Quality vintage manufacturers

[cgreen]

Hi All,

Quick question for the group: I live in Toronto so a lot of the vintage Moto jackets I'm seeing are either Bristol or Brimaco, both of which were made in Canada, but I'm wondering what other quality manufacturers I should be on the lookout for.

I like Treen and Harley Davidson but there are lots of off brands that made cool looking pieces but of dubious or unknown quality. Does anyone have specifics on Moto jacket manufactures from the 1960s, 70s, and 80s that can be found vintage here in Canada? Looking forward to speaking with you all soon, thanks in advance, I appreciate it. Take care.

Chris

 

[Marc mndt]

British Cycle Leathers, Score / Shields

 

[cgreen]

British Cycle Leathers, Score / Shields

Thank you Marc, I'll check those out. Do you see any of these manufacturers in the vintage market? I'm really seeing a lot of Brimaco and Bristol here in Canada.

 

[Marc mndt]

Yes they're around, if you look for them

Cool Leather Jackets on Instagram: "60s / 70s Shields racing gear, made in Canada #vintageleatherjacket #shieldssportswear #lightningzipper #vintageracinggear #madeincanada"

122 likes, 14 comments - coolleatherjackets on February 1, 2023: "60s / 70s Shields racing gear, made in Canada #vintageleatherjacket #shieldssportswear #lightningzipper #vintageracinggear #madeinca..."

www.instagram.com

Cool Leather Jackets on Instagram: "60s British Cycle Leathers fringed D pocket motorcycle jacket made in Canada #britishcycleleathers #vintageleatherjacket #dpocket #fringedleatherjacket #madeincanada #vintagemotorcyclejacket #lightningzippe

93 likes, 4 comments - coolleatherjackets on February 4, 2022: "60s British Cycle Leathers fringed D pocket motorcycle jacket made in Canada #britishcycleleathers #vintageleatherjacket #dpocket #f..."

www.instagram.com

 

[Dany McDonald]

Cant help you with other Canadian brands dedicated to biking... Being in Montreal, I've had Brimaco all my life. I bought my first perfecto directly from them corner St-Laurent/Rachel, upstairs the big pool hall... Yeah there was a superb very old pool hall bellow the Brimaco shop, with snookers table too, that was a very cool place to hang out.

Back on the subject: Are you looking for something in specific, a type or look? Expanding the collection? I still find Brimaco jackets that are new to me, they really had a huge selection back then.

D

 

[cgreen]

Cant help you with other Canadian brands dedicated to biking... Being in Montreal, I've had Brimaco all my life. I bought my first perfecto directly from them corner St-Laurent/Rachel, upstairs the big pool hall... Yeah there was a superb very old pool hall bellow the Brimaco shop, with snookers table too, that was a very cool place to hang out.

Back on the subject: Are you looking for something in specific, a type or look? Expanding the collection? I still find Brimaco jackets that are new to me, they really had a huge selection back then.

D

Thanks Dany, I think what I'm hunting for are jackets sold directly by the manufacturer, a la, Brimaco, Bristol, Schott, etc. As I've begun to get more interested in vintage pieces I'm finding lots of off-brand jackets with unknown manufacturers - to my way of thinking if I know a jacket is a Brimaco, for instance, made in Canada then I feel like I can be assured a certain level of quality versus buying a jacket with a retailers label in it and not knowing where it was made. Does that make sense, and is that correct thinking?

CG

 

[Micawber]

If you want to cast your net further take a look at vintage Lewis Leathers / Aviakit from here in England.

A bit of background here...

All About AVIAKIT - Lewis Leathers

People often ask us why we use the Aviakit logo as aninternal label in our jackets and what its significance is to Lewis Leathers asa company.The answer lies in our association with flying clothing andkit in the first quarter of the 20th Century, looking at theearliest advertisements we have in...

www.lewisleathers.com

 

[cgreen]

Thank you Steve, just checked out the website, some gorgeous jackets - gonna give that some serious consideration. Enjoy the day.

Chris

 

[CombatWombat]

And ill chime in from Australia....
Mars leather made fantastic jackets (if you're a cafe racer/elbow and shoulder pad fan)
Stagg leather (they have "Brando" and "Frankenjackets" that are a bit of Double and Single Riders in their unique designs)

Mars I don't think exists anymore, maintained their Aussie Made quality.
Stagg has been made in Pakistan for a number of years though the quality didn't nosedive which is comforting
Babylon industries makes the NSW Police leather jacket as well as the old Army MP jacket (in a olive green )
We even had a company called Aero Leathers that made some fantastic Moto jackets
All these makers have excellent product from the time span you're looking at

 

[cgreen]

Great information, thank you. Do you know where I can pick up a Mars, Aero, or Stagg jacket here in North America? Are there places local to you that would ship a piece or two over here. I'm always interested in things a bit on the unique side. Thanks very much, looking forward to speaking with you again. Take care.

CG

 

[Southoftheborder]

Aero is Thurston Bros for the US and I think it's Bison Trading in Canada. Aero at least is not unique in north America. They sell a lot though their distributors. Check out the Fedora Lounge site.

 

[cgreen]

Oh that's great information, thank you, will check out Fedora.

 

[CombatWombat]

Great information, thank you. Do you know where I can pick up a Mars, Aero, or Stagg jacket here in North America? Are there places local to you that would ship a piece or two over here. I'm always interested in things a bit on the unique side. Thanks very much, looking forward to speaking with you again. Take care.

CG

Stagg and Mars are still in business but gone are the days of unique designs.....it's all CE rated safety Moto wear with them now.
Stagg does do a Brando double rider that is better quality leather than what Schott puts out these days.....but the buckle on them is the ugly sort you see on cheaper Pakistan made gear.
Best bet is to look at fleabay since they come up a fair amount in the usual sizes and the leather/linings are near bombproof.
Babylon industries are only available second hand (due to them only doing government contracts)
And the Army olive green MP jacket are only second hand as well but there's been a ton of them floating around for years brand new because it's a strange colour for most people to stomach lol
Odd fact is our postal service have a specific jacket for our motorcycle postmen that's EXACTLY the same cut/style as the MP jacket but in a eyewatering bright yellow