A Guide to Breaking in Motorcycle Gloves

Motorcycle gloves are tough and breaking them in can be even tougher. Because of the thick leather and padding used in motorcycle gloves, they can be difficult to flex and manipulate when you first buy them. Although they will eventually break in, the amount of riding time needed to soften the leather and make the gloves more flexible can be considerable. Therefore, here is some information you will find useful in reducing the amount of time needed to break in the gloves.

What to Do at the Store

Before you leave the store where you purchased your new motorcycle gloves, always make sure that you choose a pair that will be easy to break in and feel relatively comfortable from the start. Choosing a proper fitting glove will always make breaking in the glove much easier. Also, when you buy the gloves, you should also pick up a bottle of leather conditioner. Leather conditioner will help ease the process of selecting and pulling that will be needed to stretch the leather and break the gloves in. In fact, apply some of the leather conditioner to gloves before you leave the store.

Soak to Fit

An old Army and Marine trick that has been used for several centuries to break in tight fitting leather boots can also be used for leather motorcycle gloves. The process is actually quite simple. Just soak your motorcycle gloves in some hot water until they are completely wet and waterlogged. Then, put them on and wear the gloves as soon as the temperature cools down a little. Continue to wear the gloves until they're completely dry.

Although it is the bit uncomfortable, this method has been proven time and again to be an effective technique for softening the leather and allowing it to flex and stretch more. After the gloves are dry, you should notice that they're considerably more comfortable and that you are able to manipulate the glove much easier.

Rubbing Alcohol: A Leather Glove's Best Friend

An old cowboy trick that has been used for many years to soften and loosen rodeo gloves is to apply rubbing alcohol to the outside surface of the gloves. The rubbing alcohol should dry fairly quickly and will help the leather in the gloves to stretch and become more pliable. You may need to do this several times before the leather is stretched enough to make the gloves comfortable. However, this is an effective method of softening the leather, which will help your gloves break in faster.

Ride, Ride and Ride

Of course, the fastest way of breaking in your new leather motorcycle gloves is to simply ride your motorcycle as much as possible. The more you ride your bike, and wear your gloves, the faster they will break in. During the first few days following the purchase of your gloves, you should wear the motorcycle gloves as much as you can. This is not a bad thing though as it gives you a good excuse to spend some quality time with your bike and the open road.