leather or syntethic in hot weather

[rednax]

made a tour down france and spain some month ago with my daughter. She wore a dainese leather suit and I had mesh/denim jacket and syntethic pants. I thought she might be overheated , it was 38c somet imes, but it turned out I suffered much more from the heat. Should I conclude that leather is the best also in real hot weather?

 

[88millimeter]

Is it mesh or textile like cordura? The mesh should be a lot cooler than leather. I have a joe rocket alter ego leather jacket with zippered panels, when it gets hot the leather panels come off the mesh liner underneath serves as protection and it is a night and day difference as far as cooling. Maybe its just that younger people can tolerate extreme temperatures better, i remember those days when i could walk outside and not feel cold.

 

[rednax]

thanks for the answer. It´s some sort of jeansfabric with mesh towards the sides. But you are probably right, it might be a matter of age and generell shape ha ha allthough I got a little pussled. Your jacket looks nice but dosn´t seem to be sold here in Europe.. ::001::

 

[Rasher]

I find textiles work better across a range of temperatures, well vented (perforated) leathers are maybe a shade better in high heat - but useless in the cold, warmer leathers can be good in cool conditions, but far too hot if the weather warms.

Good breathable (Goretex) textiles work well for me from 5c up to about 24-28c (depending on air quality) and are waterproof as well.

I swear by base layers, these make riding far more comfortable and stop the horrible clingy feel of bike gear against skin.

 

[Roge]

Once the air passing through a mesh jacket is at a higher temperature than your body you are in trouble and need to start to block it out (look at an Arab tribesman) A good vented set up is best so when it gets hot close the vents and slow down dehydration. I have a canvas armoured jacket and pants with waterproof liners which makes sense in hot climates as water proofing does not aid cooling and the liners stay out. if it rains and its hot get wet, soon dries. If its cool liners in. Leathers only real advantage is in an off and that is becoming a marginal point.

 

[Rasher]

Leathers only real advantage is in an off and that is becoming a marginal point.

::026:: Especially as on the road the danger is hitting something solid (where nothing does a great job of protecting the human body from sudden deceleration) for race tracks leathers are definitely better as they will slide a lot further, on the road you rarely get the luxury of sliding from 80+mph to a standstill without hitting something like a wall / curb / car / bus / tree / fence.

I always have armour fitted, but nothing too heavy, in my sportsbike days I used a heavy duty back protector, but find these inconvenient for touring so go with built in armour for hips / knees / elbows / shoulders / back - and try my best not to crash :exclaim:

Never used non waterproof textiles as I do not like having to fit liners, same goes for putting on waterproofs, normally by the time I stop to get waterproofs on / liners in I have already got wet, and sods law states if I fit them before setting off it won't rain anyway. In summer I sometimes use a mesh style textile jacket for local jaunts in the countryside, and if touring solo I can fit this in my luggage for hotter days.

My preference is for the one "do-it-all" suit, and as mentioned before I have one that works well from pretty cold to quite hot, I fit the thermal liner from October - March in the UK, but during "summer" ::025:: I take it out and just carry a microfleece when touring as it takes less space, is quicker to put on than fitting the liner, and can be used as a jumper in the evenings.