Suits Should I Buy an Aerostitch Suit?

[Horsehead]

As the title suggests, I'm strongly considering dropping some coin on a 1 piece riding suit. In the past I've had a cheap pair of over pants and a slightly nicer tourmaster jacket. But to be honest I rarely wore the pants. So I mostly rode in jeans and jacket. Not ideal I know. So, getting back into riding after a few years away, I'm feeling a bit more trepidation about riding without real protection. I'm not a commuter, and I don't plan on running errands on the bike for practical reasons and because I really just want to avoid riding in town if I can help it. Most of my rides are thus going to be just pleasure rides on back roads and then overnight trips as I get more accustomed to covering some distance.

I live in central North Carolina and our summers get pretty muggy. So, I'm concerned the aerostitch is going to be like wearing a sweat suit like we used to drop weight before wrestling matches. Somewhere there has to be a sliding scale of risk management between gear and heat exhaustion.

Anyways, I'm rambling. What are your experiences with the aerostitch suits? Are their other brands I should be looking at?

Thanks!

 

[rwthomas1]

I'm an Aerostich devotee, and proud of it. But it fits a specific role. I commute to work, so having a suit that goes on and off over work clothes easily and quickly is important. It's not completely rain proof, but close enough for the 45-50min I'm riding. It works.

If I was touring, it would also work, but likely I'd spend some time waterproofing it (I have an old used suit, newer would be better), and maybe add a rain suit if I was riding for hours in wet weather.

The suit is hot. I have a classic as it's older and I got it used. The newer R3 or R3 light are supposed to be cooler. I'm considering an upgrade. If it's over 80*F and you are in traffic, it is hot. If you are moving at 40+mph, it's okay until 85-90*F. But my normal routine in summer weather is ride to work in relative cool of 6am in suit, but I switch to Tourmaster mesh and work jeans for ride home at 85+*F.

The suit absolutely shines from subzero to about 80F. Above that, I'd be in mesh gear, armored jeans, etc. ATGATT is great, and the longer your trip, and higher the speed, the more tolerable the gear will be. But low speeds in 100*F, high humidity, and virtually nothing is going to be enjoyable.

Used Aerostich show up on CL, etc regularly and can be had for half price or better. It just takes a while to find one if you are a bigger guy. Mine is a faded high vis yellow I never would've chosen. But when you need a size 50, I'm 6ft, 245 with a 32 inseam, I couldn't be picky. The average sized dudes have an easier time for sure. Mine was a leap of faith, and came out if the Midwest sight unseen. Fits perfectly though.

There's a lot of choices, and lots of good gear, some quite reasonable. Aerostich is expensive, but I can get into and out of it in less than 30seconds. That means I ride more, and wear it more. I'm looking for armored jeans or Bohn body armor for the summer though.

RT

 

[Shuey]

FWIW . . .
- hit a bear, totaled my 2007 ST1300 as well as my one-piece Stitch. I was unscathed (well, a broken ankle, no fault of the suit).
- wrecked on I-10 in New Mexico, totaled my 2010 ST1300 as well as my two-piece Stitch. Everything the Stitch covered was protected and without injury.

So, my AeroStitch suits have been and are the most expensive wearing apparel I've ever owned and worth every penny. Lots of other good companies making quality riding gear and many are as good or possibly even better than AeroStitch, but . . . I've field tested and will stick with what I'm sure works. It's my only riding suit, I wear it all year, ATGATT even when just riding 1 mile up to the gas station near my house.

Shuey

PS: I definitely prefer the two-piece over the one-piece!

PPS: Like "The Cheese" I only feel hot in the suit when stopped in the summer. I keep the back and under arm vents closed and let air circulate from my wrists, up my sleeves to fill the suit and exit at the neck. Feels like air conditioning.

 

[rwthomas1]

PS: I definitely prefer the two-piece over the one-piece!

Interesting. I had a two-piece Stich back in the 90's, and I can't recall ever splitting the pieces up. Have the one-piece now and love it. Can I ask why you prefer the two?

RT

 

[STRider]

Interesting. I had a two-piece Stich back in the 90's, and I can't recall ever splitting the pieces up. Have the one-piece now and love it. Can I ask why you prefer the two?

RT

I also prefer the two-piece over the one-piece. Besides being able to split them up - yes, I have on many occasions - there is one thing you can't do with a one-piece that you can easily do with a two-piece that plays right into the concerns over heat and ventilation.

The one-piece has a single zipper that runs from neck to left ankle. You can unzip some at each end for airflow but that's limited to those places - your ankle and your neck.

The two-piece allows you to unzip from the ankle and the neck PLUS from the waist. This is a HUGE advantage for ventilation in hot weather.

I'm in the process of fitting my second RoadCrafter two-piece right now to complete my order within the week. Aerostich sent me a pant and three jackets to get the sizing right. Unfortunately the Cordura shrinks and over time and the fit degrades, so my old dependable red & grey are just too snug for comfort.

In the midst of COVID restrictions I doubt they'll be holding them anytime soon, but Aerostich had been running a roadshow they called their Pop-Up Events. They rented typically an empty retail space and brought their product line in a range of sizes for you to feel the merchandise and get fitted by personnel trained by Aerostich. I attended a couple of them in the Portland area and they were a great place to meet other riders and get to know the gear.

Good luck with your choice.

Oh and by the way, anytime anyone asks me about my RoadCrafter I tell them it's by far the best money I've spent on motorcycle gear, ever.

 

[STRider]

Oh, and don't forget the great Aerostich advice for cooling in extreme heat.

Fill the pockets with ice!

Cools you off as they melt, plus the suit material is waterproof (it's the zippers that let the Roadcrafter down in that regard). If it's like an Arizona heat you'll be dry soon anyway.

I did this as I traveled across southern California and Arizona during my first season with my 'stitch. Worked great. I'm sure after 30 years that waterproofing won't be as reliable now.

 

[CYYJ]

I use an Aerostitch Transit suit, which is a two-piece leather suit. I am very happy with it and would buy it again in a heartbeat, despite the fact that it is quite expensive.

Concerning the one-piece Aerostitch garment, I am sure that the quality is equally high, but personally I don't think I would want to wear a one-piece garment. With the two-piece garment, if I take off the top, I can go into a restaurant or other business and not look too "odd". In my opinion, the one-piece garment is very much an all or nothing proposition - either you wear it when riding the moto, or you need to take it off when you get off the moto to do something else.

So - my suggestion to you is to very carefully consider the advantages & disadvantages of one-piece vs. two-piece garments before making your purchase decision.

Michael

 

[heffly]

Super protection, terribly HOT. Not a summer option for me. The bike you ride makes a difference in air for cooling. On my st1300, no air. I would say its really nice 75 or below...then the vfr mesh comes out. All my gear has added armor so i try to maintain protection. Best to you...

 

[John OoSTerhuis]

Two-piece Roadcrafter owner for over 30 years. Heated jacket and glove liners for cold weather, cooling vest when called for. Made in Duluth, Minnesota. HigheST recommendation. IMNSHO

John

 

[wjbertrand]

Be careful here. If you buy one you'll never want to go back to anything else. I've got a 48R, gray with red ballistics for sale if you want one with instant "street cred". I've only ever used one-piece suits so as not to tempt myself to leave the pants behind and ride with the top and jeans for instance. Also, there's no way a one-piece will open around the waste (jacket riding up or pants riding down) in the event of an incident. The two-piece suits are just as good as long as you make sure to keep them zipped together, but a little more involved to don and doff. I figured, might as well get the one-piece.

 

[rwthomas1]

I doubt the one-vs-two piece debate will be solved here, suffice to say, if you have the coin it's a great piece of kit. Hard to expect any single item of clothing to work from subzero up through peak of summer. I can't think of any item of clothing capable of that. Aerostich covers a very wide range given what it js. It's unlikely you will be unhappy with its performance at any time other than summer.

RT

 

[TipSTer]

I got two pieces Roadcrafter loving it!

 

[dduelin]

Just like the "heat off the engine" discussions, whether the Roadcrafter Classic 1 piece is too hot or not is very subjective. I live in the humid south and have all of my life so perhaps I'm more acclimated to heat and humidity. I don't particularly care if I look "funny" in it when I go into a restaurant or store. Kids will approach sometimes and ask if I'm a pilot, fireman, or even an astronaut. Real bikers dressed up like pirates or in shorts and wife beaters have asked how I hot it is or how do I stand the heat. "A cool shower at the end of the day beats undergoing skin grafts" or the like is a common reply. It takes all of 30 seconds to take off or put on so sometimes I slip out of it for the noon or dinner meal stop.

Whether I wear my 1 pc Classic depends on the ride nearly as much as the weather. On short day rides close to home I wear the RC up to about 80 degrees F. In stop and go traffic there's not enough moving air for me but if I'm traveling or moving pretty much all day it's a full four season suit. I crossed the USA in it in August temps to 107 F. I've felt the 1 pc is the most versatile piece of gear I've bought. I originally found a used one that was like brand new and wore it 8 seasons. By then it was needing about $300 in zippers and velcro repairs so I sold it for half of what I paid for it and bought a new one. Used ones aren't that hard to find if you are patient and look in ADV and BMW forum classifieds.

All along I've had Tourmaster three season mesh jackets and pants and I'll wear those on day rides in temps over 80 degrees.

 

[SMSW]

I've got two one piece suits and a Roadcrafter jacket. All were bought used on ebay. I suggest you do a search there, save it, and watch as the emails roll in. I paid I think 300, 350, and 250 for the suits and the jacket was less, even though it was brand spanking new. The owner bought it 10 years prior to selling it, wore it he said for about 2 hours, and hung it up in a closet. There was absolutely no wear or visible dirt on it. One of the full piece suits is red, it too was in excellent condition, sold by the owner. The second had a burn on the sleeve but was in otherwise very good condition.

I wore the suits for maybe 3 or 4 years, then I got the jacket. I've found it to be more convenient to keep my over pants (a different brand) on when I go into restaurants and simply take the jacket off and hang it on the back of my chair. Most of the guys I ride with do the same; I was the only one wearing a one piece suit. If you are reasonably flexible, there is no problem with the one piece. If you are stiff in the joints, it might be a bit difficult to handle putting it on and taking it off.

Comfort? No problem with heat for them, except on very hot days, there is not much ventilation behind the ST's fairing. Much more comfortable on my V Strom. Open all the vents and unzip the chest zipper part way.

 

[motomac]

I have a two piece Roadcrafter II and wouldn't part with it. Yeah, it gets warm in the higher temperatures, but I would rather sweat than bleed. I had a get off with an Olympus out fit on and the slide tore up the pants and I had road rash from my right ankle to my hip. Completely shredded the right side of the pants. I had a mesh set of Motoport also, but they never fit right. The Roadcrafter has been mine for over 15 years and it still looks good. Can't go wrong. I noticed their price has gone up some since I bought mine, but it's still worth the money.

 

[Horsehead]

Thanks for all the input thus far. I'm leaning towards the one piece suit just because I won't have the option of deciding to go for a ride with only the jacket on as I previously got in the bad habit of doing before. And I like the idea of how easy they apparently are to get in and out of.

What do y'all do with them when you're at a long stop? Will they fit in a ST11 pannier? My givi top box is pretty much full once my full face helmet goes in, and I'm not keen on someone stealing a $1400 investment while I'm off for a walk or at dinner.

 

[Slydynbye]

Longer stops I drape mine over the windshield. It also shades the dash prevents the cigarette mark in the center.

Edit They do need to air out after a hot ride!

 

[dduelin]

Thanks for all the input thus far. I'm leaning towards the one piece suit just because I won't have the option of deciding to go for a ride with only the jacket on as I previously got in the bad habit of doing before. And I like the idea of how easy they apparently are to get in and out of.

What do y'all do with them when you're at a long stop? Will they fit in a ST11 pannier? My givi top box is pretty much full once my full face helmet goes in, and I'm not keen on someone stealing a $1400 investment while I'm off for a walk or at dinner.

They will fit in the ST13's panniers with some room, the ST11 is likely the same.

I made a web belt with 1" webbing and those snap-together connectors. I keep it in one of the big front pockets. At a longer stop but I don't want to slip out of it, I clip the belt around my waist and unzip the suit to the waist and slip my arms and torso out. The top of the suit just hangs down from my waist.

Years ago I used to carry a wire cable like a bicycle lock that I used to lock my helmet and jacket to the bike. That's another option.

 

[Shuey]

Interesting. I had a two-piece Stich back in the 90's, and I can't recall ever splitting the pieces up. Have the one-piece now and love it. Can I ask why you prefer the two?

RT

I think others have covered most of the additional comments I'd make to your request. Day to day wear, the biggest advantage for me (other than the protection it provides) is that I can just take off the jacket, drape it over the windshield to cover all the goodies and my helmet while I take a break to eat or visit with friends.

One additional note: the jacket of the 2 piece will zip to the pants of the 2 piece and become . . . a one piece.

PS: Follow-up to STRider's note. Crossed Death Valley in July in the late afternoon at 127 degrees and never broke a sweat except when I stopped to take a picture of the 20 mule team and wagon display and had to raise my visor to use my camera. Road west to east and when I got out on the east side I still had about 2 lbs. of ice left of the two 10 lb bags of ice I had put inside my jacket on the west side.

Shuey

 

[Slydynbye]

PS: Follow-up to STRider's note. Crossed Death Valley in July in the late afternoon at 127 degrees and never broke a sweat except when I stopped to take a picture of the 20 mule team and wagon display and had to raise my visor to use my camera. Road west to east and when I got out on the east side I still had about 2 lbs. of ice left of the two 10 lb bags of ice I had put inside my jacket on the west side.

Shuey

Ice in the Pockets? Now WHY didn't I think of that. I went across Death Valley when it was only 117 or so.
I had the one piece Stich on and kept it closed up in the front.
It wasn't that bad as long as I stopped in the shade which was only available at the store.