What Clothing should I buy

[PC-LAD]

Firstly, As a new rider, i have only the information available online to me as I have no resident bikers through family/friends/work. I have a budget of £500 for gear. I'm torn between leathers and textiles. I have seen lots of oxford textile gear with all the waterproofing ect but I don't know what brands to be looking at. I Currently commute on public transport so biking would be full time unless the weather is bad. So would I need 2 lots of gear? Season based? I have quite a few Bike shops in my local area that sell the fox ect rebranded gear. My budget looks like £150 helmet, £30-50 gloves, £200 Jacket, £100 pants. I already own boots a pair of TCX's as I wear them casually with jeans.
Thanks for letting me in the community.

[linuxyeti]

If you are going to be riding in all weathers, then having spare clothing is a bonus.. Also, Look at getting, waterproof over clothes, including watherproof over boots & gloves
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[Johanna]

I also commute by bike in all but the worst weather.

I would get textiles. They will say that they are waterproof, but they are more showerproof. That is very handy at this time of the year as there is often spray from other vehicles and light rain. Also buy waterproofs to pull over you other gear when it's hammering it down.

I don't know about brands. Try on lots of gear at your bike shop and buy what fits.

I would also recommend a wool base layer and a buff or balaclava.

[doggone]

I would get a mid-range textile jacket with room for warm layers under it, for bottoms first get lightweight wateproof overtrousers you can wear over normal trousers, then consider the kind with kevlar or leather for longer runs.
There is a lot of lightly used bike gear on ebay if you are a medium-ish size there is a lot of choice and you can get sorted for under £100 apart from a helmet

[vanderbale]

When I was in your position I had the same budget, I went with the RST Paragon trousers and jacket. I've used them in torrential rain and cold weather over the past 4-5 years without any issues. It has a full set of armour including the back.

For summer though, even with insulation removed the material is quite thick and heavy so I'm planning to get something thinner when I have the spare cash. This may have improved with the current version 5, mine are version 3.

[Pjay]

Do people recommend those Aldi bits that come up every now and then?

I've never bought them but have been tempted. Most of my non leather stuff is Arma or Spada, I can heartily recommend both.
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struan80 - I'll go first - satisfied tick 1

[PC-LAD]

Thanks for all the replies, I've seen a lot of people wear RST gear. At the cost of the jacket they have leathers so i'm still stuck. I've been looking for comparison videos between Kevlar and leather but there is nothing. I know textiles balance protection and weather protection but i'm a little wary.

[Kentol750]

Hopefully in before you get a teffing!

Thinking you will crash is the wrong approach. Getting the right gear for what you do is much more important. I'd say a 1 piece leather suit with a 1 piece rain suit for when its wet would be great. But, absolutely impractical if you can't change when in work and if you're riding anything other than a sports bike, you look a bit daft. Others will also remind you that sliding for 50-100 yards is very unlikely on the road, there's a lot of things to stop you. I would spend more time thinking about your head and what feels best on your hands, use eBay or sales for older jacket and trousers. Old doesn't mean used. Used can always save money too.
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Some bikes.

[bigdom86]

what does your commute look like? if it is motorway and A-roads that will look completely different IMO to gear choices than a slower past city commute.

My commute is all London city based so I rarely see 30-40mph, mostly 10-30mph for around an hour - I have commuted for almost 4 years with a basic textile jacket and kevlar jeans (if it rains bad I will put on the waterproof textiles or just put a waterproof layer over the jeans -however this is a handful of times a year as we don't seem to get torrential rain at 8am or 4pm )

If commute is motorway I would be going to full textile or full leather

helmet again - if I was doing lots of motorway I would want a decent one with pinlock visor, if only slow-medium paced city riding then any decently rated helmet will do (check sharp ratings) - i have an AGV which cost be around £150

[M.C]

[Andy_Pagin]

A cheap waterproof top layer like this https://www.directboot.co.uk/hv228-hi-viz-waterproof-suit.html Is well worth having.
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[thx1138]

[M.C]

[Teflon-Mike]

Learner FAQ's: U want to Ride a Motorbike! Where Do U start?' Would be a start. More pertinantlty as far as 'gear' goes try; Costs & Kit

Law says, you have to cover your naughty bits, to dodge the public decency laws.... that means you have to wear something, but no more than, a pair of swimming trunks out in public. Road-Traffic-Act, as far as riding a motorbike goes, adds an approved crash helmet to that.... so THAT is legally all you need.... beyond that anything and everything is 'optional' and pretty much down to you.

Crash-Protection?

There's three layers of 'protection'; Primary; See Danger, dont go there; Secondary; IN danger, how do I get out of this?; Tertiary; Oh Chit, Dis gonna hurt... How can I soften the blow a bit?.

And its that last line of defence, when it gonna hurt, where crash-hat, leathers, boots and gloves MAY soften the blow a bit... if yooz lucky.... but it still gonna hurt.

As they say in medicine, Prevention is better than a cure... no crash, no need protecting. TOP of the list, before you worry about what gear, and certainly such minutea as whether leather over kevlar and what brands might be better.... LEARN TO RIDE...

Learn to ride, no crash, no need protection! And I say it time over, Safety is what you put IN your head, NOT what you put ON your head; safety does not come from sticking your head in a fancy plastic bucket and thinking you got the matter covered.

TRAINING, learning to ride, and passing tests, is but the beginning, and if you have some notion that because law allows you to wobble out unsupervised on L-Plates.... ponder the fact that law also permits you to wobble out on the road in nowt but a pair of swimming trunks and a skid-lid..... just 'cos its the law, dont mean thats the be-all-and-end-all.

Your bio places you, I think in Manchester. Home of the macintosh, cos it's rather renowned for its rain, up there.... Hmmmm..... begs suggestion that WEATHER protection, may be slightly more important than crash protection... (Though... always seemed 'sunny' when I lived there... but, then the Hacienda was in its hey-day, acid obligatory, and day-light something only seen when they finally kicked you out the club!!!!!!!! My memory MAY be a little confuddled Lol.)

Personally, based not much further south near Brum, I DO find I get wet, on a motorbike, rather more often than I get hurt, falling off.... Hmmmm......

Wet and cold and miserable, you dont tend to have your mind on the job, which means, again, whats in your head is more important than what's on it, and staying warm, dry and comfortable, so you can keep your mind on the job, and stand chance top spot danger before riding into it, IS primary protection, along with training and testing.

A-N-D there's a lot of merit in the old fashioned way of togging up; which is to dress in whatever you have to hand, and be a bit 'sensible'. Leather is great, if you are sliding down high-friction delugrip tarmac at high speed, against 'abrasion'... its NOT so good against being run over by a bus, remember!

And, on the public road, you probably aren't going to slide very far, before you are stopped, rather abruptly by something hard and unyielding, like a kerb-stone, a lamp-post, or a Number 22 bus!

Now, old fashioned layering up, wearing a couple of thick woolie jumpers, under an anorak, practically can offer as much if not more 'crash-protection' than some expensive high-tech bit of bike-wear in the bike shop.... They keep you warm and dry, so you are more likely to keep mind on the job BEFORE you crash, and then even if you do, the nylon anorak, will slide just as easily on wet road, possibly better than leather, whist the layers of old Christmas jumpers put 'stuff' between skin and road, that might offer a bit of padding, better than 'armour' and gives more to wear away before road starts grinding skin..... In short, it works, and practically can work as well as anything you might buy in the shops to maybe do a bit of the job.

MORE... its always a compromise and always a circular argument. You start off with a pair of old army surplus trousers, a couple of unwanted wooly christmas jumpers and a water-proof over-suit your uncle used for fishing.... How much 'better'; is dedicated biking wear? nd, more pertinantly, better at what?

Like I said, leather is great if you are sliding down a race track, a long way, at speed. Not so wonderful if you trip off the kerb infront of a bus... in the rain.

Better, dedicated biker wear, 'should' be a little more comfy... note the 'should'. Closer fitting, it aught not be quite so restrictive to your movement as layering up like the Mitchelin Man, which can be a help... but not-so-good biker wear, often sacrifices somfort for percieved protection, and harder, stiffer material to make it thinnner and closer fitting, it can be as if not more constrictive... especially if like a lot of off-the-peg biker wear it has pretty cheap, nylon 'armour' stitched into the arms, and those armour panels aren't wuite in the right place, and stop you so easily doing shoulder checks, or cut into your arms when you try... great to have that bit of extra 'stuff' to maybe spread the bump a bit, possibly take a tad longer to wear away... BUT... if NOT spotting that bus is whats made you crash? Rather perverse, way to NOT get 'safety'.

SO.... end of the day, its down to you; and how much you want to 'feel' safe, compared to how much protection you actually put around you, and how much you are prepared to spend to get it.

WARNING:- Very very easy to spend thousands of pounds to get a very BIG feeling of 'safety'... to actually be no safer, and likely in more danger....

Upstairs I have what was once and is still pretty close to the 'ultimate' as far as biker safety wear, in the form of a mde to measure race suit.... ABSOLUTELY fantastic amouynt of tersiary protection if I had ever come off on a race track, and slid, at speed, sown that grippy delugrip into the hay-bales....

On the road... I think I have worn it three times, in almost thirty years.... Its a fugging pain in the pizza to put on and take off for starters.... and daftly, that's NOT cos I have got fat in the last quarter century! It was ALWAYS a PITA to struggle into! Next... fantastic when sat in a racer crouch on something like a Yamaha TZ race bike... Not so wonderful if I try walking around the padock, when the arse bags around my bum, and that armour starts baching into my shins.... and I have to unzip it, cos its a tad warm inside.... On a road bike, its not wonderful either, especially if I have had to stick a tank-bag on the bike, cos it dont have any pockets for my wallet when I stop at the petrol station or anything! And that is just the prtacticality of the thing.... it dont have any!

On the road... more often than not, I wear my every-day street wear; jeans, T-Shirt, a jumper if its a bit cool; a pair of boots, and a black-leather-jacket... and if it's raining? I pull a set of wet-weathers over the top.... aprox £25 for a one-pieve over-suit from Aldi!

Guess what? In quarter of a century, I have NOT missed having high-tech kevlar or old skool leather, or fancy cell-foam armour..... Because I HAVEN'T FELL OFF!!!(at least on the public-road!) Hmmmmm....

So, the thousands spent on that made to measure race suit, havent paid for themselves, then, sat in the wardrobe for decades... of the many other bike-garments? Actually a similar story!!! And of ALL the dedicated bike-wear I have had over the years, the ONE bit that has probably best earned its keep, has been a pretty 'cheap' water-proof oversuit! I have at least got the (weather!) protection out of it I bought it for!!!!

BUT... starts at the top... No crash, no need crash protection... worry about what you put IN ytour head not ON your head; spend your money to get a little learning, get a licence, and THEN worry about the rest.... starting with that loverly Manchester Rain!!! That you'll have to deal with far more often than anything else.

As to the materials, leather vs Kevlar, and what brands may or may not be better? Its All very very very circulstantial, and theres no real answer, and off the peg, all minutea of the compromise YOU and only you can elect upon.

Starting out; don't sweat the small-stuff. Worry about not falling off to begin with; put your spend into training and tests.

On the road, a little bit of concern you might fall off is good, and will do more to help you be a bit more carteful trying not to, than all the topnotch stuff you can buy on the shop, likely to make you feel like you are wearing an X-Men invulnerability outfit, and ride into the danger zone like a twit, to find out just how much protection it actually DOESN'T really offer.

So... advice is spend as much as yopu have to, but as little as you need, and DONT get bogged down in the lables, whether thats the brand name or the material, or what the sales-man says.... pick warm, dry, comfy, and hope for the best, and keep your wits about you.... iths them wits that will determine how safe you may be or not, and you do not get them in a shop!
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[TaffyTDM]

Teffing aside, alpinestars andes touring suit, top and bottom, will be yours for about 360 new. Does me fine commuting up from the south coast most days in all weather at 5am on the m23.

Should leave 40 quid for some gloves and 100 for a good quality full face helmet.

[Clanger]

I guess it depends what sort of riding you'll be doing. I personally have leather jeans (£55) and a texile jacket (free), and leather gloves with knuckle protectors (£20) and wear grafter lace-up non-waterproof boots (£45) with gortex waterproof socks (£6). My lid was in the sale and I did a little bartering on it, so paid (£159). I tend not to ride during the horrible wet, sleet, windy days. But if I'm off to a rally or a bike show or chances are I'll get caught out in wet weather then I also have a pair of textile over trousers with lining (again free) which I will use. (I sometimes use these without the lining with shorts underneath on a really hot day, so I can remove at destination).

I wouldn't advice a one piece unless you are into track-days. But plenty of others will disagree.

All these clothes were bought / sourced in places such as Hein Gericke, online / eBay, or markets or bike shows. There is lots of choice these days. Get what fits you, and you'll be sorted.
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[SirFallalot]

Like some have said previously, and I feel a bit silly posting after some went to great extent on their answer, you can buy a lot of mint kit on ebay, and if you're patient, good stuff too.

I bought a leather set for 50 total, and they aren't scuffed or smell funky.
And don't be afraid to buy, I resold the first trousers I got in favour of another pair that showed, which fits nicer.

I bought a Wolf Outlast jacket RPR 250+ for 30, and it is MINT, have went under surprise heavy rain and I was dry, legs got soaked tho, I haven't found the matching pair yet .

Do not buy a used helmet, and if you buy a discounted helmet like me, check the damned date of manufacture, mine had expired! I'd rather have spent the 25 quid on a pair of used gloves

As for gloves.....first buy your jacket, then go shop around and see what fits, then either buy in store or online. I have trouble finding the right one. Also, buy WINTER gloves, summer can wait for the stylish ones. You can also ebay, but it's harder to find bargains and the correct size, there's a lot less margin in gloves than a jacket in what fits just right, and what is outright dangerous.

Bootwise I didn't buy any either, I already wear apocalypse boots year round.

[BTTD]

I got my current leathers on ebay. HG goretex lined leather jacket nearly new for £110. HG Sympatex lined leather trousers with labels still attached £100. Both have detatchable insulation liners and are fully waterproof. They get a bit too warm in the summer though.
Gloves (Richa goretex), lid and boots (Sidi goretex) have all been bought from Helmet City either in a sale (Schuberth lid, boots) or at full rrp (gloves).

During the summer I wear non lined leathers and carry waterproofs with me - army goretex is cheapish and pretty hard-wearing. The breathability makes a world of difference.

[ThunderGuts]

I had a similar budget when I started (got a bit of a discount at J&S by mentioning my riding school). Textiles I think are the most practical for most people and work well for me, from when I did my training in the late summer through to my riding through this winter including sub-zero temperatures and heavy rain.

I got IXS jacket and trousers (same make means they zip together without having to get out the sewing machine), IXS helment (plus a pinlock insert), Frank Thomas gloves and RST waterproof boots, plus decent back armour (the jackets don't tend to come with anything other than a sheet of foam which won't do much in a spill!). The textiles have zip-out insulation/liners so they can be adapted to be comfy depending on the environment. I got about 2 hours of wet weather riding before they let water in (crotch - top half stayed dry) when doing my mod 2 training in pouring rain; I think that's pretty respectable really. I think my total bill was around £600 in the end, but I've since bought some warmer gloves and a neck warmer thing.

One thing I'd say though is it's worth getting decent kit; it's more comfortable, performs better and will probably last longer. It's a worthwhile investment as having uncomfortable kit distracting you is the last thing you want when you need to be focussing on learning (and riding!) your bike
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TG.

[andys675]

do your homework, know what fits you

don't be afraid of "worn once" quality kit off ebay, loads of fannies with good jobs buy top kit after taking up biking on a whim, then give it up or retire and this is what I've gained

I'm just about to throw my 5 year old Dainese Tuscon Jacket on ebay, I paid £125 for it on ebay new when they were £460 in the shops

I'm replacing it with a Dainese Gator goretex , £77 as it finished at rush hour and there was little bidding "worn twice"

Dainese Bruce goretex pants, they were £240 in the shops, ebayed for £165 BNWT

daytona journey boots, £240 in the shops, paid £100 on ebay, again as new worn once

alpinestars tech road gloves, on my third pair over last 12 years, latest pair worn once £35

shoei NXR, brand new, black and clear visor, £265 ebay from reputable retailer

other bargains? Xlite carbon helmet £75, christmas present wrong size, put it back on ebay for £200

dainese xtrafit gloves, 165 shops, £95 ebay

dainese fairbanks jacket, new and £280 in the shops, ebay £130 from a dainese retailer

rukka verhauti jacket, £650 new, wanted one for ages, got one from FC moto for £230 when they were finished off, when it arrived I hated it and they wouldn't have it back so I sold it on ebay for £350

dainese archivio jacket, bought from clay cross when they were closing for £46, were £400 and another I wish I had kept as it was one seriously cool jacket, but sold it for £330 when i was skint

good luck, the bargains are out there!
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Some people feel the rain, others just get wet.

[SirFallalot]