Leathers sizing

[kiwi_rsvr]

A friend of mine was taking her bike for a wof (N.Z equiv to an MOT) it was only a 15 minute trip, so she wore jeans and a lightweight jacket.
On the way back from the MOT she was knocked off her bike by an old fart who failed to give way she went over the bonnet at approx 45kmh and slid about 30 yards (so the police reckoned) on her front. It was enough to require that both knees needed reconstruction and both breasts removed and prostetics fitted. I promised myself to always wear the right gear all the time after that.

Climbs down from pulpit and shuffles off to his corner.

/nurse head on

Always proper gear

I have nursed people who didn't - skin grafts on hips etc are never easy

And no, I would not wear draggin jeans...

[TC]

Being of the large cuddly size, well okay i'm fing fat, I need proper man sized leathers but am not too sure how to relate standard clothe sizes to leather sizes.
If I take a 44 inch waist denim jeans what would that be in leathers either 1 piece or 2 piece ?

Most leathers are sized in metric, so as a rule of thumb, if you are a 44 inch waist, then start at a size 54 metric, same applies to chest measurements.

The downside is that every manufacturer has their own ideas of size. Some 54's will be bigger or smaller than others hence the rule of thumb comment.

If you have particulalry long arms or legs, then you can look at sizes 110+

These are standard sizes but with extra length in the arms and legs.

[back_marker]

Also worth noting that European and British sizes are different - mine are size 50 because I bought them in the fatherland, but are, I believe, a British size 40.

How this equates to waist and chest sizes I am not sure - I am around 32 - 34" waist and 40" chest and they are quite snug on me.

[Aladinsaneuk]

rather than getting from evil bay, research your local second hand leather dealers - we have an excellent one in norwich where you can at least try them on before you buy... and prices are keen

oh - there are differences between manufacturers - for instance spidi sizes are for narrow waisted, small buttocked nancy boy italian poofs imho,

go to all the local dealers and try on the different companys clobber, and see what size fits you - will make it easier when shopping on evil bay...

[D-Rider]

A friend of mine was taking her bike for a wof (N.Z equiv to an MOT) it was only a 15 minute trip, so she wore jeans and a lightweight jacket.
On the way back from the MOT she was knocked off her bike by an old fart who failed to give way she went over the bonnet at approx 45kmh and slid about 30 yards (so the police reckoned) on her front. It was enough to require that both knees needed reconstruction and both breasts removed and prostetics fitted. I promised myself to always wear the right gear all the time after that.

Climbs down from pulpit and shuffles off to his corner.

/nurse head on

Always proper gear

I have nursed people who didn't - skin grafts on hips etc are never easy

And no, I would not wear draggin jeans...

Yes, I now this is the sensible approach and I'm certainly not knocking those who follow it .... but for me it doesn't work as it's not practical.
Those that use their bikes solely for leisure would have no problem and for those that commute it will vary.

I know that the road is a big cheese grater and definitely ride with this in mind when not dressed in a cow - this helps.

The other thing to consider is that we all accept a degree of risk - the logical conclusion of the "always ride with half a cow on you" is to add a couple of wheels and shield yourself inside a metal shell .... and that may not be enough.

I guess that having taken to bikes in the days that very few people had protective kit gives a more "relaxed" approach than those that have been brought up in "Health & Safety Britain".

Nevertheless I am considering a pair of those Dragging/Hood things for work ..... but £80+ for a pair of trousers FFS ......



With all of the above being said, I get really pissed off when I see people riding without gloves .... what hits the road first? 90% of the time you make sure your hands go down first.

I think it is logical to wear the best level of protection that is consistent with what you are going to be doing on your ride and when you get to your destination.

[Aladinsaneuk]

I can accept your point Andy - and I am sure you can accept mine :)

perhaps the solution for folk like yourself - the commuters, is the reinforced over trousers?

I do view draggin jeans with concern - mainly because people do not fit them properly - you go sliding down the tarmac with hipsters on, you will still need a lot of work - the jacket will ride up.....

and as a simple guide - in order of safety needs:
Helmet
Gloves
Boots
Jacket and jeans

helmet is obvious - hands because at the likely velocity that we will fall off, you will suffer a degloving injury - basically, the skin is a layer, layer gets nice and warm due to friction so it slides off...
Boots - not rig boots! something that actually is tight/supports the ankle. The ankle is just about the most complex joint in the body and is virtually impossible to replace - how hard? well, the IRA no longer kneecap folk - they do the ankles instead...

[Paulh]

Size also depends what you wear under them - back protector / chest protector adds a size to mine compared to what fits off the shelf. A lot of leathers also seem to be sized to take a T shirt under and little else (compared to say a casual jacket).

Also as said above different makes are different fits - what fits in one make may be different in others.

[HowardQ]

I used to wear denim jeans on occasions but have not done for a few years.
I have two pairs of leather trousers, one a pair of Dainese Mekong touring pants with lots of CE protection which I now wear most times on the bike.
I also have a pair of comfy old leather biking jeans, (Skintan), with simple comfort padding, (in the knees and hips etc.), that I have had for years and I tend to wear these if I am going out to a bike meet or something casual, when I will spend a lot of time off the bike walking around.

[TC]

Also worth noting that European and British sizes are different - mine are size 50 because I bought them in the fatherland, but are, I believe, a British size 40.

That is what I said

A size 32 UK will be a size 42 European as a rule of thumb

[back_marker]

Also worth noting that European and British sizes are different - mine are size 50 because I bought them in the fatherland, but are, I believe, a British size 40.

That is what I said

A size 32 UK will be a size 42 European as a rule of thumb

You said something similar however you suggested that size 54 leathers, ie two sizes up from mine, would have a 44" waist, as opposed to 34" on mine.

Having never bought separate leather trousers I don't know how they are sized but I think 1- and 2-piece suits may be sized by chest size.

[kiwi_rsvr]

Some interesting idea's and I have several "leads" to follow...cheers all.

I may just keep my Akito's , they maybe old but are in very good condition, but point taken about the threads.

[Kwackerz]

Anyone got a remedy for my leather jacket - it's shrunk!

Ive got a couple of black leather jackets broken in nicely ('comfortable' i think the description is!) here that dont fit me Bobbi, youre more than welcome to one of them free gratis if you wish Cant remember what the sizes are though.

If you're up for the Norfolk rally, I could get them over to Sam to have there.

[HisNibbs]

It is very rare indeed that I don't wear leather on a bike. The most painfull experiences of my life was the night after nursey spent a couple of hours scraping gravel out of my arse... I was just poping home for lunch so didn't put the leather's back on. I also didn't see the diesel spill across the 70mph left hander......

I've done the same for my brother's back cause it was too hot to wear a jacket.

I've got a bargain or two off ebay but I'm closer than some to average size.

[BikerGran]

Cheers K but I don't think I'd wear a leather now I'm on the trike, got used to wearing denim and all my badges are on the denim, thanks for the offer though.
Sentimental I know but I can't part with the old leather, we did a lot of miles together!

As for what one ought to wear on a bike - I agree always wear hide of saome sort if you're going for it, but when doing other things it's not always practical, I also subscribe to the view that if you want to be safer, drive a car!
Injury is a lottery anyway, I was knocked off onn a roundabout doing 20mph in leather jacket and gloves and denim jeans, had a nasty graze on my hip where the handlebar dug in and a wrenched shoulder.
A mate got knocked off on a roundabout doing about 20 mph wearing the same sort of gear, his glove pulled off and jacket ripped and lost a lot of flesh off his arm and hand.

[kiwi_rsvr]

Ultimately what you choose to wear is as personal as your underwear (or maybe not in some cases).
I wear textiles when commuting and just dont push things knowing they dont give me the same level of protection as my leathers , I also only have a double thickness "soft" back protector.
I have a completely differant set of kit for trackdays.

Unfortunately we are judged by others not only how we ride but what we wear and ultimately that effects insurance and health care.

I think that if you want to wear a t-shirt, shorts & flip flops and ride around with your lights off then you deserve everything you get and you should have no right of complaint, well thats my personal opinion anyway.