#5 Gloves kit-care guide
KEEP YOUR RIDING GEAR IN SHAPE
High-quality motorcycle gloves tend to be expensive: they’re fiddly to make and need armour and ventilation or a waterproof membrane and sometimes a thermal layer to be built in. So it would be a shame to let a good pair of gloves fail prematurely through neglect. With a bit of care, you can double the life of your favourite gloves.
Wash the exterior
Even leather gloves need a wash to shift road dirt from the exterior and sweat from the inside. Use tepid water and a mild soap (non-biological washing powder) for textile or leather gloves, or a specialist cleaning product like Nikwax Leather Cleaner (£6, www.blacks.co.uk) on leather ones. To soften stubborn dried flies, leave wet kitchen roll on top of them for 15 minutes before washing.
Wash the interior
You can’t use a leather cleaner on the interior of lined gloves but mild soap with plenty of water is fine. Be gentle so as not to tug the liner out of shape. Don’t use fabric softener; this is the enemy of waterproof membranes so keep away from all-weather gloves.
Rinse thoroughly
Once the gloves are clean, get a second bowl of clean water and rinse them really thoroughly (this is particularly important for waterproof gloves). Rinse the interior by filling with clean water then shaking and squeezing.
Dry up… slowly
Don’t hang gloves on the washing line, leave them on a windowsill or on a radiator – and definitely don’t use a hairdryer. Fold them in a towel and press to remove excess water, then leave to air-dry slowly. Our tip: stand on empty beer bottles so air can circulate.
Shape to fit
While unlined leather gloves are still damp, put them on and clench and unclench your fists a few times, to mould them to your hands. Don’t do this with lined gloves, in case the wet liner sticks to your fingers and gets turned inside out. Wait until lined gloves are completely dry. Textile gloves will quickly adapt to the shape of the hand. Lined leather gloves can be softened and shaped with feeding and conditioning.
Feed the leather
When leather gloves are dry, apply a conditioner like Gliptone GT13 (£6, www. liquidleather.com), working on small areas at a time to ensure it’s absorbed. If you wear each glove while doing this, it will help shape it back to your hand.