Shop Clothes

[kartracer55]

What does everybody usually work in? for ME...

Its usually dickies work pants or ripped/greasy jeans and a workshirt over a T-shirt.

There used to be a place where I could get dickies work pants for 18$ a pair... so I have at least 10 pairs of them... Actually, I wear these all the time but I have 2-3 pairs that are trashed that I use specifically for the garage. I always have at least one pair and a workshirt hanging up in the basement by an old pair of shoesfor me to change into real quick when im working.

I have found that welding sparks/slag burns little holes in dickies a bit easier than jeans, which start to singe instead of melt through, so I need to be careful with those. However I figure once you weld in ANY clothing they are pretty much commited to being shop clothes. Grinding sparks arnt a problem, just welding spatter/slag. What do you welders work in? Big leather coveralls dont really make much sense for me because Im not welding for a full 8 hours, but I need a bit of protection because those little tiny burns get old after a while.

Are there any work pants or jeans in particular that you guys have found hold up best in a shop environment? I have NEVER ripped a pair of dickies or even poked a hole in them, and the ones I work in are a few years old. For a while Id outgrow them before they would wear out but thats about over... I think im done growing haha.

So what about you guys?

Jim

 

[Cebby]

Most shop days are Carhart pocket tee, $20 Old Navy jean painter pants (or shorts depending on the time of year) and Merrell hiking shoes.

For welding, I throw a welding jacket if doing more than a couple of welds (and gloves if the work warrants it). If doing alot of welding, I'll be sure to wear long pants, leather boots and a headrag also. Same goes for grinding. Universally for grinding/welding, make sure your pant cuffs go over your shoes/boots. Hot sparks in the boots is not pleasant.

I haven't really messed up any clothes other than filth - except for one time I burnt a hole in a sweatshirt from grinding sparks hitting me in the same spot for too long.

 

[stimpy]

dickies work clothes for me in the garage and for my job , for when I weld I ussually have a leather welders jacket and bib so I don't catch fire like I did one night , dickies pants are nylon /cotton blend and when you cut with a torch the slag can cause them to ignite ( I know from personal experiance ) I felt some heat on my leg when cutting a part of a rollcage out and thought it was odd , lookeddown and my pants leg was on fire and burning straight up , the melted portion of the pants dropped on my shoes and melted to it .

 

[gmasterman]

Bluejeans and tee shirts. In fact, work clothes is all I have. Don't have time for any social functions so I don't need any dress clothes. BTW, my jeans do not have rivits in the pockets and I wear a leather covered beltbuckle-can't have meatle scratching my cars accidentaly

 

[Cebby]

BTW, my jeans do not have rivits in the pockets and I wear a leather covered beltbuckle-can't have metal scratching my cars accidentaly

That's a great point!

 

[Elky]

if i have to wear a belt while working on cars, i put the buckle on my side.
so the only way i could scratch a car is if i leaned up against it sideways.
yeah its a little more of a pain to put the belt on this way, but it works.

 

[Ign]

In the winter, Carharrt pants. The canvas holds up well to crawling around the floor in metal shavings and abrasive dust. The ones with double thick front even provide a small amount of protection from *smaller* welding sparks

In the summer, shorts even tho it's not safe. Just can't stand to wear pants when its' hot.

 

[Dodgepu360]

I usually wear jeans and a t-shirt and for welding I like the wrangler work shirts the ones that are thick cotton and have the pearl snaps I like the tan ones since they are the lightest color (better for being out in the sun)
The pearl snaps are very important too cause you can rip the shirt off fast if you catch it on fire

 

[Bill K]

Jeans and T shirts or elastic waist shorts and t's when it's hot. Never wear a beltand if I have jeans on I'll pull out my shirt to cover the snaps/buttons to keep from scratching anything. Gloves and a long ankle lenght leather apron I made when grinding or welding in shorts.
Bill

 

[gmasterman]

I HAVE to wear a belt. If I done my jeans will stay around my ankles! BTW, I also use dollar store floormats with rubber backing to throw on my cars fenders. Lot's cheaper that the storebought fender protectors

 

[Rickster]

Always wear a T-shirt and garage pants or cargo shorts and I use a shop apron from the MTD guys that make the work gloves. The garage pants I get at the bigger swap meets, ususlly a guy there who sells these older shop pants and shirts for cheap. When it cools off I'll go with shop coveralls from the same guy. Come winter, I have oversized jeans I wear with a pair of fleece sweat pants underneath. Oh, and my Walmart work boots year round. ... and I don't worry about my belt buckle scratching the car because my stomach keeps it away from the paint.

 

[Tom]

I just wear my uniform pants from work and old t-shirts. All of my old jeans have the knees blown out from crouching down, the work pants don't have that problem and somebody else washes them for me every week.

 

[oldskewl61]

what ever i put on that morning stains rips and burns are bagdges of honor to me.

 

[justinmc]

I wear mostly dickies style work pants.. heavy duty stuff. Never had any issues with ripping/battery acid, etc. T shirts are usually the top of choice except in winter when I'll wear some old flannels and or a "muleskin" hooded jacket.

Oh a good source for garage tshirts if you don't have an endless supply (I get freebies every week or two from work.. so my mountain keeps growing) is to hit up the thrift stores in your area. For $2-3 a shirt... get those greasy.

 

[Calamari]

I have actually hit the local good will for some cheap threads... I just buy them a couple of sizes too big so they are ver comfy. Usually get pants and shirts for $1 a piece.

 

[malibu101]

Note if you are wearing old frayed jeans while welding or cutting the white strings light off real easy. I found out the hot way.

 

[Rrumbler]

It depends a lot on just what I am doing; most of the time, for light "puttering", I'm in shorts and a tank or T. If heavy fabrication is on the menu, add work boots, and if welding, then a set of Carhart style bibs - got 'em from King Size - with double front panels and leathers. As I have gotten older, and fatter, work clothes are harder to find, and I have gotten to where I like the freedom of shorts and tanks - and, living where I do, most of the year they are good to go.

 

[cc_rider]

I've found a great source for real 'dirty work' clothes: Pep Boys Auto Parts. Back in the oil section they have used coveralls, about $10/ea. Most are all cotton, long sleeve, with a variety of patched-up areas and other 'character'. They are perfectly functional and comfortable too; no waistband to bind or belt buckle to scratch. Perfect to buy an extra and throw in the trunk, in case you ever need to change a tire on the way to the opera.

My favorites are the 'convict orange' ones. I have a pair I've cut into shorts with no sleeves, for hot weather wear. Alll I need now are some 'tatts' to complete the look. I'm sure the neighbors wonder how they can get a convict to mow THEIR lawn too...

Army/Navy stores are good for used fatigues too. I like having cargo pockets, and many fatigues have plastic buttons instead of zippers, so there's nothing to scratch. They're usually reinforced at wear points like knees and seat, so they hold up well to abuse.

c.

 

[BlakeTheCarGuy]

Either Dickies work pants or blue jeans for pants. At work they provide Cintas work pants. I buy my jeans at Rural King so for $10 a pair they are great for everyday use. Heck when you are a mechanic every set of clothes you own are work clothes. Shirts Dickies work shirts or at work Cintas. Also any plain grey, black or blue shirt. I have grease stains on many other shirts though.

 

[Ryan]

I used to be a Dickies guy... But I swear... their quality has gone to ****. A pair of their shorts might last me 4 months now and I used to get years out of them. The price is right, but to me - they are no longer a value buy.

You guys are gonna think I'm crazy... But a couple of years ago, these guys sent me some of these pants:

Men's Travel Pants

From long flights to last-minute hikes, our lightweight travel pants move with you. Wrinkle-free, pocket-packed, and available in slim or classic fits.

westernrise.com

They feel like stretch denim or something? I mean, I'm not huge on their aesthetics... but holy hell are they made well. My pair still looks brand new after being abused in the shop. I only wish they were cheaper and came in a little wider leg.

 

[joshmodelskidoo]

dickies flex duck canvas pants and jeans with a t-shirt. for shorts its cintas from work, dickies, or whatever cheap deals i can find new or used

 

[glentre]

I often go to the garage overdressed because I'm not intending to get into anything dirty. Then I see something I want to get into and am too lazy to go back to the house and change, resulting in ruining good clothes. If I'm planning to do some oil changes, painting or work under cars, I'll wear full mechanics coveralls over my regular clothes in the winter and just over my underwear in the summer.

Biggest problem is shoes that pick up grease or metal chips which result in a dirty house and angry wife if you don't take them off. I usually wear rubber crocks and just kick them off and leave them outside.

Glen

 

[firebirdparts]

Bib overalls for me.

 

[nadogail]

I wear 100% Cotton jeans, they stand up best to hot work and are most comfortable.

 

[MushCreek]

I wear bib overalls until it starts getting warm out- maybe 75 degrees. They're too hot in the summer. I have plenty of ratty old jeans for yard work and heavier work in the shop. Otherwise, shorts and T-shirts. I have mostly work clothes these days. We rarely see anyone, so I don't need much in the way of good clothes.

 

[gtae07]

Pretty much all year, at home or in the shop, it's a dry-fit shirt and athletic shorts, with an old pair of running shoes. That goes for yard work, fixing cars, building the airplane, or any other project.

 

[laser3kw]

PS - from 2006 - competing for"oldest thread resurrection"
another zombie thread come back to life.
not that it's a bad thing -
I wear coveralls and sweat pants & tee shirt in the Winter. Shorts and tee shirt in the summer

 

[My Old Tools]

This is Texas. For most of the year its ratty shorts and t-shirts that my wife hates. For a few weeks in the winter its jeans or ratty old sweats and t-shirt.

 

[MooreGarage]

I don't do welding, so I don't have to worry about that... For me it is the cargo pants with the zip off legs that Costco sells for $20 a pair. At that price, if I rip them or stain them, it is no big loss. They are fairly light weight and very comfortable. That, a t-shirt, and a pair of Keens (I buy a new about every 18 months, so at any point in time I have at least two old pairs kicking around - the rattiest pair gets used for yard work, the less ratty pair for garage work).

 

[Jswain]

I'm fairly lucky as I get FR coveralls from work so I try to use them as much as possible. Wear them at work then retire them in the shop. For cleaner work it's either jeans/Dickie style pants and a cotton shirt.

I do quite a bit of welding to I keep a set of sleeves/cap/apron handy and try to use them for anything other then a quick weld

 

[rburke65]

Before retiring, it was mandatory coveralls ... some sort of high voltage protection. And now it’s jeans and a sweatshirt...or no shirt

 

[justanengineer]

I’m a fan of Duluth Trading firehose pants and shorts. They’re amazingly stain/grease resistant, durable as hell, and have a lifetime warranty. The one downside is that they’re pricy, normally ~$70 per but IIRC the last I bought them on sale were ~$40. Beyond that I have an epic T shirt, tank top, and work shirt collection and don’t feel bad about wearing or abusing any of them.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[ttpete]

NEVER wear polyester when welding. Cotton only. Polyester melts, and your skin will suffer.

 

[justanengineer]

NEVER wear polyester when welding. Cotton only. Polyester melts, and your skin will suffer.

Yup. The other one to be careful of around hot work is synthetic gloves. Having clothes melted to you in a couple small spots looks painful enough but i saw a guy’s glove melt and hot glue itself to the front side of his hand ~20 years ago. His hand looked like pot roast after the ER peeled the glove and a few skin layers off.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[smackey05]

All year, gym shorts and an old t-shirt. I don't like to wear jeans when leaning over the cars.

 

[rburke65]

NEVER wear polyester when welding. Cotton only. Polyester melts, and your skin will suffer.

I believe that it was polyester and them required cotton for that reason...lots of 480 Volt welding disconnects

 

[shaune]

Cotton blue cover all. 8 hours at work then the same at home.

 

[nadogail]

Just purchased another pair of Kirkland jeans and a Dickies denim shirt today.

 

[hasco]

Mostly Jeans and T-Shirt

 

[Sumboodie]

Jean's and hi viz T shirt. Same at work.