How too's on motorcycle chaps?

[Hairic]

Any one have any advise or videos or books, knowledge on making motorcycle chaps?  Have a customer asking me to make a pair, that falls out of things I have made lol so any help would be great.

[jrdunn]

I doubt if it is any help.  I gave away my M/C chaps and made myself a pair of fairly plain western shotgun chaps.  M/C chaps always made me feel like I should be looking for the rest of the Village People.  I know it is just something wrong inside my head but I like these a lot better.

JM2C

Edited May 4, 2022 by jrdunn

[Hairic]

15 hours ago, jrdunn said:

I doubt if it is any help.  I gave away my M/C chaps and made myself a pair of fairly plain western shotgun chaps.  M/C chaps always made me feel like I should be looking for the rest of the Village People.  I know it is just something wrong inside my head but I like these a lot better.

JM2C

Maybe of help actually,  what weight/type of leather did you use? The style customer wants are, https://www.teammotorcycle.com/classic-biker-leather-chaps. I just literally don't know where to start on this one. I have road bikes most my life and never ran chaps so I don't have an inside on this one.

Edited May 4, 2022 by Northmount
Fixed URL - becareful not to include the period for the end of the sentence.

[jrdunn]

I got a "page not found" error from your link.  I used a 4-5 oz oil tan.  Reversed the leather(rough out) for the yoke.  They claim the big advantage of leather over textiles for M/C gear is that you "slide" instead of "tumble" on the pavement in an accident.  I have not personally tried this theory.  One thing I do like about M/C chaps is the tendancy to have pockets.  They are becoming more popular on some western chaps as well.

JM2C

[Tugadude]

Just search for "motorcycle chaps pattern" and you'll find a bunch of info on the web.  I have no idea if the pattern is any good, but I found this for ten bucks:

https://sewwithsarah.com/shop/custom-fit-leather-chaps-pattern/

 

[MikeRock]

Jr,

On that page there is a list of what they sell, helmets..............  'chaps'.............   ding ding ding :))

[fredk]

4 hours ago, jrdunn said:

.  .  . They claim the big advantage of leather over textiles for M/C gear is that you "slide" instead of "tumble" on the pavement in an accident.  I have not personally tried this theory. . . . 

Having had a few motorcycle accidents [me being knocked over by 4-wheel drivers] I can assure you that this is true. Also good leather does not abrade away in the way cloth does very quickly sliding 100 yards down a road surface

[Northmount]

5 hours ago, jrdunn said:

I got a "page not found" error from your link

The sentence end period was included in the URL.  Fixed it.  So just a comment to others that come across this post, when posting URLs, don't include sentence end periods in the URL.  This forum's software likes to include extra characters.

[jrdunn]

@Hairic I forgot to mention, that leather wasn’t as supple as I would’ve liked. The thickness is great but look for something with a fairly soft hand. Bison or elk are popular for premium m/c chaps. Kangaroo is popular for racing leathers.

@fredk , All I can say is OUCH!

[jrdunn]

@Hairic  I finally went back and looked at your link.  The chaps there are only $70.  If I donated my time and used bargain leather, I might get them made for that amount.  If those are the ones he wants, I think he should order them.  I'm not trying to be negative.  I have made myself, family and friends stuff that cost me more than you could buy it for.  I at least tell myself that it is better quality and it usually is.  Those are "patchwork" chaps.  Zoom in on the picture.  You'll see that each leg is made up of several panels of leather so the manufacturer can use all the hide.  Making one pair at a time, that would make it more time consuming for me and lower the quality.  You might have him look at these:  https://www.foxcreekleather.com/1-6mm-1-8mm-motorcycle-chaps/  A little more realistic price and hopefully closer something you might make.  Where you can shine is the custom fitting.  Measure around the thigh at the crotch, around the knee(bent at 90 degrees), make sure the calf is large enough to go over pants and boots.  I usually add about an inch to each of those measurements for my pattern.  Another problem with off the shelf is that the inseam usually lands about halfway between the crotch and knee.  You need to determine where they will wear them.  On westerns, the chap belt usually sits just below the jeans belt.  I've seen guys wearing M/C chaps from practically their armpits to almost their crotch!  When they decide where they will wear them, measure inseam and outseam.  I apologize for the rant/book!

JM2C

[Wild Bill46]

Which ever way you decide to go, chaps are not an easy task !   

But you might See Denny and Liz making chaps Pt.#1and #2at Springfield Leather on   www.youtube.com

( be forewarned though they call them shaaaapps not chaps  -   hohoho 

Or you might want to send customer to    www.leatherup.com   if your not interested in doing them yourself ?

They carry about as large a selection of leather goods as, I think ? I've ever seen. Big and small prices.

 

[Hairic]

Thank you all for the help and sorry for the faulty link. Customer and I decided that he would be better off purchasing chaps rather than making custom, just more cost effective.  I'll get to make a pair someday lol.