We’ve built a lot of great shirts over the years. Looking back, every one of them owes its pedigree to this one…the patriarch of our shirt program. As with all our builds, it all starts with the superior raw material selection. As my Uncle Jack used to say: “It’s tough getting to a place called great starting from a place called so-so.” True in boatbuilding, true in decoy carving and true here in our Chamois Dock Shirt-Jack.
The Cloth
Chamois cloth is a Northeastern Seaboard classic, made popular by that fellow from Maine in the 1920s. We’ve taken Chamois cloth up a few notches by selecting a superior Portuguese 100% cotton yarn and weaving it in a twill pattern. Why twill? Because in a twill weave the yarns are packed more tightly together which makes the fabric stronger, thicker and more abrasion resistant than plain weave made from the same yarn. After some serious napping and brushing on both sides of the fabric, we end up with this 10.5 oz. weight, bruiser of a fabric.
The Build
- Double-needle stitching throughout
- Two, military-style angled front pockets with button closure flaps
- Reinforced hem patch seams with zig-zag stitching
- Two, 1” expansion plackets at shoulder back
- Engineered underarm gussets with two sewn-in ventilation eyelets
- Collar, pocket flaps and sleeve cuffs are lined with nylon satin
- Sewn-in name tag eyelets, left pocket
- Built in Portugal
The Fit
- Cut a bit roomier than our standard block (the full torso), and also in the neck and sleeves.
The Wearing
- The Chamois Dock Shirt can be tucked in; however, most will wear it un-tucked as an overshirt or shirt-jack, especially if deployed as workwear out on the water, in the boatyard or in the field.
- Works best as a secondary layer, worn over a short sleeve or long sleeve t-shirt, even over another button up shirt, like a flannel or a lightweight hoodie or ¼ zip.
