Winter leathers! Found my solution

[chemist]

So, I am not many of you are aware but I have been on a quest for safe leathers for the colder season. It really is amazing how limited of a field winter leathers are for sportsbikes


Initially I looked at dianase which up until recently did not have much to offer other than the Razon and now there D-cruiser line which looks amazing but $$$.

So I finally settled on the AGV sport dragon leather and the non perf willow AGV pants. I will use a one piece rain suit in my backpack for when I get caught in the rain.

I also have some coldweather base layers for when it gets really cold and a balaclava. I may still end up getting some heated gear but I wanted some non perf leather first as heated gear and summer perf gear seemed ridiculous.


Just posting my finalized research I think. Willing to hear input from those crazy commuters that trudge through the season. Heated gear will be powerlet if I have to go that route.

[spooph]

I had a set of leather pants custom made, and to be honest, it's not worth the $$$.

You're definitely on the right track. You're thinking in layers, which is most effective for winter riding.

Base Layer: Long underwear will go much further than you think, especially something like Patagonia's Expedition Capalene. Top and Bottom. This is simply for heat.

Upper body sweater or light jacket: Keeping your core warm is incredibly important and goes a long way to keeping your extremities warm.

Head/neck insulation: A good balaclava will significantly increase your body's overall warmth and is relatively inexpensive.

Extremities: Proper socks and gloves are a must. For your hands, look into ATV handlebar mitts, as they are much less expensive than hippo hands or some other moto specific option. These covers go much farther in keeping your hands warm than the most expensive heated gloves on the market.

With that said, coming back to the "layers" idea, with a proper base layer covering you head to toe, you can then wear any protective layer you want, as long as it is not ventilated. Wind proofing is of the utmost importance as wind chill is a very effective factor in the winter.

Depending on how cold it gets, a breath guard like this is also important as it will help you see. http://www.aerostich.com/respro-foggy-breathguard.html

and a pin-lock for your visor: http://www.pinlock.nl/motor/pinlock-evo/

pinlock is the only visor shield I've found which is thick enough not to get scratched up and worth every penny.

[chemist]

awesome insight! thank you.

Yes, unfortunately i have already had a need for pinlock visors. I will look at those base layer suggestions. A lot of mine is underarmour.

Yeah, wind chill will be my downfall as all my gear is perf so I still need to buy another set doh.

The handlebar mitts and variants have been recommended to me before here! defiantly getting a set.

[Ghostt]

Winter riding requires the proper gear, I ride year round, assuming the road conditions allow for it, and the bike starts.

Regardless whether you have leathers or textile, your gonna need baselayers, liners etc.

I myself have liners for my jacket and over pants, and then for colder days Under Armour Cold Gear, and when it gets really cold, or long rides I have heated gear.

I also have heated grips, and seat. The heated grips I personally recommend, they come in handy more times than one would think.

Below is the wind chill chart to help.

[spooph]

The AMA's stance:

http://www.americanmotorcyclist.com/...ownload%3dtrue

[dcj13]

I wear textile gear and a dickie for cool weather riding.

[250rr]

Originally Posted by dcj13

I wear textile gear and a dickie for cool weather riding.

That's what I get when shrinkage kicks in.

[Jesper Hedegaard]

"Winther leathers".....I was just about to write that there is no such thing - then I noticed U are located in sunny Tennesee - so what could U know about cold weather. I mean; looks like U never experience anything colder than the mid fourties ~ 8 degrees C.
When we have cold weather, we are about 0 C - dropping to -10 to - 15 C occasionally.
Even if the "normal" riding season here rarely goes below 0 C, then the windchill factor soon gets the better of you.
Leathers are by many considered as too hot in the summer and too cold the rest of the year ;o)
Protective gear is available in many fabrics now; even jeans and hoodies are available with kevlar reinforcement. Perhaps not so suitable for cold weather riding, but there are plenty of jackets and trousers with various reinforcements. So reinforced that I believe they not only rivals leather in terms of crash durability (as in sliding down the road - not crashing into things ;o).
So - if it's not a matter of personal preferrence, there is no need to freeze in leather no more ;o)

[spooph]

on that note, from somebody who's ridden in -17F, there is no better wind barrier than leather. If it's good enough to keep the asphalt off your skin, it's good enough to do the same for ice and wind...

However, leather does not have ANY insulative properties whatsoever... make sure to address those base (insulative) layers.

[Roark]

Originally Posted by Jesper Hedegaard

"Winther leathers".....I was just about to write that there is no such thing - then I noticed U are located in sunny Tennesee - so what could U know about cold weather. I mean; looks like U never experience anything colder than the mid fourties ~ 8 degrees C.
When we have cold weather, we are about 0 C - dropping to -10 to - 15 C occasionally.
Even if the "normal" riding season here rarely goes below 0 C, then the windchill factor soon gets the better of you.
Leathers are by many considered as too hot in the summer and too cold the rest of the year ;o)
Protective gear is available in many fabrics now; even jeans and hoodies are available with kevlar reinforcement. Perhaps not so suitable for cold weather riding, but there are plenty of jackets and trousers with various reinforcements. So reinforced that I believe they not only rivals leather in terms of crash durability (as in sliding down the road - not crashing into things ;o).
So - if it's not a matter of personal preferrence, there is no need to freeze in leather no more ;o)

I've lived in TN my entire life, and it gets down to 25-35 degrees F (~-3-0 for you) in January and February. The average temps for these months are higher, but commuting in the mornings before the sun has fully risen, no matter in TN or Michigan, is BRUTAL at near or below freezing temps.

[Jesper Hedegaard]

OK - that is lower than what the chart of average temps in TN shows - at least the chart I found.
But You should at least have inland climate, judging by how far from the sea, TN is.
We are a small country surrounded by the sea - we cannot get more than about 60 km from the sea at any point here in Denmark. That means that our climate is very influenced by the sea - especially during winther, we have very moist air, and that combined with low temps.....it can cut through any kind og clothe.
But the moist air will every now and then give way for dryer air - unfortunately that's when we have easterly winds for longer periods, then we get the cold all the way from Siberia......at least we don't get the full -50 C here ;o)

But I do not agree to leather being the best wind-breaker - I have had leather jackets too, but find that they are colder compared to fabric.
But one thing often differs between leather and fabric: leathers are very often cut much closer to the body than fabric. I've heard that leather dosen't flatter in the wind - that could be 'cause leathers are cut slimmer to the body than fabric, not leaving much room for under layers. So a fair comparison would of course demand equally cut models - but here it seems that most leather garments are either racing fartbags or the classic Marlon Brando style, neither leaving much room for sensibel, warm layers under.

[allanoue]

I wear my perforated leathers all winter. Snow suit over that and very cold mornings a Ski jacket over the snow suit. I also wear a neck warmer as well as a balaclava.
Hot hands on my palms inside my gloves.

[chemist]

Originally Posted by allanoue

I wear my perforated leathers all winter. Snow suit over that and very cold mornings a Ski jacket over the snow suit. I also wear a neck warmer as well as a balaclava.
Hot hands on my palms inside my gloves.

Is the snow suit a hassle to get on over the leather?

[allanoue]

Nope, it goes on easy
I got it 2 sizes bigger to get it over my leathers.

[greenaero]

As others have commented, it's all about layering. It usually doesn't get super cold here in the SF Bay area so for rides on my non-fully streamlined moto a one piece snowmobile suit works well. On the streamliner, engine is trapped so I stay pretty comfortable even in the 30"s.

[WolFeYeZ]

We had some snow show up at round 1 the last 2 years... so I tried my ski gear on over my leathers. Worked great for the rain and I stayed nice and toasty. A little more slippery than leather though.