Riding gear suggestions

In the month I've had the new R, both me and the bike are showing a little wear , so I've got a question about gear!

I'm on and off the bike a lot - set up and take some photos and move on to the next spot, mostly on dirt & gravel & rutted roads and usually less than 35mph. I was thinking a light weight armored jacket I could wear in summer and also be able to wear something heavier over it in fall. Trying not to restrict my movement much and don't want to keep taking it on / off.

Thanks for the gear suggestions!

Minor casualties so far include; elbows, knees, shoulder, wrists, front fender and mirrors - you get the picture

I like the Olympia Airglide stuff, easy to wear/walk in, and nice liners for cooler weather.

Sarah

Newbie here and I'm not sure what gear I need either.

Which gear is best is always a best guess... One never seems to work for all conditions.

I have three basic set-ups that overlap. Somewhat of a form follows function mentality.

A THOR off-road jacket that has more vents than almost necessary, but is completely waterproof when all closed-up. I can wear under armor and thermal layers as required for the ride. It's big so a chest protector and arms guards are no problem. I can wear this set-up for most rides in So-Cal and if riding off-road it vents moisture.

A Joe Rocket Ballistic which comes with a liner and has front/back vent panels. Although designated as a street jacket actually works well for mild off-road riding and dual sporting. I've rarely put the liner in it and usually layer underneath. The one I have has elbow and shoulder guards. It won't fit other armor under it comfortably.

The third set-up is for the "Unknown" is a First Gear Kilimanjaro. It has a great reputation and you can find them on Craigslist fairly cheap (If found two - one for the girl and I for $200). They have padding in them, but it's not really armor. Bulk ratio is high and is probably a jacket reserved only for "Extreme" conditions here in CA. As bulky as it is (relatively speaking) it is incredibly comfortable and any immobility is unrecognizable even off-roading - But if I have this jacket on it's somewhere around freezing or just plain cold out.

Pants... I ride with waterproof, vented, over the boots with as many pockets as I can find.

The Fox All-weather pros are what I wear when things are nasty.

I have a pair of THOR Rides which, for the money are very nice. I had to add belt loops.

Both the above are vented.

...and I have regular MX pants that I wear for general conditions.

If I were riding in wet/snowy/rainy conditions I would just get my wallet out and buy a pair of the Klim Traverse pants. I could easily justify the (~ $310) cost if they lasted ten years.

No matter what you choose, the bottom line is comfort, protection, staying dry and staying cool. It's that easy ! :)

I like my Klim Traverse jacket and pants in all but the hottest and driest conditions. I've got some FirstGear mesh stuff for that.

Great suggestions. Klim, First Gear and Joe Rocket all seem like really good products.

I like my Axo Enduro Jacket. It has a removeable liner for the summer, you can take the arms off, and it has large pockets.
It also has CE armor (removeable) for the elbows/arms and Shoulders.
http://www.atomic-moto.com/servlet/the-44/AXO-Enduro-Jacket/Detail

Underneath I wear the Axo Air Cage for protection:
http://www.atomic-moto.com/servlet/the-364/AXO-Air-Cage/Detail

I removed the armor from the jacket.

My everyday every weather setup is my klim traverse jacket with the d3o and aerostich ad1 pants. Breathes well enough into the 90's, absolutely waterproof, and easily insulated for winter. And its comfy too, fits perfectly on the bike so well that I often forget about them. The ad1's are more comfortable than jeans when riding. For hot hot days I have a tourmaster mesh jacket.

There's a lot of "it depends" in all of this. I think the first thing is you have to ask yourself whether you want separate armour and clothing, or armoured clothing.

I hop on my bike for a lot of short trips as well as "going riding". I don't lie to myself by saying I'll do ATGATT, even just to run down and get the mail, if it means putting armour on then the clothing. I'd do it if I was going out for a day of riding, but not for a short trip. So, I selected from gear with built in armour. You have to pay attention with that, as poorly designed armoured clothing will allow the armour to shift around when you really need it.

Anyways, after much poking and prodding and trying and whatnot, I settled on a Tourmaster Transitions II jacket and Fieldsheer Mercury pants. The jacket is beyond awesome, pockets everywhere, waterproof and warm when all zipped up, and with all the venting open you essentially sit in a little bubble of flow through ventilation if you have any speed on at all. I've ridden in it from just below freezing with light snow, to three hours of boring through torrential downpours, to about 100 F and have been a happy camper all the way. The armour stays where it's supposed to once properly adjusted as well.

I'm sure there's superior armoured jackets out there, but for $170, that jacket more than fits my needs and has proven itself crash-worthy. If I rode like my hair was on fire off the slab where the chances of high speed get offs were quite likely, perhaps I'd choose something else. And if I routinely rode in temperatures 100 F and beyond, perhaps I'd find the Transitions jacket a poor choice for steady riding in that heat.

The Mercury pants... well, they're pants. They were waterproof until I wore a the threads out on the seam in the crotch where they rub up against the tank bag. A bit annoyed about that. The armour stays where it's supposed to. The full length zippers for on/off with boots is nice. I suppose the venting works somewhat, but they're still a tad on the warmish side. On the other hand, they also insulate your right leg from the heat coming off the radiator fan. Also proven themselves crash worthy. I'd buy them again (if they still made them), but I'd also shop a bit to see if there was anything I thought might be better.

The ideal solution would be to have at least two sets of gear - throw on armoured gear for short trips, and another set of serious gear with armour and then the external clothing. But we already have too damned much hunting, fishing, diving, backpacking, etc gear in the closets in our house, and adding even more to that isn't on the top of my wish list.

Why is it that when you buy a bigger house, you promptly fill it up so it was just as stuffed as the previous house was?

Anyone like this jacket? http://www.revzilla.com/motorcycle/joe-rocket-alter-ego-30-jacket

Seems pretty versatile. Northern NM almost always has a 30-40 degree temp swing day to night and I like the idea of layers in this one. I looked at the Revit Tornado and it seems really well made http://www.revzilla.com/motorcycle/revit-tornado-jacket

I'm primarily looking for really good quality, armored and usable between 50-90 degrees. Too much to ask?

Definitely not too much, but it is a bigger range than many Moto jackets can handle. I've only handled the jr alter ego in a shop and thought it was pretty decent. Didn't fit me well however their commuter biased gear has good rep on Adv.

The swing point for me seems to be around 70-75 degrees. Below that mesh is too cool. Above that solid vented jackets can quickly become too warm. At least in the humidity here on the coasts. If its above 80 I wear my mesh, if its going to drop below 75ish I grab my klim.

Gonna say again, spend the extra $100 on the klim traverse with armor. I wish I could have gotten it before wasting hundreds on inferior gear. Its the only jacket I've yet had that's waterproof as advertised and comfortable over a massive range of temps. Plus it fits me like it was made for me.

I do mostly offroad but a fair amount of on-road to get to the offroad. Just completed the TAT and did the CDR in 09. Both of these have a wide swing in temps as does most of my riding.
I've found some of the new stuff really works well. I'm sold on the mesh linked body armor like the Alpinestars
http://www.motorcycleapparel.net/product/PU27020116-ATT.html
Or the 661 pressure suit or similar.
http://www.bobscycle.com/browse.cfm/4,114686.html?AFF=690FGL
I wear these all the time then add a cordura type jacket when needed. All my jackets have been ones that come with elbow and shoulder pads which I pull out since it is not needed with the mesh armor. Joe Rocket for summer
http://www.amazon.com/Joe-Rocket-Military-Motorcycle-9051-4004/dp/B001RI5AB8
First Gear for winter
http://www.compacc.com/p/Firstgear-Mens-Kilimanjaro-Textile-Jacket
Both my jackets have removable zip in liners that store very compact and I can carry along if needed. When traveling in the summer cross country with elevation changes instead of the liner I will carry my Wider electric vest to use as needed--above 10,000 ft it does come in handy even in Aug
Boots--can't go wrong with Sidi--used them for years.
I've got a couple of Shoei's and HJC but I just used this on the TAT for over 6000 miles and it worked well for me--one exception the padding tended to compress making the helmet get a bit loose toward the end but I had done a lot of sweating in the helmet and sometimes used a skulldana sometimes not so I may have contributed to the change in "fit".
http://www.amazon.com/AFX-FX-39DS-Gloss-Motorcycle-Helmet/dp/B004T2KP64
Toss in some cheap--er low cost--knee\shin pads gloves and dual sport helmet and I'm good to go.
http://www.motorcycle-superstore.com/2/6/10/8506/ITEM/Shift-Racing-Enforcer-Knee-Shin-Guards.aspx

Let's talk about gear again.

I used my trusty Acerbis mesh body armor (roost/shoulder/elbow) protection yesterday with a long sleeve cotton T under it and I froze my A@@ off the entire day on the road in the 60F degree day we had yesterday.

And my usual pair of jeans with Fox Titan Pro knee/shin guards worked well but I got a bit muddier than usual. At least my 2412 Redwings didn't leak or get my feet wet.

I've hesitated buying moto only shirts/pants since as has been discussed I do a fair amount of road riding to get to the dirt. Thin moto pants won't do as well as even jeans if I have a fall along the way. And I'm old fashioned, I like cotton stuff for moisture removal in moderate temps. And, cotton and leather do better in a fall on pavement. My ride to the dirt is usually an hour ride on 55 mph highway through the mountains.

Now that fall is here, I've thought about buying Klim stuff again. Only problem is that I don't want to give up my hard armor, I used it already a few times! And I've done a fair amount of reading for folks searching for the grail of clothes, ones that work for both dirt and street.

Any recommendations on how you do it for chillier weather given my goofy parameters?

This is perfect weather for my Klim Traverse jacket and Aerostich AD1 pants. Just remove the built-in armor and use your hard stuff if you must, but I've found the armor in both works pretty well.

But first, get real boots for riding off-road if you're worried about protection.