For a while now I've been toying with the idea of buying a leather duster to wear while riding in the cooler months, for protection, for helping keep out the elements and also for the looks...not gestapo, just business. Anyway, during my information quest I've come upon more than a few manufacturers and even more opinions of this one and that one along with this type of leather vs. that type of leather, and as such I was really at a crossroads. To complicate matters more it appears that according to many reviews these coats are sized like Chinese leather palm gloves; narrow shoulders, etc. Ugh.

This past week I went to a local outlet shop/flea market where there's a Harley type shop to look for leather dusters and although they had a number of them I'm not a size Small nor am I 3X or 4X! Oh well.

There was no way that I was going to a leather outlet like Wilsons so today during lunch at work I remembered there was another outlet store that might have leather goods so I shot out there, only to be disappointed once again when I was faced with the usual Pakistani rip off designs and not a single duster.

So I was heading back to work when I passed a motorcycle shop I never knew existed...turned around, went inside, and not seeing anything like I wanted I asked this nice gal and much to my surprise, she said, "Oh yeah, we have one downstairs...it was our demo. I'll be right back." She returned, laboring from the weight of this somewhat befuddled looking pile of black leather, and she took it off the hanger and said, "Try it on!" The sumbitch fit purrrrrfect, although the zip out liner was missing, and when I asked about it she said it's whereabouts were unknown, but more than made up for it by offering it to me for $75. So I lept on it.

Although the liner is missing and it needed a good cleaning, when I got home I scrubbed it up, applied some black liquid polish to a small amount of areas that were worn/scuffed [along edges], and hit it with some leather protectant - and the darn thing looks brand new!

Now here's the question. I feel like such an ignoramus but, about the leg straps...there are two straps on each side, that each, by themselves, wouldn't be able to go around my kitchen table leg, so, do they crisscross, or? Also, sitting on my '09 Iron with the coat on seems to run interference with the rotating parts of the bike, so is this just a bad idea to use this coat for riding, or is there a way of keeping the bottom of the coat safely away from the belt, wheels, exhaust and whatever?

Anyway, sorry for rambling, thanks for any insights!

=8^)

 

 

Picture like this?

 

Years ago I wore an Outback duster over my leathers when it was raining hard.
It was mid length, so no straps, and it never got tangled.
Maybe you will need to cut it down some to avoid disaster.

 

might work on a horse, but i think there will be a lot of flapping in the wind on a bike.

 

A good Gerbings heated suit will serve you well.
you may not get the STUDLY appearance, though.

 

That's cold Von

 

Von Zipper - In the future I'd refrain from linking to any renderings of yourself riding b*tch, especially on a public forum.

Now, if you have any information to share on the topic, that would be helpful.

 

Oh don't mind him hes to cheap to buy a coat he rides around nakid.
You talking about a coat like this?

 

Not too familiar with the style, but I'd imagine you would need to strap each side to a leg. Anything look like its been cut or missing?
-since the liner was MIA-