to see it pinned to the top. Should have searched. Apologies.

[mlwdp]

On January 18, 2017 at 3:50 AM, Double 0 Soul said:

Brass is made all over the world, its just cheaper from China because the industry is state sponsored and they use a recycling melting process.
Smaller artisan type foundries will cast high spec quality brass ingots by melting electrically refined copper before adding small amounts of zinc, Copper has a higher melting temperature than zinc therefor you can't just melt both materials together because the zinc would be vapourised well before the molten brass was formed.
China buys a lot of the worlds scrap metals (brass included) which it uses to melt down into ingots before forming into sheet, plate, bar, wire ect. every time scrap brass is melted there's contamination from other materials and as mentioned above some of the zinc evaporates due to the high temperature of the melt therefor the brass sourced from China is of progressively lower quality but much cheaper.
More zinc = harder and stronger but harder to work. Less zinc = weaker/softer.  You can chuck other shit in there too.. lead improves machining, tin improves corrosion resistance, Iron makes the molecular grain structure smaller (when viewed through a microscope) making it withstand the heating/cooling process of forging...and so on. Alas most applications for brasses don't require such high quality and the small scale producers can't compete on price and continue to go out of business.

Insightful post!

[mlwdp]

What does "the rise of cobra" and "wading" mean?

[chicote]

Front rise and thigh measurement, respectively.

[Cucoo]

I'll be flying into Fort Worth for a 3 week vacation in the USA in May. Cities along our planned round trip route along Route 66, through Nevada and New Mexico include FW/Dallas, Santa Fe, Albuquerque, Phoenix, Tucson and then back to Texas for San Antonio, Austin and Houston.

Any stores a denimhead shouldn't miss?

I'd also really like to get sized for and try on a pair of White's Semidress. I'm not sure if they're commonly carried by boot stores?

[Broark]

Not much you can't miss in Austin denim-wise to be honest. But if you need food/beer/general recommendations let me know!

Also let me know if you want to grab a beer, always up to meet fellow sufu members.

Edited January 24, 2017 by Broark

[givemefive]

First time I've heard DFW Airport referred to as solely Fort Worth, haha!

[SuperJackle]

Cucoo if you need some tips on places to go in Albuquerque and Santa Fe let me know. That's my hood. Albuquerque's local beer scene is huge right now. 

[Iron Horse]

Houston and DFW don't have too many denim stores; you could see if Reserve Supply Co. has anything that strikes your fancy, but don't hold your breath. 

In Houston you should definitely try to stay in or as close to the Mid-Town area as possible. Go to Southeast Houston for the food in Chinatown, especially Tan Tan on Ranchester and/or the broken rice (com tam) place inside Hong Kong City Mall. Lots to do in Houston if you have a car and know where to go (museum of fine arts, Rothko, Rice Village, Saint Arnold brewery tour, NASA). DFW is similar in a sense; best overall food is in Arlington, or over in Plano. If you want western wear, Weldon's in Denton is good. 

[Cucoo]

20 hours ago, givemefive said:

First time I've heard DFW Airport referred to as solely Fort Worth, haha!

 Well you're right, it's even on the plane tickets 

 

Thanks guys! At first I thought my Google-Fu was just weak, but seems like there's actually not much denim-wise. I'll definitely be looking more into Western gear anyways.

For beers, always open to suggestions! Only problem is we'll be travelling with a toddler, so it'll have to either be daytime drinking or something the wife and me can enjoy at night  

Oh, some tips for Albuquerque would be great, all I really planned to do there so far is stop by some Breaking Bad locations and I haven't even watched the show

[ALB]

Yeah, not much stores over here in DFW for denim related stuff. Stag Provisions in Austin might have something worth looking but, again, not really for denim. If you want fancy shmancy go to Highland Park. For food/beer in DFW definitely try lower greenville, bishop arts district, and deep ellum. Parking is a pain though for each of these spots. 

[chicote]

Stop by Ft. Lonesome's studio in Austin if you get the chance! They do amazing chainstitch embroidery & custom western wear, stuff I imagine you'd be really interested in:

Edited January 26, 2017 by chicote

[Cucoo]

Stag Provisions might be worth a browse and Ft Lonesome looks properly awesome to check out, thanks for the tips!

[volvo240thebest]

Hey guys do you know where I can buy a buckle like this one? I am looking for the same buckle but with a nickel silver color. 

 

[Iron Horse]

Tim Leathers has them, Volvo, last I checked.

[JDelage]

All,

denim + penny loafers, yay or nay?

Edited January 30, 2017 by JDelage

[HGS]

I'd go for it, prob look best with a slimmer cut/higher inseam.  but i love penny loafers