LEATHERS

From Greg Douglas (13 June 2003)

Their are a couple of things to look at first. Are your leathers plain/dyed many colours/sealed or treated in any special manner? Avoid dubbin for the most part as it is a wax and can make your leathers too slippery when on the bike. Though it can be applied to the non contact areas reasonably safely (as in areas that don't touch the bike at all). For new leathers unless they are very tight, as in chafing tight. Just use a leather moisturiser and conditioner. Their are several brands out their, personally I use Zanolin as once applied their is no greasy residue when dry (about 1hr to dry at most). It softens the leathers and prevents premature aging/cracking. and if you wear the leathers straight after applying the zanolin (don't sit or lean on anything lol) they will begin to mould to your body shape a lot faster.

As for the wearing them in the rain. Ok yes it does work, but it does not do the leather any favours as the water drives the natural oils out of the leather (oil & water don't mix here either) and can cause it to become brittle and prone to tearing at the seams and folds/creases. The last thing you want is for your leathers to rip well before they should have during an off should you have one. And this will drastically reduce the life of them.

Ok, now your leathers are moisturised (I should mention, some companies sell suede & nubuk leathers, while better than nothing unless re enforced with Kevlar they are more dress than protection & don't treat these with anything other than a spray on water proofer for leather) its time to consider what type you have. Plain leathers are rarely an issue, as in all the same colour. Any runs in the colour caused by the waterproofer really aren't going to be seen. But leathers that are printed with all kinds of designs need to have their labels carefully checked for any chems that will damage them. Then make sure your water proofing spray wont adversely effect them. And if you have any metal snaps on your leathers make sure their covers are well looked after, these get rather hot during a slide oddly enough.

And another thing, kinda on topic, many people used to come to me asking if i could make them new leathers because their linings had worn out, but the rest was fine. Well any good craftsman/woman (cant be sexist now can I lol) with the right equipment (Don't bother asking me to do this, i no longer have the equipment) can replace the linings. Add extra padding if needed around the bum (common request) or expand the breast area on ladies jackets if too small (ok trying to be umm, polite here but well, some women buy their leathers at the wrong time need i say any more).