1620 Workwear

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Evil D
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1620 Workwear

#1

Post by Evil D »

I've been waiting to do a review on this for literally a couple years now, it's a funny story. I first came across this brand from a random Instagram ad, where they bragged about selling the last hoodie you'll ever buy and that it's 100% made in the USA and even used all USA sourced materials literally down to the thread that it's sewn together with.

But at ~$150 I was skeptical


But I ordered one anyway and when it came I quickly found that I was far too fat to fit into it. This was in late 2019 I believe. Then came a diet and I lost weight and found that same hoodie was now far too big so I contacted the company to see what they could do, since for one I had already owned the hoodie for over a year and I had also removed all the tags but it was otherwise brand new and had sat in my closet the whole time.

Shockingly, they exchanged it for another size no questions asked and it was a super easy process and their customer service was top notch. I've been wearing that hoodie for about 3 months now so I figured it's time for a little review.



In short, it is literally the best hoodie money can buy. It's more than just quality materials, the way those guys designed the fit is nothing short of amazing. You don't know how crappy your current hoodie is until you wear one of these for a week. The best way I can describe it is, it stays on your body the way a glove stays on your hand and moves with you. It doesn't rise up and give you plumber butt. It doesn't restrict in any way. It has these weird armpit gussets that contour to your body. Basically this thing has a lot of R&D thought into it and I think all things considered with materials and such, the cost is justified. I wouldn't hesitate to buy another one and I'll be checking out some of their other clothing in the future for sure.


I got the "Full Tech work hoodie"
https://www.1620usa.com/products/full-tech-work-hoodie
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Re: 1620 Workwear

#2

Post by aicolainen »

Thanks for the review.
It's an interesting brand, but I think their stuff is a little hard to obtain in this part of the world, still.

First came across the brand in a Farmer E review.


Not primarily a review channel, but he really use his stuff so I consider his videos a better data point than the many table top reviews out there. He's done some Spyderco's as well.
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Evil D
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Re: 1620 Workwear

#3

Post by Evil D »

aicolainen wrote:
Thu Nov 25, 2021 6:47 am
Thanks for the review.
It's an interesting brand, but I think their stuff is a little hard to obtain in this part of the world, still.


Yeah international shipping is always a mess. Might be easier to have someone stateside buy it from them and ship it to you.
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Re: 1620 Workwear

#4

Post by The Meat man »

Thanks for bringing this brand to my attention. I've been on the lookout, off and on, for a good pair of work pants for a long time. The price tag is painful, but maybe they are actually worth it. Plus, I like the idea of supporting USA made products and jobs.
- Connor

"What is a man profited, if he shall gain the whole world, and lose his own soul?"
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Evil D
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Re: 1620 Workwear

#5

Post by Evil D »

The Meat man wrote:
Thu Nov 25, 2021 9:19 am
Thanks for bringing this brand to my attention. I've been on the lookout, off and on, for a good pair of work pants for a long time. The price tag is painful, but maybe they are actually worth it. Plus, I like the idea of supporting USA made products and jobs.


What's funny is a lot of brands have in-stocks issues right now because everything is being shipped from overseas but they're fully stocked. Ironic in a way.
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Re: 1620 Workwear

#6

Post by MacLaren »

Helll yeah, David.
I don't mind shellin out some coin on a great product.
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Re: 1620 Workwear

#7

Post by JRinFL »

Thanks for the link. Way better than I need, but I make some careful purchases. :usflag
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Re: 1620 Workwear

#8

Post by Manixguy@1994 »

Love hoodies. This looks like the granddaddy of them all ! Very interesting. USA made love it . MG2
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Re: 1620 Workwear

#9

Post by bearfacedkiller »

Very cool! They are also made in MA. I grew up 25 miles away from where they are located and currently only live about 2 hours from there.

I’m gonna grab a hoodie and also look into their pants.
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Re: 1620 Workwear

#10

Post by JRinFL »

I'm trying out a vest and some long sleeve T-shirts. The hoodie looks good, but I'd only get to wear a handful of days down here. 🥵🌞
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DSH007
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Re: 1620 Workwear

#11

Post by DSH007 »

Hah no way! I live, legit, about six minutes away from this place.. I drive by their building all the time! On about a dozen occasions I've made a mental note to myself, "hmm 1620 workwear.. sounds cool, I should check that out".. and of course then I forget all about it..

The building is more of an industrial/manufacturing type complex.. I don't think they have a physical storefront there, but now I definitely want to do a bit more thorough drive-by and check them out.. I don't generally like buying clothing online..especially expensive clothing.. because I'm kind of a weird in-between size and things rarely fit me right, but it would be nice to go there and try stuff on before buying haha!

Nice-looking clothing for sure. Thanks for the review, D!
Rick H.

..well, that escalated quickly..
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Evil D
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Re: 1620 Workwear

#12

Post by Evil D »

DSH007 wrote:
Tue Nov 30, 2021 1:21 pm
Hah no way! I live, legit, about six minutes away from this place.. I drive by their building all the time! On about a dozen occasions I've made a mental note to myself, "hmm 1620 workwear.. sounds cool, I should check that out".. and of course then I forget all about it..

The building is more of an industrial/manufacturing type complex.. I don't think they have a physical storefront there, but now I definitely want to do a bit more thorough drive-by and check them out.. I don't generally like buying clothing online..especially expensive clothing.. because I'm kind of a weird in-between size and things rarely fit me right, but it would be nice to go there and try stuff on before buying haha!

Nice-looking clothing for sure. Thanks for the review, D!


Yeah I HATE buying clothes and especially shoes/boots online but that is unfortunately the way of the world right now. At least their customer service seems top notch, but it did cost me $17 just to ship that hoodie back for exchange because it was so heavy. I'm not sure if they cover shipping in other situations where size or warranty are an issue, when I did mine I figured it was a small price to pay considering I had owned it so long and they still honored an exchange for size.
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Re: 1620 Workwear

#13

Post by JRinFL »

Already shipped which is good performance for a small firm during BF sales.
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Re: 1620 Workwear

#14

Post by Mushroom »

I seem to remember you making a thread about these a while back because the brand sounds familiar. Good to hear you like their sweatshirt!

Thanks for the review! I could definitely use a good quality hoodie and I like that it’s a local company. If Rick reports back about a storefront, I’ll definitely have to stop in next time I’m driving north.
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Re: 1620 Workwear

#15

Post by DSH007 »

Image

So I popped in here on my way home yesterday.. around 3pm on a Sunday, I wasn't really expecting it to be open, but I figured I'd at least check out the building and see if it looked like they had a storefront or not. To my surprise, there were a few cars in the parking lot and the lights were on, so I went inside..

I was greeted by Ted, the CEO.. super-nice guy, very knowledgeable and accommodating. He explained to me that, no, they don't have a "storefront" because they are not zoned for retail. They do, however, have a "showroom" (wink-wink) where they are allowed to display their products. It looks to me, based on what I see on their website, like they have each of their items, in all of the sizes, displayed on the wall. You can try the items on, see what fits, and then they pull the item you want from stock in the back room/warehouse floor and you pay through a POS app on Ted's ipad. There is a 15%-off "buy local discount," which is awesome!

Image
Image

Everything definitely feels very high-quality. I ended up buying the full-tech work hoodie and it feels like it will hold up forever if I don't abuse it (too much). The fit is like Evil D describes above.. the armpit gussets allow full range of motion while the hoodie stays in place on your body and, because it's a little longer, it doesn't rise up on you either. It's a very well thought out design. The pants look great too.. I'm thinking after the holidays, when my wallet has a chance to breath a little bit, I will probably look into a pair of the work pants to go with my new hoodie. Ted says the pants are their biggest sellers.

I told Ted I heard about 1620 Workwear on the Spyderco Forum, realized they were so close, and had to come check them out. I asked if he was into knives at all and his response was, "ehh my dad got me a knife once.." Hahah, so maybe not a "knife guy" like some of us.. but he did seem appreciative of the forum support.

Anyways.. I'd definitely recommend stopping in to check out 1620 Workwear in person if you're in the area. I don't get the impression that they transact much business through the "showroom," but I felt very welcomed walking in there. I guess they don't advertise retail hours because they are "not a retail location," but in Ted's own words, "if we're here, we're open.. come on in!"

Image
Rick H.

..well, that escalated quickly..
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Re: 1620 Workwear

#16

Post by JRinFL »

My vest and shirts arrived yesterday. I'm impressed as the fit is perfect for me and that's rare. Quality appears to be excellent as well. Now I just need the temperature to drop again.
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Re: 1620 Workwear

#17

Post by kennethsime »

1620 advertises to me on a regular basis. Not a huge fan of the two-tone hoodie, but the pants look pretty nice.

I tend to stay away from synthetic pants - I wonder how they breathe?
I'm happiest with Micarta and Tool Steel.

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Re: 1620 Workwear

#18

Post by JRinFL »

Mild cool spell here, so the vest and long sleeve T are getting worn today. $174 (minus whatever the Black Friday discount was) seems like a lot to spend on one vest, but I fully expect this to out live me and provide another lifetime of service to whoever gets it after I'm gone.

The long sleeve Ts are the perfect weight for down here as an only layer and I would use it as a base layer if I were still in a cold climate.

Certainly 1620 gear is not the twee products from all the trendy former "outdoor products" brands that cost the same.

Edited to add: Thanks Evil D for the tip!
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Re: 1620 Workwear

#19

Post by The Meat man »

Well thanks to Evil D and this thread, I finally bit the bullet and bought 2 pairs of their Single Knee Utility pants. I'm curious how they will hold up. My reasoning is that in nearly every other area, if you pay more you get a superior product, so I'm hoping that holds true here.

Fit seems to be right on.
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Re: 1620 Workwear

#20

Post by jwbnyc »

I’ve been eyeing this stuff for a few years. I live in Carhartts, but the quality and fit has been steadily going down for a long time. I am hesitant to order online though.

One of my sisters lives up that way. Maybe I’ll stop in the next time I’m visiting.

Thanks for the info about the showroom.
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