When you buy leather motorcycle gloves, you are making a small investment. You want the gloves to look nice, make your ride easier, protect your hands, and last for as long as possible. Leather Gloves are not items you will set on a shelf and view. They are riding along with you and taking the dirt and daily wear and tear. You will need to do a few things to maintain the gloves in order to keep them in top shape for every ride. Here are a few basic leather motorcycle glove maintenance tips.more

Tip 1: Wipe Them Down After Rides

Even if you ride only a short distance, the gloves are going to get a bit dirty and dusty. In order to maintain them at the highest level, it is a good idea to wipe them down with a clean dry cloth. This will help remove the dust so it does not build up and it will keep the gloves looking nicer for the next ride.

Tip 2: Shake Out Dust

If you go on a particularly dusty ride, you may want to give the gloves a good shaking when you get back home in order to work the dust and dirt out of the crevices of the glove. You don’t want to beat them on anything because that could damage the leather, but shaking them to free dust will not hurt anything. If you really want to get the dirt out, you could even use a vacuum hose to remove the dust from between the fingers.

Tip 3: Wash Them

If you ride on a daily basis, you will want to give your gloves a thorough cleaning every two weeks. If you ride less frequently, you could wait up to a month or more. Buy a good quality shampoo and clean the gloves according to the instructions. You will want to let them air dry in a clean, dry location that is out of the direct sunlight.

Tip 4: Condition the Gloves

In order to avoid leather cracking, you will want to condition your gloves. You might want to do this after every shampoo or perhaps even more frequently. The conditioners will help prevent the leather from drying out and cracking and the leather will last much longer if you keep it conditioned. Some gloves will need conditioner every 6 months and others will take it more frequently. It all depends on how often you wear them and how much they go through.

Tip 5: Avoid Water

Leather is not meant to sit in water for long periods of time. There may be occasions when you ride your motorcycle in the rain, but you will not want to leave the gloves outside overnight in a rainstorm. If your gloves do get wet, wipe the excess water off as soon as possible until the gloves are as dry as you can get them.

Tip 6: Avoid Cleaning Products Not Made for Leather

You will not want to use any products on your gloves that are not specifically made for leather. Anything that is made from other fabrics can damage leather or, at the very least, cause the leather not to last as long.

Tip 7: Buff Scratches

If your gloves receive any scratches, you should buff those scratches with a microfiber cloth. The appearance of the small cracks can fade and seemingly heal itself. Buffing will keep the area from growing and getting worse as well.

Tip 8: Keep Out of Sun

When you are going for a ride, there’s no avoiding the sun. But when it comes to storage, you should keep your gloved out of the direct sunlight. They can fade faster and the material will deteriorate more if they sit in the sunlight too often.

Tip 9: Temperature Controlled Storage

You will want to store your gloves somewhere that sits in a medium temperature range. IF they get too hot or too cold, their lifespan can shorten and they can develop issues that are hard to fix.

Maintaining leather motorcycle gloves does not have to take too much time. But with a little thought and effort, you can prolong the life of your gloves for many extra rides.