What is it like to use a Waxed Jacket everyday?

[Apdl]

I just picked up a new Filson Westlake for $190

I really like it but I am really nervous about keeping it clean and the nuances involved with a waxed jacket.

For the last 8 years my light weight Columbia jacket could be tossed in the washer when ever I liked.

I'm concerned the flannel will start to smell like "old sweat" after a few months of use and may get a little grimey from skin oil.

How do you wash it?

Does it get funky and odorous?

Does the wax transfer to cloth seats?

Thoughts?

Thanks!!

 

[armymgdude]

Not sure about the flannel, but I have a Filson jacket I wear a lot. I have had it about a year and a half, rewaxed once. It is initially a little sticky, but I never noticed any transfer onto cloth seats. I have never washed it, just brush it clean if needed. It gets better with age. I also have Filson pants I wear for search and rescue. I just brush off the mud as best I can. I love waxed cotton, works good for me in the wet brush of the PNW.

 

[Lucky j]

Inuse the waer one all the time.

The only time I came to smell is when I forgot it wet in a plce it could not dry. Started to smell like an old canvas tent. Do not use it anymore, it did not get larger as I grew older (read bigger).
'But I never worried about getting it dirty. Like mentionned above, just brush it and wear it.

Only thing, the are just heavier that a technical jacket. But that, you probably already notice.

 

[Purple People Eater]

I almost exclusively wear waxed jackets, and I live in Arizona. I wear a Barbour Beaufort when I'm camping due to it's warmth and water shedding qualities, and a Barbour Commander for around town in the winter. They're both due for a re-wax, but I love the patina they're getting just from being worn. Waxed jackets look better as they age, but be sure to hang them up and keep them out of the heat. They'll start to melt and stink if you throw it in the back of a hot car all wadded up. You'll love that Filson, especially once it picks up some flaws and wear from genuine usage and it becomes yours. And Filson stuff is top-notch by default.

 

[andoor]

I have been wearing a Levis x Filson jacket for a few years now. Once I managed to get break dust all over one arm, It cleaned up pretty easy with some warm water and a stiff brush. I had to re-wax the whole jacket to keep the color consistent.

There is a distinct smell to the wax that my fiancee doesn't really enjoy, I don't really notice it.

 

[Purple People Eater]

They suggest using cold water to clean instead of warm, because, you know... wax.

 

[kojackJKU]

I have a barbour, Its packed away somewhere. I am not sure where at the moment....but I have to find it, and then, get it refurbished.

 

[Jerry Ward]

After many a year running the chainsaw and destroying a multitude of sweatshirts, fleece pullovers, and the like due to sap/bar oil/rips/tears, I broke down and purchased a Filson Tin Cloth Jacket last September. I wear it every time I run the saw; which over the last 4-5 months has been at least two full days a week spent felling trees, implementing fuels reduction prescriptions, working the saw mill, and bucking/splitting firewood. I love it! It wears like iron, does a decent job keeping the snow and rain out, and is fairly warm as an outer shell layered on top of wool and fleece. It does tend to get pretty hot when working hard and will keep moisture in just as well as it does out, so I find myself removing layers throughout the day as the weather and level of physical activity dictates. But my Filson is always on regardless.
I don't worry about keeping it clean as I bought it for this particular purpose knowing it would get beat on pretty hard. Don't have any plans of ever washing it either; don't see the need to. It's getting pretty grimy and I'm sure it'll get worse as the years roll by. Smells pretty strongly of spruce pitch, saw gas, and two-cycle exhaust; a sweet bouquet to my nose.

 

[kojackJKU]

We call that eau du' deep woods!

 

[Jerry Ward]

We call that eau du' deep woods!

Righto! 'Tis a good odor.

 

[forty4fun]

I have a number of gore tex jackets that typically last about 3 years before the leaking starts. I have a 20 year old Woolrich waxed cotton jacket with flannel liner. It is my go-to jacket for trips back to the mainland especially AK as it seems to be raining when I am there. It does get dirty on the exterior. To clean it I use a hand held Bissell carpet vacuum. It has a built in brush for heavy dirt. I use just warm water and then vacuum up the excess. It really pulls a lot of ground in grime out of the fabric. I sent mine back east to http://www.newenglandreproofers.com/ for reproofing. Service was excellent. Basically a new jacket.

I recently bought a Filson waxed cotton wading jacket as my last gore tex wading jacket $$$ has started to leak at the shoulders. I expect 20 years out of the Filson!

 

[GregSplett]

Righto! 'Tis a good odor.

I would call that the smell of money!

 

[MT6bt]

I managed to find a brand new filson tin cloth jacket with the wool collar on Craigslist a month ago for $50! Guess the guy that I bought it from received it as a gift and didn't like the stiffness of it (he prefers craphartt) and has sat in his closet for years.
Admittedly, it was very stiff. After a couple weeks of wearing it though, it seemed to soften up a bit. then one day I accidentally left it in my truck on an 85 degree day. It was very supple until it cooled down. Now it feels stiff as cardboard (like when I originally got it). Hopefully I will be able to re-break it in and I didn't damage it. It's quickly becoming a favorite jacket...besides my filson Alaskan packer coat and my mackinaw coat. Those are irreplaceable...but I wouldn't be working in the rain laying on an asphalt roof with those!

Sent from my SM-S902L using Tapatalk

 

[haven]

Years ago, I spent a very rainy, windy day birdwatching on St Paul Island. The rain was intense at times. I wore a gore-tex hooded jacket and pants. My companion wore a waxed cotton jacket. By the end of the day he was soaked to the skin, almost hypothermic. I was a little damp since gore-tex doesn't breathe quite as well as advertised. For that situation, waxed cotton didn't cut it.

 

[mjmcdowell]

Waxed canvas coats

Years ago, I spent a very rainy, windy day birdwatching on St Paul Island. The rain was intense at times. I wore a gore-tex hooded jacket and pants. My companion wore a waxed cotton jacket. By the end of the day he was soaked to the skin, almost hypothermic. I was a little damp since gore-tex doesn't breathe quite as well as advertised. For that situation, waxed cotton didn't cut it.

Mine came from OZ 20 yrs ago , I treat it once in a while and it is still going strong, hang it in a tree and hose it off once in a while, used for a ground cloth under the truck and it is still tight in prolonged rain and on and on. my wife does not particularly care for it's smell however, but it's my coat not her's! Ha!