Leather v Textiles advice?

[byron126]

Hi there i know this is my first post but now im able to work full time im intent on investing in either a set of leathers (2pc) or a set of textiles, was just wondering if anyone with more experience of buying proper bike gear would be able to shed some light as to which is better, looking to spend around £400 on the set so after something reasonably good, the struggle however seems to be finding leathers that fit, as im not exactly a supermodel if you get my drift javascript:emoticon('')b any help would very much appreciated .

[Wafer_Thin_Ham]

What do you mostly do?

Riding for fun?

Touring?

Commuting?

Trackdays?

Rolling burnouts through the KFC drive thru?
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[Supermoto_Fan]

Often seen as a motorcycling fashion no no but I reckon ok for everyday commuting and a bit of reasonably fair weather touring. A textile jacket, leather bottoms is a good combo. Leather jackets are nice when your out for a hoon but the pockets aren't the most accommodating and I find textile less restricting also.
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[-Matt-]

Safety and abrasion protection wise leathers will win it. However not very good for winter and rain without a waterproof oversuit so more hassle. Heavier if you intendto wear walking around a lot.

I personally use leathers apart from shop runs and biking to events ill walk around a lot or wont have storage once changed as leathers are also much heavier and harder to lug about.

400s a lot for just top and bottoms either way. If you want new check out RST gear. Or look secondhand will get some good deals given time.

In either case make sure all armour including a back protector is CE approved not some foam rubbish

[byron126]

cheers for the replys and advice il occasionallybe caught flogging the bike around to some roads at excessive speeds at the weekends but other than that mostly driving to college use for going into town ive no intention of trackdays so that means a 1pc is pretty pointless for me, my preference would have to be leathers is a might be able to grin and bear the could in the winter with a hoodie over the top but if i committed to leathers would i be making a mistake? in terms of the budget i wanted to try and get the best i could as i bought an ixon jacket for 100 quid earlier this year and the things completely broken now so dont want to repeat the same mistake again :L

[-Matt-]

Id go leathers personally but them in not a fan of textiles personally. I wear one piece perforated ones with vent holes and theyre still okay in winter just need thermal shirt and a jumper then hoodie on top. Or ainsuit if raining

[Ariel Badger]

Are you going to ride in the winter and/or when it rains? If so stick with textiles.
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[Joncrete Cungle]

Spend less than £200 on a textile 2 piece suit on ebay. Spend less than £200 on a one piece or two piece leather suit on ebay. Have the best of both worlds.

[Rogerborg]

Spend £10 on a keyboard with working shift and full stop keys?

Leathers are fine, as long as you can get at least a base layer (or two) underneath them. You can always layer more over the top. An over-sized roadworks stylee jacket and waterproof trousers (along with decent base layers, try merino or bamboo) will see you through winter.

Don't overlook buying used, I've got some proper bargains on eBay. Just do your research, know what the new price is, and be patient.
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[Tomzo47]

I have a set of both, and together they cost me about £370, so I would get a set of leathers for nice weather and textiles for English weather. Don't overlook faulty ones too, my trousers were down to £50 from £100 because a zip on the pocket had broke. Took me 10 minutes and a paperclip to fix.
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[barrkel]

My wardrobe wouldn't be complete for my kind of riding without 3 suits: goretex textiles, vented textiles, and leather suit.

My goretex textiles are the most flexible, and the most expensive, RRP over 1000GBP, though I got my Held Tortona jacket for 150 as it was being discontinued[1] and Held Frontino trousers for 300 on one of the German sites[2]. The jacket's front can be turned into a long mesh strip - it has two front zips for this purpose, so it is usable as a summer jacket in a pinch, as long as you're moving. Having suffered in lesser clothing, I will not buy anything that is not goretex for wet weather, with a strong preference for proshell stuff.

I use vented textiles on warm summer days or while touring, with waterproofs put on top if it rains. This combo is very flexible, but waterproofs put on top have a relatively low lifetime of actual waterproofing - seam tape comes undone at stress points, especially the groin, where a puddle of water tends to pool when you're on a bike.

I don't wear leathers unless I'm having a blast on the back roads. You can't wear normal clothes underneath (that is, if they fit properly), which makes them very inconvenient for anything except blasting around, or possibly touring, but my leathers aren't vented or perforated in any way, so aren't great for super hot weather either.

For commuting (which for me is through London in 20 and 30 zones) I just wear one of the jackets. If I had a longer commute, at higher speeds, I'd strongly consider one of the zip-on, zip-off one-piece textile suits, something like the Aerostich Roadcrafter. A coworker wears one, very quick to get on and off in the morning and evening, but I haven't had contemplate it yet.

If I had to choose only one suit, it would be the goretex gear. I can go out in a thunderstorm in it and be assured of arriving dry.

Hopefully that gives you some perspective on what's good for what. What works for you depends on what you use it for and your tolerance for inconvenience.

[1] https://www.motorcyclenews.com/MCN/Products/productsresults/Leathers-jackets-suits/2010/November/nov1010-review-held-tortona-jacket/
[2] motoin.de, louis.de shouldn't be overlooked if you're buying new online

PS:

[BTTD]

I wear two piece leathers all year round. They get more comforatble as they break in. In fact, even with this heat I prefer my leather trousers to kevlar jeans, unless I have to walk around town once I park up (but even then thick jeans with armour and additional kevlar lining aren't exactly airy and confortable).
In the winter extra baselayers and a waterproof oversuit will keep you dry and warm, but yes it is a bit more of a faff.
Oversuits will also dry a lot quicker than textile gear where the top layers wet out.

[byron126]

Really appreciate the help guys, i've now been able to get a bit of a perspective as to what each is going to be for, and i've come to the conclusion of leathers, now just to find a set that fit :L

[Shinigami]

I wear textiles all year round, as it pretty much always rains and they're warm in the cold and have removable liner and vents for when it's hot

I also wear textile armoured overtrousers or kevlar jeans dependant on weather
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[ukdiceman]

I have both plus kevlar jeans and all for well under £400

Rst Interstate leather jacket, mint SH £65 from ebay
Leather trousers - £73 ebay Austrailian biker
Kevlar Jeans - £40 ebay Austrailian biker
Buffalo textile jacket £90
Buffalo textile trousers £55
Total £323

and I could've got the textile jacket much cheaper I later found out!

When buying from ebay, size wise I ask the seller to take some actual measurements of the item, i.e. waist/chest with the item laid flat and fastened up.
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[BTTD]

[barrkel]

[J.M.]

Textiles.

Yes, leathers have better abrasion resistance, but how far do you really slide when you come off on the road? You don't really, not before you hit something. Not unless you're in America where after every 6 degree bend there's a 12 mile straight.

For that reason I'd choose textiles. Good for winter and the rain. They're also going to provide as much abrasion resistance as you've ever likely to need on the road.

On track, leathers all the way.

But for £400 you could get a good quality used set of both.
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[Sload]

[bikertomm]

Threads like this remind me how much I need to sort myself out with some bloody leathers.

Cheers
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[BTTD]

[Whosthedaddy]

[Enduro Numpty]

To Summarise:

Leathers for crashing

Textiles for everything else

[Sload]

[BTTD]