I'm not sure this current debate here was all that productive as it really just ended up where we were at the onset of it, i.e. we have NO IDEA what the current Magnoli coat looks like and won't be able to assess it until one person is kind enough to post pictures of it. what is also interesting also is that Indy Magnoli seems to watch this thread very carefully, yet has not chimed in ever since
Mechanismo politely requested pictures of the alleged improvements. So, we're back to 'we believe it when we see it'.
To assume that the changes were made and we're being distrustful is nonsensical as there is literally not one indicia that that is the case. We hope to see these improvements, of course. That said, the Magnoli has almost zero chance of being more SA than the SR coat. Collar, shearling, shoulder whatever aside... those are all important but the most important aspect here is fabric. And there is nothing on the market that thus far has come close to the SR. There are plenty of SR owners on this page that also own a Zlurpo or Magnoli and almost all of them strongly prefer their SR coat. the SR coat has an acrylic layer on top of the cotton making it as close to the laminated, painted cotton of Rene April's creation. Bottom line is that this is a subjective assessment so basically, to each his/her own. If someone loves Magnoli's version, all power to you.
To be clear, none of the SR fans/owners on here are in any way associated with Soul Revolver, as far as I know - quite the contrary, we're all very frustrated with them. I had over 100 emails exchanged with SR prior to my purchase. What we do know and respect, however, is that SR is transparent in their product and their service. They say "no" too many times, but at least you know what you get. My complaint with Magnoli is that it is essentially a waxed cotton replica, more or less, that costs more than twice as much as the WSL coat, using the same material, with more inaccuracies and errors than a custom made WSL (which still costs less than half the Magnoli). Plus, while very slow and frustrating, WSL is completely open to specification and alterations which
Mechanismo initiated and many of us followed suit, including me. I get my WSL coat back this week with replaced shearling and a few added magnets and that's it. The rest is almost 100% SA and that's because of
Mechanismo 's tireless and detailed efforts in providing us all with a blueprint on the corrections needed for the WSL. Once I wax it, it will be done. Still a lot cheaper than the Magnoli with the wrong shearling and wrong dimensions, some of which cannot be fixed (like the size of the lapel which is way too small). Now if Magnoli can produce a coat that is as SA as the customized WSL (and maybe even source decent shearling with the right napping - thanks
Egon) or even better, I think it would become a contender. Until then, IMHO, the SR and the customized WSL are the best choices out there. A lot of what this is meant to accomplish is to save newcomers to this thread and others who stumble upon it trying to find a decent replica coat a roadmap that many of us didnt have. I contacted dozens of WSL, Magnoli, Zlurpo and SR owners and some of them were very helpful while others didnt respond. In the end, we would love for people to know what they are getting into prior to their purchase without having to spend endless hours the way many of us did. Cheers
