09-12-2014, 12:11 AM
Hiker, I have a Hi Viz vest I can wear over all my jackets. No armor in this one.
One has to love leather to wear it. The feel, the smell. Compared to textile, it's heavy, it's hot, it can soak up rain and weigh twice as much and take forever to dry out, it takes some upkeep, and it generally doesn't come with CE armor. With most leather the best you can hope for is extra padding on shoulder and elbows...but for an old school guy, there is nothing that says tradition more than a good looking leather jacket. You've probably heard the old saying, "Nothing saves your hide better (from abrasion) than cow hide" .... (well racers use Kangaroo hide because it is thinner and lighter and is some incredibly tough stuff) but for schleps like me, cowhide is the cat's meow.
One has to love leather to wear it. The feel, the smell. Compared to textile, it's heavy, it's hot, it can soak up rain and weigh twice as much and take forever to dry out, it takes some upkeep, and it generally doesn't come with CE armor. With most leather the best you can hope for is extra padding on shoulder and elbows...but for an old school guy, there is nothing that says tradition more than a good looking leather jacket. You've probably heard the old saying, "Nothing saves your hide better (from abrasion) than cow hide" .... (well racers use Kangaroo hide because it is thinner and lighter and is some incredibly tough stuff) but for schleps like me, cowhide is the cat's meow.