The Logic to Iron Heart Lot Numbers (or lack of)…
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Wow, so just a small can of worms then!
I understand though (not the system, clearly that's a mess :D), when companies grow organically over a period of time there is often little thought given to the structure / product numbering system…. and even when there is, its impossible to know how you're going to need it all to work in 10 years time because you can't predict what direction the product line is going to go in etc.
Thanks for the info though, I'll do my best to pick it up as I go.
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New and more recent products abide by a fairly set system. The lot numbers on IHSH, IHSW, IHJ, IHV, IHG, IHE, IHM, IHW, IHB, and others are chronological, more or less. The IHSH’s will be up to 300 in the course of 2021 I’d imagine.
Lot numbers on jeans bottoms and some jackets and vests tend to be descriptive of style or cut. For example, 7## is chinos and cargo pants, 8## is work pants, 526 is type III.
Some have interesting stories, or amusing explanations behind them. For example the first 2 in IH-2526j (duck type III) is because the western numeric for two looks like a duck. 634 has something to do with the Japanese word or symbol for samurai (I forget the details).
It is all excellent stuff for geeks, but a nightmare for nerds [emoji1]
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New and more recent products abide by a fairly set system. The lot numbers on IHSH, IHSW, IHJ, IHV, IHG, IHE, IHM, IHW, IHB, and others are chronological, more or less. The IHSH’s will be up to 300 in the course of 2021 I’d imagine.
Right so shirts that have low numbers like IHSH-07 for example must be long standing products that are still in production then. And lots of the numbers in between are likely to have been small batch runs that may never be made again? It seems crazy that there could be in excess of 300 different shirt styles that are still made, but perhaps if that number now also includes colour variations then it could rack up pretty quick.
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From the IHSH-07 product description:
Released in 2009, the 7th Iron Heart shirt designed by Haraki san and now the longest in continuous production.
And yes, loads are now defunct:
https://www.ironheart.co.uk/extinct-shirting/
What are still made (as of today) are here:
https://www.ironheart.co.uk/shirts/
Basically, if they are not in the active shop, they are dead….
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I had seen the rationale for the naming somewhere before but couldn't find it… Glad to see it here, @Giles. Such a cool story.
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@popvulture I was thinking that as well but then we have the whole family of XHS i.e. IH-888-XHS.
They are all selvedgeFavorite:
IH-888S-21 | IH-888-XHSib | IH-805 | IH-729-PUR | IH-729-KHA
IHSH-339-SAX | IHSH-341-BLK | IHSH-293-OD | IHSH-362-BLK | IHSH-409-IB | IHSH-336-OD | IHSH-375-GRY
IHV-44-BLK | IHV-02-BLK | IHV-02-IND
IHJ-75-BLK | IHJ-79-BLK | IHM-37-ODG -
The distinction doesn't mean too much around here since practically all of the jeans sold via IHUK/EU are selvedge, but IH Japan does make non-selvedge offerings in some if not all of the core cuts. You'll see em turn up on eBay sometimes, or once in a blue moon on the buy/sell section on the forum.
WTB
IHSH-IHG-BLK XXL
Sugar Cane Coke Stripe SS L charcoal -
(I could totally be wrong about the S, but I've always imagined that was the logic)
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@popvulture very interesting.
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@Karol said in The Logic to Iron Heart Lot Numbers (or lack of)…:
@popvulture I was thinking that as well but then we have the whole family of HHS i.e. IH-888-XHS.
They are all selvedgeYou mean Xtra Heavy Selvedge?
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Yep, Xtra Heavy Selvedge, Selvedge Indigo Indigo, Selvedge Indigo Black, Selvedge Black to Grey...
