full leathers for winter riding...does it work?

[misterprofessionality]

you know, i kind of forgot about this thread.....

the conclusion of the matter was that i got the leathers. after running a few tests in the shop (the salespeople were bored of their minds and really good sports about it) i was able to determine that with an extra air gap underneath, the full leathers are a strong insulator. i purchased them and will be using them as winter armor. perhaps i'll send a pic of me looking like a power ranger when the weather turns cold again.

[GoldOxide_imp]

I used to wear leather for winter riding. That stopped when I discovered Triumph-branded textile offerings. I have not looked back since. The leathers are now gone. The textile appears to hold well at -25C + 110 km/h wind-chill (equivalent to -48C, or about -54F in the old-world scale) for 60 minutes with no electric heat.

[Frulk_imp]

Looking at the suit it states it’s perforated. Usually that’s done to get heat out and you can only do that by moving air through. I must have missed it but what’s your plan to mitigate the air moving through (heat loss) during cold weather riding?

I have a wax bomber and heavy leather bomber jacket. Both do an exceptional job of keeping me warm when the temps go way south.

[misterprofessionality]

the plan, which turned out to work really well, was to simply wear my typical underlayer under the leather suit. it's a kind of light down with a windbreak material on the outside. it's super light (like wearing nothing at all) and when combined with solid leather as an outer layer does a great job of keeping me warm. i was worried about the so-called perforations too, but it seems that the suit is a cheap one, so the perforations function really badly at their job of getting heat out, which works in my favor.

[Frulk_imp]

Sounds like a plan!

[Bazbro_imp]

I think leather does a really good job of
a) Crash protection (but needs armour too, and some new textiles beat it)
b) Wind protection
But is not quite so good at
c) Protection from cold.
Yes, it does protect marginally from the cold. It is not so good when unlined, but it's better than an unlined textile suit. So the "warmth" felt from leather is all in the "protection from the wind" and the warm layers under the leather.
Just my experience here in England.
As I've said, I've a medical problem with "cold" and rather than put on layer upon uncomfortable layer, I use an outer jacket (either leather or textile - I have both) with a thin, heated jacket under. Lined leather trousers with long-johns under are good for legs, and the BMW cylinders take care of my feet!! A one piece rain oversuit affords extra warmth via draught-proofing when on a long, cold ride.

[GoldOxide_imp]

The final nail to my leathers came when the so called "water resistant" leather was no longer water resistant. The gear became heavy, smelly, cold, crusty (when dried), and just generally sad.

[misterprofessionality]

I think leather does a really good job of
a) Crash protection (but needs armour too, and some new textiles beat it)
b) Wind protection
But is not quite so good at
c) Protection from cold.
Yes, it does protect marginally from the cold. It is not so good when unlined, but it's better than an unlined textile suit. So the "warmth" felt from leather is all in the "protection from the wind" and the warm layers under the leather.
Just my experience here in England.
As I've said, I've a medical problem with "cold" and rather than put on layer upon uncomfortable layer, I use an outer jacket (either leather or textile - I have both) with a thin, heated jacket under. Lined leather trousers with long-johns under are good for legs, and the BMW cylinders take care of my feet!! A one piece rain oversuit affords extra warmth via draught-proofing when on a long, cold ride.

you hit it on the head, that's exactly what i wanted it for. my strategy in the cold has always been combining a dense windbreak outer layer with an effective air gap underneath. this is the basic principle of insulation on a motorcycle. the leather suit works as the ultimate full-body wind break. when combined with a down layer underneath, you have a full body air gap. boom. bubble of warmth.

The final nail to my leathers came when the so called "water resistant" leather was no longer water resistant. The gear became heavy, smelly, cold, crusty (when dried), and just generally sad.

this is what eventually happened to my old leather jacket. rain eventually does it in. the good news is that the weather patterns down here are such that it rains very little during the cold months. it DOES rain, but i actually can't remember the last time i got caught in the rain when it was also cold. i have a lot of confidence that this suit will very seldom ever get wet. that said, it probably will wear out faster than a quality suit, but i paid so little for it, it's a worthwhile purchase. i can't even buy a good winter jacket for what i paid for this suit.