Vintage 1950s German Motorrad Leather Motorcycle Jacket RIES Zip

In 1950s West Germany, the motorcycle was how ordinary people got about. Cars were still out of reach for most families, and by 1955 NSU in Neckarsulm was building around 350,000 machines a year, more than any other maker in the world. BMW, Zündapp, DKW and Horex were busy too. It was also the decade of the Halbstarke, the young Germans who took their style from Brando and James Dean and rode out in leather jackets and jeans. For most riders, though, a jacket like this was simply the best protection money could buy.

The first thing you notice is the shoulders. Strips of black and cream leather are plaited together into braided epaulettes and finished with a domed leather button. Below them, rows of parallel quilting run across the top of each sleeve, padding the point that would take the impact in a fall. The same thinking runs down the arms: at each elbow, the leather is stitched in a series of curved arcs, one inside the other, adding padding and letting the joint bend without the leather bunching.

The front is cut asymmetric. The heavy diagonal zip runs from the collar down to the hem, so the left panel overlaps the right across the chest and the wind has no straight line in. Zip it fully and the long, pointed collar folds over to seal the throat. Unzip it and the front falls open into wide lapels. The collar points are edged in cream piping, and the same cream frames all four zip pockets, two angled at the chest and two lower down, and runs up both sides of each cuff zip. Against the black, it gives the whole jacket a crisp, deliberate look.

Turn it round and the back tells you this was made for riding. The upper back is cut from a single smooth panel under a stitched yoke. At the waist, it’s gathered tight on elastic, and below that the leather is quilted in a diamond pattern to form a kidney panel. Lean forward over the tank and the jacket stays snug to the body, with the lower back covered and warm. The belt is a proper piece of work in its own right: double rows of stitching along both edges, brass eyelets, a roller buckle, a leather keeper and a pointed tip.

The cowhide is heavy and tough, as a riding jacket should be, and it’s still supple, with a soft sheen and just a little softening at the shoulders and elbows. The original German RIES zips, with their long, slim pulls, had rusted over the years. They’ve been cleaned, polished and lubricated in the workshop, and every one runs smoothly.

Inside, the front is faced in black leather, and the body is lined in warm moleskin cotton, gathered at the back waist to follow the shape of the jacket. There’s a leather-trimmed welt pocket for papers, and the sleeves are lined in brown. The lining is still in really good condition.

Within a few years, Germans had traded their bikes for cars. BMW’s motorcycle sales fell from around 30,000 in 1954 to just 5,400 in 1957. Jackets from those peak years, in this condition, are getting harder to find.

Ready to wear, and ready to ride.

Condition & Restoration

Very good vintage condition. The leather has been specialist cleaned and conditioned in-house.

The cowhide is strong, supple and structurally sound, with light natural creasing and gentle softening at the shoulders, elbows and back. The cream piping shows some fine age cracking at the back of the collar.

The original RIES zips have been refurbished in the workshop. They’ve been cleaned, polished and lubricated, and they now run smoothly. The belt and buckle are present and sound.

The moleskin cotton body lining and brown sleeve linings show light wear only and are in really good condition for their age. 

Key Features

• Original 1950s German Motorrad leather jacket
• Heavy black cowhide
• Original German RIES zips, refurbished
• Asymmetric diagonal front zip, opens to wide lapels
• Long pointed collar with cream piping
• Braided black-and-cream leather epaulettes
• Quilted shoulders and stitched elbow arcs
• Four cream-piped zip pockets
• Cream-piped zipped cuffs
• Elasticated back with diamond-quilted kidney panel
• Leather belt with brass eyelets and roller buckle
• Moleskin cotton lining, brown sleeve linings
• Leather-trimmed inside pocket

Garment Measurements, Laid Flat

• Chest, armpit to armpit: 21.5" / 54.5 cm
• Shoulders, seam to seam: 17.5" / 44.5 cm
• Sleeve, shoulder seam to cuff: 25.5" / 65 cm
• Underarm seam to cuff: 17" / 43 cm
• Back length, base of collar to hem: 26" / 66 cm

Best suited to: 38" chest, regular / Size Small

Fit: A close riding cut, made to be worn snug to the body for protection. It’s drawn in firmly at the waist by the belt and elasticated back, and it’s cut short to finish at the top of the hip, with long sleeves for reaching forward to the bars.