Are you an avid biker? If you are, you probably have many different biker patches on your jacket and vest. You might even have patches on other biker gear like your saddlebags, pants, and hats. There are patches for just about every type of item. If you're just starting out as a biker and want to add some different patches to your riding gear, you may be surprised at the number of styles of patches. Here are some of the different types of patches available and what type of clothing you might want to add them to.
Basic Patches
The basic patch is usually around four inches or less wide and tall. They can have just about anything embroidered on them. There are some with cool wild animals on them, while others have jokes or other sayings. These patches can usually be sewn or ironed on since most are backed with plastic backing that melts to the clothing when heated. There are so many different styles of these patches that you could go through several hundred without ever finding two that are similar. You'll be able to find a number of them that fit your style. These patches can be put on just about anything: the front, back, and even the sleeves of jackets, the front or back of vests, bags, and small ones will even fit on caps.
Rocker Patches
Rocker patches are arched patches that are designed to be worn on the shoulder of a jacket. You may see some of these patches on the arms of military personnel, police officers, or medical personnel. These rockers usually have a single word embroidered on them, such as 'Army', 'Veteran', or the name of a state. Some people also wear them on the front of their jacket or vest. Usually they are pretty plain, black with white text is standard, but there are some with a little more decorations, such as small U.S. flags on either side.
There are also large versions of rocker patches. These versions are made to go on the back of your jacket or vest. They are large enough that they stretch all the way across the back. Many have one of these large rockers on the top and the bottom with a large back patch centered between them. These are usually worn on the back of a jacket or vest.
Large Back Patches
Speaking of, large back patches are definitely a good option if you want something very colorful and detailed. These patches are usually eight inches across or larger, and they take up 
most of the back of your jacket or vest. Because these are larger, the patches are usually more detailed than smaller ones. They often have more imagery on them, too, and make use of more colors. Of course, they do cost more than smaller patches, but if you consider the fact that they take up the space of four or more regular sized patches, you'll see that you're paying about the same. Because they're so large, they really only fit on the back of a jacket/vest or on a large bag.
Cap Patches
If you're looking for a patch to add to your cap, some are specifically shaped for baseball caps. They're rounded on top but flat on the bottom so they sit perfectly right above the bill of the cap. Many of these patches are designed to go with other patch themes, so you'll find some patriotic patches, military patches, and more that go with other patches designed to be worn on your jacket or vest. Of course, small patches of all kinds can be added to your cap as long as they fit in the space.
Club Patches
If you're part of a motorcycle club, you might need to wear certain club patches. Some of these may be custom made by your club and include the club name and the city it's based out of. Officers in the club may need to wear specific patches that denote their office. These patches can be found for president, vice-president, chaplain, road captain, and other ranks and titles. They are usually available in a number of different colors so your club can find one that matches their club colors. These patches are usually small and rectangular because they're meant to be worn on the front of your jacket or vest where one usually wears a nametag.
Flag Patches
Many different police, fire, and military personnel wear flag patches on their uniforms, and there are many different flag patches for bikers, too. There are dozens of different flags you can choose from in addition to the American flag worn on a lot of uniforms. There are flags for other countries, flags for some states, and much more. Some of these patches are designed to be worn on the upper sleeve of a jacket or uniform, while others can be worn just about anywhere else.
Blank Patches
Blank patches are just that blank. They're designed for those who want to make their own patches. You can easily embroider your own images or sayings on them using standard embroidery thread and needles. You don't even need to do any fancy stitching, either. Basic embroidery stitches work just fine. The one thing to note with these patches is that they usually do not have the heat-activated plastic backing on them. This means you'll have to sew them on to your clothing. The reason they don't include the backing is because it would make it more difficult to embroider them.
Hook and loop Backed Patches
Finally, some patches feature Hook and loop backing. These are somewhat new, and you may not find many different options yet. However, what's great with these patches is that you can quickly and easily swap them out. You just need to have some Hook and loop attached to your jacket. Just stick the patch you want to wear on the Hook and loop and go! When you want to wear something different, just pull that patch off and put another one on. This is very different from the sew-on or iron-on patches. Sewn on patches can be removed if you're really careful, but it will show that they've been sewn on. Patches that were ironed on cannot be removed. If you plan to change up your look regularly, you might want to go with Hook and loop.
These are the different types of patches out there that are available for your biker gear. Once you have a theme in mind, you can easily mix and match different sizes and styles to make an awesome biker jacket.
