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Breaking in a Vanson Chopper

pawineguy

One Too Many
Messages
1,974
Location
Bucks County, PA
Quick shots before and during a very chilly 40 degree ride, but with temperatures quickly dropping this week I wanted to start breaking this in... fit is good, typical great Vanson quality, just needs to be beat up a bit to soften it.

IMG_4776 2.JPG
IMG_4778.JPG
 

Meerkat

Familiar Face
Messages
60
Location
Ireland
Quick shots before and during a very chilly 40 degree ride, but with temperatures quickly dropping this week I wanted to start breaking this in... fit is good, typical great Vanson quality, just needs to be beat up a bit to soften it.

View attachment 22042
View attachment 22043

Body heat on the bike softens it and the odd shower of rain helps too... No need to beat it with a prybar or roll around in a biker bar.....its going to take a while
 

morrison2951

Practically Family
Messages
667
Location
F-V, NC
Vanson jackets rock! Wore my HH cordovan "reddish tan" Enfield today out to lunch and the lady behind the counter came up to me just out of the blue and complemented me on my "fresh jacket." Nice!
 

Damo

A-List Customer
Messages
467
Location
Canada
Nice jacket!! Can't wait to get mine, should be getting it by the end of this month!!!
 

Simonoggio

New in Town
Messages
20
Location
Switzerland
I've always thought no leather looks as great as Vanson on a motorcycle. And the "rebelish" look of the chopper is particularly appealing and it suits you very well. Personally, I'm more into the look of their model B or A but the chopper has something unique to it. It's definitely not something you see everday and that's a good thing!

How does it feel when you go for a ride? I've considered buying a jacket from Vanson for riding a motorcycle for quite some time (no bike yet, but you gotta make plans early on, don't you? :) ). The only thing that puts me off is the lack of armour. Do you not miss it?
 

pawineguy

One Too Many
Messages
1,974
Location
Bucks County, PA
I've always thought no leather looks as great as Vanson on a motorcycle. And the "rebelish" look of the chopper is particularly appealing and it suits you very well. Personally, I'm more into the look of their model B or A but the chopper has something unique to it. It's definitely not something you see everday and that's a good thing!

How does it feel when you go for a ride? I've considered buying a jacket from Vanson for riding a motorcycle for quite some time (no bike yet, but you gotta make plans early on, don't you? :) ). The only thing that puts me off is the lack of armour. Do you not miss it?

It feels great on the bike... In those pictures I am wearing Bohn armor underneath the jacket, and I also have a Knox armored shirt that fit under it easily, and has a broader kidney protection panel. Compared to wearing my Klim armored jackets, I feel much more secure in the Vanson plus armored shirt. When I am wearing the Klim, no matter how well the jacket fits, there is always room for the armor to move around. When wearing an armored shirt, it's right against your body (but very comfortable as the shirts are more or less elasticized mesh fabric), plus you have the thick leather between you and the road if something goes wrong.

I also have a Model B that I ride in, (plus some Aero Cafe Racers) the Chopper is for when I feel like something a little different. I've gotten more compliments in just a couple of weeks with the Chopper than I have from the rest of my jackets combined. I'd never wear it out to a pub, but it just feels right on a bike.
 

Damo

A-List Customer
Messages
467
Location
Canada
Awesome, a Chopper? I'm happy with it so far, I'm a fan of Vanson, you get a lot for your money with them.

Yes a chopper as well. I originally ordered a large and a medium from vanson to find the right fit but unfortunately neither worked. So I sent them back for an in between size. The jacket did feel real nice when wearing it, felt like a suit of armour without the padding. I plan on throwing mine on the ground when not wearing it to help break it.

You mentioned wearing a couple of armoured shirts. Which one do you prefer?
 

pawineguy

One Too Many
Messages
1,974
Location
Bucks County, PA
Yes a chopper as well. I originally ordered a large and a medium from vanson to find the right fit but unfortunately neither worked. So I sent them back for an in between size. The jacket did feel real nice when wearing it, felt like a suit of armour without the padding. I plan on throwing mine on the ground when not wearing it to help break it.

You mentioned wearing a couple of armoured shirts. Which one do you prefer?

I like them both equally well, but the Knox seems to be slightly better made and offers a little more back protection. Carrie @ Thurston/Insurrection also likes the Alpine Stars shirt and sells those as well.
 

Damo

A-List Customer
Messages
467
Location
Canada
I like them both equally well, but the Knox seems to be slightly better made and offers a little more back protection. Carrie @ Thurston/Insurrection also likes the Alpine Stars shirt and sells those as well.

Thx, I've been looking at the Knox urbane armoured shirt. Me thinks I will be getting the Knox soon.
 

2wheelgrplr

A-List Customer
Messages
425
Location
NYC & South Asia
I've always thought no leather looks as great as Vanson on a motorcycle. And the "rebelish" look of the chopper is particularly appealing and it suits you very well. Personally, I'm more into the look of their model B or A but the chopper has something unique to it. It's definitely not something you see everday and that's a good thing!

How does it feel when you go for a ride? I've considered buying a jacket from Vanson for riding a motorcycle for quite some time (no bike yet, but you gotta make plans early on, don't you? :) ). The only thing that puts me off is the lack of armour. Do you not miss it?

It feels great on the bike... In those pictures I am wearing Bohn armor underneath the jacket, and I also have a Knox armored shirt that fit under it easily, and has a broader kidney protection panel. Compared to wearing my Klim armored jackets, I feel much more secure in the Vanson plus armored shirt. When I am wearing the Klim, no matter how well the jacket fits, there is always room for the armor to move around. When wearing an armored shirt, it's right against your body (but very comfortable as the shirts are more or less elasticized mesh fabric), plus you have the thick leather between you and the road if something goes wrong.

I also have a Model B that I ride in, (plus some Aero Cafe Racers) the Chopper is for when I feel like something a little different. I've gotten more compliments in just a couple of weeks with the Chopper than I have from the rest of my jackets combined. I'd never wear it out to a pub, but it just feels right on a bike.

Another big Vanson fan here, upto six jackets from them and counting! I'm with pawineguy, I too wear armored shirts underneath my non-armored leather jackets - Vanson Chopper, Enfield, Lost Worlds Buco Rider, Schott 141, 118, etc. And the same brands too, Bohn and Knox! And yes, I think Knox is a little higher quality than Bohn, sits better and more comfortable too - but the difference is just a matter of degrees. Both undershirts are great and most times I forget I'm wearing them. I've also gone down wearing this combo of armored undershirt and leather jacket, and suffered nary a scratch or bruise - thankfully these incidents occured at lower speed on dirt tracks. Jackets suffered scratches and scuffs from landing on rocks & gravel, but Vanson and Lost Worlds make heavy-duty stuff and a bit of road rash on the sleeves and shoulders only add to their character! :D

I love my Vanson Chopper and yes, it IS quite a bit of a jacket! I've had it for about a year now, but since I have several more riding jackets in my rotation, haven't worn my Chopper as much as I'd like to and is still not fully broken in - I know, I know, the travails of having one too many jackets! I picked up my Chopper and the Knox armored undershirt from Insurrection/Thurston Bros. Attached here are pics of me wearing it when still very new, hope y'all don't mind, just wanna share the awesomeness of this jacket! :)

Simonnoggio, you won't go wrong with a Vanson. Like others have mentioned before, Vanson is definitely a bang for your buck in the best way possible. They make armored leather jackets too - racing suits, sport riding jackets, etc. Armored options in their regular classic line include the Drifter, Perforated Drifter and Armored Comet jackets. If you like their Model A then you'll be happy to know they've come out with an amored version, the AR3. I recently received my customized version of the AR3, will post pics in a separate thread. They also have a semi-perforated version of the Drifter jacket, the DRAC or Full Throttle, which I dutifully picked up too ;) - lighter leather, armored, with option to open or the close perforated section - looking forward to rocking it in warmer weather.

IMG_1188-1.JPG IMG_1189-1.JPG IMG_1193-1.jpg IMG_1187-1.JPG
 
Last edited:

2wheelgrplr

A-List Customer
Messages
425
Location
NYC & South Asia
Vanson jackets rock! Wore my HH cordovan "reddish tan" Enfield today out to lunch and the lady behind the counter came up to me just out of the blue and complemented me on my "fresh jacket." Nice!

Hey I was wearing my Vanson Enfield in octagon leather while out for lunch today as well. This jacket is a roomy fit and my go-to colder weather leather jacket as I can layer properly underneath. Initially I thought it might be a bit too big for me, but after wearing it a bit it's breaking in nicely and also gives me a roomy-fit option in my line-up.
 

pawineguy

One Too Many
Messages
1,974
Location
Bucks County, PA
Another big Vanson fan here, upto six jackets from them and counting! I'm with pawineguy, I too wear armored shirts underneath my non-armored leather jackets - Vanson Chopper, Enfield, Lost Worlds Buco Rider, Schott 141, 118, etc. And the same brands too, Bohn and Knox! And yes, I think Knox is a little higher quality than Bohn, sits better and more comfortable too - but the difference is just a matter of degrees. Both undershirts are great and most times I forget I'm wearing them. I've also gone down wearing this combo of armored undershirt and leather jacket, and suffered nary a scratch or bruise - thankfully these incidents occured at lower speed on dirt tracks. Jackets suffered scratches and scuffs from landing on rocks & gravel, but Vanson and Lost Worlds make heavy-duty stuff and a bit of road rash on the sleeves and shoulders only add to their character! :D

I love my Vanson Chopper and yes, it is quite a bit of a jacket! I've had it for about a year now, but since I have several more riding jackets in my rotation, haven't worn my Chopper as much as I'd like to and is still not fully broken in - I know, I know, the travails of having one too many jackets! I picked up my Chopper and the Knox armored undershirt from Insurrection/Thurston Bros. Attached here are pics of me wearing my Chopper from when it was still very new, hope y'all don't mind, just wanna share the awesomeness of this jacket! :)

Simonnoggio, you won't go wrong with a Vanson. Like others have mentioned before, Vanson is definitely a bang for your buck in the best way possible. They make armored leather jackets too - racing suits, sport riding jackets, etc. Armored options in their regular classic line include the Drifter, Perforated Drifter and Armored Comet jackets. If you like their Model A then you'll be happy to know they've come out with an amored version, the AR3. I recently received my customized version of the AR3, will post pics in a separate thread. They also have a semi-perforated version of the Drifter jacket, the DRAC or Full Throttle, which I dutifully picked up too ;) - lighter leather, armored, with option to open or the close perforated section - looking forward to rocking it in warmer weather.

Great pics, I'm pretty sure those are some of the shots that confirmed that I wanted a Chopper.
 

Damo

A-List Customer
Messages
467
Location
Canada
Another big Vanson fan here, upto six jackets from them and counting! I'm with pawineguy, I too wear armored shirts underneath my non-armored leather jackets - Vanson Chopper, Enfield, Lost Worlds Buco Rider, Schott 141, 118, etc. And the same brands too, Bohn and Knox! And yes, I think Knox is a little higher quality than Bohn, sits better and more comfortable too - but the difference is just a matter of degrees. Both undershirts are great and most times I forget I'm wearing them. I've also gone down wearing this combo of armored undershirt and leather jacket, and suffered nary a scratch or bruise - thankfully these incidents occured at lower speed on dirt tracks. Jackets suffered scratches and scuffs from landing on rocks & gravel, but Vanson and Lost Worlds make heavy-duty stuff and a bit of road rash on the sleeves and shoulders only add to their character! :D

I love my Vanson Chopper and yes, it is quite a bit of a jacket! I've had it for about a year now, but since I have several more riding jackets in my rotation, haven't worn my Chopper as much as I'd like to and is still not fully broken in - I know, I know, the travails of having one too many jackets! I picked up my Chopper and the Knox armored undershirt from Insurrection/Thurston Bros. Attached here are pics of me wearing my Chopper from when it was still very new, hope y'all don't mind, just wanna share the awesomeness of this jacket! :)

Simonnoggio, you won't go wrong with a Vanson. Like others have mentioned before, Vanson is definitely a bang for your buck in the best way possible. They make armored leather jackets too - racing suits, sport riding jackets, etc. Armored options in their regular classic line include the Drifter, Perforated Drifter and Armored Comet jackets. If you like their Model A then you'll be happy to know they've come out with an amored version, the AR3. I recently received my customized version of the AR3, will post pics in a separate thread. They also have a semi-perforated version of the Drifter jacket, the DRAC or Full Throttle, which I dutifully picked up too ;) - lighter leather, armored, with option to open or the close perforated section - looking forward to rocking it in warmer weather.

View attachment 22454 View attachment 22456 View attachment 22457 View attachment 22455

I really like the list of jackets you have.. Hopefully within a year or two i'd like to add a lost worlds, aero and a schott to my closet!!
 

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