Leathers
Author
Discussion

hobo

Original Poster:

6,373 posts

269 months

Tuesday 17th January 2006
quotequote all
Buying some leathers in the coming month & want to get some decent one's but not sure which to go for.

Have basically narrowed it down to:

a) Alpinestars Vector 2-piece suit.

or

b) Clover RC100 1-piece suit.

Are these any good ?

Should I be looking elsewhere ?

Rawwr

22,722 posts

257 months

Tuesday 17th January 2006
quotequote all
The only truly great advice I can give is: Buy them *after* your new year diet. Mine are getting a little baggy.

BliarOut

72,863 posts

262 months

Tuesday 17th January 2006
quotequote all
For that sort of money you could probably get a set of Crowtrees made to measure. Mine were about £800 and that was for three colours and loads of armour

S2rr Kitty

11,876 posts

274 months

Tuesday 17th January 2006
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I would suggest also reading a RIDE destruction report/test before buying leathers.
Most opinions you get in a forum are too subjective - although I do agree with B OUT on Crowtree - even BKS sometimes have ex demo suits & cancelled orders on their website for around the £800 mark.

moto_traxport

4,254 posts

244 months

Tuesday 17th January 2006
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I would have thought very early on in the "narrowing down phase" you would have made the choice between one or two piece leathers, to be in the final furlong and trying to decide between a one piece set from one manufacturer and a two piece from another manufacturer sounds a bit odd???

>> Edited by moto_traxport on Tuesday 17th January 16:04

hobo

Original Poster:

6,373 posts

269 months

Tuesday 17th January 2006
quotequote all
With regards to the 1 or 2 piece, I can't quite make my mind up.

I chose Alpinestars Vector as they do it in a 2 piece as well as a 1.

I initially thought that say for little blasts, ie to shops etc, if I got a 2 piece I could just wear the jacket, and then on longer blast & tracks use it as a 1 piece via the zips.

However, the more I think about it, 1 piece is probably the way to go, and buy a seperate jacket later.

Re: diets, hence why i'm waiting until just before I get the bike, so I can shift as much of the weight I put on over christmas

Carrera2

8,352 posts

255 months

Wednesday 18th January 2006
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BliarOut said:
For that sort of money you could probably get a set of Crowtrees made to measure. Mine were about £800 and that was for three colours and loads of armour


I've heard only good things about Crowtrees - do you have a link for them?

black-k1

12,663 posts

252 months

Wednesday 18th January 2006
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hobo said:
With regards to the 1 or 2 piece, I can't quite make my mind up.

I chose Alpinestars Vector as they do it in a 2 piece as well as a 1.

I initially thought that say for little blasts, ie to shops etc, if I got a 2 piece I could just wear the jacket, and then on longer blast & tracks use it as a 1 piece via the zips.

However, the more I think about it, 1 piece is probably the way to go, and buy a seperate jacket later.


Would recommend a 2 piece for longer blasts & track days. On hot days (remember those!) it is a real advantage to be able to take the jacket off and sit down comfortably for those times in-between riding the bike.

BliarOut

72,863 posts

262 months

Wednesday 18th January 2006
quotequote all
Carrera2 said:
BliarOut said:
For that sort of money you could probably get a set of Crowtrees made to measure. Mine were about £800 and that was for three colours and loads of armour


I've heard only good things about Crowtrees - do you have a link for them?

www.crowtreeleathers.co.uk/ actually

They're up in Louth, not far from Cadwell. A small family type business, used by a lot of the club racers. Very well made leathers. They took more measurements than you could possibly imagine, even down to which side you dress One other good thing, if you have an off, send them back and for a small fee they'll replace any damaged panels.

Carrera2

8,352 posts

255 months

Wednesday 18th January 2006
quotequote all
Cool - cheers BlairOut. I'll certainly consider them if I go for a 1-piece next time.

Mind you, this picture puts me off a bit:














BliarOut

72,863 posts

262 months

Wednesday 18th January 2006
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Yup, you can have them made however you want

I'll try and post a piccie of mine later, they're a bit more restrained.

fergus

6,430 posts

298 months

Wednesday 18th January 2006
quotequote all
I have some crowtrees, but be careful, becasue if you want them to look like the latest "die-easy" (dainese) leathers, then the amount of leather overlays, etc will push the price sky high. They aren't always the prettiest, but they are heavy and offer lots of protection. Try MW, Manx, BKS, hideout, etc as these are all made to measure and used by club racers (who often crash a lot). It's also a lot harder than you think, when faced with a blank sheet of paper and a load of leather swatches (if this what bits of leather are called?) to come up with a personal design that won't date too quickly, etc!

PS for track riding, I would personally always use 1 peice leathers. What type of riding do you intend to use the leathers for?

good luck.

forget the off the peg £300 jobs, as they are often only good for one crash, then need replacing (if they last that long!)

S2rr Kitty

11,876 posts

274 months

Wednesday 18th January 2006
quotequote all
Carrera2 said:
Cool - cheers BlairOut. I'll certainly consider them if I go for a 1-piece next time.

Mind you, this picture puts me off a bit:


HA HA HA HA..... NOTE: neither myself or Supra Woman have asked for "men in leathers" pics.... to be supplied!

















[/quote]

>> Edited by S2rr Kitty on Wednesday 18th January 10:48

Rawwr

22,722 posts

257 months

Wednesday 18th January 2006
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Carrera2 said:




Did anyone else start humming YMCA when they saw that?

catso

15,881 posts

290 months

Wednesday 18th January 2006
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Rawwr said:
Carrera2 said:




Did anyone else start humming YMCA when they saw that?


Definately 'the only Gay in the village'

fergus said:


It's also a lot harder than you think, when faced with a blank sheet of paper and a load of leather swatches (if this what bits of leather are called?) to come up with a personal design that won't date too quickly, etc!



Black's good.....

fergus said:


PS for track riding, I would personally always use 1 peice leathers. What type of riding do you intend to use the leathers for?



Agreed but for road use 2 piece are so much more practical and the protection is probably as good in most cases, if you go anywhere in a 2 piece and want to remove your jacket then no problem, plus sometimes I'll wear the trousers with a waterproof coat but don't want (cant fit) the leather jacket underneath.

A word of warning though about the idea of just wearing the jacket from a 2-piece suit - you'll find it far too short for riding in..

fergus said:


forget the off the peg £300 jobs, as they are often only good for one crash, then need replacing (if they last that long!)


Agreed..




>> Edited by catso on Wednesday 18th January 14:29

Momentofmadness

2,370 posts

264 months

Thursday 19th January 2006
quotequote all
www.celtic-leathers.com

Good enough for IoM plod