last trip i used an aerostich roadmaster separatable suit. but it faded from neon, wasnt h20 proof at all, was hot, cost an arm & leg. for next trip im thinking of a neon darien jacket and grey pants, or is there other better/cheaper/more h2o resistant/cooler, jacket/pant sets out there? ive looked at Rev-it and the shop but i dunno. whatdayathink?

My friends who have Darien jackets and pants like them. Aerostich makes nice stuff. Too rich for my budget to buy new, but you could do worse. I am of the opinion that all riding gear leaks eventually so I buy used gear off craigslist.org with light road rash for pennies on the dollar from fashion conscious riders who don't like getting ribbed by their buddies with road rash jokes. I like Aerostich, First Gear, BMW, and Rukka. But would never buy any of it new for the astronomical retail prices. My mom taught me to sew, so I can fix lightly damaged gear.

Black is beautiful when it comes to riding gear that doesn't show dirt. Gray pants will look gross after kneeling in the dirt and fixing a few flats and spilling ketchup and fries in your lap on the second week of overland traveling. You can wipe oily hands on black and still look fine. Neon jackets are good for visibility, but I assume everyone doesn't see me and wear black jackets that look good even after weeks on the road. Just brush off the dead bugs. If I wanted a visibility edge I would wear a neon vest rather than a neon jacket. Aerostich neon looks gross after 10 or 20,000 miles. Not that I would mind looking like a high-viz hobo mind you. I just choose black pants, tees, jackets, pants, long underwear,riding boots you name it. Black looks better longer between washings so you don't need to take as many clothes.

Just my thoughts on the subject. Others may have ideas.

Cheers,
John Downs

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South America and back on a 250 Super Sherpa Minimalist Adventure http://advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=831076

The riding gear conundrum has yet to be solved. My only experience is with Aerostich. After 5 years and 120,000 km thru the Americas and Europe--not worth the money. Gear is hot, heavy, leaks, has needed many repairs and modifications to make it work better. I do not know what gear would be better, unfortunately, but I would not go with Aerostich again. The life of my gear has reached its end, so I am also on the search for new gear. Should be interesting given the many options available.

What sort of riding - tarmac and good gravel roads, or more technical stuff?

What sort of places - hot/cold/wet?

The only thing you can be certain of is that one set of riding gear will not be right for all the above.



Personally, I've come to the conclusion that 'waterproof' is a myth, and the closer you try to get to it the more you lose other desirable properties like ventilation. Additionally, most waterproof motorcycle gear is 'waterproof' on the inside, not the outside (because the outside is the abrasion resistant bit). So if it's wet for a few days you end up smelling like a wet dog and weighing twice as much

I do have a conventional Gore-tex/Cordura type two-piece suit, which I wear for commuting - goes over my office clothes, is waterproof enough for 20 miles, and it doesn't matter if it gets wet because I can hang it up in the house overnight.

But for most other riding, I've taken to wearing non-waterproof gear which satisfies the other requirements (protection, temperature control), and just packing a cheap one-piece waterproof oversuit. I only put it on when it rains, and it is far more waterproof than my other 'waterproof' gear which cost well over five times as much.

If I'm doing a reasonable amount of off-tarmac stuff, or it's really hot, I'll generally be in my 'rally' gear - A* Venture jacket, Klim Dakar pants, separate body armour - because the venting is excellent. It's a lot cheaper than the products from the same manufacturer which try to do the waterproofing thing as well.

General touring on the roads, it will usually be leather jacket and kevlar jeans, because it's comfortable and doubles up acceptably as an off-bike outfit.

I use a cheap, rugged, comfy, non waterproof Hein Gericke Tuareg jacket and wear a goretex paclite outdoor jacket underneath (by the north face). It's always waterproof, breathable and comfy. Off the bike I can wear the TNF jacket without looking like a stormtrooper. If its really filthy weather I very occasionally put a 'Gore-Tex' German army surplus jacket over the top which I bought on ebay for £13 (and cut the hood off) and this stops my Hein Gericke getting too waterlogged.

And actually, this combo has worked well in everything from 40 celsius desert riding to freezing wind and rain in europe.

When the waterproofing on my TNF eventually dies, I'll just buy something similar in a sale.

On my legs I wear Kevlar jeans and Hein Gericke overtrousers. This ain't bad, but not quite as comfy/functional as my jacket combo.

Matt

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*Disclaimer* - I am not saying my bike is better than your bike. I am not saying my way is better than your way. I am not mocking your religion/politics/other belief system. When reading my post imagine me sitting behind a frothing pint of ale, smiling and offering you a bag of peanuts. This is the sentiment in which my post is made. Please accept it as such!

Anybody got any recommendations for touring Oz, Dec-May. Been looking at all sorts but not decided yet and, with the amount of clothing out there, my head hurts. I'm considering a Frank Thomas jacket and trousers but am open to advice.

Hummm the teatsy fly agrees with you, it likes to sting black things ... including clothing.

Waterproof and cool don't usually go together. Think of temperatures over 100 F (or 30 C for the rest of us). For cool you want vents and lighter colours (kullors if you prefer ) While light colours show the dirt, I think of that like some who have those bagdes to say where they have been.
And you can always wash it in the next storm

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A separate rain suit.

If you have it on the outside ... fine until you fall off at which point you can damage the water proofness.
If you have it under the protective layer then the protective layer gets wet.

I think where you ware it depends on the probability of falling, mud means you will probably fall so you want the protection on the outside... where it will get filthy.

I know that, in the real world, you can't, but taking cost out of the situation, I love my Companero suit. The venting is amazing - temps of 30+ are comfortable when riding, and the Goretex outers are excellent weather protection.

Being realistic, you can replicate the same principles fairly simply. As a base garment, venting and protection; over the top, decent waterproof garment (whether it's Goretex or not). The 'realistic' way also allows for more variety in your choices.

I run with the Olympia stuff which is the poor cousin to Aerostitch.
I find it great I have ridden from 5c to 30c without problems, just remove the liners and open the vents

Interesting topic,

Me my self; I have the DIFI Rallye EDT terra east (Motoport). It's light in weight and collar since I'm riding around and try to go around with our big yellow friend. The made my custom because of my length and the price was under the €500.

I totally agree that in the end everything leaks so why spending so much money for a wet suit . The vent is good and even with 49 ˙C it was okok. When I have to stop I always try to find the shadow even it's just enough to put my one boot in ;-).

Unfortunately I get some rain as well and use for that the bright Yellow Rainsuit of BMW €89.

By now they also produce the same suit with gore-tex, but men the price is sky high and heavy and it becomes even more heavy if it rains like mentioned before.

I was able to buy the really 3 for 50% of the price but I stayed with my nice relatively cheap Summer suit. And if it become cold, I start wearing my clothes in layers anyway.

Cheers

I use Motoport kevlar gear and am delighted with it in almost every way. My only complaint is the weight and bulk, but that is because I got the quad-armor instead of the default tri-armor (which I would choose next time). I've used it in hot, cold, dry, wet, and snowing. Always comfortable and dry.

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Both my girlfriend and I have had good luck with the Rallye 3 gear so far. Purely chosen as a massive (think $600US) discount was offered on the complete outfit. Otherwise Rev-it would have been the first choice after my brother has used their gear for a couple of years with great results/crashes.

My Rallye 2 gear got me 4 years of almost every working day use. The goretex wore out on the lower legs and arse but the quality of the suit was unbeatable, no stitching ever came apart and the zips never failed me. Eventually I sold it genuinely on ebay for a great price after gearing up with the rallye 3 for our RTW trip. I'm guessing the buyer will get another 4 years out of it easily (albiet not so waterproof). A new goretex liner would have brought it back to as new condition.

Rallye 3:

Some stitching (the arm adjusting straps) is weak and coming apart but functionally this isn't too much of a drama. In SEA we run both zips/press studs only in the center to roll the collar down and the bottom of the jacket up (for more airflow over the torso). Black is great for the above mentioned reasons but really sucks the life out of you in the tropical heat/sun.

Waterproofing is a holistic approach with the BM santiago boots and waterproof gloves (the more gauntlet style the merrier). Although we've had to seam seal one of Clarissa's boots due to failed stitching. Mind you after owning 4 different types of boots over the last 8 years these santiago's are my favourite by far. Obviously if you don't run suitable gloves (we only have our dirt gloves here in Thailand) the goretex is for nothing when the water travels up the cuffs and pools in the elbows and travels down the body, into the pants and into the boots. Although we now choose to get wet (and a little cold) here in south east asia.

The armour is the best part - how its flexible in the normal conditions but hardens under impact. Clarissa has had numerous hard landings on the knees and has walked away each time.

Worst part for us is that for Clarissa (unisex sizing) is certainly not the best and we've had to trim the spine protector so it wasn't pushing the back of her helmet and nodding the head down. Its not particularly flattering for her but functional. My suit fits me exceptionally well. Although more adjustability on the waist would be nice as the noodle soups have taken their toll and my waists shrunk.

For us we will run a waterproof over suit/goretex liner/heated vest/thermals when we get to Japan/Russia/EU etc. As I don't think without the rain suit it will cut the mustard for the cold/snow.

This is just what we have - the grass is always greener on the other side though!