One Piece suits

I'm in the market for a one-piece. The 'stich is the standard, of course. Sidi has one at $900, I doubt it. Olympia has one now that looks pretty good with CE armor and $450 plus it's hanging on the rack at the dealerships. I'm not sure about having to close all that velcro down the legs, though. Does the Roadcrafter have velcro closures over the leg zippers?

I'm looking for any and all advice on these suits.

Eulogite said:

Does the Roadcrafter have velcro closures over the leg zippers?

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Nope. It's most probably the best suit in the universe.

Does Fieldsheer offer a one piece yet? I've been very impressed with their gear as of late.

DFW_Warrior said:

Does Fieldsheer offer a one piece yet? I've been very impressed with their gear as of late.

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Fieldsheer Highland 1-pc. I picked one up for $250 at Moto-Liberty quite some time ago and I've been happy with it for commuting details and especially cold weather riding. I wouldn't want to wear it in the summer though....even with the liner removed and the vents open. It's a bit warmish, and being rain resistant it doesn't vent body heat very well when it's above 80 degrees. Looks like they may have improved the venting for 2007.

Details:
http://www.fieldsheer.com/2007web/web3/product/highlandii.htm

I tried on an Olympia one piece. Very difficult in and out. Alan you are correct in your worries about velcro. that stuff is every where on the suite. every Zipper, front, Legs, arms, pockets, all have it. It also has water proof zippers under the velcro flaps. Every thing looks to be good quality, and I am sure this is one of the most water proof suites there is. But for someone looking for something to commute in it is going to be difficult dealing with it.
Now the folks that don't think a Stich is dry enough, This baby is for you!
I also had trouble with the fit, Found the XL to be to tight in the shoulders and chest, but was to long in the legs. Knee pads were more like shin pads.
I am saving my dollars for a RoadCrafter. Till then my old Belstaff will do the job.

I wore a Roadcrafter for about 10yrs and it was a decent suit, but it's very dated, IMO. I replaced it last year with an Olympia AST/Ranger 2 combo and never looked back. I tried the Olympia Phantom a couple of weeks ago and promptly ordered one. Most comfortable suit I've ever tried and it was pretty simple to get in/out for me. Plus, the armor is shaped/fitted much better than the 'Stich. I'm 6'4, 225lbs with a 36" inseam and the XL suit fit me better than the custom tailored RC. Aerostich does have the advantage when it comes to custom pockets and damage repairs, though. I just hope the new competition drives them to update their gear. The Roadcrafter is like the KLR...it's adequate, but it's a 20yr old design.

My wife tried the Fieldsheer Highlander, but it was disappointing. The main zipper came apart within a few days and several of the seams had broken threads. The customer service was miserable. Fieldsheer told us to just take it to a local tailor to have it fixed since it would cost less than shipping it back to them for repair...not acceptable. We were lucky the retailer took pity on us and refunded our money. She's now an Olympia convert, too.

TexBiker: Let us know how it goes with the new suite. I Love the look and the HIviz YELLER. But found my own problems with it.
When I tried it on it was with the insulation liner, maybe I should have removed that since I would be wearing it with out it most of the time, or at most with the gerbings jacket liner. That is something else I have herd is that there is not a good way to get power to heated clothes inside the suite.
Man I wish it would work better for me especially for the $$$$savings.

I have the Highland 1-piece also. Definitely good for the money, and most helpful in cold weather.

TexBiker said:

I wore a Roadcrafter for about 10yrs and it was a decent suit, but it's very dated, IMO. I replaced it last year with an Olympia AST/Ranger 2 combo and never looked back.

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Sounds good, does the jacket have a full circumfrence zipper for connection to the pants? Nobody plans on crashing but in case it happens at speed you need a full zipper connecting the jacket to pants, I have seen some ugly injuries where there was no full zipper and a getoff happened.

letsride said:

Sounds good, does the jacket have a full circumfrence zipper for connection to the pants? Nobody plans on crashing but in case it happens at speed you need a full zipper connecting the jacket to pants, I have seen some ugly injuries where there was no full zipper and a getoff happened.

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Nope...only a rear zipper attachment. I don't see a need for a full-circumference zipper with a 3/4 jacket. When I worked as paramedic, I never saw a 3/4 jacket ride up far enough to expose skin. Not saying it can't happen, but the risk is low enough for my comfort.

Then I respectfully agree to dis-agree. Matter of personal opinion/comfort but I will never ride without a 1 piece suit or a 2 piece suit with full circumfrence zipper. It's all good

TexBiker said:

Nope...only a rear zipper attachment. I don't see a need for a full-circumference zipper with a 3/4 jacket. When I worked as paramedic, I never saw a 3/4 jacket ride up far enough to expose skin. Not saying it can't happen, but the risk is low enough for my comfort.

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I too think a full zipper may be just a tad overkill for normal street use. I also use a 3/4 length jacket and unfortunately have crash tested it twice and both times my precious "food tank" came away unscathed. I'm not saying it can't happen, but the chances are fairly low. But to each his own.

Totally understand. It is based on usage and the probability of a high speed low side. If such a probability exists only then the extra safety makes sence. For normal speed limit type street usage I believe it may be overkill.

Have you looked at Tour Mater? I have a all leather two piece with full zipper. The pants are dockers? and the jacket is a coaster. It has been working great here in the colder weather of NM. I will buy a perf. set for the summers of Texas.

I have the Olympia AST jacket and Ranger II pant combo. I can vouch for the velcro being a **** on the pants. In a one-piece suit, it may get tedious in the long run.

I've gotten used to the velcro, and that being said, only have to undo the pants to just above the knee to get in and out of them. It's not as bad as it was when I first got them. The 'stich pants/suit will be easier to get in and out of but that alone was not worth the extra $$ for their setup. I've been very happy with the AST and Ranger II pants. I'm sure the suit is built of the same quality and you won't be disappointed.

Just to throw it out there, I prefer the flexibility of the two piece over the suit any day of the week with only a couple of exceptions. One is track use and the other is LD/IBA riding. Commuting around town, I usually just do the boots, gloves, jacket, and helmet. When I go riding with a group and we end up at lunch, I leave the pants on and jacket gets locked up. I don't have to deal with an entire suit...even if it is easy to get in and out of.

I'm wanting the suit for LD and winter-riding. I don't want to wear my mesh 2-piece with the liner next winter, I want to reduce some of the layers by throwing the good one-piece on top. I tried on an Olympia; the velcro goes down easy, but opening it back up requires finger pressure that my arthritis didn't like. I'm only 45, but my hands are a bit older.

I have been wearing the stich now for about two years and it is a good choice for commuting back and forth to work. I have big legs and had to send the thing back like three times before I got one that really fit. they took care of me and that counts in my book. They even talked to my wife on the phone while I sat on the bike to see where else the thing needed altering. I love the pockets, the armor and the ease of duffing and donning. What I dont like is the water sepage in the crotch area thru the zippers. Stich makes it clear that this thing is not 100% water proof and in a lite to moderate rain it does good, but when the bottom falls out it is going to leak.
Having said this I bought a Darien jacket and some RC pants with the bib converter. This morning I left work in a driving rain and was totally dry when I got home. This was after riding 30 miles on a DR650 with no shield. For travel I will take a two piece set up any way because when I stop for a break I like to take off the jacket, or when I am setting up my tent I like having the knee pads.
So the bottom line is that when I am commuting I usually wear the RC unless it is just pooring down when I leave the house, but when traveling I wear the two piece suite.

Eulogite said:

I'm in the market for a one-piece. The 'stich is the standard, of course. I'm looking for any and all advice on these suits.

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I've done all the research and thought Aerostitch was the best until I found this company. They make Cycleport armored KEVLAR clothing. Here is a link to their one piece.

http://www.motoport.com/detail.asp?Product_ID=102.175&Merchant_ID=633Pm22C

Wife and I are both wearing the airmesh two piece suits as we dual-sport around South America. Completely waterproof and cool in the summer, warm in the winter. Good folks.

Steep

I've got a couple of Teknic suits from www.newenough.com . Check out their sales cause they put stuff on CHEAP sales from time to time. One of my suits is green and sold cheap because of the color, but since I was racing a green Kawasaki at the time, and to tell you the truth I didn't care about the color.

One piece stuff is fine for the track, but on the street it's a royal **** and really unnecessary. My suits are for racing. They've both been well crash tested and after repairs still look decent. The zipper blew out on the green set after several years of abuse, so I have to get that fixed. But, for the price, hey, they're great! I think I gave 299 for the green ones and about 400 for the black ones.

I have 2 friends that "got off" at 70+ mph both wearing 2pc roadcrafters and neither was scratched. One's suit is pretty chewed up but never failed even as he slid across the shoulder where the pavement was like a cheese grater. I have a 2 pc suite it is well made and is easy to put on and take off.

How does a suit's design become dated?

Larry_77084 said:

How does a suit's design become dated?

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Well, when I came back and started racing again in 1999, I had my old Dainese leathers and wore 'em for a year. I had a get off on a 600 in an endurance race wearing those leathers at the chicane at TWS. I'd crashed 'em before in the old days at up to 100 mph. I thought they were great leathers regardless of the road rash I got THROUGH them. Not even a hole in the leathers and they burned up my forearms in a get off at T3 TWS once. I've crashed in most of the corners at TWS at least once.

Well, I got these new Teknics. They have hard armor EVERYwhere and soft back armor and soft armor in many locations where hard armor isn't necessary. They actually have KNEE PUCKS. I was still duck taping my knees with the old Daineses. And, they were soft padded throughout. I have crashed in 'em at 80 mph right at the apex of T2 at TWS, a FAST corner, was at full lean and it seized. It tore some of the stitching on the back, the bike rode on top of me all the way off the track and I didn't flip, just laid out on my back. I could feel the friction heat off the back of 'em through my Knox back brace! Yet, I was unscratched, not even a bruise. I don't recall being hurt too bad in these leathers except for a hard face plant at a mini race where I jammed a shoulder. That one hurt my rotator cuff, I think. I still can't throw a rock very well anymore, though I can, now lift my arm over my head without pain, finally. Hey, it's a rough sport. If you wanna race, be ready for the beating.

Anyhow, I survived the Daineses, but nearly every crash involved bruises and such even though the integrity of the leathers was never harmed. Modern stuff is SO much better.

Little things are improved on leathers every season from information gleaned in crashes at the professional levels and, not unlike helmet technology, that improvement in design trickles down. I stepped out of racing in '86 and back in '99 and in those 11 years, WOW, did gear improve or WHAT?! Of course, I could say the same about tires, heck, about bikes for that matter. But, the quality of those cheap Teknics shocked me. Dainese is a quality brand still and the cheap stuff 15 years newer is FAR, FAR better than the higher dollar 15 year old stuff, like by light years.