The Strike Gold is the house brand of the Japanese denim store Klax-on, big brother to their other house brand Tenryo. The concept here is a combination of post-war American aesthetics and considered Japanese craftsmanship. Outside Japan, The Strike Gold began making rounds on Superfuture back in 2007 as a little-known curiosity found on Rakuten, but became massively popular in the recent years due to being stocked and promoted by Self Edge.

I’ve never owned a pair of The Strike Gold jeans before – as well made as they appear to be – it seemed none of their cuts would fit my build, and to be honest I was one of those people who didn’t like their back-pocket arcs.

With a new cut and a one-off denim which was developed with tactile interest in mind, this Wavy Standard Jeans sexsg24 collaboration between The Strike Gold and Self Edge has me buying another pair of pants that I really don’t need 🙂

Let’s have a look at the fit. This sexsg24 collaboration comes in two cuts – straight tapered and slim tapered – with the one shown here being the straight tapered version.

Be warned that if you go with TTS (true to size), even the straight tapered cut will fit quite slim…better to go one size up with this pair. The slim tapered cut will be for people with skinny legs only – if you any significant thigh or buttock mass, forget about the slim tapered version.

The rise is medium on the straight tapered version. There is a moderate level of taper below the knee, but cuffing remains possible.

Overall, a fair interpretation of the “lifter’s” fit, although the rise would be better if it were an inch or two higher.

Now, onto the fabric!

The denim – 17 oz, RHT, unsanforised – itself is perhaps the focal point of this collaboration. According to Self Edge the development of this fabric took up a whole year, with the aim being a slubby, tactile but strong fabric.

The weft consists of very short staple slub yarns, the shortness and unevenness allegedly not compromising the strength of the denim due to the extra-slow yarn spinning process. The warp itself is not slubby, but does present a good amount of loom chatter.

The overall effect is somewhat akin to that of the Godzilla denim on the Japan Blue jb0626 – patches of indigo seemingly floating atop the fabric – except on the sexsg24 the weft is not dyed, and thus the indigo looks brighter and more intense.

The feel of this fabric is rough, and it is quite rigid both raw and once washed. The selvedge ID is metallic gold…reminds me of Mr. Supakeru for some reason.

This denim is certainly very, very interesting! I am curious as to what qualities it will take on once the fabric settles in a few weeks and how it will age in the long term.

The construct of this pair of Wavy Standard jeans is impeccable!

Very nicely put together, using the traditional yellow & orange threads in a variety of sizes throughout, including very thick stitching along the waist and seat areas. Other thread colours are used for seams, button holes and bar-tacking.

Everything from the hemming to the waistband attachment is rugged and secure. The neatness and quality of the make is similar in level to Real Japan Blues & Boncoura…impressive indeed 🙂

The patch is made of a very high quality, vegetable tanned deerskin with gold foil labeling. The leather is natural coloured with a nice grain, and thinner than most cattlehide patches. The size of this patch is great, slightly larger than average which is my preference.

The custom hardware used are of good quality. The buttons seem to be thick steel, with a polished finish. The rivets are done The Strike Gold signature style – steel male component, copper female component…the former will rust over time whilst the later will tarnish.

Copper hidden rivets are present, which is always good. No crotch rivet though, with a row of bar-stitch holding the fort.

The belt loops are neatly attached, and aggressively raised.

The back pockets? Slightly on the smaller side but will fit a bi-fold or a mid-wallet nicely.

The pockets themselves are well made, with ruggedly thick stitching nicely highlighted in yellow & orange.

I am happy to see the arcuates done in navy threads this time, otherwise my trusty seam-ripper would have been put to work. I call it the “double scythe”, and I’m not a fan. Given the arcs are relatively inconspicuous in the current state, I will leave them alone for now and watch how they wear…maybe the arcs will grow on me?

Finally, the front pockets are made of a natural twill fabric. Smooth, medium weight, nice quality with sprinkle of neps. Check out how wonderfully the pocket was made – this is a more considered approach compared with the usual “tie across the edge” construct, the stitching on which usually breaks open after the first wash.

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Is this a nice pair of jeans? Oh yes, this pair is both well made and supremely interesting.

The fabric itself would attract both the seasoned collector and well as folks who are indigo-curious. Apart from a couple of subjective comments – I would have preferred a slightly higher rise and plain back pockets – I cannot fault this Wavy Standard collaboration jeans.

For hardcore denim nerds or the collectors with dozens of jeans, this pair is well worth purchasing even if you don’t plan on wearing it for some time. The unusual, slubby & very tactile fabric alone makes it a collectible.

For the beginner? It is hard to say… At $345 USD (including free international shipping) it is certainly priced on the higher end of Japanese denims, with sufficient quality & innovation to justify it being so priced, as I explained in this review.

However, much of the cost obviously went into the hardware, the patch, the extra attention paid during construct, the development of the fabric, etc…aspects which might be much less important to a beginner or those with only a passing interest in indigo. I would say these are very much enthusiast pants, and are not good value for the novice hobbyist.

For those with a smaller budget than $345 or are just beginning their indigo journey, I would recommend looking at the Godzilla denims offered by Japan Blue, which have a similar aesthetic in the fabric and cost less than half of the price of these Wavy Standard jeans.

Otherwise, this collaboration may be one of the most interesting jeans that has been release in the past couple of years, and are well worth having in your collection just for the denim alone! Doubly so if you like slubs 🙂

1st week review here.

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Edit: Some people have noted inconsistencies between actual measurements and those provided by the retailer. General consensus at this time is to size at least 1 up, if not 2. These fit tighter in the top block than what the measurements provided might suggest.