Vintage Denim?

[Dr_Heech]

This just came up on lg and they don't come much better - Deadstock S501XXS (S = 'Special' for extra leg length) And the size is a 36x38, they also have the paint on the pockets! Woah

 

Edit - click twice for clearer image

 

Edited June 24 by Dr_Heech
To edit obvs

[beautiful_FrEaK]

Cop? 😅

[Dr_Heech]

49 minutes ago, beautiful_FrEaK said:

Cop? 😅

Of course. Just let me sell my house and I'll get right on it 😂

[istewi]

I received a vintage Levi's type 3 recently and I think I have the date narrowed down to 1969-1971. Hoping someone here knows more! Sorry for the terrible balance on some of the outdoor photos.

The denim has some nice character and I love the crinkly collar. 

 

525 button stamp (El Paso)

Single row of stitching at the bottom button hole. 

 

After soaking in vinegar the buttons oxidized.

 

 

[Dr_Heech]

@istewi Little e on red tab plus 2nd gen wash tag puts it at least c.1974.

Thought 524 was el Paso but anyway nice score and it fits perfectly. 

[istewi]

@Dr_Heech thanks! With some difficult I was able to find a Japanese blog, riddled with hundreds of ads, that had a table of all the factory numbers. There were three or four El Paso plants, but maybe it’s a shaky source haha. 
 

Did the single and double stitch overlap a few years? I think a couple of other shaky sources said it changed around 71 or 72. 

[Dr_Heech]

Lots of info out there on the Internet @istewi and many opinions too. I don't know much about single/double stitching on cuffs/waistband as a dating tool but the jacket fits you and that's the most important thing imo.

 

[silencejoe]

For over 100years 

[Dr_Heech]

4 hours ago, silencejoe said:

For over 100years 

Can we see a fit pic after you've taken them out of the bag? 😉

 

[silencejoe]

On 7/11/2024 at 8:59 PM, Dr_Heech said:

Can we see a fit pic after you've taken them out of the bag? 😉

 

Too bad that i am too fat to fit in 

[Dr_Heech]

They look a bit shabby @silencejoe but I'll give you ten quid for them, l could maybe use them in the garden or something 🤔 

[Maynard Friedman]

Make sure he gives them a hot wash first Charlie, to get all those stains out, otherwise offer him a fiver and wash them yourself.

[silencejoe]

dr and maynard is too kind 

i will make sure  i gives it a 100c hot wash before i shipout 

interesting to see a different replacement buttoms  in this overall 

Edited July 13 by silencejoe

[Dr_Heech]

Looked through this thread but couldn't find them, l had a whole set of pics of this pair so l must've posted them on denimbro back in the day. Sadly now l've only this pic stolen from lg to show you.

Deadstock 1942 501XX sz 36x36 (click the image twice for more clarity) sold by Foremost some years back. Lovely two tone stitching. Hard to believe this pair and the WW2 pair l posted earlier could be produced just a few months apart, yet in some ways they are both world's apart in detail and design.

 

[Dr_Heech]

Continuing from the above post, A big thank you to whom ever it was that sent me these photos via lg a couple of days ago.

Looking at the rest of the set of pics here it look like they have all the hallmarks of the 1942 501XX except in this case the buckle looks silver as opposed to the black one we'd normally expect or it could be the lighting putting a shine on it? Also this pair has alot of dual orange and yellow stitching, unlike Larry's deadstock pair on the previous page which in King of Vintage Vol.4 has mostly yellow. Rounded hidden rivets post-1940 and copper coated fly button backs, which l've not seen before on a pair of 1941 or 1942 501's. 

 

Edited Monday at 08:10 AM by Dr_Heech

[Dr_Heech]

Just a small distraction from the excitement of the WoM contest crew and their future plans. It's a bit like when BBC2 puts on a film for those who are bored of the Olympics on BBC1 😉

Anyways,  l've posted these items below before - All used to be jeans owned by me: XX jeans and XX shorts, 2x pairs of V stitch Big E shorts (that were once jeans) and a donor big E waist chain daisy Duke shorts. Once the Big E jeans were too trashed, my Mrs made shorts out of them. We still keep all these bits as keepsakes from Our bygone era (1990s).

 

But whilst rooting around l also found three pairs of redlines, a pair of 505's and a pair of 517's which haven't seen the light of day for quite a while and certainly haven't been posted before, so l thought l'd share them as there's a few 1980's 501 fans in  here...

 

Ps. I have no control over the photo orientation, it seems Sufu still has a mind of its own, despite preemptive editing.

Edited August 28 by Dr_Heech

[Dr_Heech]

Dark pair of 501 redlines sz 30x38 (so 1501 0117, The 1 prefix being the code for 38 inch leg length). Made in 1983, has the 'black-flag' type of bar tack, more prevalent in the 1981-84 period. Extra circle on the reverse of the rivet indicates early 80s also. Notice the short bar tack strip attaching the belt loop to the jean. White stitching around the inside vertical or horizontal yoke indicates 1982 onwards. Date on the inside wash tag is March '83. The denim changed gradually around 1977-79 and this denim has the more eighties bulkier/fluffier feel to it than the distinct vertical fading of the late 1970s. 

 

Edited October 9 by Dr_Heech

[Dr_Heech]

Well worn pair of early eighties redline 501's. Has the same 10% shrinkage as the last pair, visible on the wash tag, as well as the date of manufacture. Again with black flag bar tacking and the short span of bar tacking across the belt loop, but there is no extra circle on the reverse of the rivet (although still white stitching on the inside but only around the coin pocket). As before another 524 buttoned 501 redline, made at the EL Paso factory but this pair made in 1981.

Nice roping too!

 

 

Edited November 10 by Dr_Heech

[Dr_Heech]

Pair of redline 501's made in 1978. 8% shrinkage on the wash tag (changed to 10% around '80/81) and no white internal stitching around crotch/front pockets/yoke so definitely late 1970s. Also poly-cotton looks different, not so orangey/nylony as the early 80s poly. Bar tacking on back pockets is from earlier gen redlines as it's a lylaccy-grey, rather than dark blue/black, and looks more cotton than poly-cotton. Bar-tacking across belt loops is wider, although not as wide as the Bar tacking on pre-1978 501's. Double lock-stitch on the inside of the back pockets so just after the switch from the Single Stitch redline model (1974-77). Lastly, oxidisation on the button fly also visible on the denim button hole. Number 6 on the button back which corresponds to the label. The number 6 apparently belongs to the 3 california. factories Lovely roping!

 

 

Edited November 15 by Dr_Heech
Update info

[Dr_Heech]

Early eighties 505. Nothing special about these particularly but look quite good fade wise. White overlocked stitching to the non-selvedge outseam (folded over so no train tracks), black flag bar tacking and double stitch back pockets. Steel topped anodized button with a Talon 42 zipper. No inside label present. There's a pinkish tinge to them so must've been washed with a red item that bled (not me tho).

 

Edited August 28 by Dr_Heech

[Dr_Heech]

517's from circa 1975. Single Stitch back pockets, earlier orange poly cotton stitching,  earlier type bar tacking on back pockets, 3% shrinkage on inner label indicating sanforized denim. Overlock stitching on non-selvedge busted seam (something that was used on sanforized denim by levis since c.1960) - but has been forever folded over so no train tracks Bar-tacking on belt loops is as wide as the belt loop itself so a pre 1977 feature. It has LS2109 stamped on the front right pocket bag (?)

 

 

 

 

Edited August 28 by Dr_Heech

[Dr_Heech]

Vintage 1922 Levi's 501XX on Marvin's.

These are the earliest belt looped 501xx - so basically a c.1915-1921 501xx that still have the hand-tooled looking rivet heads, which between c1922 and c.1926 gradually changed to become the more standard round-topped rivet heads we all normally associate with 501's.

They also have the first gen shorter belt loops made with shirt weight denim, which gradually lengthened over the decade plus concave suspender buttons and unbranded bullseye style fly buttons. These last two details disappeared around c.1926/27, the same year the redline was introduced. 

What strikes me most is the beautiful pattern of wear over time but also that someone went to the trouble of cutting out the centre part of the two horse patch, so that it didn't shrivel out in the sun or through shrinkage, and become uncomfortable for the wearer. I'm obviously guessing this last part but they are a thing of beauty in my eyes and to think they are roughly 100 years old. Not many wearable clothes that old.

Off to get a lottery ticket 😁

 

 

 

Obviously a double cuffer too!

 

 

 

Edited November 10 by Dr_Heech

[FurnitureMaker]

That pair is definitely a top 10 for me. Hits all my favorite details. 
 

I think that the patch probably fell off voluntarily. The uniformity of color behind the patch makes me think that the patch was intact for most of the time the jeans were worn. The lack of any creasing, due to a shrunken patch pulling on the denim, means that they weren’t washed that often?  All conjecture, I know. 

[Dr_Heech]

On 7/6/2023 at 4:26 AM, Dr_Heech said:

Another amazing find for Foremost vintage, this pair is identical to the flannel pocket pair in the 501xx book and in the same size and unwashed condition as the pair recently discussed in the Sugar cane thread! Can't believe there's still this stuff like this out there.

 

 

 

Edit - after closer inspection it seems these S501XX are the same pair that Sugarcane used as a template for their recent flannel pocket replica. 

@beautiful_FrEaK actually l didn't discuss it, more of a mention. Was probably hoping for a discussion, as usual 😅

 

[beautiful_FrEaK]

Makes you wonder if they are really vintage and not just made by Sugarcane to then make a repro of it.

Something CSF was "accused" to do at one point over on the...other forum... 😅

[Maynard Friedman]

^ This is an interesting concept and I must’ve missed (or simply forgotten) that discussion on Denimbro - I think we can mention it by name. I might have to take a look and see who suggested it!

Those pocket bags also look similar to those on my Sugar Cane slack denim pair although I think they may be slightly different. I can’t be bothered to check right now though as they’re stored in a cupboard in a ziplock bag along with a gazillion other unworn pairs 😬

EDIT: found this photo online, the fabric is different.

[julian-wolf]

Just now, Maynard Friedman said:

I might have to take a look and see who suggested it!

If the relevant exchange has been allowed to continue taking up server space, that is…

[MJF9]

^ they never did state the unilateral decision criteria for what was saved and what was not 

[julian-wolf]

I think it was something like any thread that hasn’t had a new post in the past year

[Maynard Friedman]

@Broark and @Dr_Heech should know, they were the moderators who oversaw the entire culling 🤣