OK, I did what i consider a pretty thorough search of this site and the rest of the internet, and I can't really find a lot of comprehensive reviews on this product. I mainly ride for pleasure...day trips and week long tours. But I'd like to do more commuting. I have an 80 mile round trip commute that is also a pretty fun ride. I have to wear a uniform to work, and need something to throw on over it for crash and wx protection. I currently own a two piece roadcrafter i bought about 10 years ago when I got back into street riding. I have to admit that over the years, it has been eclipsed by other jacket and pant combos. Main reason, I find the whole suit to be a bit bulky/uncomfortable, and it comes up short for my riding needs too many times. Too hot and i grab some mesh gear...too cool, and I grab heavier gear with insulated liners. But I want something simple for my daily commute, and I'm drawn back to my roadcrafter. Unfortunately, the two piece roadcrafter i have is just a bit too bulky for my bikes top case (I'd like to leave the suit on the bike). The light is advertised to roll up considerably tighter and seems to have a few more "frills" missing from the old RC. So, anyone out there tried both and have some feedback? Thanks in advance.
I cannot personally speak on behalf of the RC lite. I wear the traditional RC onsey year round. I may suggest to get a "feel" for the suit. Order one from Aerostich. They will bill your debt/credit card. Try it on, see how you like it. If its not for you, send it back and they will issue a refund ASAP. I did that with my RC for sizing, but it was a good way to make sure the suit was exactly what I wanted. YMMV I do know the RC lite is made from 200 D cordura and 200 D ballistics whereas the RC is 500D and 1050 D, so the RC lite is by default less bulky. However if you add all the pads including the hip/back then it will take up extra room in your top case. The back pad it the limiting factor when I fold up my RC. The RC lite is waterproof too, but I think the water proof-ness is designed differently than the RC, as the RC has the gortex liner then another inner liner. I think I read somewhere that the RC lite is missing one of the liners. Don't hold me to that, however. The RC lite also has the new waterproof main zipper. Also the RC ultra lite is missing all the ballistics so its even lighter and will pack a bit smaller. The RC and RC-UL are USA made the RC lite is not...Vietnam, I think, but the quality should be good since its got the Aerostich label on it. I too wore a two-peice get up prior to the onsey RC for commuting. I can attest that the onsey is definately the cat's meow for commuting. Easy on, easy off. I sold all my 2 piece gear since. Just my .02.
I recently purchased the RC Light for nearly identical reasons as the OP. The suit is amazing. I haven't ridden any miles (needed one size larger), but construction, quality if material, etc. demonstrated that this is a well thought out piece of gear. I am already looking at the TF pad combo, and will most likely have those before my suit, which had to be built to fit, arrives again. The literature claims that the pads will add one size to what you fit into without the pads. From my experience with the suit so far, repeating that I have worn one without riding, I would recommend it. Good luck.
I bought an RC Lite three months ago, have worn it for over one thousand miles so far, and love it. Well built with quality materials and suits the type of riding that I have done so far. I am a total noob but I did do a lot of research and asked a lot of questions before plunking down the cash. Glad I did and am happy with the result. I got the knee and elbow pads and will soon get the chest and back.
Thanks for the inputs. I'm considering "trading" my two piece for a one piece conventional RC. It is a known entity, and they can be found on the used market (I bought my two piece used with no regrets). You just don't see too many of the new light's out there for sale on the used market (guess mainly because they have not been around all that long). One other option is a Tiez suit. I saw a thread on them here, and they are priced very competitively. They make a commuter suit, but unfortunately, right now it is not available due to it being redesigned. I'll probably wait to see what comes of that offering. Any comments on the Tiez suit are appreciated. Bottom line: I guess I am looking for something easy on/off for wear over work clothes, packs small enough to fit in a top box, and provides a decent amount of abrasion and impact protection. Wx protection is secondary, as I will rarely commute if the wx looks threatening, and I don't mind throwing on a rain suit over this suit (I always carry rain gear on the bike). All year wearability would be nice too (exception being extremes: over 100F to about freezing). I can always layer beneath it, but good venting would be nice, since there is only so much you can take off. Thanks again.
Skitch- I have a Teiz Mojave (mesh) suit that I bought this past spring. I rode in it nearly all summer. I even did a detailed review for WebBikeWorld. http://www.webbikeworld.com/r4/teiz-motorsports/mojave/ And a detailed review of the Teiz Commute Suit on this site: http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=747433 I did not buy the Commute Suit The Mojave is a good suit for warm weather commuting. However, if you get caught in the rain then you will get drenched. I stopped wearing the Mojave about mid-August and went back to my RC onsey. We were getting a frigging thunderstorm every day I just got tired of having to don my frogg toggs every time I left work headed home. The RC is 100% waterproof/water resistant. The Mojave or Commute suit would be a nice alternative, save the water-proofness/resistant. I surmise the CS is similar to the RC-lite. The Teiz CS has 600 Denier shell and 1680 Denier ballistics vs the RC-lite 200D and 200D respectively, but still the Teiz CS is not water-proof or resistant. So you are getting a bit more "protection" with the Teiz. I will state for the record, that the Aerostich armor is way more comfortable than the hard-shelled CE armor that comes with the Teix Mojave Mesh suit. The Teiz CS has the softer CE armor and is nearly equal in comfort to the RC. Hope this helps with your quest.
Skitch I recently added my review of the light on the Aerostich website. It is a no shit great piece of gear. I have a closet full of Aerostich and a few other offshore brands and Aerostich is hands down the best....the light is the best for year round riding here in Arizona. Where you are however it gets just a bit cool in the winter and probably the standard one piece is your best bet for winter time riding. Having said all that about Aerostich, I used to belong to the Land of Enchantment BMW Riders back in the 80's, and we had a guy named Michael Kober that commuted from 4 hills in Albuquerque/Santa Fe to the Road Department headquarters there every day, all year long, rain, snow, whatever, and he got by on some really lame gear (by today's standards)...pretty much a leather jacket and levi's....on a 1976 R90/6 with a Hannigan fairing. We used to display his bike at the fairgrounds motorcycle show every year with a white board out front showing how many tires, gallons of gas and such he had gone thru over the years. I think he had 375,000 miles when he finally retired it and bought a new ST1100. But I digress, back in the day, evidently men were men....at least Kober was, I would recommend the one piece light with hesitation....go read my review. Mike
