6-odd foot, scrawny, broad shoulders... looking for leather

[BigShot]

A couple of weeks ago I dropped in to Hein Gericke to go through the kit and get a rough idea of price. Boots, gloves, lid... all standard stuff there... then came the leathers.

Put bluntly... I'm a freak, and none of them fit.

6'1" or 2" ish... really skinny (think, 10.5 stone on a well-fed day)... but was swimming a LOT when I was a teen so have reasonably broad shoulders - just a bit bony due to lacking the muscle to hang from them.

I tried on a few different makes (including an Arlen Ness jacket that fit better than the others but was ugly and still not right) and while a good few were about right in shoulder width, even the smallest sizes are made for heavier built types than I.

So my choices seem to be ill-fitting leathers (no thanks) or custom.

Most of what I know about leathers comes from the chat with the guy in the shop and an article I read in a mag a while back that pretty much consisted of an interview with someone from Hideout leathers.

So, a few questions:

1> Any reviews (good or bad) of HideOut?

2> Any other custom makers worth checking out?

3> Any other options I could consider?

The guy in Hein Gericke did say it may be worth nipping to the Dainese shop in Manchester and trying some of theirs, and though I've yet to do that he suggested they were built for people built a bit like me. In the mean time though, I'm open to suggestions.

Cheers.

[Ingah]

I was under the impression Alpine Stars gear suited thin people. But then again, it's overpriced.

[hammer5]

If money is not that much of a worry go for specially made. go for kangeroo leather, should last a good 10 years - if looked after

Good luck!

[JoshRS]

Mate i'm 6 foot and 9 stone...

Size 38 Arlen ness jacket and 28 waist. So don't feel so bad haha

[BigShot]

Ingah - Unless I'm very much mistaken, I was trying mainly the Alpinestars jackets. A size or so up from small they were OK around the shoulders but even the smallest was like wearing a leather tent with hard bits in it.

Josh - You feel the pain then eh?

How much attention did you pay to fit? Is it as snug as it should be or is it a bit on the loose side?

BB3lions - I wouldn't say money wasn't a worry, but I'm happy enough to pay a bit for gear that's not going to ride up, will hold the armour where it belongs and generally do its job when (assuming the worst) I end up going down the road without a bike. From what I've seen so far that might be tricky to manage with off the shelf gear.

Know any makers other than Hideout?

[JoshRS]

I went to my local HG for my leather's, new them fairly well so they were honest enough and really helpful with the sizing.

I'd try something on and think finally, something that actually fits properely, but turned out it was too big.

The way to do it is to get them a bit too small, as leather's will stretch out after a few weeks of wear. Now my once tight leather's fit pretty snugly and comfortably