Fox Creek is extreme quality.
You could get by with less, but that's your call.

 

www.schottnyc.com - pricey but worth it....

 

Seems like there's a lot of leathers threads all of a sudden. You need to decide on budget, fit, leather weight and style. Fit and weight are what will provide you the protection you need in the event of an accident. If you can buy off the rack go for it, otherwise consider a custom made jacket from companies such as Langlitz.

 

I got my from leatherup.com about 5 or 6 years ago. Nice thick leather, soft and broken in, zip out lining, vents, strong zippers. I had a HD jacket and te zipper kept getting stuck, took it back got another same zipper problem. That jacket was $300 back then. The one I got of leatherup was $150 and at least twice as nice as that HD jacket I thought I had to have.

 

Just had a fox creek jacket delivered thursday.Top notch on quality.Just wish it was cool around here so I could take it for a ride.Went over it with a fine tooth comb.Very nice & heavy.

 

Make sure the leather is durable and tough enough. Most leather from China is pigskin - really useless stuff in terms of abrasion and protection although it's thick and will keep you warm. I wouldn't use sheep skin either. Buffalo, horse, cowhide, goat and deer are all good for a variety of reasons but each have their strengths and weaknesses. Furthermore the actual hide selection and tanning is critical. Of all the jackets I've owned over the years I prefer goatskin by far for its weight to durability trade-off. Horse is good but cracks and can tear.

 

www.lostworldsinc.com more pricey but worth it.

 

First Classics leather jackets. Excellant quality and good value for the the money. Priced around $220 to $250. Or you can pay $450 and up for a Genune Harley Davidson leather Jacket with the nice graphics. Check out ebay.

 

HD leathers are overpriced and almost never have spine padding.

Whatever you get make sure it has vents and full armor (forearms, shoulders, spine).

 

Schott!

I hate all that reflective crap HD puts on their jackets! And besides all their jackets look like sport bike riding jackets. No thanks!