14 oz 73S Selvedge Denim — Collect Mills, Japan
Weight: 14 oz
Width: 30″–30¾″ (76/78cm), selvedge to selvedge
Fiber content: 100% cotton
Finish: Sanforized
Origin: Woven in Japan by Collect Mills on vintage shuttle looms
Sold by the yard, this 14oz selvedge denim from Collect Mills is a reproduction of an American denim from the early 1970s, referred to internally as the "66-model" construction. Like most Japanese mills doing reproduction work, they got hold of original vintage fabric and rebuilt the construction on their own shuttle looms.
The key detail is in the warp: instead of a single yarn type, this fabric blends two different warp yarns. That's what gives you the sharp, irregular slub texture across the face — most denim runs one uniform yarn and comes out even. This doesn't.
It's also woven on old-style shuttle looms instead of modern projectile looms, which run narrower and slower but leave a rougher, less mechanically perfect selvedge and body. That irregularity is what drives the aging — more contrast and depth in the fade as indigo wears off, compared to projectile-loom fabric.
Expect stronger fading contrast at stress points — whiskers, honeycombs, stacks — the longer it's worn before washing.
