Yeah, definitely your pics @KrisB ! I was undecided between the XHS and the 634S-B. I went through the forum threads on both before even posting or contacting about purchasing. The fades aren't 'everything' when it comes to good denim but obviously they are important to me, otherwise I wouldn't be interested in stuff like this. I was concerned the XHS wouldn't fade well being so heavy but your pics on the forum convinced me otherwise so thank you very much! I doubt mine will end up as good as yours but I'll be happy if they even get anywhere close… but I'm getting way ahead of myself. I'm only at the end of day three! Ha!

That's some stretch @KrisB ! I've got my pair now… but I only need about an inch of stretch so hopefully mine won't go that far. I must say that your evolution pics are one of the main reasons that made want to buy a pair of XHS!

Thanks very much for the input… I think you guys are right about getting the smallest tagged 38" (actual waist 37.5"). Hopefully in my case it won't stretch anymore than the 1" I need.. but if it does, like you @JCMx800, I'm happy to wear my belt and as @sabergirl says I don't want to be uncomfortable, especially as I'm expecting the 25oz denim to be a bit tough going at first before it breaks in.

Hi guys, thanks again for all of your help with sorting my first pair of Iron Hearts! Winchy very kindly took some measurements and personal messaged me with the results. The smallest tagged 38" XHS had an actual waist of 37.5" and the largest tagged 36" XHS had an actual waist of 37". I responded to Winchy saying that, assuming I could expect the standard quoted 1" waist stretch, I'm probably leaning toward the smallest tagged 38" (actual waist 37.5") and then wearing/stretching to my desired 38.5". But then I just checked back in here and wow! JCMx800? A 2" waist stretch? Now I don't know what to do! Ha! All of my previous jeans have been no heavier than 14oz and the best stretch I got out of them was 1.5". I never expected 25oz to be so stretchy they'd go 2"! Were they extremely tight to begin with JCMx800? How loose are they on you now? I know you said you always need a belt now but are they too loose? Cheers.

Hi guys, thanks very much for your responses… I appreciate your help. I know that getting a 2.5" stretch out of the waist is going to be difficult and uncomfortable and I'm not one for tight jeans which is why I'm interested in two straight cut pairs. As I said in my first post I'm deciding between the 634S-B and the 634-XHS. I can see in the online store that there are some 36"s in the 634S-B but no 38" so with those I'd be looking for an oversized 36". With the 634-XHS I can see that, in the 37" leg length (which is fine as I'm quite tall and like a cuff), there are 36" and 38" so I guess there's more chance of finding an under 38" or an over 36" in those? Why do I have to be an odd size? Ha! Fingers crossed. Thank you again for all of your quick replies and assistance. Hopefully we can find me a pair that'll fit right so I can get my first pair of Iron Hearts!

Hi guys, thanks very much for your responses… they're much appreciated. Yeah, all of the measurements for the 36" 634S-B actually work for me (either the same as or very close to my current best fitting non-IH pairs) except for the waist but the fact that people with lots of IH knowledge/experience like you think I might be okay with the 36" makes me more confident about giving them a shot. I like the idea that there may be slight variations in each pair and that someone could check if there are any 36" that run slightly larger in stock. Thank you again everybody.

Hi everybody. I'm newly registered on the forum, although I've been reading often recently. I'm a big raw denim fan and have been looking for something a little different/special for my next purchase so have been considering taking my first step into the Iron Heart world. The two main pairs of jeans that have caught my eye are the IH-634S-B and the IH-634-XHS. Although I'm really taken with the idea of the 25oz denim I'm equally intrigued by the 21oz overdyed too! I'm torn (that's why I'm posting this in the threads about both jeans… sorry if that's the wrong thing to do in forum etiquette)! Regardless of which pair I go for I'm worried about the sizing. I've looked at the ‘how to measure’ guide and, as advised, have measured some of my best fitting/most comfortable pairs of jeans from recent years (Wrangler Bluebell, LVC and my current project Eat Dust) to compare with the sizing charts available from Iron Heart. Two of my pairs were tagged as 36” waist and one was ridiculously tagged at 34” (although, if I remember correctly, the three pairs started out at around 37” prior to wear) but in reality, using the ‘how to measure’ guide, they are actually now all coming out as an exact 38.5”. This is why I don't know what to do. I don't wish to sound like a ‘stuck record’ but I’ve obviously stretched my favourite non-IH pairs around 1” to 1.5” in the waist over the years, as is normal with denim. However none of those were even close to 25oz. I'm aware that the main site states that the IH-634S-XHS can stretch ‘up to 1” with wear’ but what are your experiences with this weight denim. Based on my other jeans I need a 38.5” waist to be perfectly comfortable so my concern is that if I go for the 38”, which apparently measures exactly as tagged, they'll end up too loose around the waist and saggy around the seat a few months in BUT if I go for the 36”, which again measures just as tagged, is it too big of an ask to expect 2.5” waist stretch when all denim usually manages is 1.5” maximum?? What would you guys do/have you guys done in similar ‘between sizes’ situations? I sure wish IH made a 37” waist. Thanks very much in advance.

Hi everybody. I'm newly registered on the forum, although I've been reading often recently. I'm a big raw denim fan and have been looking for something a little different/special for my next purchase so have been considering taking my first step into the Iron Heart world. The two main pairs of jeans that have caught my eye are the IH-634S-B and the IH-634-XHS. Although I'm really taken with the idea of the 25oz denim I'm equally intrigued by the 21oz overdyed too! I'm torn (that's why I'm posting this in the threads about both jeans… sorry if that's the wrong thing to do in forum etiquette)! Regardless of which pair I go for I'm worried about the sizing. I've looked at the ‘how to measure’ guide and, as advised, have measured some of my best fitting/most comfortable pairs of jeans from recent years (Wrangler Bluebell, LVC and my current project Eat Dust) to compare with the sizing charts available from Iron Heart. Two of my pairs were tagged as 36” waist and one was ridiculously tagged at 34” (although, if I remember correctly, the three pairs started out at around 37” prior to wear) but in reality, using the ‘how to measure’ guide, they are actually now all coming out as an exact 38.5”. This is why I don't know what to do. I don't wish to sound like a ‘stuck record’ but I’ve obviously stretched my favourite non-IH pairs around 1” to 1.5” in the waist over the years, as is normal with denim. However none of those were even close to 21oz. I'm aware that the main site states that the IH-634S-B can stretch ‘up to 1” with wear’ but what are your experiences with this weight denim. Based on my other jeans I need a 38.5” waist to be perfectly comfortable so my concern is that if I go for the 38”, which apparently measures exactly as tagged, they'll end up too loose around the waist and saggy around the seat a few months in BUT if I go for the 36”, which again measures just as tagged, is it too big of an ask to expect 2.5” waist stretch when all denim usually manages is 1.5” maximum?? What would you guys do/have you guys done in similar ‘between sizes’ situations? I sure wish IH made a 37” waist. Thanks very much in advance.