I'm just curious as to what most of you here prefer for your riding gear. Why do you prefer one over the other? If you don't have a preference, but have an insatiable desire to vote anyhow, I've provided additional choices.
I find my 2 piece leathers very convenient. The pants are crazy comfortable, I use my leather jacket for spirited rides and my 3/4 length textile for touring Sent from my SPH-L710 using Tapatalk 2
For commuting (I.e. Riding where I need to wear regular clothes underneath) , I prefer my 1pc Roadcrafter. For riding, I prefer my 2pc Motoport mesh Kevlar. The common denominator is, in either case, I can stop and take off the jacket and be comfortable and presentable.
I don't commute, and given the climate I ride in, two-piece suits are my preference. The flexibility they provide work for me.
A major part of my riding is commuting to and from work in a business suit. For this, I really like my Olympia Phantom high-viz one piece suit. Nothing is quicker and easier for business commuting than a one-piece suit. For recreational riding, I go the two-piece route so I can take the jacket off when needed.
What he said about ease of putting on and off. I wear the FirstGear winter rainsuit that's breathable. It's warn enough with street clothes and a fleece vest down to frost temps and with the long zippers and storm flaps, it keeps me dry and warm. This is the 6th winter of riding with the suit in the Oregon rain to work and the woods. Summer is the mesh two piece to stay cool enough. Dave
I normally prefer a two piece setup as my torso is slightly taller than normal. This results in one piece suits needing to be sized up to prevent the "soprano effect," and thusly arms and legs that are too long. I'm also a thin bastard, so this also makes the torso too spacey in the girth even though it fits right in the height. That said, I do have an Olympia one piece I just started wearing for winter since I got it on clearance. My old winter pants needed replacing, and my leather jacket leaks too much air thanks to uncovered zippered vents. I've found that for commuting purposes, a one piece with insulated liner is a nice year round do-it-all when you're wearing business attire. I don't have to worry about rain gear or water damage to my leathers, the suit is easy on/easy off (though with all the damn velcro it takes just as long or longer to suit/desuit than two piece setups), and as a whole is a nice utilitarian all-in-one. I even did some touring in it recently since I don't have any other decent winter gear and can't really drop the money on another quality insulated jacket plus insulated pants right now. But I did have to remove the entire suit for a dinner date in order to be presentable whereas some modest looking textile pants would have sufficed. Saving those 30 seconds to avoid removing your riding pants has a lot more value when it's 30F outside. Soo....all-in-all, I'd say I'm both. For commuting where I need to be wearing business dress and won't (usually) be equipping luggage, a waterproof(ish) onesie with insulated liner is my go-to year round. In longer travel/touring with increased in-seat time and random stops, I'd prefer a two piece setup with rain gear for increased comfort and weather protection.
I have enough problems getting just a jacket setup that works. Separate simply because I can mix'n'match to get something that works that way. Pete
For mild to cold weather commuting ease and comfort nothing beats a one piece textile suit. It maintains body heat better in cold weather as there are no drafts at the waist. There is also no waist pressure from belts needed to hold up the pants either. The only downside is they are not ideal for wearing around off the bike and are too hot in hot to warm weather. It is also hard to get a good fit in a one piece suit, perhaps why so many are custom sized.
I like the concept but I'm always put off one-pieces because of the thought of what do I do with it when I stop for a break (short or long). It's either on me or on the bike. With a two peice it just seems way easier. Also with a two piece fit is easier and, IMO, they make mix/matching of seasons/personal heat preference much easier.
I had only rain 1-piece and I hated it, it was too complicated to put on and take off. I definitely prefer the flexibility of a 2 piece suit, no matter the temperature. I commute daily on the bike from zero to 40 Celsius and I use business pants at 20+, overpants below, but I always wear a jacket or ballistic jersey - try to match this in a single piece suit.
I much prefer a 1 piece suit for commuting needs. Its just so much easier and faster. That said there arent many great 1 piece suits. I had the teiz powershell 1 piece suit, and it was probably the best suit i ever owned, but sold it as the legs where just to short and the armor road up to my thigh. The problem with this was a rain suit over the legs was a pain in the ass to get on. I had a roadcrafter 1 piece which was even better built then the teiz, but aerostich really needs to get their act together. There are no accordion panels anywhere. It needs some at the back, elbows, shoulders, and knees badly. It has no adjustment straps at the forearm or bicep. And the wrist closure has virtually no adjustment the way every other modern jacket has with the fold down section. These are all things found on cheap $100 gear items and we cant get them on a suit that retails for almost 1k? I find it ridiculous. Ended up selling the roadcrafter as the price to make it wearable with adjustments would of been another 400+ and then i had no way of knowing for sure if it would fix how uncomfortable the suit is while actually on a bike. Right now for the winter I am using the aerostich darien pants with a firstgear rainier jacket. Good waterproof set up and while not as fast on+off still not that bad. For the summer i might pick up an olympia stealth suit or a teiz mesh suit, but i am turned off with teiz after a bad experience with their customer service on a navigator jacket. But we will see as their gear is very nicely made and that cant be questioned.
Two piece leather in summer, two piece gore in winter, i also bought a one piece rain suit, just too hard to get on, had to take the boot's off, wouldn't go over my sidi crossrifire's.
For commuting I would have a 1 piece.... It takes like 20 minutes for me to get all my layers on. It be awesome to just step into a 1 piece, zip up and head off.
^^^ ditto. Except that I seem to fit a roadcrafter 44L exactly. I bought a darien two-piece recently to replace a 13 year old roadcrafter and I'm starting to miss the one-piece suit's easy on and off, and it's more tailored fit.
I don't own a car....just my S3T. I wear a 2PC Roadcrafter with a heated Gerbing vest, Danner boots. All work great in the PDX slop!
2 1/2 years in the future for the above posters; but if there was a 1-piece with so much venting available that you could stay cool on rec rides, would you be interested in that?
I would. I don't own a car either and it would be nice to have a 1 piece to zip/out of but I just don't think they'd be practical year round in AZ. Sent from my SM-N910T using Tapatalk
I'll take a large. PM me when they're available or if you need a prototype tester. I much prefer a one piece suit.