501xx Info Forums

You can find us in da tub...

1. 

   bretto
   

   junior member
   Joined: Apr '10
   Posts: 8

   Hey all,
   Decided to jump in and find myself a pair of STFs thanks to the great info on the site.

   The first issue I had was the fact that I couldn't find a local store that sold them, who would have thought that a city of a million people wouldn't have a place that sold raw denim (I'm in Calgary, AB. If anyone knows any place then let me know).

   Also couldn't find any Canadian stores that had a web presence so I ended up getting a pair from Rocky Mountain Connection in Colorado. Decent enough service, they just gouged on shipping to Canada. Canucks beware.

   I think I picked up a pair that were a little big for me (the joys of pants shopping online) but they shrank pretty well.

   I thought I'd keep a photo record of wear, so I've been posting some shots on my flickr stream. I figured that if anyone would be interested, it'd be you guys. Enjoy, I'll keep posting as I go.

   

   

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   Posted 4 months ago #
2. 

   Tim
   

   member
   Joined: Feb '09
   Posts: 48

   Hi Bretto,

   Welcome to our site! Good to hear that guys in Calgary, Alberta know about STF 501s. I've spent some good times in Calgary at Ranchman's Cowboy Dance Hall. Not many Levis or 501s. I thought that you boys were into Wranglers.

   Levis and STF 501s are available in retail stores in California. I always make it a point to try on a pair of STFs before I buy. Each pair is unique, and I can figure out how they'll shrink by trying them on when they're new and stiff. Also, here in California, we wear STFs unwashed with a looser fit before we wash em.

   Looking forward to hearing more about how you wear (out) yr STF 501 blues.

   Tim

   Posted 4 months ago #
3. 

   Ned
   

   senior admin
   Joined: Jun '07
   Posts: 183

   welcome bretto! i'm glad someone else has taken the challenge to document their jeans processes as well. If you want to, I welcome you to write a post about it that I'd can post on the site. No pressure but people really like learning from other's experiences. great to have you here!

   Donate to Support the Forum!
   Nedsferatu.com
   Ex-bones.com

   Posted 4 months ago #
4. 

   Kane
   

   member
   Joined: Mar '10
   Posts: 15

   Hey bretto, welcome and yes, Tim, Calgary, AB is undeniable cowboy country and i would have thought that Wranglers would reign there. However, i would not be surprised if the Wrangler 13MWZ in rigid is unavailable(even just the plain 13MWZ). In Vancouver, BC where I am from, Wrangler's were a non issue, Levi's 501's were always massively popular but the 501 STF's were completely off the radar. If you somehow knew about them then you would have to make a run to the border and through to Bellingham, WA.

   Posted 4 months ago #
5. 

   bretto
   

   junior member
   Joined: Apr '10
   Posts: 8

   Thought I'd post another shot, one I took during the shrink.
   

   Tim, there's nothing *but* Wranglers here during Stampede. A joyous time every year where the entire city drinks itself into a stupor and tries in vain to line-dance.

   Ned, I'll see where I'm at in a month. I might have enough info to write something up.

   Kane, funny that there weren't any STF's in Vancouver. I know that there's a Levi's store in Metrotown now, I'm going to be heading though town this summer and I think I'll go see if I can find a pair of Black STFs.

   Funny, my parents were in town for a couple days. My Mom told me about how when they used to wear STFs in their younger years they would end up rubbing indigo dye all over the house. I've been weary of that happening to me, but so far I haven't noticed any dye coming off.

   Posted 4 months ago #
6. 

   scotty
   

   member
   Joined: Mar '10
   Posts: 13

   LOVE the tub photo! Makes me want to go get a new pair and hop in the tub. I love that part of owning shrink to fits!

   Posted 4 months ago #
7. 

   bretto
   

   junior member
   Joined: Apr '10
   Posts: 8

   Update: 9 days.

   The jeans are noticeably softer and less stiff. They don't seem to be getting much baggier which is nice.

   I think at this point I'm going to be taking shots every two weeks or so, I'm a bit worried as I get into summer that it's going to start getting too warm to wear these much.

   
   

   Posted 4 months ago #
8. 

   bretto
   

   junior member
   Joined: Apr '10
   Posts: 8

   Day 63.

   Finally got around to take some more shots.

   I've worn these pants non-stop since the initial shrink, I did a rough calculation and figured that I've gotten about 835 hours of wear out of these so far. Not bad at all, I'm starting to get some nice whiskering and fading starting to show.

   

   

   All things considered, they jeans are holding out fairly well. There's some wear starting to show in the crotch and the bottom of the cuffs. The cuffs I can deal with with a sewing machine, now sure what to do with the crotch though. Any suggestions?

   

   At this point they were getting a little ripe and they had a general yellowish, dirty look to them. So I decided to give them a bit of a wash. Decided to go with a cold soak in the bath with some Woolite Dark.

   

   Posted 2 months ago #
9. 

   Ned
   

   senior admin
   Joined: Jun '07
   Posts: 183

   cool shots, thanks for the update!

   Posted 2 months ago #
10. 

    dave523
    

    new member
    Joined: Jul '10
    Posts: 4

    Last month i bought a pair of 501 STF's in NY. Haven't worn much Levi's the last ten years. I have been an avid Nudie Jeans fan. I have been working on breaking in my Nudie Regular Ralph Dry Greycast for the past three years and they have become my favourite pair. However they are starting to show a lot of wear. As i want to keep them for as long as possible, i wear them only on special occasions. So i started this new project:
    
    

    Here they are together with my best friend:
    
    
    
    

    Me soaking them:
    
    

    Also bought a pair of GAP Selvege denim
    
    
    and another pair of Dry Nudie, so it will probably take the rest of my life getting to break them in

    Will keep you posted on the progress of my 501 if you like

    Posted 1 month ago #
11. 

    bretto
    

    junior member
    Joined: Apr '10
    Posts: 8

    Keep posting pics Dave. Always like to see the progress of others.

    I was wanting to take a look at a pair of Gap Selvedge but I'm having a hell of a time even finding a pair locally. Apparently Canada is a selvedge free zone or something.

    How do the Levi's compare to the Nudies and the Gap jeans?

    Posted 1 month ago #
12. 

    bretto
    

    junior member
    Joined: Apr '10
    Posts: 8

    Well, a summer of commuting to work on my bike has rendered this pair of jeans almost unwearable, they were loose to begin with but now they just fall off of me. I'm up to about 1500 hours of wear in them but unfortunately I just had to put them aside for now.

    This is what the pants looked like before the first wash:
    

    An actual Levi's store just opened up in town, I went in a tried on a couple of pairs of STFs (they had one small pile of only indigo, I was hoping to find a black pair) and actually found and purchased a pair of proper fitting jeans. I went with my original waste size and 2in longer in the leg, we'll see if I end up with man-pris.

    Going to try and shrink these new pair in the Ocean, I'll see about posting some pics.

    Posted 2 weeks ago #
13. 

    dave523
    

    new member
    Joined: Jul '10
    Posts: 4

    @bretto the Nudies were much stiffer at first, think the denim is a lot thicker. They look awesome though in real life now, just awesome.

    Posted 1 week ago #
14. 

    bretto
    

    junior member
    Joined: Apr '10
    Posts: 8

    I shrank the new pair in the ocean at Tofino B.C. right next to a giant piece of granite called "Incinerator Rock".

    The surfers were giving me weird looks, but I did look a bit ridiculous.

    

    These new ones shrank to a much better fit, I lost almost all of the cuff but I can deal with that. Unfortunately I'm still depositing sand everywhere.

    Posted 5 days ago #
15. 

    dave523
    

    new member
    Joined: Jul '10
    Posts: 4

    @bretto if you give the pair (with 1500 hours of wear) a wash, don't they get a lot tighter?

    With Nudie you should wear them as long as possible without washing. Guess that is the best idea fot Levi's after the first soak.

    Posted 3 days ago #
16. 

    bretto
    

    junior member
    Joined: Apr '10
    Posts: 8

    @dave: The wash didn't too too much to the jeans size-wise. At first they fit a bit tighter but then after a few days of wear they ended up back to their pre-washed state (minus the smell and dirt).

    Posted 23 hours ago #

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