Does anyone still make traditional chamois leather cycling shorts?

In our Tech Q&A series, we tackle readers’ mechanical conundrums and workshop debates. This time, a reader wants to know if it's still possible to buy chamois leather cycling shorts.

The word ‘chamois’ originally referred to the leather used in early cycling shorts, traditionally made from chamois goat hide.

Before Lycra and modern synthetic sports fabrics took over, most cycling shorts were made from wool and paired with these real leather inserts.

That old-school combination has largely disappeared because modern pads are dramatically more comfortable and far better at managing moisture. Many now use sophisticated multi-density foams, or even 3D-printed structures.

Still, there appears to be a small niche of riders who prefer the feel, aesthetic or sheer itchy romance of traditional wool shorts and leather chamois inserts.

One rider, posting on Reddit, recounts taking a pair of old-school shorts out of storage and remembering “how much I love them. The chamois feels like an old driving/golf glove”, adding that they’re “really comfortable on my sitbones and undercarriage” and that he is “not a fan of foam pads because I hate the diaper feeling”.

Fair play, but the problem for this small crowd is that truly authentic options are now exceptionally rare.

A handful of brands still make products that get part of the way there.

Brancale produces a fairly modern-looking bib short with a synthetic outer and synthetic leather-style insert. It captures some of the old vibe, but it is not a true wool-and-leather design.

Likewise, Bouré still makes traditional-style Lycra shorts with a synthetic leather chamois.

If the wool element matters more to you than the leather insert, there are slightly better options.

De Marchi and Wilier Triestina both still produce vintage-style wool cycling shorts. In both cases, however, they use modern synthetic pads rather than traditional leather chamois inserts.

There was, briefly, one genuinely close modern equivalent.

Ronnie 'Ultraromance' Romance, via Ron’s Bikes and Team Dream in Los Angeles, produced wool shorts with a real leather chamois. 

These appear to have been made in tiny numbers and are now almost impossible to source. In fact, the only live reference we can find to them is in an interview with legendary Tokyo-based bike shop, Blue Lug, saying: “I do wool and leather chamois shorts through Team Dream.”

So, as far as we are aware, nobody currently produces widely available modern cycling shorts combining a genuine wool outer with a real leather chamois in the way classic shorts once did.

That means if you really want the full old-school experience, your best option is probably vintage or new old stock shorts from eBay or specialist vintage cycling sellers.

The good news is that quality – if crunchy – old leather chamois inserts can probably be restored using suitable leather-conditioning creams or moisturisers. Just make absolutely certain anything you apply is skin-safe before riding with it.