Random Rants
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Snow and ice are a pain but the truth is, I love it. It also means I can wear my uhf's more often.
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How cold does Hokkaido get? I used to live in northern Honshu (where my mom is from) and it wasn't too bad, but she was on the Pacific side. The Sea of Japan side gets a shit ton of snow though.
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apparently not as cold or as high up north i thought it would've been. the current temps are about -8 and i was mistaken that hokkaido was high up north that the likes or norway and such, but i was wrong. i'd just assumed since it snowed it must have been..
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I was chatting with a girl I know about hygiene (brushing & bathing) when she proceeds to tell me that after a few days she gets ripe armpit BO. She then told me her boyfriend doesn't get BO but his feet stink really bad ??? At that point I had to stop the conversation because I didn't want to know anything more about the gruesome twosome and their complete lack of hygiene. barf
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OH HAVE I GOT A RANT FOR YOU ALL…
I just dropped some serious dollar to buy both colorways of PBJ's natural indigo 17.5oz type II jackets. Perhaps from the outset an unreasonable choice on my part, and so only I am to blame. In the 10+ years I have been collecting denim, I've always wanted something from their AI series, but never pulled the trigger on the jeans because I always tear through jeans to the point of no repair at some point. Jackets have always lasted me longer (I don't mind holes, but it's when the seams fall apart multiple times that things get retired) so I went for these.
Ordered from Okayama Denim. Super excited. Fast shipping, actually arrived within a week. Open them up, the inside armholes are sewn worse than any article of clothing I have ever come into contact with in my life:
I don't even know how much to titrate my ranting right now.
The stitching just doesn't follow the fabric. The fabric edge, at probably THE most critical stress point is already fraying, and has no support of the second needle's stitching. That one's just sewn into nothing. I can understand some wavering in the lines, but there are inches of the fabric that just aren't even sewn down. I can also understand that this is a really hard part of garment construction, but isn't that what I'm paying a professional for? If I hire a guy to roof my home, and it leaks at the seams, and he says "yeah that part's just really hard…" You see where I'm going.
Does anybody do quality control on these things? Two jackets in one order! Is this about cutting costs that such things are let to slide?Maybe I'm spoiled by Iron Heart gear, but all else aside, HOW YOU GONNA NOT FELL YOUR ARM SEAMS?!
It's overall this disenchantment with the industry right now. I know PBJ is more known for their fabrics than particularly for their construction - btw, the fabric on both is f-ing nuts, seriously like none other - but I don't see how you can sell an article of clothing (for so much) that is sewn up so shoddy. If all I wanted was beautiful fabric, I'd just buy a roll of fabric. I swear can go into any thrift shop in Colorado right now and drop ten bucks on an off brand jacket that's going to last me longer than this thing.
Anyways, I've contacted OD, and look forward to updating the community on how this situation is handled.
Literally...can't...even.
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i love the snow but i can't imagine what a bitch it must be in those regions..
The problem with where I live is that while I’m a long way north, I’m also on the coast. That means cold high pressure from the east and milder low pressure from the Atlantic. The latter tends to bring arctic storms (whiteout blizzards), and snow, but also rain and wind. Then that can change over night to -10C and clear skies, so all the wet stuff from the turns to ice. Next comes snow up on the ice, then maybe a long mild patch where everything softens up for a week. Add to that salting, micro-climate variations because of peaks, valleys and fjords and you get an extremely choatic set of conditions that can change from day to day, or even kilometer to kilometer. I can drive the 12km from where I live in the burbs to the centre of town and experience bare roads, smooth hard ice, black ice and five different types of snow.
The worst thing is all the bloody scraping of ice from windows, condensation in the car and digging it out of the snow. It can also last from November to May. In fact, fukkit, I’m moving… [emoji1]
Sounds like a nightmare!
Out of interest how did you end up in Norway? Doesn’t seem the first choice for a scouser!
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How do the jackets look on you/fit?
They look and feel great to me… that’s why I’m especially bummed! The real thing I’m freaking out about is whether the armpits are going to fray or unravel unreasonably fast. I want these guys to last me a long time, of course.
Any idea of whether the pics look like the issue will impact the structural integrity?
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After taking a couple deep breaths and cooling off from my initial rant above, I’m wondering… can anybody comment on whether this is something I should not be worried about? Am I making mountains out of molehills?
I have a PBJ deep indigo type II and the houndstooth variant. After you posted your pics I looked at mine and they look similar. I didn't notice any stitching that was out of place but the fabric has that frayed look. I also took delivery of my IH 14oz od type III today and compared the stitching inside the arms to my PBJ jackets and the IH stitching is clean as a whistle, and I mean it looks flawless and the fabric doesn't look frayed.
Considering how much you spent on these jackets I don't think it's unreasonable to be upset, however, I know nothing about sewing garments and how it effects structural integrity so can't really answer your question about longevity. I hardly wear my PBJ type II's because they bunch up in the shoulders and I hate the way it drapes on me, but I keep them to have something different in my wardrobe. I don't have the shoulder issue with my IH type III. In fact, I know it sounds like i'm biased but my IH jacket is perfect in every way
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Out of interest how did you end up in Norway? Doesn’t seem the first choice for a scouser!
@neph93 got thrown out of Liverpool for bad behaviour.
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Installing Android Studio and the SDK takes way too long.
The problem is that you have to update all the libraries once you've installed the SDK, and this takes hours.
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@Graeme Switch to Xcode and Swift?
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I’m definitely not savvy enough to comment on that. Maybe Giles or some of the other guys can help you on that front. I’d just wear the fuck out of them and if they rip send them to Rain at Indigoproof.
I can't answer a question like this about another brand (who I respect greatly BTW). You need to ask the people you bought it from, which I think has already been done. I hope you understand….
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My turn to opine!
In my experiences, nearly all of the Japanese brands I have bought and handled have this kind of average sewing. I say "average", because it's kinda like typical sewing you would expect to see in a Levi's garment from Target or Walmart. From Sugar Cane, Mister Freedom, Buzz Rickson, PBJ, Momotaro, The Strike Gold, Oni… I have seen this kind of sewing on pieces from all of them. I've just learned that "You get what you pay for", but not in a monetary sense, more in the sense of "I spend my money on IH for insane garment construction", "I spend my money on PBJ for insane fabric textures and dyeing techniques", "I spend my money on Mister Freedom for FUN" and "I spend my money on Buzz Rickson for repro accuracy". Shopping each brand with those things in mind, I always get what I pay for. So, for me and my image of PBJ (Who makes my absolute favorite denims, EVER), this isn't out of the ordinary. BUT, if I received that from IH, I'd be let down.
*I'm not trying to talk you down from your rant, just giving my opinion. Ultimately, if you're not happy with it, you should contact OD and get them swapped out if possible.
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If you have any issues with the return, reach out to @formulapfaff - he is friends with the owner of Okayama Denim and might be able to help.
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Thanks for the replies, everybody!
@gaseousclay, thanks for checking yours. Sounds like this kind of thing probably won't make them fall apart as fast as I worried. I get your bias. Every Iron Heart jacket I own is just a solid work horse right out the box.
@Giles, I completely understand and respect your diplomacy.
@UnTucked, Get what you paid for point is noted. I agree that the hefty price tag on these jackets is really all about the fabric itself. I'm not even particularly a fan of type IIs, but the garment itself is only a vehicle for the enjoyment of craft in weave and dye. That said, I do wish there was a little higher baseline standard of construction. I do not receive your words as talking me down.
@Appfaff, Thanks for the advice and direction.It is only fair that I positive-rant briefly that I did contact Okayama Denim and a person by the name of Merv is being extremely responsive and supportive in this issue. I'm definitely going to send them back and either get replacements that have been double checked or a refund which I will thusly circulate back into something else.
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@gaseousclay, thanks for checking yours. Sounds like this kind of thing probably won't make them fall apart as fast as I worried. I get your bias. Every Iron Heart jacket I own is just a solid work horse right out the box.
@TaBLemann no problem. Fwiw, it never occured to me to check the stitching on my PBJ's when I bought them 1-1.5 yrs ago, but I never got the impression that they would fall apart on me. With that said, my PBJ type II's fit me kinda weird and that's probably the only criticism I have of them (and the lack of hand pockets), otherwise, I dig the fabric.
