I just ordered a bunch of riding gear online since I couldn’t get to a tack shop before it closed because of work. Everything fits, except for my new half chaps. I bought Ariat concords, and the sizing chart online is about .5"-1" off the sizing chart listed on the chaps themselves. They are VERY tight and I can’t get the last inch or so done up. How much stretch should I expect in full leather half chaps? I am wary of going up a size and having them get baggy 
I had these chaps for 6 months. I measured correctly and they stretched (actually a little too much IMO), but the quality was poor. I had Ariat chaps before that held up great for years. My Concords started to fall apart where the smooth leather attached to the zippers. And everytime I rode in them, the zippers would unzip down the back of my leg. It was very frustrating. I now ride in Tredsteps. Hopefully you don’t go through what I did with mine.
I had the same problem with the Ariat crowne pro half chaps I got last year–the sizing was off by almost 2" from the chart! Chart said 13" and when I took a tape measure to them they were 11.5", I believe. I can only squeeze them on if I’m dehydrated and wearing very thin breeches, and they cut off my circulation in the back of my knee if I wear them for a while. They’ve stretched the teensiest bit, but it’s pretty darn hard to stretch out something you can’t even get on. Between those and the broken zipper on my brand-new Heritage paddock boots, I hate Ariat with a passion now.
You want your half chaps to be too tight. They do have a tendency to stretch quite a bit, and IME an inch or two “too small” is good. The trick is to tie a piece of twine through the zipper and get them zipped up and then do the “bathtub method” on the halfchaps…my version simply involves sticking the hose into the top of the halfchaps after zipping them and then waiting for the half chaps to dry.
I don’t know if the Concords have them, but most of the new Ariat tall boot/half chap products have zipper locks…a little piece of leather on the inside of the snap top that locks the zipper into the “up” or “zipped” position. My Close Contact half chaps do not have these and I have to ride with a piece of duct tape under the zipper after I put them on. My new Monaco half chaps do have them, and the tack shop I got them from mentioned that all of the newer Ariat products have them. Don’t know if that’s true or not, but they are nice.
Thanks everyone. I hope these chaps are decent quality… but I’m not too concerned if they’re not. All my nice stuff I left in Canada, and I just needed a basic helmet/breeches/paddock boots/chaps set to get me riding here. I had originally ordered some cheaper Ariats (just the suede ones) but they were out of stock so I took these. They look very nice… so we’ll see. I won’t be riding that often.
PNW- they do have that little piece of leather. I hope they stretch enough, but I think I will keep them anyway as I do not feel like paying for shipping back and waiting again. Worse comes to worse… I’ll ride with the top inch or so undone! lol It’s only to get me on a horse 
I love my Concord half chaps. I admittedly bought them from a store rather than online from a size chart, so I don’t know how “off” the original measurement was… They did start off very tight knowing that they would stretch. A year later, they’re a bit loose. I’d like to think I’ve lost a little weight, but probably not!
After a year of using them 6 days a week and not cleaning them regularly, they’re about due to be replaced. But for the price I feel that I’ve definitely gotten my money’s worth of out them - they’re comfy and look lovely (I even showed in them a couple of times when dealing with zipper replacement on my tall boots).
I love my Concord half chaps. I have had them almost a year. I found them pretty much to size and they did stretch nicely and still fit great. I thought the quality was fine.
I rode in them today and they were great! We’ll see how long they hold up… but as of right now I am only riding once a week, so they should do the trick 
Has anyone else noticed that Ariats 5+ years old are amazing, but anything made within the past 5ish years is terrible? The quality went from excellent to fair/poor so quickly!
