How do I care for and store my jacket????

[dannyk]

Just to chime in on Pecards because I had a convo with someone at Pecards. They are all the same. I mean there are some specific versions or those with dye added. But the generic line are all the same. They do it for marketing. So when people Google motorcycle, antique, etc.. their product is a top result. Also because people like to believe they are using the right thing for the right product and want specificity. So if anyone buys from their base collection all the same.

 

[jonbuilder]

I learned not to hang my jackets on a clothes rack outside of a closet near windows and leave the window shades open. The sun burns into the shoulders. The vintage jackets get condition every one to two years, new and older jackets get a wipe with a damp rag to remove dirt, salt, dog hair, bug guts when I rode. Like Carlos mentioned pay attention to the back of the collar.

 

[Riu]

I try to keep it as simple as possible.
I store them on a hanging rail on wide shouldered hangers:

I don't have a regular "care routine", but here are a few things worth mentionning:

Don't hang wet leather jackets, you could get shoulder deformation, if i come back from outside and it has been raining i leave my wet jacket flat on the floor somewhere.

The oils from your skin are not good for leather, i try to clean the back of the neck and the inside of the wrists of my most worn jackets once or twice a year with a damp clotch and a tiny bit of Lexol Leather cleaner.
I then apply a tiny bit of Pecard's dressing on these areas.

If your jacket gets dirty just wipe it clean with a damp cloth.

If it feels dry give it a rub with a bit of Pecards or you favourite dressing.
This should not be done on a regular basis, Aero for example says you should do nothing for the first 20 years of wear of your jacket.
Your B-6 has an acrylic finish, dressing will never get through it, all you have to do to that specific jacket is wipe it clean with a damp cloth.

Good luck, Welcome to TFL.

Spectacular picture Carlos!

 

[Carlos840]

Spectacular picture Carlos!

I'm afraid to say it is already obsolete, i have since bought a third rail, things where too tight and i have a few more jackets...

 

[yellowfever]

I'm afraid to say it is already obsolete, i have since bought a third rail, things where too tight and i have a few more jackets...

Careful! Don’t touch the third rail!

Seriously, I’m now jealous not only of your awe-inspiring jacket collection, but also of your storage facilities... my rather more modest jacket collection is randomly distributed across a wobbling rail with various hangers, chair backs and in a pile on the floor... In my dreams I’d like a cedar wood lined walk in closet jacket room! But right now I’d settle for a second rail...

 

[Spiney]

I'm afraid to say it is already obsolete, i have since bought a third rail, things where too tight and i have a few more jackets...

Would love to see a post showing your collection .

 

[Carlos840]

Would love to see a post showing your collection .

Most of them are on there:

https://www.thefedoralounge.com/threads/my-leather-jacket-database.93804/

Actually it's not most of it anymore, i am really not up to date with pics...

 

[lesnichei]

Here's a pic of my bomber (that will be well cared for due to your excellent advice). I apologize for the odd pose. It's just, I feel so damn manly in this jacket. I suddenly stand about four inches taller when I've got this on.

Carlos840...your jacket collection reminds me of my watch collection...but watches can be easily stored/hidden! And...my wife has said before that my watches all look alike...

 

[BotanPhotography]

I try to keep it as simple as possible.
I store them on a hanging rail on wide shouldered hangers:

I don't have a regular "care routine", but here are a few things worth mentionning:

Don't hang wet leather jackets, you could get shoulder deformation, if i come back from outside and it has been raining i leave my wet jacket flat on the floor somewhere.

The oils from your skin are not good for leather, i try to clean the back of the neck and the inside of the wrists of my most worn jackets once or twice a year with a damp clotch and a tiny bit of Lexol Leather cleaner.
I then apply a tiny bit of Pecard's dressing on these areas.

If your jacket gets dirty just wipe it clean with a damp cloth.

If it feels dry give it a rub with a bit of Pecards or you favourite dressing.
This should not be done on a regular basis, Aero for example says you should do nothing for the first 20 years of wear of your jacket.
Your B-6 has an acrylic finish, dressing will never get through it, all you have to do to that specific jacket is wipe it clean with a damp cloth.

Good luck, Welcome to TFL.

I just got an Aero D-1. Is it the same advice of "leave it alone for 20 years"?

 

[navetsea]

just my feeling here, but somehow I think "leave it alone for 20 yrs" is a figure of speech, when people buy or get into a new hobby they can be obsessive about it, put it under microscope, over maintaining it etc at least during the honeymoon phase.

I think they just want people for not doing that and leave the jacket alone, but if you wear even a brand new jacket and got caught in heavy rain twice in a week until the leather is soaked, then after the jacket dry, it make sense to check if it needs conditioning, just don't make it into a new weekly routine.

 

[Carlos840]

I just got an Aero D-1. Is it the same advice of "leave it alone for 20 years"?

I would think so.
I don't know how Aero finishes their sheepskin, but if it is painted with acrylic like Eastman's (as it should) it is useless to apply anything on it, now or in 20 years, as whatever you apply to it will never actually make it to the hide.
Navetsea is right though, you can't make a hard rule. Someone who rides 10000 miles a year in his jacket is going to have to condition it sooner than someone who wears it twice a week to go to a restaurant.

 

[Edward]

Buy an intentionally creepy one. Scariest you can find! That'll shift the whole thing from potentially scary to ironic.

I always weanted a full-size, plastic skeleton that I could dress up in my clothes. Thuoght it might be fun to take on public transport and converse with it.

Probably just as well I never actually got one...

 

[rockandrollrabbit]

It's probably been mentioned already, but the biggest thing to avoid I would say is having it near heat when it's wet! Leather can actually shrink in that circumstance. As far as hangers, I like a segment of a pool noodle over the hanger. It's about the width of a man's shoulder.

 

[Blackadder]

I was cleaning and conditioning a recently arrived vintage Rich Sher leather jacket. Thought I would share what I usually do with newly acquired vintage leather jacket.
1) clean the fabric lining with Kao antibacterial spray;
2) clean the leather with Leatherien cleaning lotion;
3) apply Columbus mink oil
4) apply Columbus leather crystal if needed and
5) rub some vaseline on all the zippers.

 

[jonbuilder]

Over time storage differently makes a difference. I have already mention staying out of sunlight. Here is an example. of what can go wrong. Late 50s early 60s horsehide I just received
exterior leather pictures

Interior leather that would not be exposed the same jacket

I have four 40s motorcycle jackets where all leather is in fine condition no flaking still hydrated.

Something to pay attention to in you plan to hold leather jackets for 30 to 40 years, some of you are young enough to still be wearing your jackets 40 years from now, for the rest of us I guess our legacy to our heirs

 

[TooManyHatsOnlyOneHead]

Before the internet, yes I am that old, most people didn't know much about anything unless you were a hard core hobbiest or that was your profession. I used to buy boots and shoes and would never condition them. I got a pair of Justin Cowboy boots I bought in 1995 and for the first time the other day I gave them a scrub and put some conditioner on them. Definitely restored the luster, but it wasn't like they were bad before that either. Just different now with some softness, little shine, and more depth of color. To be fair, they don't get much wear, but still, we're talking 25 years here. I read some of the posts on various boot forums and people are treating their boots like 3 or 4 times a year. Unless they're daily wears, and maybe going through salt/snow, etc. I think these companies have done a great job of telling us how often to use their products. You know salt has an expiration date on it? Just saying.

 

[lesnichei]

Can this sort of damage be restored and the jacket returned to wearable condition?

Over time storage differently makes a difference. I have already mention staying out of sunlight. Here is an example. of what can go wrong. Late 50s early 60s horsehide I just received
exterior leather pictures

View attachment 304953 View attachment 304954 View attachment 304955 View attachment 304956 View attachment 304957

Interior leather that would not be exposed the same jacket

View attachment 304958
I have four 40s motorcycle jackets where all leather is in fine condition no flaking still hydrated.

Something to pay attention to in you plan to hold leather jackets for 30 to 40 years, some of you are young enough to still be wearing your jackets 40 years from now, for the rest of us I guess our legacy to our heirs

 

[jonbuilder]

Can this sort of damage be restored and the jacket returned to wearable condition?

wearable yes, restored to any resemblance of a 60-year-old well-worn jacket that was stored properly no

 

[lesnichei]

wearable yes, restored to any resemblance of a 60-year-old well-worn jacket that was stored properly no

I'd be really, really curious to see some before and after pics!

 

[Chevalier]

Over time storage differently makes a difference. I have already mention staying out of sunlight. Here is an example. of what can go wrong. Late 50s early 60s horsehide I just received
exterior leather pictures

View attachment 304953 View attachment 304954 View attachment 304955 View attachment 304956 View attachment 304957

Interior leather that would not be exposed the same jacket

View attachment 304958
I have four 40s motorcycle jackets where all leather is in fine condition no flaking still hydrated.

Something to pay attention to in you plan to hold leather jackets for 30 to 40 years, some of you are young enough to still be wearing your jackets 40 years from now, for the rest of us I guess our legacy to our heirs

Oh no! It is such a beautiful jacket and those tears in the leather. Skin on Skinz in SF did a good job on a repair to a pair of my Langlitz pants. They had a hole in the leg when I bought them. Maybe something nibbled on them while they were in storage?

It does seem like something catastrophic can happen to leather that is not stored properly. It cracks and then tears easily. Is it what people seem to refer to as rot?