So this is what I found out from Ship John. As of right now (at the end of October 2022) if you put down a deposit of $200, you won’t get the jacket until May 2025 at which point you will pay the remainder of $400 for a total of $600. I also found out that from time to time, they have random “extras” that they will sell at a first come first serve opportunity. So here’s the problem…the $200 deposit is NON-REFUNDABLE and CANNOT be applied to the “extras” if you placed a deposit down and are lucky enough to get an “extras.” So in essence, you will be paying $800 instead of $600 for the “extras” jacket. If you buy a custom built car, you put down the deposit and if you see a car on the lot that you like, they will put the deposit towards the one on the lot. Same with buying a pure bred dog. You put a deposit on a puppy in a specific future litter , and you like one of the ones that are available, the breeder will add the deposit to the one you buy. I’ve done it with buying a luxury watch too. But Ship John doesn’t do that. They will keep the 200 bucks and make you pay the full 600. That, to me, is a little shady, but whatever. So your dilemma is 1) do you wait 3 f’ing years for the jacket or 2) do you take a chance on getting lucky to get an “extras” jacket (which is near impossible and may not happen) or 3) do you pay $800 for the scenario I mentioned above or 4) do you pass on the SJ Wills jacket and find any number of brands that make good comparable waxed jackets?
Tinduck does these jackets but with I’d say a 2 month wait time. Same material, quicker lead times, plus I was able to alter mine. I asked for him to add a Horween collar and to extend the sleeves to 26 inches. I supplied the leather and the other alteration was free of charge. Super huge bargain, very easy to work with. Just go get one of his instead.
Thank you Nick and Troy for this review. I must have watched this video over 30 times. There are surprisingly few reviews for this jacket given how popular it is. I was fortunate enough to get a V1 jacket (same as Troy’s) on the secondary market recently. I am considering doing a comparison review for this jacket and the Tin Duck 24oz. Waxed trucker jacket with lining that I ordered a little while ago. I should be getting it in a few weeks. Looks to be very similar in build and should be interesting. Thanks again.
They seem to be made with identical waxed canvass. Very thick and waxy. The tin duck is literally a trucker jacket so more roomy in the arms and body and cut waist length. The wills has a longer body length and is more trim/fitted in the arms and body. Tin Duck takes about 8-9 weeks to receive after placing your order but the owner/creator can do custom measurements at no extra cost.
@@fredwestonsmith5866 I'm a pretty standard large in all of my jackets. I would recommend comparing to the typical jacket size you tend to wear and if you have any questions give them a call at the shop. They're more than glad to help you out, hope this helps!
Got a Wills and he isn't overstating anything here. It's just not like anything else you'll own. I'm a former Firefighter and first touching the jacket reminded me of my Fire Dept turnout gear and a fire hose. I got the small (normally a medium) and I works well with a tshirt or one layer thin/medium weight button down in cool to cold weather. A medium would have afforded sweater layering but maybe not fit as well proportionally when just wearing a slimmer overall style. I'd say if you're more on the athletic/stout side of a medium, stick with your true size, skinny or petite mediums may prefer the small esthetic better depending on climate and intended use. I own a few Barbour jackets and the quality is on par or surpasses many of those jackets. You definitely will feel you have an investment piece of clothing.
@@hardboard82 5'9 165 athletic build. I'm not exactly sure because my small isn't fully broken-in, but I do sometimes think about the ability to layer with the medium long.
@@gaylongraham077 I appreciate this breakdown. I bought one today size medium. I’m 5’9 155 athletic build; and was hoping the medium would work best with a hoodie or sweater underneath. Hopefully It works out well . I’ll find out in March 😃
As someone who lives in Portland and appreciates workwear, I feel like somewhat of a failure for having not copped one of these yet. I did order a pair of their Wesco engineer collabs though. I’ll have to get one this winter
Can't wait to get the Tin duck denim trucker jacket. Same exaxt material as this, made in USA, wool lined, and a couple hundred $ less, and no 2 year wait period.
I was able to pick up a Black Wills jacket 2nd hand for $650 grand total. After market if you are searching is very limiting to sizing and very firm on pricing. There is one on poshmark, that says 1350 but i was able to offer down $750. The size is Medium long. So if you know your sizing then cool. If you are insist on owning one, then you may have to wait for them to show up on your preferred 2nd hand site. So personal sizing, i am a 5"7 athletic build guy with a beer belly. And to me, medium is slightly snug, like hard to put on even but this is my first esposure to slim and fitted jacket. Everything else i own has some space to them. I can fit at least a thin vest under, and a flannel of choice with under shirt. Anything puffy would make it look it weird. Thin hoodie can work also. Alternatives: Heat straps chief coat. Freenote Cloth Riders Iron and resin Crusier/Rambler Dehen 1970 x Ship John (Canvas version) Conclusion: im still very happy to have own one, ideal sizing id say personally would be large or medium tall.
This is one of the few items that I have ever purchased that genuinely impressed me out of the box...not unlike buying a Mackinaw Cruiser or a Wool Packer Coat for the first time. Probably more than what you need, but infinitely cool. Would certainly buy again at MSRP. What's going against it is the wait time (not worth it) or the immediate gratification markup (questionable value) That said, I used my Filson Short Lined Cruiser as a reference...and it matched it quite well.
Thank you for making my bank account smaller. Ship John has some really nice pieces. Their Dehen x Ship John Hopkins Jacket and Dehen x Ship John Bonham Sweater are great pieces. I was going to buy a Filson Mack this year but the price hike for what it is, does not appear to be warranted and the Hopkins looks like a much better jacket.
haha this jacket takes like 3 years to get now so don't even consider it as an alternative, i don't you could get something like this made in asia more quickly; send themta tailor in Hoi An some twill/canvas and get it made!
I have a mackinaw wool cruiser that I love!! thinking about buying shipjohn's wills I wear a double XL in the macanaw did the measurements and that would be identical to ship John's triple XL. 2 and a 1/2 years is a long wait I live in Spokane Washington home of nicks and white boots I have a pair of whites custom on order the way for that is 4 months, That's driving me crazy...
I was able to order one of the monthly specials yesterday, Olive drab is perfect for me, but im stuck on sizing. I ordered a large but according to the sizing chart i am on the high end on the chest sizing. ahhhh
One has to be a VERY particular type of city-dwelling ιdιοτ to believe that this is “America’s greatest waxed jacket”, and Cαrl Mυrαwski’s review shows why: it is slim-fitting (which is contrary to the purpose of what sets itself out to be a “rugged work jacket”), its internal pocket runs too small (you definitely can’t comfortable fit a smartphone there), both chest pockets have flaps, so you can’t put something like a pen or earphones you need to quickly access there, there are no zipped pockets for when you need to ensure 100% protection from water to an item, the weight (in addition to the fit) limits your movements… And, on the aesthetic aspect, as acknowledged in this video, it is NOT a dressy or stylish jacket, it just looks lazy with those collars that won’t stand firm. Not to mention that the fact that it is unlined combined with how the material means it is not thoroughly washable means your own body oils and odour that will inevitably get into it will render it unusable ins civilised setting in 5 years or so. Awful, overpriced heavy trash (and, by the way, I went on their website and was actually going to order a pair of jeans from them and perhaps a cap too until I read the “Crew” section where they tell the reader their pronouns…)
Great review. A couple points from someone who owns one. First, at $500 dollars, this jacket is an incredible value. That’s why they sell out people! Everyone know this jacket is a steal. Used ones on offer on several online sites are asking upwards of a thousand bucks. Second, the fit is more European than American. No potato eating bubbas will be found wearing a Will´s. And last but not least, your grandson will inherit this jacket. Why? Because it will still look awesome.
Is the zipper TWO-WAY so it can be partially unzipped from the bottom for driving and walking comfort when one gets hot? Wish they would offer option to match the brass snaps to the color of the jacket.
Love those glasses. Could you ask Troy what brand and model they are? I've got a pair of Lindberg aviators that are a bit too large for me and I'm thinking that his might be more my style.
Hi Brian, Thank you! The eyeglasses I'm wearing here are the Matsuda M3062 in antique gold. I believe they are discontinued, but you can still find them here and there. The sunglasses are Jacques Marie Mage.
Meh, in the 20s-60s you could get better stuff. Check out the old sears catalogues of barnstormer coats in Corduroy, moleskin, canvas, wool and horsehide. Back then those were the lower end versions but we're still much better than most of the "heritage" crap we get today. I wish someone would make those sheeplined coats again. It was such a smart idea. Take sheepskins that didn't look too nice and use them as the lining. Then use a tough work wear fabric or leather for the shell and you have a shearling jacket as tough as a canvas parka. The ship John jacket isn't special, it's just made properly. It's a hipster thing imho.
Nope, not interested. 99% of us on this earth don’t work hard enough to tear through a $250 waxed tin cloth Filson or even a Schaefer that’ll ship same day of order. I’ll pass.
It’s cool but I just can’t abide by any company with that kind if ordering system. Set up a proper system, no secret handshakes and special emails, and let people just order it. It’s making some exclusive that doesn’t need to be. It’s very pretentious and unnecessary.
As of today, 11NOV2023, the earliest delivery date is January 2026, and books are currently closed, so it's actually impossible to even order one. Even if you could, the total price at time of writing is $598. I'm sure it's a great jacket, but that's absolutely ludicrous.
i know, i had to take them off this year's best waxed jackets video because it's just not customer friendly at all haha, not sufficiently customer friendly to recommend them anyway
@@StridewiseI'd love to have the financial means to do a direct comparison of the Wills, Tin Duck's Trucker Jacket, Filson's Tin Cloth Short Lined Cruiser, and Heat Straps' Chief Coat. All told, it would cost me over $2000 just for those four garments, so not likely to happen anytime soon lol
@@jamesjohnson6309 It's definitely a "buy once, cry once'" purchase, and I'm sure it's worth a good amount of money. I just think almost $600 is an overcharge. I hadn't thought to check the secondary market, I'll have to do that.
I am 5' 8", 145lbs. I too am typically between sizes. For the Filson Tin Cloth, I am comfortably a Small...but I'm not sure what I would order for a Ship John.
What a shame that people who never do any kind of physical work order these en masse, back logging companies,to look cool. Making it so people that really need them for work are unable to get them. The same people who decided carhartt was cool a few years ago buying the clothes like crazy and now carhartt has sacrificed quality to keep up with demand.
@@Stridewise my point is that people who need well made, dependable clothing for work are unable to get it these day because people that just want to look cool start buying pushing up demand. Companies like Filson, Orvis, LL Bean, Carhartt, Levi’s, Wrangler etc. have all sacrificed quality in the last few years in an attempt to keep up with the demand from fashionistas working in offices who just want to look the part. The few companies that haven’t sacrificed quality yet, have multi year waits as is evident with Ship John.
ShipJohn low key wants to scam you with its purchase method. Who the hell would want to pay $200+ down payment for a jacket they may or may not ever get??? What if you die? What if they die? What if the company fails? Lol 3 freaking years for a jacket haha
The paradoxical thing about this is that the people who really need and can use this jacket to its fullest potential, can’t afford to spend like $600 on a jacket and wait 2+ years for it. I mean like construction workers and tradesmen. The people who can afford it are hipster city guys like this presenter who are buying it for fashion purposes. NOTHING WRONG WITH THAT though. Buy the stuff you want and be happy. Just funny the paradox.
