1931 GOLDSMITH A-2 Limited Edition of 25

[Persimmon]

Even when I praise the product itself?
"Judging by the (rock bottom) price Headwinds will be made in India, if so they will probably be very good"

Ken
Please focus on your own jackets and production and stop knocking the competition unnecessarily. If it’s not AVI, it’s Headwind or DD etc etc.

I have to say it’s getting harder and harder for me to continue participating in the forum if this continues

In your statement post you have a go on more that one occasion -
“The undesirable “
and ...
“ take a look at the sewing “

There is not even a produced Headwind sample jacket to view yet but you must get your damning praise in.

“ probably be very good “ as some sort of sop.

Please please please keep talking and offer knowledge on Aero products. Just stop critizing your competition on price and quality etc.

 

[zoomer]

Ken, I recommend you do a Security A-2, which John Chapman no longer wants to do, and clean up on the disappointed Goldy trade.

 

[Ken at Aero Leather]

Persimmon

My post was in direct reply to question from zoomer asking how I felt about Headwind doing a version.
Am I supposed to ignore the question?
Lie?
It wasn't possible to give an honest answer when I didn't know who would be making these jackets
I stand by what I said about Headwind's Indian made jackets, they look really well put together

PS I also said the other day the DD's jackets have improved a hundred fold from the early ones

 

[Ken at Aero Leather]

Ken, I recommend you do a Security A-2, which John Chapman no longer wants to do, and clean up on the disappointed Goldy trade.

We are already making too many styles, some will be culled when the new website goes live.

 

[zoomer]

We are already making too many styles, some will be culled when the new website goes live.

Let me guess...they are A-2s and they begin with 38- and 40- ?

Edit: a little too butthurt on my part. I think we all are when it comes to our favorite things. Let's try not to let it get the best of us.

 

[Ken at Aero Leather]

Civvy styles I'd imagine rather than A-2s

 

[zoomer]

Really...they were your biggest sellers a decade or so ago, no?

 

[Persimmon]

Persimmon

My post was in direct reply to question from zoomer asking how I felt about Headwind doing a version.
Am I supposed to ignore the question?
Lie?
It wasn't possible to give an honest answer when I didn't know who would be making these jackets
I stand by what I said about Headwind's Indian made jackets, they look really well put together

PS I also said the other day the DD's jackets have improved a hundred fold from the early ones

Damning praise and more damning praise.
Please I would beg you to just focus on your own products, business and company.

As for ignoring questions - yes please in these cases.
“ it wasn’t possible to give to give an honest answer “ ......
so why say anything ?
Your choice was just criticism on several levels.

It’s clear you just don’t see what poor form it is to knock your competitors in this way.
Over and over again, thread after thread.

 

[Ken at Aero Leather]

I don't want to make a list but I've praised far more of what you feel are "my rivals" than I've ever criticised

For the forums sake can't we just bury the hatchet?

 

[jeremiah]

That's a bloody nice hatchet Ken, don't you dare bury that one.

 

[zoomer]

Hear hear. Sailors' right to bitch and all, but this has gone beyond bitching.
This is trading in Bitching Futures.
Building castles in the air, moving into them, and bitching about them.

 

[zoomer]

We are already making too many styles, some will be culled when the new website goes live.

Never mind, looks like Headwind is moving on that opportunity.

 

[Ken at Aero Leather]

Really...they were your biggest sellers a decade or so ago, no?

They still are our best sellers by a long way, two thirds of our machinists have never worked on a military jacket and there's not a single military jacket in our top ten best sellers
We just have too many styles already and we need to bring in new designs to keep things fresh so some will go, we've done this fairly regularly over the years

We keep the patterns, if anyone asks for a specific style not on the site anymore we'll usually make one.

 

[Persimmon]

I don't want to make a list but I've praised far more of what you feel are "my rivals" than I've ever criticised

For the forums sake can't we just bury the hatchet?
View attachment 8498

It’s so easy.
Stop having cheap and unnecessary shots at your competitors.
It’s not rocket science. Hopefully you can see that. Hopefully !!!!

 

[Ken at Aero Leather]

OK, I get it, if it makes you (any) happier I'm the guy on the left................

 

[Officer Dibley]

If you have a thing worth having, be happy.
If others come to have it too, don't worry.

Zoomer, that is a very wise thing to say & eloquently put. I salute you.

Uniqueness is relative: i have many "unique" items but their "value" is nil because no-one else would want them. To me they are priceless. So feeling exclusive would only count if anyone else wanted what one has.

 

[saucerfiend]

Ken,
I've been reading this post and was becoming very interested in purchasing one. Now, some the details in the jacket are all being worked out by observant members in this post according to the pictures available and seen in the post. All for the purpose of getting the pattern as period correct as possible, right? Again, understanding that the pics available are the ONLY sources for the pattern, it should be conclusive that the color SHOULD be to the lighter side, meaning russet in shade. It's very easy to see, even in B&W pics the correct shade. Now, if all other observations are being worked out, why not use the correct shade, according to the ONLY sources available, the pics. Using seal color hide is preferable to you and the reasons you give have nothing to do with the pics. Obviously, as the manufacturer, your decision. However, if this is to be period correct as it should be for a limited edition, one that can only be compared to the only existing pics of the model. Then, it most definitely SHOULD be in russet. As the personal reasons you are using will make it less authentic. Certainly a deal killer for me.

Brian

 

[Officer Dibley]

Honestly Techno , I get your point , probably because I feel the same way about most of your talking points.
My only comment is, that we are talking about a reproduction of a leather jacket, which in 99 % of most people’s minds isn’t worth the value we as a collective group pay for them. Additionally it’s been my experience that the value of a Limited Edition anything comes from purchasing the item and then keeping it in pristine condition for a number of years and then reselling it at a price much greater than what was originally paid for it. Not much chance of that happening with this item, as everyone will want to wear it until it’s broken it and looks like it came from the 1930s . I guess my point is Limited Edition works with a lot of collectibles but I can’t ever remember seeing Limited Edition collectible clothing. Not disrespectful of your opinion , just making an observation.
Cheers
B-Man2

More wisdom. Wish i were as articulate as you and Zoomer. So do many of you here wish i were too i'm sure ! .

 

[Officer Dibley]

I'll keep my order placed unless there is a new announcement that the Limited Edition of 25 is not going to be honored... I would like to imagine that Ken had this figured out for certain before making the announcement, and going live online with the sale..

Words without context or visual communication can be confusing and misleading !

I'm sure you didn't mean this the way i first interpreted it but it sounds as if you are
A. Threatening/blackmailing Ken with cancelling your order because it won't be exclusive enough for you rather than because of the jacket itself. (Though i understand you have ordered one on the basis of rarity alone and so your cancelling would be quite correct....). And expecting the very person who has developed and will make the jacket to make future business decisions on the basis of you rather than if circumstances change and in 3 years he decides to make more due to demand. You'll still have your exclusive "First Run " jacket.

B. You seem to be giving a hard time to someone who is a businessman and enthusiast who provides desirable products but assume he will ignore that treatment of him when it comes to selling you a jacket.

Luckily, on second and third reading it is more ambiguous.

Ken has a higher duty to his employees to keep them in work based on business needs and That is the bottom line.

These are very much First World problems and we should all be grateful if this is all that concerns us.

 

[Ken at Aero Leather]

Ken,
I've been reading this post and was becoming very interested in purchasing one. Now, some the details in the jacket are all being worked out by observant members in this post according to the pictures available and seen in the post. All for the purpose of getting the pattern as period correct as possible, right? Again, understanding that the pics available are the ONLY sources for the pattern, it should be conclusive that the color SHOULD be to the lighter side, meaning russet in shade. It's very easy to see, even in B&W pics the correct shade. Now, if all other observations are being worked out, why not use the correct shade, according to the ONLY sources available, the pics. Using seal color hide is preferable to you and the reasons you give have nothing to do with the pics. Obviously, as the manufacturer, your decision. However, if this is to be period correct as it should be for a limited edition, one that can only be compared to the only existing pics of the model. Then, it most definitely SHOULD be in russet. As the personal reasons you are using will make it less authentic. Certainly a deal killer for me.

Brian

As it says on our website listing, we may be able to offer the jacket in other leathers fromour range.
If you feel Vicenza Russet would (for instance) would work better for you and we are happy that we can make the buttonholes to a standard you'd expect from Aero, we've no problem with making a jacket in Russet Vicenza, or any other Russet leather from our stock. I suggest if you'd like one of theseA-2s and, if this is a deal breaker, that you reserve a jacket while we still haven't reached 25 limit, stipulating the choice of leather is a deal breaker. We never go near the customers credit cards until we are ready to make the jacket or have already made it anyway.

Bottom line though, on the basis of photos of one jacket, can anyone be sure all 25 Goldsmith jacket were the same colour? There speaks someone who loves the way this particular leather wears and looks.