Vintage Levi's 70505 Big E Cut-Off Denim MC Vest with Hells Crows California Back Patches
Vintage Levi's 70505 Big E Cut-Off Denim MC Vest with Hells Crows California Back Patches
- Dispatch
- Prepared and sent from Tokyo within 7–14 days, often sooner, or as arranged
- Arrival
- United States · usually 4–7 days after dispatch, insured and tracked Check the Shipping Flowchart here
- Import
Duties and customs · View the estimate
A guide for this piece: about $66, based on the 10% US charge on the declared value of goods made in Japan.
The final figure is set by US Customs and depends on where the piece was made and the kind of object it is. Many antiques over a century old carry no ordinary duty; most jewellery and leather goods add a single-digit rate.
With EMS, any charge is collected by your postal service on delivery. For pieces of significant value we can often arrange duties prepaid before dispatch.
How the estimate is reached · Ask for a figure on this piece
- Sizing
- Measured flat by hand, pit to pit and length, in centimetres · Find your size · Ask before you buy
- Character
- QuietResplendent Ornate 6.8 of 10 ·
- Replies
- Within one Tokyo business day · Ask the curator team
- Guarantee
- Authenticity guaranteed · How we grade
Every piece is measured by hand, in centimetres as Japan measures. Please allow 1–2 cm (about ½ inch) for the give of the material and the hand that held the tape.
Condition report
Very Good8.0 / 10
- Giftable
- Mint
- Excellent
- Very Good
- Good
- Honest Wear
- As Found
A Crow on a Skull
A Levi's 70505 trucker, described as a Big E, cut down at the shoulders and collar and worn the way American motorcycle clubs wore their colours: a top rocker, a centre emblem, an MC tab and a bottom rocker. Here the club is Hells Crows of California, a crow perched on a skull, the patches faded and stained by real wear.
Best for: Collectors of vintage Levi's denim and motorcycle club culture
Condition notes
Honest vintage wear: fading, sun fading and marks across the denim, staining on the cream patches, and raw frayed edges at the cut armholes and collar as intended. Measured flat by the previous owner.
Assessed from photographs and descriptionReport dated 14 November 2026
Grades, ratings and commentary are given to the best of our ability, knowledge and experience, and condition remains partly a matter of personal perception. What we stand behind without qualification is authenticity, truthful description and provenance, to the best of our knowledge. How we grade
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Considered offers only. The Desk replies personally to figures made in good faith; those set far below the asking price receive no reply.
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A vintage Levi's trucker jacket, offered as a 70505 with the Big E red tab, cut down into a motorcycle club vest and dressed in full colours: a Hells Crows top rocker, a crow perched on a skull, an MC tab and a California bottom rocker.
The Piece
The vest follows the oldest custom of American motorcycle clubs. Sleeves and collar are cut away and the back becomes a banner. Here the top rocker reads Hells Crows in black capitals on cream, the centre emblem shows a black crow with a hooked grey beak gripping a white skull, a small MC tab sits to the left, and the bottom rocker reads California.
Beneath is the classic Levi's trucker, with pleated front panels, flap chest pockets, shank buttons and back waist adjusters, the denim faded to a pale, even blue.
Details
- Maker: Levi's, offered as model 70505 with the Big E red tab
- Style: Trucker jacket cut down into a motorcycle club vest
- Patches: Hells Crows top rocker, crow and skull emblem, MC tab, California bottom rocker
- Fabric: Cotton denim
- Buttons: Shank buttons, backs described as stamped 525
- Size: No size label; please go by the measurements
- Shoulder width: 45 cm (17.7 in)
- Chest, flat: 51 cm (20.1 in)
- Length: 58 cm (22.8 in)
- Era: Vintage, described as 1960s to 1970s
Measured flat by hand; please allow a gentle margin of about 1 to 2 cm (0.5 in).
Condition
- Fading, sun fading and marks across the denim, as expected of vintage wear.
- Staining on the cream patch grounds and frayed patch edges.
- Armholes and collar cut raw and frayed, as intended for a club vest.
Condition grade B (very good, light wear) on the Japanese scale; see Japanese condition ranks, explained.
Authenticity & Care
Offered as a vintage Levi's 70505 with the Big E red tab; the red tab and the shank buttons appear in the photographs. Hells Crows is the name stitched on these patches and is not presented as any particular club. Hand wash cold, inside out, and dry flat in the shade.
Delivery from Japan
The vest is folded by hand in Japan in a sturdy carton and shipped insured and tracked by EMS or an equivalent express service. Import duties and taxes, where applicable, are payable on arrival. Every sale is final; please ask anything you wish to know before you buy, and see our published policy.
Every figure above is taken by hand with the garment laid flat, in centimetres. Lay a shirt or jacket you already love beside them and allow a centimetre or two of margin, the quiet safeguard on a final sale. Our size guide to tops and jackets turns pit-to-pit figures into US, UK, EU and Japanese sizes, and for anything it leaves open the curator team replies within one Tokyo business day.
Considered offers are welcome through Send an Offer, and each one is reviewed personally. See more Amekaji pieces, or browse what has just arrived.
Concierge
Looking for another vintage club vest or Big E trucker? Our Hunting Salon™ finds, inspects and delivers it from Japan's private collections. Begin a Hunting Salon™ request.
Collectors also search: Levi's 70505 Big E vest · vintage MC biker vest · cut-off denim club vest
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