I’m cheap. I’ll admit it. I’ve been known to ask the waitress for extra lemon and use the sugar at the table to make my own lemonade at restaurants.
Sometimes that pisses off the wait staff too.
So, you can imagine my reaction when I first saw the price tag on a pair of Diamond Gusset jeans at a motorcycle show in Nashville Tennessee.
What the hell? $125 for a pair of blue jeans! The price was so totally shocking, I had to ask. “What makes these jeans so special?”
Turns out the guy I was asking was David Hall, the President and co-founder of Diamond Gusset Jeans, located in Bon Aqua Tennessee.
Over the next 5 minutes, David explained how the jeans were manufactured and the material they used. I’ll get to all that later. What was more impressive to me was the people who walked by the booth during that conversation and spontaneously said to me, “best jeans I ever bought.” “you’ll love those jeans, man.” “I bought a pair 10 years ago and they’re still going strong!”
Recommended for both winter and summer riding, these jeans are made with Kevlar (the same stuff used in bullet proof vests) sewn in the knees, hips and butt area. Add to that the double stitching, the Velcro strap at the bottom of each leg to keep out the cold drafts, the key hook over the right pocket and the convenient cell phone pocket on the right thigh and these jeans quickly became my go-to choice for motorcycle travel.
But the best part of the Defenders is what’s in the crotch. Uh..wait, I don’t mean…well….ok.. Let’s start over.
Diamond Gusset gets it’s name from the extra “diamond” shaped gusset that’s sewn into the crotch area of each pair. This little bit of material prevents that “something just grabbed me in the nads and is slowing squeezing me until my voice changes” feeling we have all gotten on long rides.
As I was leaving on a 10 day motorcycle ride from Tennessee to California, I left the show with a brand new black pair. I would put these jeans through a few thousand miles of real world testing. If there were any flaws, the miles would expose them.
The next morning with the temperature hovering in the upper 40’s I stuck out on the ride with just these jeans and a pair of textile over-pants covering my legs and I promptly forgot I had them on. Over the course of the 12 hour day in the saddle, I spent some time wondering what it was that t I liked about these jeans versus my normal Wrangler or Levi jeans that I normally wear while riding.
The biggest benefit, besides the Kevlar stitching in the hips and knee area is the extra material sewn into the crotch area. On my normal jeans, I’m always “adjusting” that area, without gaining any relief.
I enjoyed the steel ring on the right side, that came in handy for hanging my motorcycle key. Without that loop, I almost always put the key in my pocket…forget it’s there and get on the bike, only to have to stand up and dig out my keys.
Then there’s the telephone pocket on the right thigh. Perfect spot for to keep my iPhone without having it in a front or rear pocket.
Over the course of the trip we wore these jeans a total of 8 days, 12-14 hours per day.
I’m sold on these and will be buying a pair in blue, only because the black has faded some after about a dozen washes, but that’s happened with every black pair of jeans I’ve ever owned.
Available in blue or black for $124.95 these jeans are not cheap, but they’ll outlast any jeans in your closet four to one. Consider the Kevlar protection, added features, and the fact that these are 100% made in America and the price becomes a non issue. www.americangusset.com
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