Riding suit

I've got some choices to make and would appreciate any input. My choices are not always that good, I usually get in the wrong line at the grocery store- The one with the old woman who whips out her checkbook and starts scribbling or some bitch with a pile of coupons and an item with no price so they have to send a runner back to find it.

I digress.

I thought about what you guys said and have upped my budget to around $400. These are some suits I'm looking at.

Fly Terra II, Jacket and pants.
$169- In my original price range. Revzilla has a positive review and video of the "III" version.


TourMaster Centurion.


Joe Rocket Survivor 1-Piece suit
I'm kinda leaning towards this one. The cold weather liner comes out so I can wear it in the summer instead of my regular attire- Hawaiian shirt and man thong.


I like this one too with the matching pants.

Cortech GX Sport 3.0 Jacket

 

I only wear a helmet, cuz I only crash on my head.

 

Hola Rob

Bryan from Revzilla is here, shoot him an email and let him know what you after. He is a great help and he can find what you need within your budget.
http://vfrworld.com/forums/showthread.php/46085-Newbie-Alert!

 

I've got a leather onesie by Sedici rapido I think(essentially a little more quality Bilt). Got it on sale for 400 something. Feels hefty enough, didn't want to drop over a grand on a Dainese suit. Comes with a lifetime warranty though, so at any point it develops an issue through normal use I can take it in to cycle gear for a replacement.

 

If your go with the Tour Master Centurion, Competition Accessories has it on closeout for $315. Link: http://www.compacc.com/p/tour-master-mens-centurion-1-piece-textile-suit

Like I said in post #11 I remember reading a favorable opinion on this suit in either CycleWorld or Motorcyclist magazine. I just can't remember which & haven't been able to find the article since.

I currently have a Cortech Jacket, GX Air. Its the predecessor to the GX Sport. Its a little beefier than the one you looking at. It's a mesh leather combo with removable wind breaker & thermal liners + CE armor. I've never crashed in it (knock on wood) so I can't attest to its crash worthiness. But it has held up very well over the years. Purchased in 07 and its due for replacement. One of the zippers on the thermal liner has failed & the wrist cuffs are starting to fray. Before that I had a textile Tourmaster Jacket that also held up very well. I've had excellent luck with their products. But like Randy said in post #13, "But not waterproof regardless of their claims." That statement is very much true.

 

Check out the compacc in house brands, SLIDERS and AEROMOTO. I have the Sliders All Season 2 Pants and i really love them so far along with their waterproof gloves although i got the model before they added the wrist strap. I would definitely purchase the same products from them again. For Aeromoto I have only tried their corsa pro leather gloves and they work well so far and based on the reviews i would probably purchase the other leather gear especially at the price they are at.

 

Well after a lot of "research", I'm no closer to pulling the trigger. And I now realize how stupid my comment on not caring about abrasion resistance was.

One problem is, I can't find much in the way of standards testing when it comes to abrasion. Yeah, there are some informal, un-scientific youtube videos and some hard to decipher CE stuff but no brand comparison when it comes to destructive testing. I guess you could do a materials comparison, if you could find the data. I actually did find some data and it looked kinda official but was probably done by Mythbuster wannabes.

I stopped by Cycle Gear last night and looked at "Bilt" and "Sedici". The jacket- $250 and pants $150 (on sale) are in my price range. Theys Look and feel like quality but that's no indication of performance. They get good reviews from the people that bought them but some people on other forums rip (no pun) on the "house brands". I don't know if they're snobs or if they have- or know someone that has, gotten off with this gear on. There was one review where a guy said his son did a slow low-side and the pants came apart at the seams. Not encouraging. I'm still keep an eye on Craigslist but getting tired of sifting through it.

I'm afraid if I buy what I can afford, they're just going to save me from looking like a squid.

 

My vote would be for Aerostitch, I don't own any personally, but when I rode around Lake Superior last summer I stopped at their warehouse in Duluth (I think) and was very impressed by the quality of all their products.

Probably a bit outside your price range, though :/

 

I am also looking for some winter gear. Mine doesn't HAVE to be waterproof but I want a suit with armor that I can climb out of at work and climb back in at quiting time. Unlikely I will deliberately be riding in the rain, but likely I will be riding in mid W's temps. If I were you (op) I would be concerned about waterproof, living in Seattle.
I want Aerostich but will buy Joe rocket survivor. I think.
I plan on dealing with Revzilla. All transactions to date have been excellent. They don't do stupid things,
I bought a jacket from a company I cant even remember, and I was unable to input the size I wanted properly. So I called next business day and they had already shipped one! I asked how they knew what size I was. He said they only HAD one size so thats what they shipped. Well that didn't work out.
Anyway I am curious what you end up doing. I think I will order up a high viz survivor tomorrow. Should be OK for my purposes. Long as the armor stays put and nothing breaks. And it fits..

 

http://www.aerostich.com/r3-light-one-piece-suit-sz-46l.html

I bought my first 'stich on Craigslist for $300. When I could I had one custom made by them. I've worn it almost every day for over 12 years now. Other than replacing a few zippers it's still going. It was $900, works out to $75/year so far, but I expect I can get another 10 years out of it. It's not perfect, but I trust as much as leather. It's waterproof and convenient, fits easily over my business work clothes.

 

That's awesome, and I have no doubts of your claims at all, I was truly blown away by how much attention to detail went into their gear...

 

Well so much for the high viz part. They only do high viz in standard sizes. I need an XL short and had to add a spidi high viz vest to it. No biggie I guess.. Should see it tomorrow.

 

I'd really like to hear your thoughts on it if you get it. It's almost at the top of my list.

 

Curious to know what IS at the top of your list? Everything I researched has something I didnt like including fitment. I have apparently an odd size with a 44 inch chest, 33 inch waist and 30 inch inseam.
The best way to go for me seemed to be the survivor with a spidi vest thrown in.

 

I'm still working on the list. :cower:

It's not easy to stick to a budget. For an oversuit, it's the Joe Rocket. For a jacket and pants- I haven't decided. The guy I rode with yesterday had a Joe Rocket jacket that he really likes and a pair of armored blue jeans.

I may just buy a decent pair of textile pants to go with my Fieldsheer leather jacket. Too old to worry about looking cool I guess....

 

I recently purchased a set of the Sedici Alexi 3 Season Mesh pants. I haven't crashed in them (knock on wood) so I can't give any crash test results for them. Yesterday I was in 46-48 deg temps for a couple hrs with a temperature drop down to about 38 deg for brief period, maybe 30 min. I was comfortable the whole time, had on regular jeans underneath. At first I thought the knee pads were a little uncomfortable but after riding for a few minutes I don't even notice them. I've had them since Sept & have no complaints at this time.

 

I checked out the Sedici Alexi 3 pants after you posted about them. There's a review from a guy who suffered a low-side slide and came away apparently unscathed. There's also a pic of the pants after the crash.

Seems like the biggest complaint is about velcro tabs tearing out.

 

I saw that in the reviews about the velcro tabs & I think some said the belt loops tear off too. I haven't had any issues. They do come with a lifetime guarantee & I've never had an issue returning or exchanging anything at my local Cyclegear.

 

Got the survivor suit. Fits pretty good. Might be the tiniest bit small but nothing is pulling while riding walking or sitting. Looks OK. Girlfriend likes it. She loves the armor. Definately not simple to get into. Boots foul on the removable liner in the pant legs.
Feels good on the bike. Guess it will be OK. Armor seems to be in all the right places.
Stupid neck closure. No gaitor. No adjustment. Needs velcro. I will see to that I guess.
Girl thinks I look like a super hero. Guess thats better then a dork.
Feel like a ninja turtle kinda..And I'm old so dont laugh at me. The high viz looking stuff it reflective lit up from the flash. I got a high viz vest to look dorky in.

 

That looks really sharp. If you don't mind me asking, what's your height and weight and what size did you get?