Applying a leather conditioner to your motorcycle jacket is essential so the jacket material, leather, maintains its tensile strength so you’re better protected from the weather elements and brush with the pavement floor. But what are the best leather conditioners for motorcycle jackets?
The Best Leather Conditioners For Motorcycle Jackets are:
- Chemical Guys Leather Cleaner Conditioner Kit (Overall Best Conditioner For Motorcycle Jackets)
- Leather Honey Leather Conditioner (Best Most Popular Conditioner)
- Colourlock Aniline Leather Care Cream (Best Aniline Leather Conditioner)
- Miracle Wipes (Best Leather Conditioner Wipes)
- Obenauf’s Heavy Duty LP Leather Conditioner (Best Heavy Duty Conditioner)
- Leather Afterlife Leather Conditioner (Best Leather Restorer & Vinyl Conditioner)
- Lexol Leather Conditioner (Best Deep Leather Conditioner)
Before we delve into the details of the list above, let’s briefly take a look at what’s special about leather motorcycle jackets, the leather conditioner, and a couple of factors to consider when choosing the best leather conditioners that’s going to suit specific kinds of leather motorcycle jackets.
Leather Motorcycle Jackets
The design of leather motorcycle jackets has a couple of factors to it. This includes the look of the motorcycle jacket, how comfortable it feels, and more importantly the protection it’s going to offer in the case of an accident.
While most motorcyclists will vote the leather material as the true champion for motorcycle jackets, it’s an obvious truth that leather will not give you 100% protection in the case of a crash.
However, the very first few seconds of a crash or sliding over the hard pavement will be covered by the share tensile strength of the leather.
This will make a lot of difference especially if you have previously taken very good care of your leather jacket in terms of properly conditioning it to prevent the leather from drying and cracking out — damaging the integrity of the leather material.
While most motorcyclists will appreciate a vintage look on their leather motorcycle jackets (a bit of a patina worn-out look), it shouldn’t be an excuse to “let your leather go”.
If the leather jacket is allowed to dry and crack without proper conditioning, this will not let the jacket give to you the best protection as the material integrity of the motorcycle leather jacket would have been compromised. What these conditioners will do is to ensure your leather jackets remain not only new but highly functional in protecting you.
Another important thing a well maintained motorcycle leather jacket is going to do for you is to also provide protection from the elements of the weather. Leather jackets, when properly made, will be waterproof, and resistant to things like salts, dust, debris in the air during your winter rides and summer cruises!
Using good leather conditioners help to maintain the original protective qualities of the leather and this is how you will be able to enjoy your motorcycle rides no matter the season of the year with optimal protection.
Best Leather Conditioners For Motorcycle Jackets Buying Guide
If you’re not very careful, the leather conditioner you get will do more damage to your leather jacket material than good. The leather conditioner should moisturize your leather and make it better than when you first applied it. In light of this, here’s what to consider when selecting a leather conditioner:
- Type of leather conditioner
- Leather Darkening
- Cleaning
Type of Conditioner to Consider & Application
Leather conditioners come in different forms. You will find them in balms, creams, liquids, and wipes.
Conditioning Wipes: The conditioners that come in the forms of wipes will pretty much be the easiest to use. They are also relatively cheaper. The only problem is leather wipes do not offer deep conditioning for your leather jackets like most others will but will be fantastic for day to day conditioning. You can check out my complete review of the best leather conditioner wipes!
Liquid Conditioners: Liquid conditioners are great and easily applied especially by spraying. By spraying a conditioner in a liquid form, you will be able to cover the leather jacket super fast. The main challenge with liquid conditioners is because it’s in a liquid form it will take a bit more time to dry after the conditioning is done.
Leather Conditioner Balms: Leather conditioner balms are the very pasty types of conditioners. Because these types are often waxy it’s best if you use your hands so the heat from your hand will help the deep penetration of the conditioner into the fibers of the leather.
Leather Conditioner Creams: The leather conditioner creams are the most easy to apply. It’s consistency is not so watery it’s hard to control and not a lot solid it’s very difficult to work into the leather. Creams can be easily applied using microfiber rags.
Darkening
Leather conditioners can sometimes darken your leather. This is because these types of leather conditioners often contain leather leather oils and waxes such as neatsfoot oil and beeswax. These types of leather conditioners work just fine on dark colored leather jackets and will require a lot of care when it’s used on lighter colored ones.
Remember, the very best leather conditioners will not darken leather if it’s not meant to.
Cleaning
With some leather conditioners, you will be able to clean and condition all at the same time. These types of conditioners are formulated with a well balanced pH cleaning agent and conditioning oils.
While this is one option, there’s another alternative of using cleaning and conditioning kits as most leather conditioner brands will have other complimentary products like cleaners that go along with it.
Lastly, you can find any other good leather cleaners that’s not necessarily from a leather conditioner brand you hope to buy to clean your leather goods before conditioning.
Best Leather Conditioner For Motorcycle Jackets — Reviews
Here’s the details on the Best Leather Conditioner For Motorcycle Jackets. Although these are all great leather conditioners for motorcycle jackets, I have put them all into perspective so that they suit your exact needs. So in no particular order!
1. Chemical Guys Leather Cleaner Conditioner Kit (Overall Best)
This leather cleaner and conditioner from Chemical Guys is a complete leather Cleaner and conditioner kit that’s going to be great for your motorcycle jackets. The best thing about this leather cleaner and conditioner kit is how it doesn’t leave any funky chemical smell and has no effect on the original color of the leather jacket due to its odorless and colorless quality.
The cleaner in this leather cleaner conditioner kit has a perfect pH balance that allows it to safely go into the pores on the leather to remove dirt and grease. The conditioner will do a great job of nourishing the leather jacket and replenishing substances like vitamin E that’s often depleted by the sun on those long summer rides.
The great thing about the Chemical Guys Leather Cleaner Conditioner Kit is it’s versatility. It’s great for cleaning and conditioning both synthetic and natural leather goods such as leather apparels, furniture, upholsteries, leather accessories, saddles, and many others.
Pros:
- It’s a complete leather cleaner and conditioner kit
- Enhances the strength and durability of leather
- Leaves no soapy residue
- Prevents drying out, cracking, and fading
- Restores leather to a soft natural look
- Easy to use
- pH balanced cleaner ingredient
- Wipes away easily
Cons:
- Has a slight chemical smell
If you’re interested in the Chemical guys leather cleaner and conditioner, you can check it out over here on Amazon!
2. Leather Honey Leather Conditioner (Best Most Popular Conditioner)
The Leather Honey Leather Conditioner is the most popular leather conditioner, by far the safest gamble if you simple want a conditioner that everyone talks good about, & likes and a leather conditioner made with the motorcyclist in mind. The leather honey conditioner will moisturize, protect, rejuvenate, and offer critical preservation for your motorcycle gear.
The leather honey is formulated to absorb into the nuke, cracks, pores, and dry spots of damaged motorcycle leather jackets and gives it the right amounts of moisture to make your valuable jackets very supple at the same time forming a barrier to prevent additional water content from getting into the leather. It also guards against mildew!
If you use the leather honey cleaner to clean before applying the leather honey conditioner to your leather motorcycle gear and other apparels, furniture, auto interior, purses, saddles or tack, it will last you over 6 months before you would have to do any additional cleaning and conditioning.
Pros:
- Natural and non toxic
- Great for moisturizing leather
- Offers durable protection
- A little amount will go along way
- One treatment will last over 6 months
- Water-repellent
- non-solvent base
- Leaves no sticky residue
- Odorless
Cons:
- Not ideal for suede leather
If you’re interested in the Leather Honey Conditioner, you can check it out over here on Amazon!
3. Colourlock Aniline Leather Care Cream (Best Aniline Leather Conditioner)
The Colourlock Aniline Leather Care Cream is a made in Germany. It’s a high quality leather conditioner that offers intensive protection for all fine-pore, matte, and stain-sensitive smooth leathers. This leather conditioner is exceptional for use on both aniline and semi-aniline leather goods. It’s made to nourish, protect, and waterproof your leather items.
The Colourlock Aniline Leather Care Cream is uniquely developed by their in-house laboratory specialist with special ingredients that’s excellent for preventing all kinds of stains, dirts, dry cracks and scratches that your leather motorcycle jackets may encounter.
It’s great for use on aniline and semi-aniline leather jackets, shoes, bags, furniture, car interiors, and a couple more other leather goods. It’s by far the best protection you would ever give to you aniline and semi-aniline leather goods.
You can choose between the Colorlock strong leather cleaner or mild leather cleaner together with the Colourlock brush to clean your leather jackets and other leather gear before applying the Colourlock leather conditioner!
Pros:
- Creates the best barrier against all stains
- Durable waterproofing quality
- Moisturizes evenly
- Gives aniline leather the best protection ever
- Gives leather a soft, supple, and new look
- Doesn’t change the leather color especially around the parts of the leather with no wear
- Leaves no sticky residue
- No buffing required
Cons:
- Not suitable for suede and nubuck
- Requires a bit of heat to for best protection
- Takes time to dry
If you’re interested in the Colourlock leather conditioner, you can check it out over here on Amazon!
4. Miracle Wipes (Best Leather Conditioner Wipes)
The Miracle Wipes is a hardwearing wipes and an all purpose cleaner and conditioner great for leathers meant for both interior and exterior use. With the Miracle wipes in hand, you will be able to easily remove grease, sticky adhesives, lubricants, dirt, and grime from leather jackets while also conditioning it all at the same time.
The formula used for the MiracleWipes will be very soft and gentle on your leather jacket and extremely tough on all kinds of dirts that hits the leather jacket as you ride and give the leather jacket a nice nourished look.
Pros:
- Great heavy-duty conditioning wipes
- Easy to use
- Super tough on stains, dirt, and grease
- Comes with 90 large size disposable conditioning wipes
- Wipes has 2 sides — a very soft and an abrasive side
- Made in USA according high standards
- Versatile use both interior and exterior applications
- Rehydrates the leather and prevents dryness, cracks, and cuts
Cons:
- Can become dry pretty quickly so always keep it closed
- Doesn’t offer deep conditioning
If you’re interested in the MiracleWipes, you can check it out over here on Amazon for more information!
5. Obenauf’s Heavy Duty LP Leather Conditioner (Best Heavy Duty Conditioner)
The Obenauf’s Heavy Duty LP Leather Conditioner as the name suggests is a heavy duty leather preservative. It’s developed for hard wearing leather goods. So this conditioner is perfect for your leather jackets if you ride your motorcycle throughout the year.
It’s formulated with natural plant oils that feed the fibers and keep it well lubricated for the longest time. Another one of it’s chief ingredients is a unique beeswax formula. The beeswax in this product protects and renders the leather an exceptional fire & heat retardant, and water & abrasion resistant.
It’s great for all leather things that’s hard wearing such as leather jackets, leather work boots, gloves, belts, saddle bags, etc. The Obenauf’s Heavy Duty LP Leather Conditioner creates a barrier against ruinous substances and makes the leather hard to scuff and mold. With such solid reinforcement, your leather jackets will still maintain a high level of breathability.
Because of how it’s formulated, this product is designed to melt easily into the fibers of the leather when applied and spread on by hand or by first warming up the leather with a blow dryer. The heat from the hand help to massage into the leather.
You can use the Obenauf’s Leather Cleaner before applying the Obenauf’s Heavy Duty LP Leather Conditioner.
Pros:
- Perfect for heavy duty leather goods
- Great for conditioning, restoring dried, and sun faded leather
- Breathable
- Good waterproof conditioner for jackets
- Contains natural ingredients
- Versatile and can be used on natural wood furniture
- Good heat and fire retardant
- Lubricates leather fibers longer — the more the leather is used the more lubrication it gets
- Easy to apply — using hands is more effective
- Protects leather from chemicals, acids, petroleum, salt, ash, water, and abrasion
Cons:
- Due to wax ingredients this conditioner will darken your leather and nubuck.
- Not meant for use on Suede
If you’re interested in the Obenauf’s Heavy Duty LP Leather Conditioner, you can check it out over here on Amazon!
6. Leather Afterlife Leather Conditioner (Best Leather Restorer & Vinyl Conditioner)
The Leather Afterlife Leather Conditioner is great for restoring and conditioning old leather goods like your motorcycle jackets you’ve showed no care for for years! It’s formulated to have one of the best viscosity as just a little dab from this 8 Oz. conditioner goes a long way to cover a relatively large area — with the same equal strength of restoration and nourishment.
The Leather Afterlife Leather Conditioner applies evenly and you wouldn’t have to worry about over conditioning certain portions of your leather jacket. The best thing about this product is that unlike most of the leather conditioners that take 12-24 hours to dry, the Leather Afterlife Leather Conditioner only takes 1-2 hours to dry and it’s by far one of the fastest drying conditioners on the market.
It’s a great product and apart from it’s ability to restore, condition, and protecting your leather jackets, you will be able to use it on other natural leather and vinyl leather goods such as boots, purses, furniture, car seats, saddles, etc.
Pros:
- Stops and restores aging leather
- It’s very easy to use
- Dries fast
- Leaves no sticky or greasy residue
- It’s water resistant
- A little bottle will last long
- It creates a shine that buffs away easily
- All natural and non toxic ingredients
- Results in very soft supple leather
- Great for vinyl seats and interiors
Cons:
- Pricey
- May result in a dull matte
If you’re interested in the Leather Afterlife Leather Conditioner, you can check it out over here on Amazon!
7. Lexol Leather Conditioner (Best Deep Leather Conditioner)
Last but certainly not the least, the Lexol Leather Conditioner is made to deeply condition smooth leather. This conditioner is formulated with fine tanning oils made into microscopic particles that get onto the leather safely and nourish it richly without leaving any gummy residue.
The benefits of this exceptional conditioner is that it’s going to enhance the durability, look, prevent cracks, and softens leather jacket so you break-in more and more comfortably into your leather jackets.
While the lexol leather conditioner will do a great job for your motorcycle jackets, this 1 liter conditioner will be enough to condition other leather goods you may have such as furniture, boots, handbags, Auto upholstery, saddlery, etc.
Lexol also provides this conditioner in a small 6 Oz. size and also has it’s very own complete cleaner and conditioner kit!
Pros:
- Particularly nourishes deeply and prevents cracks
- Easy to use
- Makes your leather last longer
- Offers complete protection for smooth leathers
- Adds resiliency to old leather
- Great at softening leather
Cons:
- Will slightly darken light colored leather jackets
- Not good for suede
- Not good for jackets that are already soft
If you’re interested in the Lexol Leather Conditioner, you can check it out over here on Amazon!
How To Condition Leather Motorcycle Jackets
First, I must say motorcycle jackets will take on different types of wear and this will depend on the environment or weather in which you ride, how you ride, and the kind of ventilation on the leather jacket you wear when trekking.
To effectively condition your leather motorcycle jacket, there are 2 key aspects that need to be looked at: The Interior and exterior of the leather jackets.
Before the leather motorcycle jacket is conditioned, it has to be thoroughly cleaned both on the inside and the outside. Cleaning the leather jacket first will remove dirt, body oils, salts from sweat, debris, stains, and grease from the leather and allow the conditioning substances to penetrate the leather nicely and provide the protection it’s meant to offer.
Cleaning The Interior Of The Leather Motorcycle Jacket
As you ride, the leather jacket interiors soak sweats, salts from your sweat, and body oils. It’s very essential you clean the inside of the leather motorcycle jackets. There are 2 common types of motorcycle jacket interiors:
- Removable Interiors
- Antimicrobial Interiors
Removable Motorcycle Jacket Interiors:
The removable motorcycle jacket linings are leather jackets with interiors that’s easy to remove and wash. These types of interiors make it very easy to clean. You can simply throw them into the washing machine and they will be as good as new within a couple of minutes.
Antimicrobial Motorcycle Jacket Interiors:
Another common type of interior mostly with the more recent motorcycle jackets is the one with antimicrobial lining. These have a sweat and moisture winking feature and it’s generally easier to deal with. All you do is to simply air it out for a couple of hours and you’re good to go.
In instances where the sweat, salt and body oil stains has built up strong odor or molds, just airing it out might not cut it. You can adopt a more robust approach like using salt stain remover — be sure to leave the motorcycle jacket inside out until the de-salter you applied has completely dried out.
Cleaning & Conditioning The Exterior Of The Leather Motorcycle Jacket
The exterior of the leather motorcycle jackets will either be made from synthetic or natural leather. Synthetic leathers are generally a lot less of s problem when it comes to caring for it. The problem often is with the motorcycle jackets made from natural leather so I will emphasize on that instead.
Leather jackets made from natural leather today has greatly been improved with the kind of surface treatment it’s given. While it’s often rendered to be very resilient to stains and water, it’s still important to choose carefully the kind of leather cleaner that’s used to clean it.
Generally, you would want to stay clear off cleaning products with substances like silicone and waxed that can dry out your leather. Also animal-based products like mink oil (paste) should be avoided especially with light colored jackets as animal based products usually tend to discolor leather. You can check out this great leather cleaner on Amazon if you’re have trouble finding a good leather cleaner.
With your leather cleaner in hand, you would want to follow the cleaning application instructions on the package to clean the exterior of your leather jacket. You can start and be thorough with the front of the leather jacket since that side gets serious hits as you ride. Then work your way to other parts torso and back and back paying particular attention to tight areas like the arms.
After cleaning and you notice the cloth or rags you’re using aren’t taking anymore dirt, you can Leather jacket dry in a cool dry place for about 12-24hours depending on where you live and the kind ignorant environment you have present!
Pro Tip: From time to time, you would want to rinse off the dirt build-up on the rag you’re using and continue from where you left off.
It’s important to add that with the level of protection most leather jackets, especially the ones for motorcycles, a simple leather wipes will do the magic of cleaning your leather jacket for you.
Conditioning The Exterior Of The Leather Motorcycle Jacket
Conditioning leather is one of the most important treatments you would every give to your leather motorcycle jackets. It’s always essential to condition your leather jackets after cleaning. If you don’t condition your motorcycle jackets and you choose to enjoy your ride, the leather is going to sun bake, dry up, and crack.
A great rule-of-thumb as far as motorcycle jackets goes is to do a deep conditioning once or twice year.
The leather conditioning treatment you give to your motorcycle leather jackets is going to replace the natural oils that has been lost die to its constant use on the sun and the lost leather oils that occurs during cleaning. Conditioning your leather jackets will ultimately help to make it last long, break-in nicely, and age like fine wine!
Hopefully, kind courtesy, this guide, you have been able to successfully choose the most suitable leather conditioner for your motorcycle jacket. The main thing now is to follow the specific instructions in the package explicitly for the best results. When done, allow the conditioned leather to thoroughly dry.
Tips On How To Care & Maintain Motorcycle Leather Jackets
The motorcycle Jackets made from real leather come at a hefty price and due to this it’s only prudent you ensure good practices regularly to ensure your leather jacket lasts long while maintaining a great look, feel, and protection. Here are a few tips to keep your motorcycle jackets in great shape and condition!
- While you can use a sponge, microfiber cloth, clean soft rag to apply your your conditioner, the hand can also be a great applicator for conditioners. The added advantage is that the hand when used to apply leather conditioners, it’s able to generate some amount of heat that allows the conditioner to penetrate deeper into the leather.
- Still on the issue of applicators, always use only soft materials to apply your leather conditioners. You wouldn’t want to use anything abrasive that will scratch the leather!
- Put a liberal amount leather conditioner on the applicator not on the leather jacket directly.
- In the absence of leather cleaners, clean water and a soft applicator cloth will be able to wipe down your leather jacket just fine. This will often be an effective way to rid your leather off dirt and dust. If this is done timely, you will be able to maintain clean leather jacket that wouldn’t need deep cleaning before conditioning.
- Always test out the conditioner on an inconspicuous part of the jacket. This will help you see the effect of the conditioner before smearing the it on all of the visible areas of the leather.
- Always let the leather items you condition properly air-dry to avoid mold and mildew.
- Never leave your leather jackets crumbled up or put it on a wet floor or while still wet from cleaning and conditioning to prevent creases, mold, and mildew.
