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General Topics/Tech TipsDiscussion on break in periods, rider comfort, seats and pad suggestions. Tech tips as they become available will be posted here.
The way this was told to me was that pirates discovered that wet sails pulled much better and more efficiently than dry sails.
They figured out that soaking the sails in wax was the hot set up of the day.
Go ahead and page forward till you come to the part about British bikers and how they always had to ride in the rain.
These blokes discovered waxing their coats would protect them from the wet.
There are some really famous British companies that continues on with that tradition today......only I can't remember names.
My history with this dates back to the 70's.
I had a pair of jeans that I wore when I rode. They were oil soaked and caked up pretty good. I remember getting some transmission fluid on em and they made my legs look like raspberries from breaking out.
That meant that I had to set fire to them and start over.
Motorcycle fluid leaks come in two varieties. One is like cutting your jugular vein, shooting oil across the room. The others are "weepers" and they can get pretty nasty.
I had a weeper and it would ruin any pants that I wore on it....so the riding jeans would stand on their own in the corner until we rode.
My jacket was an Army surplus....and yeah, I waxed it. Wind and waterproofing. In those days it was the best rain gear you could buy...only you make it, not buy it.
This would be a good time for you to do a little research on waxed cotton and waxed canvas.
It's a really cool project. Maybe that old jean jacket? Maybe a pair of jeans?
I understand there is an interest in vintage looks. I hate breaking in a new leather jacket or boots. They make you look like a new-hire.
This trick right here will dang sure get you past that.
Back in 2014 I bought a brand new Indian motorcycle.
They threw in this jacket:
Indian Jacket
It looks like a swell jacket. All cotton canvas outer shell. Leather collar. Many nice features like padded elbows and shoulders.
Well, I hate the danged thing. It sucks up every little bit of debris, dog and cat hair....it pulls the crud out of the corners of any room you walk into.
This thing was billed as a 3 season jacket but the wind would cut right through it.
Did I mention that it's heavy?
Today I waxed this jacket.
It took me all day too because I'm not as spry as I was the last time I did this.
I'm hoping to achieve a couple of things. Wind and water proof would be nice.
I hate the term "old school"....so I ain't going there.
I took some pictures of the process but I don't want to waste any more of your time than I already have.
If you are interested in this...let me know here in this thread.
I'll only let the cat out of the bag if there is any curiosity. Cause you know about cats and curiosity...
For quick waterproofing, use Nikwax and spray it on the fabric. You can get it on Amazon.
One British company that is famous for waxed cotton riding gear is Belstaff, who bills themselves as the world's oldest motorcycle clothing company.
Yep, that's it.
Barbour too.
You could make this work on a Harley if you were to sew one of those Choked Chicken "Live to Ride" back patches on it....But I don't have a picture of that upgrade...yet.
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DIY - Waxed Jacket - Tales from the crypt
