Newbie leather VS Textile??

[SNOW JW]

Ok I ride in MT so in the morning even in July and Aug we see 40deg temps then on the ride home from work 80-95 deg temps.

I am looking for a good jacket so what should I look for Leather or Textile???

Thanks

 

[mercm3]

I can't comment on the lower temps but I live in San Diego where it's normally 75-95 and I have a perfed leather jacket and I'm fine, get a little warm past 90 but barely worth noting.

 

[mstewar1]

A little more info may net a few more insightful responses. What's your desired "look?" Do you care if your jacket has a bunch of pockets or do you want the minimalist look? What kind of riding pants are you planning on getting?

Are you seeking info about crash durability, too?

I have both textile and leather but wear the textile almost exclusively. I like having a zillion pockets. My textile jackets (joe rocket ballistic and an aerostich road crafter) are a little different from one another -- the JR has a zip-in/out liner, whereas the 'stich does not. They can both accommodate my coldest days with sensible layering.

I've treated my jackets with nikwax for water resistance. I can ride in the rain for a short while and not have to worry about rain gear. If it gets to pouring, I've got to put on the gear. While you don't see cows shrinking when they get wet, I don't think that leather likes getting wet all that much. I'm sure there are folks with more experience in that regard who'll chime in.

If you haven't checked them out yet, be sure to visit newenough.com for good deals and really great customer service.

 

[Manx]

I think it depends on the jacket more than the material. I find leather less sweaty than textile, which seems to be the opposite of what most people think. I have an over jacket if it rains hard.

However, I have just bought some ventilated pants and gloves, and they are brilliant. So, I would suggest trying as many as you can and look for some kind of ventilation.

 

[SNOW JW]

I don't mind some pockets and such I am not fan of the super tight leather or leather in gen so that is why I was hoping a guy can get the textile and yet have it work in semi cool and warm weather and yet give you some sort of crash protection as well.

 

[VEGASRIDER]

It really comes down to your preference. Just make sure you know the advantages and disadvantages for both items. For example, many textile gear will melt when it encounters friction in the event you encounter a slide. Plastic or nylon melted directly into your road rash is not very appealing. Just becareful if you go textile, and keep in mind, some will melt quicker than others. One nice thing about mest textiles, you can get liners, which you can use in cold temps, and take them out when the temps get hot.

There is one item that always gets unoticed when it comes to what type of riding apparel should be made of. Kevlar, offers the best protection, even more then leather. Although very expensive, it something to think about. Here's a link. I just ordered the mesh kevlar pants. Custom made with custom fitted armour.

Cycleport Kevlar Apparel

 

[dean2287]

Textile is cooler, leather is safer.

 

[lonesoldier84]

fairly low speed crash and was only on asphalt for less than a second:




my point?

get leather. honestly once you start moving the vents work brilliantly. no reason to get textile other than being a cheap bastard. I have crashed in my leather jacket 3 times now. i havent replaced it yet. every time i have crashed i had to get new textile pants. i will be finally getting leather (I could have bought 2 pairs of leather by now for what i have paid).

 

[lonesoldier84]

It really comes down to your preference. Just make sure you know the advantages and disadvantages for both items. For example, many textile gear will melt when it encounters friction in the event you encounter a slide. Plastic or nylon melted directly into your road rash is not very appealing. Just becareful if you go textile, and keep in mind, some will melt quicker than others. One nice thing about mest textiles, you can get liners, which you can use in cold temps, and take them out when the temps get hot.

There is one item that always gets unoticed when it comes to what type of riding apparel should be made of. Kevlar, offers the best protection, even more then leather. Although very expensive, it something to think about. Here's a link. I just ordered the mesh kevlar pants. Custom made with custom fitted armour.

Cycleport Kevlar Apparel

but leather is cheaper than kevlar. plus it looks more bada55. chicks dig leather. well, i wouldnt know myself as for whatever reason i repel the opposite sex....but if movies/tv are right then yes, that statement is true.

but mainly, i am trying to say that kevlar is pretty pricey. those prices there in your link vegas arent so bad, but i have seen it priced much, MUCH higher. depends on the kevlar content of the textile perhaps?

 

[jazzpaintball]

fairly low speed crash and was only on asphalt for less than a second:




my point?

get leather. honestly once you start moving the vents work brilliantly. no reason to get textile other than being a cheap bastard. I have crashed in my leather jacket 3 times now. i havent replaced it yet. every time i have crashed i had to get new textile pants. i will be finally getting leather (I could have bought 2 pairs of leather by now for what i have paid).

I have to ask, what brand of pants were those? i only wear textiles and they hold up a lot better than that.

 

[lonesoldier84]

scorpion invasion pants

200 bucks online.

 

[jazzpaintball]

maybe its not textile you should be pissed at, but maybe a lower end 'major' brand?

 

[LittleRed]

I work in a store that sells gear and get that question a lot. Your best bet would be to go for a textile jacket that has a lot of vents and a removable thinsulate (or just plain insulated) liner. This would allow you to be warm on your way there, and, with the liner removed and vents open later in the day, to be nice and cool on your way back.

Try checking out the Joe Rocket Ballistic 7.0 jacket (read a review here). Either that or their Alter Ego- it has sections of the outer shell that zip off to have mesh underneath. This plus the waterproof liner (acts as a windbreaker) and maybe another sweatshirt beneath that would be ok at some lower temperatures while giving you the option of going full mesh when the temp goes up.

Another good one would be anything Firstgear (such as the Kilimanjaro or any of their TPG line).

I own several Joe Rocket items, including the women's version of the Ballistic jacket and have been extremely happy with them.

 

[geetarhero]

I had a ****ty old leather jacket once, and it was ready to be chucked.
My friend crashed in his Joe Rocket Meteor 6 jacket and when recovered he was amazed at how a 20km/h fall could rip his left arm to SHREDS when he slid less than 40feet (very generous estimate for doubts sake, it was really more like 10 feet)

we took my crappy leather jacket and his torn textile (used the undamaged section) to my shop and hooked up some 100 grit sand paper to my grinder.
Hitting the chest, side and arms of both jackets the textile shredded to where skin would be in under 2 seconds of the grinder. the leather withstood for around 10 seconds on the arms and between 5-6 on the sides and chest.

while a grinder with 100 grit paper (about the same roughness as asphalt) is nothing in simulation to a sliding down a road, it did prove the amount of skin your leather can save in a real crash. It could mean the difference between some painful road rash and some hideous skin grafts.
After that we both went out and bought some good Dainese leather jackets; although, I still wear textile overpants (joe rocket alter ego)

 

[Hellgate]

I can't too much to this aside from buy a size that doesn't allow the armor to rotate if you fall. Too large of a size won't do you much good if the armor isn't were it needs to be.

I've got three jackets, mesh, textile and leather. As far as protection leather is better by about ten fold. The textile looks okay, the mesh, well the mesh looks like a joke really.

For the cool ride something like Winter Silks are great. They fold up into a small bundle and take the edge off of the cool.

Many jackets, leather and textile, come with a water resistant liner that cuts through the cool weather too.

If you ride year round you'll end up buying two sets of gear.

 

[lonesoldier84]

i dont know why everyone thinks leather is so miserably hot. leather is only hot when you are stationary. so dont gear up and stand around like a tool. GO RIDE!!! it cools you down pretty quickly especially when you have a touch of sweat built up.

 

[LittleRed]

Leather jackets are only hot when you're moving if they don't have any vents. There are quite a few leather jackets out there with good venting, one of my favorites being the First Gear Scout jacket. Any other more racing styled First Gear jackets would be worth looking at as well (try to stay away from Field Sheer- as far as quality control goes, they're not exactly the best out there...).

If you want incredibly thick leather for the best protection, you should check out a few of the Xpert brand jackets. They come with memory foam armor in them, but are sold with a set of hard CE armor if you want to switch them. A few of them also come with some of the best venting I've seen and all have removable thinsulate liners. Another key thing- they all have Kevlar stitching, so the seams won't be ripping anytime soon. One frequent flier in my store has an Xpert jacket that has been with him for so long and through so many wrecks that it looks more of a light tan instead of black. It has yet to need a repair of any kind save for a few snaps.

Find a place to try on some jackets and pick the one that is the most comfortable and fits the best. All textile comes with armor since you are sacrificing quite a bit of abrasion resistance for a lighter-weight and more versatile jacket (more water and weatherproof too). With the leather, you are sacrificing the lighter scale reading for the better abrasion resistance. I personally have both leather and textile- having options in your closet is a good thing.

Oh, and one more quick thing- with gear you really get what you pay for- cheap jackets will not last long through a wreck whether they're leather or not...

 

[VEGASRIDER]

but leather is cheaper than kevlar. plus it looks more bada55.

but mainly, i am trying to say that kevlar is pretty pricey. those prices there in your link vegas arent so bad, but i have seen it priced much, MUCH higher. depends on the kevlar content of the textile perhaps?

Did you know Kevlar is 10 times more stronger than Leather? But yet those prices are not 10 times higher. They also have a guarantee, if they can't fix it, they'll replace it. Lifetime guarantee. As soon as I get my pants next week, I'll post some pics and do a review.

 

[LittleRed]

Finally checked out that link of yours Vegas- never heard of that stuff before, but after only a minute on the site, I'm sold! Now all I need is the money to get it all... Thanks for that link!

 

[lonesoldier84]

Did you know Kevlar is 10 times more stronger than Leather? But yet those prices are not 10 times higher. They also have a guarantee, if they can't fix it, they'll replace it. Lifetime guarantee. As soon as I get my pants next week, I'll post some pics and do a review.

hmm, sounds great. but ive heard there are different types of kevlar clothing you need to be careful of. not all things marketted as kevlar are 100% kevlar and the entire piece isnt kevlar in some. this is what i have heard.