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" 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.
