The obvious answer to this question is
no:
The quality and type of the leather
determines the price.
To really understand the difference
between the quality and types of
leather, you have to know what the
different types and qualities that are
available, the main manufacturing
purpose for that type of leather, and
the cost for those products. The
main types of leather used in
manufacturing of Motorcycle Chaps are
Split leather, Premium leather, Naked
leather, and Patchwork leather. We
will discuss each different type of
leather in a different article:
Part 1 - Split Cowhide, Part 2 - Premium
Leather, Part 3 - Naked Leather, Part 4
- Patchwork Leather.
PREMIUM LEATHER has a
manufacturing definition that means the
leather is top grain cowhide and that
the thickness is a minimum of 1.2 mil in
thickness or more. Most people selling
leather are unaware of the
specifications for premium leather and
just use the top grain leather
definition. What is TOP GRAIN
LEATHER? Top-Grain leather, is
taken from a full grain or uncut hide.
Top top portion of the hide is removed
from the whole thickness of hide to make
the leather uniform in width. This
top portion is fuzzy on one side and smooth on the
other. The smooth side is the side where
the hair and natural grain are found.
The top surface of the leather is
removed by lightly sanding. This
removes the imperfections in the
leather, such as scrapes and nics from
barbed wire. Once the top of the
hide is smooth, the dye is applied.
This is done in several ways. Our
hides are stacked in a vat or drum, dye
is poured on the hides and the hides
soak up the dye. Dye is
continually applied until all the hides
are colored (black) all the way through:
Top to bottom, side to side. Once
the hides are completely black the
excess needs to be removed. The
hide are pressed, similar to an old
ringer washing machine. This
rolling drum has a grain pattern etched
into the metal, so as the drum squeezes
out the dye, a fresh stamped evenly
applied grain is applied to the hides. This
is how the leather gets it's classic
look.
PREMIUM TOP GRAIN
LEATHER is known for it's soft feel,
strength, and durability. The top
smooth side of the cowhide is the part
that gives the strength and elasticity
to the leather. When people talk
about "breaking in" the leather.
What they are talking about is widening
the fibers of the top smooth side of the
cowhide to make the leather more
flexible. With TOP GRAIN LEATHER,
this can be done without losing the
strength and durability to the hide, or
causing damage to the cowhide.
Real TOP GRAIN LEATHER can be broken in
just a matter of hours of use. Of
course, it will continue to soften over
time.
PREMIUM TOP GRAIN
LEATHER will last a lifetime and is one
of the most durable and versatile
natural materials man makes use of.
Chaps made from PREMIUM TOP GRAIN
LEATHER will last a lifetime, unless you
out grow them. These PREMIUM TOP
GRAIN LEATHER CHAPS will mold to your
body over time to give you a fit that is
unmatched.
Of course, all PREMIUM
TOP GRAIN LEATHER CHAPS are going to give
you protection from the weather.
These PREMIUM TOP GRAIN LEATHER CHAPS
will be windproof for the life of the
chaps or longer. Wind will never
penetrate the top grain layer unless you
put a hole in them.
PREMIUM TOP GRAIN
LEATHER CHAPS will also shed water in
small amounts without treating. Of
course, you will want to treat them and
condition the leather also. Real
Bikers never want to get caught in the
rain, but sometimes will. We at
www.RealBikers.com recommend mink
oil for the water repelling properties.
I have found that going to any farm or
horse supply store will usually produce
the best quality and lowest price on
Mink Oil.
In my opinion, you
should try to find PREMIUM TOP GRAIN
LEATHER CHAPS. These chaps will
start out soft and just get softer. PREMIUM TOP GRAIN LEATHER
CHAPS will mold to your body and get
softer with every use. PREMIUM TOP
GRAIN LEATHER is also great for jackets,
shirts, pants, and most other leather
items. PREMIUM TOP GRAIN LEATHER
CHAPS an appropriate leather for
motorcycle chaps.
For this reason, we sell
PREMIUM TOP GRAIN COWHIDE CHAPS.
PREMIUM TOP GRAIN LEATHER CHAPS start
at just $69.99 on our website, but you can
easily spend $129.99 for the same
quality product elsewhere.
RealBikers.com is owned and operated
by Wholesale Direct,
The Ozark Leather Shop, located at
1503 s. 3rd Street, Ozark Missouri
65721. So call us
toll free Monday - Saturday 10am - 6pm
Central Time at 877-735-1377 and we can
get started on your custom patches
today. |