When creating the Sakura gloves Anthony and the 78 Motor Co. team took an ‘haute couture’ approach, which for those who tend to stick to denim jeans and cotton tees, like yours truly, means high-end fashion. As he explains it “Design and functionality tend to sit on the opposite axis. I wanted to pull these elements together”.
The construction of each pair of Sakura motorcycle gloves begins with “the finest aniline calf hides” sourced from Scandinavia. The leather is kept slightly thicker through a bespoke tanning technique that leaves the top grain of the leather in place. After shaving the outer surface each hide then undergoes a 3 stage dying process in either Midnight Black, Royal Blue and Cherry Red. The leather then makes its way to the 78 Motor Co. factory where they spend no less than 6 hours constructing each pair of Sakura gloves.
Each glove features 29 carefully considered perforations for airflow and a polyester lining for comfort. To make fitting an ease the gloves opening is lined with silk and they close with alloy/polymer YKK zippers. For improved dexterity, the thumb, index and little finger of each glove feature a ribbed design and the palm is segmented to reduce fatigue. Finally, colour matched double stitching holds everything firmly together.
Anthony describes the Sakura gloves as “Designed for the Scrambler, Brat, Flat and the Café Racer collective”. If you’re happy to spend a little extra on riding gear that’s likely to have been constructed more conscientiously than your motorcycle, then the Sakura gloves are for you.
High-end fashion for your fingers. There’s no denying riding gear has come a long way in the last decade. From manufacturing processes through to materials and especially design the whole industry has upped its game and England’s 78 Motor Co. have just raised the bar again. Their ‘Sakura’ motorcycle gloves are quite possibly the best-looking gloves on the market and that’s exactly what they were aiming for.
