Lost Worlds B-2 jacket

[handworn]

I don't do business with Lost Worlds or wear their products, as they strike me as unpleasant people-- the worst stereotype of New Yorkers-- but YMMV:

http://cgi.ebay.com/LOST-WORLDS-B-2...63?pt=US_CSA_MC_Outerwear&hash=item3f0588b11b

 

[asiamiles]

I don't do business with Lost Worlds or wear their products, as they strike me as unpleasant people-- the worst stereotype of New Yorkers-- but YMMV:

http://cgi.ebay.com/LOST-WORLDS-B-2...63?pt=US_CSA_MC_Outerwear&hash=item3f0588b11b

John Lever owned one of these and said it was heavy and stiff to the point of being unwearable; so probably needs some serious breaking in, but I doubt you could throw this in the machine!

 

[duke]

I have purchased five Lost Worlds jackets directly from Stuart C. over the last 6 years. One is a B-2. It is warm and still lightweight (IMHO). It is not restrictive in the least. When new, it was not at all stiff, although getting the collar loops over the buttons is still a challenge! The horsehide is supple, the alpaca lining is very warm without being thick. The horsehide motorcycle jacket and horsehide A2 each took a bit of time to break-in, but I expected that from reading his info on his website. My contact with Lost Worlds have always been positive. Much more so than members would expect from reading other posts.

On the other hand....I ordered directly from Eastman and had a very negative experience. My Anj-4 arrived with incorrect collar snaps in place. Both sides were the "male" snap! To correct it, I had to ship it back (at my cost) to Eastman for replacement. Although surprised that I would have to pay for shipping, I assumed that there would be some measure made to me by ELC to make the charge go away. I sent it back expecting good customer service. When I called them after two weeks to discuss the shipping charges incurred, I inquired about purchasing another jacket at a discount equivalent to my shipping costs. Alan E. seemed unable to understand that it was not right that I should have to pay for shipping a defective product. After another week, he left me a voicemail in which he said that my jacket had been repaired and had been shipped back to me already. He was obviously irritated that I would question ELC about the shipping and the need for repair on a brand new jacket. I received the jacket after being without it it for most of the month of January (when I needed it). There was no note, nothing whatsoever. He made mention that there was no additional shipping charge from ELC back to me. Gee, thanks so much!

IMHO, Lost Worlds is miles ahead of ELC in terms of customer service and in product quality. Just my two cents.

Duke

 

[zoomer]

I now own John's B-2 - it is stiff and a chore to wear.
The collar buttons are well-nigh unusable - the snap fastener under them IS unusable (short tabs and small snap).

Suppose Stu learned from experience with subsequent B-2s? He still advertises the 4+ oz horse.

I doubt you could throw this in the machine!

You'd break the machine, for one thing. Wonder what'd happen if I took it to the splash sink?

About stereotypical NYers, I spent 18 years in the area and handworn is somewhat on track.
That classic "no bull$#!!" NY 'tude really means "none of your bull$#!! - never mind about mine." Combine that with Stu being a crank's crank - just read his ad copy - and you have a volatile brew.
But it's not just a NY issue. You find cranky behavior now and then wherever there are small businesses that are highly specialized.
Running your own shop, with all the knowledge and lost sleep that requires, then having folks expecting "customer is always right" service is a rough road.

 

[handworn]

I'd agree about the amount of heartbreak and grief involved in being a one-man show who has carved his own niche, though it sure seems to be attractive enough in independence and getting 100% of any profits to continue to attract many people. But John Chapman is Exhibit A in the case for those hardships not needing to make you a jerk. Having done what the LW guy has, and becoming a father, and trying to break out into new areas like sheepskin, he still has the vitality to be a professional and a class act.

About stereotypical NYers, I spent 18 years in the area and handworn is somewhat on track.
That classic "no bull$#!!" NY 'tude really means "none of your bull$#!! - never mind about mine." Combine that with Stu being a crank's crank - just read his ad copy - and you have a volatile brew.
But it's not just a NY issue. You find cranky behavior now and then wherever there are small businesses that are highly specialized.
Running your own shop, with all the knowledge and lost sleep that requires, then having folks expecting "customer is always right" service is a rough road.

 

[watchmanjimg]

I'd agree about the amount of heartbreak and grief involved in being a one-man show who has carved his own niche, though it sure seems to be attractive enough in independence and getting 100% of any profits to continue to attract many people. But John Chapman is Exhibit A in the case for those hardships not needing to make you a jerk. Having done what the LW guy has, and becoming a father, and trying to break out into new areas like sheepskin, he still has the vitality to be a professional and a class act.

And yet some here have complained about JC's slow response to inquiries. I'm not one of them, of course.

My mileage has indeed varied. Have you had any direct experience with Stu, or are you simply going by what you've heard from his detractors? If so, you're only hurting yourself by avoiding LW products based on the notion that Stu is a jerk. I've bought around 10 of his jackets over the past 6 years and he's always been friendly and courteous towards me. There have been several instances where I've expressed interest in a particular LW jacket and it just shows up several days later, no strings attached. If I want it, I buy it. If not, I send it back--no questions asked. Does that sound like bad service to you? On the other hand I've had an unpleasant experience with Mark of Aero USA. Would this keep me from owning an Aero product if I wanted one? Absolutely not.

 

[deand]

I would guess that if I wanted a particular jacket, I wouldn't care, maybe not appreciate, if the merchant was unpleasant. Knowing to expect it is half the battle. It's like the VLJ. Most of its members simply know more than me about flight jackets, and if you stick your ignorance to far out there, one of them might just give it a chop by simply asserting their expertise, not with malice, but with very little warm and fuzzy, or simple aloofness. Doesn't make them bad guys, actually I learn quite a bit from them. If I had extra cash, I'd buy some of the Japanese reference books and gain expertise. John Chapman has pretty good service from what I see here, but what would sway toward his work over LW is the accuracy of Good Wear jackets.




dean

 

[Tim P]

I had a lost worlds Dubow in the 90s and daily wear made it soft, supple and wearable. a few days in the wardrobe and it was stiff and creaky. I liked it and it looked good but it was a powerful jacket.
I dont like being uncomfortable though, so I would always go for something with a softer hand. even thick hides can be made very supple without compromising weight. if not, meantime you have to walk around like odd bod in 'carry on screaming'


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8jPn4g-eR48

seen at around 42 sec..

I have never dealt with them as the jacket I had was second hand. Some of his real men comments on his site leave me a little baffled..

 

[zoomer]

So wearing LW horsey is kind of like playing an instrument - one day off and you lose a week of effort.

I always thought we were supposed to wear the jackets. This is more like they wear us. :|

 

[Tim P]

I think his stuff is real quality if you check his range.

 

[John Lever]

LW's have also made a lighter weight B-2 so this could be a better wearer than the really heavy ones.
My BR is the best yet, better even than The Few.

 

[handworn]

About all I figure I need to know of his company can be seen in this part of its website:

"On the various flight and vintage jacket forums/blogs, where "men" put up digital pictures for their "buddies" of how they look in flight jackets -- children dressing up, no, cross-dressing as adults -- one can read expert instructions on aging, softening, antiquing new jackets to give them that flown-in look, for those whose knowledge of American history and masculine imagery are but flights of the remotest fantasy. There's putting 'em in the washer, sanding, nail polish remover, heat treatments. Avoid these forums, their self-appointed, fatuous "authorities" and instructions like syphilis if you want to know anything -- tanning, history, technical data (Nietzsche might say rulers are only for the small)-- about this important if esoteric niche of Americana. A disgrace that manly pursuits are contaminated by the unmanly. Welcome to the afterbirths of political correctness. Mass eunuchry -- a different kind of gun control."

Right up the same alley as some of my experiences with the worst NYCers (and being a Philly guy, I have had quite a few). He stands behind this...stuff, to put it a polite way, and that says more to me about who he really is than whether he can ever act charming.

Have you had any direct experience with Stu, or are you simply going by what you've heard from his detractors? If so, you're only hurting yourself by avoiding LW products based on the notion that Stu is a jerk.

 

[Tokyo Jones]

I remember when Banana Republic (back before it was purchased by The Gap) printed beautiful, hand painted catalogs detailing not only their clothing, but the adventures one might have while wearing it. I particularly remember the Macchu Picchu issue.

The copy at Lost World's website is essentially a poor-man's version of that marketing strategy - as is, incidentally, the J Peterman website. But it's a mistake to read too much into the personality of Stuart, say - and worse, an entire city. Hey may well be as eccentric as the copy on his website, but in my limited dealings with him he was certainly professional. Besides, the copy is there to sell jackets to like-minded customers - generally, I suspect, bikers.

LW gets a lot of grief for the thickness of its HH, which is silly, really. Yes, the buttons on my custom Roadhouse jacket are difficult to work, and I must remove the jacket to fasten or unfasten them. But the truth is, it's a jacket designed primarily for bikers, and for such a purpose the thick HH, at least, puts it in a league by itself - surpassing even professional quality tracksuits from Vanson and others. But it isn't uncomfortable, and after 1 and a half seasons, the jacket has molded itself quite nicely to my frame.

It's been said by some that the HH at LW is almost fetishistic. I think there's some truth to that, for those of us who tend to remember the past as being better than it generally was. But that doesn't make it an inferior product, only a different one, and more choices for our areas of interest can only be a good thing. I knew what I was getting into when I bought my LW jacket, just as I know what I'll be getting when I will have GW make my A-1, rather than Eastman.

And if I enjoy my GW as much as my LW, I will be happy indeed.

 

[John Lever]

Aero use thicker horsehide [e.g. Veste de Rallye] than LW but it is not as stiff, perhaps the tanning method is different.

 

[watchmanjimg]

I remember when Banana Republic (back before it was purchased by The Gap) printed beautiful, hand painted catalogs detailing not only their clothing, but the adventures one might have while wearing it. I particularly remember the Macchu Picchu issue.

The copy at Lost World's website is essentially a poor-man's version of that marketing strategy - as is, incidentally, the J Peterman website. But it's a mistake to read too much into the personality of Stuart, say - and worse, an entire city. Hey may well be as eccentric as the copy on his website, but in my limited dealings with him he was certainly professional. Besides, the copy is there to sell jackets to like-minded customers - generally, I suspect, bikers.

LW gets a lot of grief for the thickness of its HH, which is silly, really. Yes, the buttons on my custom Roadhouse jacket are difficult to work, and I must remove the jacket to fasten or unfasten them. But the truth is, it's a jacket designed primarily for bikers, and for such a purpose the thick HH, at least, puts it in a league by itself - surpassing even professional quality tracksuits from Vanson and others. But it isn't uncomfortable, and after 1 and a half seasons, the jacket has molded itself quite nicely to my frame.

It's been said by some that the HH at LW is almost fetishistic. I think there's some truth to that, for those of us who tend to remember the past as being better than it generally was. But that doesn't make it an inferior product, only a different one, and more choices for our areas of interest can only be a good thing. I knew what I was getting into when I bought my LW jacket, just as I know what I'll be getting when I will have GW make my A-1, rather than Eastman.

And if I enjoy my GW as much as my LW, I will be happy indeed.

Excellent points. Stu's hyperbole shouldn't be taken seriously and really has nothing to do with the type of person he is, nor is it reflective of the attitude of New Yorkers in general (incidentally, during my brief visits to the city I've encountered nothing but polite and friendly folks). What is relevant are his jackets, which one will either like or dislike based on individual preference.

 

[John Lever]

Once when I asked if LW could offer more than one type of leather like Eastman does, the reply I received was ' I don't know what leather the Eastmanites use, or is it sodomites ?

 

[watchmanjimg]

Once when I asked if LW could offer more than one type of leather like Eastman does, the reply I received was ' I don't know what leather the Eastmanites use, or is it sodomites ?

Haha, that's a good one. Stu has never said anything like that to me, but he definitely offers a variety of leather. In any case I trust you suffered no long-term emotional damage from his remark. :lol:

 

[John Lever]

Once when I asked if LW could offer more than one type of leather like Eastman does, the reply I received was ' I don't know what leather the Eastmanites use, or is it sodomites ?

Haha, that's a good one. Stu has never said anything like that to me, but he definitely offers a variety of leather. In any case I trust you suffered no long-term emotional damage from his remark. :lol:

No, I just laughed, he was referring to Eastman any way not to me.

 

[zoomer]

Seems the B-2 would be the ideal winter moto jacket with its belted waist and very high collar (probably just the thing for a helmet wearer). That would be the real argument for a heavyweight HH.

 

[asiamiles]

Seems the B-2 would be the ideal winter moto jacket with its belted waist and very high collar (probably just the thing for a helmet wearer). That would be the real argument for a heavyweight HH.

The only time I've ever seen anyone wearing a B-2 was when I waiting to cross the road and a motorcycle roared by, so I think you're right there. But riders also need to be able move freely. Stu's business acumen can't be too bad as he managed to crack the Japanese market (or did they simply come knocking?), but LW (and the same might be said for Aero) products presence in Japan nowadays is minimal at best.