How to reinforce seat area of wool pants?
02-17-20, 10:01 AM
#1
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How to reinforce seat area of wool pants?
I have a friend who likes riding in wool pants. I do, too, but I don't ride nearly as much as he does. He prefers wool but ends up not using it that often because he wears through the seats of the pants. He's wondering if there's a reasonable way to reinforce the seats. He'd like to keep buying nice dress wool pants for biking. Thrift shops. So it wd be awesome if there was a reasonable way to do this DIY. Since these are usually $100 pants selling for $5 maybe he could buy two of them and cut out the seat of one and sew it to the other to double it up? Use an iron-on patch? I have no idea. He's also concerned about structural integrity -- wd a patch tear out under the stresses. Maybe somebody has totally figured this out already. ...Or maybe there are quality wool bike pants that are like a dress pant (not stretchy) with tough butts that don't wear out. He'd splurge and buy new if there was something sweet. He presently uses synthetics but wd rather not.
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02-17-20, 10:28 AM
#3
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I have a friend who likes riding in wool pants. I do, too, but I don't ride nearly as much as he does. He prefers wool but ends up not using it that often because he wears through the seats of the pants. He's wondering if there's a reasonable way to reinforce the seats. He'd like to keep buying nice dress wool pants for biking. Thrift shops. So it wd be awesome if there was a reasonable way to do this DIY. Since these are usually $100 pants selling for $5 maybe he could buy two of them and cut out the seat of one and sew it to the other to double it up? Use an iron-on patch? I have no idea. He's also concerned about structural integrity -- wd a patch tear out under the stresses. Maybe somebody has totally figured this out already. ...Or maybe there are quality wool bike pants that are like a dress pant (not stretchy) with tough butts that don't wear out. He'd splurge and buy new if there was something sweet. He presently uses synthetics but wd rather not.
Adding a second layer is enormous trouble and won't do much. Best possible pants, if they can be found, are made for horse riding. People who keep horses are entirely insensitive to price and buy both quality and heavy fabric. Horse pants are already gathered at cuff and won't require trouser clips.
02-17-20, 10:34 AM
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My old Protogs wool tights I bought in the late 70s (and still use) have a double layer of wool in the seat. They've held up well; I've had to replace elastic and ankle zippers, but they haven't worn through at all.
02-17-20, 12:29 PM
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02-17-20, 12:30 PM
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02-17-20, 01:02 PM
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Is this for commuting, otherwise not sure why selecting wool dress pants for recreational riding? Maybe a cheap pair of nylon overpants (eg rain pants)?
ACME RAIN PANTS
ACME RAIN PANTS
02-17-20, 01:08 PM
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Heavy-duty nylon and other luggage-grade material (https://www.seattlefabrics.com/Fabri...rdura%20Fabric and https://www.sailrite.com/Fabric-Bran...%20Search%20Ad came up immediately, but Amazon and EBay will beat the prices) is generally very affordable and he won't need much.
The actual sewing doesn't need to be quality, just strong .... I hope no one is staring at his butt, but not my problem anyway .... but literally anyone can sew. Primtiive protohumans managed it; anyone can.
He can put a seat on his pants which will last as long as his bike. And it shouldn't tear at the stitching because it really isn't being stretched hard. It wears fast because he is sliding a tiny amount almost constantly, which abrades soft cloth (we all have that pair of really comfortable old shorts or bibs which no longer provide modest concealment of the contents) but the cordura is designed to wear well in exactly that application.
02-17-20, 04:52 PM
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02-17-20, 05:02 PM
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Probably a nice smooth leather saddle would help. A Brooks B-17 can easily be purchased off Amazon for under $100. Course, that would be 20 pair of those wool pants, so I’m not sure whether it makes sense.
02-17-20, 06:12 PM
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Adding a diamond-shaped gusset in the crotch might go a long way in preventing those holes from happening in the first place.
Patching or reinforcing (w/patch) :
Best scenario would be to patch with the same fabric that the trousers are made of, and adhere the patch from the inside using a process known as needle felting. Since these are thriftstore trousers, you probably won't be able to match exactly so, just get some worsted wool fabric with a high wool content (85-percent wool is common and good) that would match to your liking.
Patching or reinforcing (w/patch) :
Best scenario would be to patch with the same fabric that the trousers are made of, and adhere the patch from the inside using a process known as needle felting. Since these are thriftstore trousers, you probably won't be able to match exactly so, just get some worsted wool fabric with a high wool content (85-percent wool is common and good) that would match to your liking.
02-17-20, 07:41 PM
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02-17-20, 08:59 PM
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Originally Posted by Koyote
So, something like this? That will fit right in at most workplaces.
Does the OP, JeffOYB, have any questions about my suggestion?
02-17-20, 09:17 PM
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02-18-20, 07:45 AM
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02-18-20, 08:13 AM
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Shorts or pants over the top. I go with tights, wool or poly pro, mt bike shorts over the top. Works well.
02-18-20, 03:06 PM
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02-19-20, 07:39 AM
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I own many pairs of thermal cycling tights, of much higher quality than the links you have posted, and wear them regulaly down to temps well below 0°F. They certainly are functional, and keep you warm, but in terms of sheer comfort, the wool pants beat them hands down for fabric feel, range of temperature they can be utilized, breathability, and off-the-bike warmth. The only real drawbacks are durability and aerodynamics and because of these the woolies only get taken out on certain occasion.
02-20-20, 11:27 AM
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I own many pairs of thermal cycling tights, of much higher quality than the links you have posted, and wear them regulaly down to temps well below 0°F. They certainly are functional, and keep you warm, but in terms of sheer comfort, the wool pants beat them hands down for fabric feel, range of temperature they can be utilized, breathability, and off-the-bike warmth. The only real drawbacks are durability and aerodynamics and because of these the woolies only get taken out on certain occasion.
90% of the people I fat bike with in the winter own the pants I linked above. Nobody has any issues with them in either quality, comfort or function.
02-20-20, 11:52 AM
#24
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Kilt makers have heavy weight for winter kilts, go to a quality seamstress, maybe she can make a nice set or thicken up the seat area of a nice pair.
02-20-20, 12:34 PM
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I did this for a while too. Expensive dress slacks from the thrift store for pennies on the dollar are great. The quality of wool makes a difference. Some of the loose weave stuff rarely lasts more than a few dozen hours before it wears through. Other brands of worsted wool can last hundreds of hours with zero wear. I have a pair of very old Mervyns worsted wool pants that are in pristine condition despite being ridden for a couple hundred hours. IME the thinner the material the better quality and longer lasting it will be. I reinforce the seats BDU-style and have found that resolves the issue for the life of the shorts if they're of good quality.
as far as reinforcing your pants, maybe slip a pair of shorts over them
