Leather for touring in Northern Europe

[Mastiff]

I live in Norway (yeah, we do not all ride viking ships all the time, all though we do from time to time...), and I have a Blackbird (painted all flat black) which I use for shorter trips around the area and one or two longer trips to Germany and other Northern European countries. So you may say that the climate isn't all that different from upstate New York, or maybe upstate Washington. I usually ride in around 60 to 80 F, rarly above or below that. And my rather cheap textile kit is very much ready for a replacement. My main criteria are that I want an inner lining that I can remove for warmer days, all black with as little graphic as possible to fit the bike, protection, comfort and quality, quality and quality. Oh, and quality. I'm going to spend a bit this time, up to maybe 1200 dollars if I find something really great in either Norwegian kroner or Euro (depending on where I buy), so I want something that I can rely on for at least ten years. I had a racing red and white two piece for my previous bike, but that doesn't look good on this bike. And it doesn't look good on me anymore, I have sort of grown in the middle the last ten years...

So I have seen one jacket that could be good, the Alpinestars Hades:



The style is exactly what I want, and the price I can live with (around 600 dollars with shipping). But would it be a good jacket for my use? I may have to order it untested, which is why I'm asking. Or maybe somebody has something else in the same range to suggest?

[Sport-Touring]

[caasland]

For Norway I'd suggest something with Goretex, vents, and room for a heated liner underneath.

Unless the weather has changed much since I lived there in the 80's and 90's, you need to be prepared for frequent light rain and temperatures that change from fjord to mountain to fjord. The better rain and temp protection you have, the longer you seasons will extend.

[Mastiff]

Been there, done that.   Now I don't ride in wet (that's what hotels are for, and I don't feel safe riding this bike in wet weather, with the Dyno kit it's probably around 180 HP, and it's no fun), I don't ride in much less than 15C. So I'm going for leather both for durability, protection and style.  

[zer0netgain]

Honestly, you'd be better just to use something like UnderArmor ColdGear under a standard leather jacket.  Some have liners and some done, but fit might get tricky when you consider the added bulk.

[Mastiff]

That may be right. I do of course have my Norwegian super underwear, which I use in the winter when I'm out fishing. So that works too. Anyway in the temperatures I have mentioned above it's usually not necessary to go beyond jacket and a T-shirt. So a recommendation on a good jacket in about the same style which I can find here in Europe (Dainese, Alpinestars and Halvarson are the three biggest quality contenders) would be good.

[YYCZED]

Have you checked out motoin.de and fc-moto.de? Not sure how shipping works in the EU but I've gotten high-end stuff from Held and Rev'It on 45%+ discount.

Held have lots of versatile two and three-season options but unless you look for good sales, you'll pay a lot. I've had great experience with their products, especially textile suits and gloves.

[Mastiff]

Fc-moto is actually one of my choices in buying. I will even get it shipped to Denmark, which is within the EU, so I won't have to pay Norwegian VAT and stuff on it!   I'm planning a trip to Germany, Holland and Belgia this summer, so I may even go there to pick it up myself and just dump my three year old, but totally worn Bullfighter cheapo stuff in the trash there. Is Held good for touring too, though? I thought that was very racing focued.

[Mastiff]

I stand corrected. I may be in love, please don't tell my wife!  

[Mastiff]

I need to stop looking at stuff like that without my reading glasses...   There's not much leather on that one. But the Held Spire 2-piece looks rather good.

[YYCZED]

Fc-moto is actually one of my choices in buying. I will even get it shipped to Denmark, which is within the EU, so I won't have to pay Norwegian VAT and stuff on it!   I'm planning a trip to Germany, Holland and Belgia this summer, so I may even go there to pick it up myself and just dump my three year old, but totally worn Bullfighter cheapo stuff in the trash there. Is Held good for touring too, though? I thought that was very racing focued.

I'd say Held mainly produces touring gear, not race-focused gear. My riding conditions are as changeable as Norway's but without the constant threat of rain. My Held gear works surprisingly well from 0C to 30C (both of which I experienced on a ride to California last year for WCRM). While it is Gore-Tex, I usually just slap on a rainsuit instead of fiddling with the jacket liner.

[expatbrit]

I've been super happy with Stadler, out of Germany. It's mostly textile, however -- they do have the Track Pro, however:

http://www.stadler-bekleidung.de/product-detail-3-layer-en/jacke-track-pro.html


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[WBill]

My favorite leather wear comes from Fox Creek. a little-known maker in rural Virginia, USA.  It is first-class stuff and I don't know of anyone else who makes gear like theirs. Visit their website if you are interested.  I don't care for large showy labels on my gear. WBill

[Mastiff]

YYCZED, sounds good. Held is very much on my list now, the Spire looks like it can be a good choice.

expatbrit, I'm afraid they don't have the all black that I was looking for, only black and grey.

WBill, they had some good looking stuff! But I'm not really comfortable with buying from the US since if it doesn't fit just right I'd have to return and get a new kit, and not only is it hysterically expensive to send anything from Norway to the US, but also there's the added complication of custom fees.

[expatbrit]

Yeah -- though they do do full custom. (Including, I think, colour). I have their Force Pro personally -- no leather, but huge swathes of superfabric (they talked me out of the Track) and it is almost entirely black.

I wasn't sure it would fit your goals, but this is the Internet so I kinda had to say 'here's what I have' . It also has the gore-Tex you don't want so much


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[Fudge]

I've had my RevIt Ignition jacket for almost 2 years now and I would strongly recommend it to anyone.

https://www.revzilla.com/motorcycle/revit-ignition-2-jacket

Matched with the their Gear 2 pants and you have a nice flexible leather setup that's a little more wallet friendly than Held.  

https://www.revzilla.com/motorcycle/revit-gear-2-leather-pants

Pair the aforementioned gear with a heated vest and I am comfortable from 50 to 100.  Below 50 I use a textile jacket.

[Mastiff]

expatbrit, sure! All suggestions are welcome.  

Fudge, I'm afraid buying from the US is not an option, both expensive to ship and import and extremely expensive to return if it doesn't fit.

[GvG]

Revit is Dutch. So widely available in Europe.

[Fudge]

Revit is Dutch. So widely available in Europe.

Ja, made in the land of kaas where the best stuff comes from.  

[Oilhed]

I stand corrected. I may be in love, please don't tell my wife!  

If it would only look that slim covering my belly!

[RBEmerson]

Unless you plan to routinely skid across roadways, IMHO, this isn't really a leather setting (I again MHO leather is best saved for tracks). Cold, wet, miserable-making conditions are better handled with quality fabric (sic) gear, that makes waterproofing, layering, adding heated liners, etc. easier. A review of Aerostich's summaries of gear road-tested the (literally) hard way is worth consideration.

'Course, if you have this thing about whips and chains, too...