Durban Suit

[WhiteBeard]

Need to upgrade my touring gear before autumn, including a new jacket, pants and even a pair of new boots.
It gets quite cold over here, sometimes below 50°F and heavy winds on top of that.

When browsing around the internet, I came across a line of clothes from Alpinestars called Durban, with quite a hefty pricetag at about $699 for the jacket alone.
Supposedly they are made for extreme adventure riding conditions, but to me they don't look like the warmest piece of clothing out there...

My only experience with this brand is their G-Tech gloves, which are very comfortable "track-style" gloves but also not very warm (my hands go numb even in warmer summer weather)...

I really like the look and specs on the jacket though, so I wanted to check if anybody around here had any experience with their clothing gear.
It's quite a lot of money to spend on one jacket alone...

[Dan Filetti]

If you are considering dropping that kind of $$ and warmth is a factor in your decision, the seriously look into the Aerostich Roadcrafter.



Nice one piece, very warm, and durable, well made, thoughtful armor placement, great for the distance stuff -as evidenced by the fact that apparently, most of the Iron But, and BMW crew uses them.  A bit more of a challenge to get into and out of, but not much.  I know we have a few folks on this list that routinely wear them.

Food for thought.

Dan

[FJTillDeath]

I like

[WhiteBeard]

I've read about the 'Stitch in some previous threads and they do seem worth their money (or more I guess).
I will definitely read up on their suits.

What primarily attracted me to the Alpinestar was the ability to wear it in cold as well as hot temperatures (even though to me it seems targeted mostly towards hot environments).

But hey, the main reason I'm upgrading is to keep my ass safe.

[cyclenutk75]

What primarily attracted me to the Alpinestar was the ability to wear it in cold as well as hot temperatures (even though to me it seems targeted mostly towards hot environments).

I purchased about 7 years ago a Tourmaster Intake jacket.  It is fully armored and has three layers - mesh outside, wind/water proof layer next (removable), and the inner most thermal layer (also removable).  All three layers zip/snap together.  Excellent in the warmest as well as the coldest weather.  Much better in the cold than my Vanson leather jacket with thermal liner.  Think I paid a buck fifty.  However, it is a waist jacket so not as long as the Alpinestars you pictured.  Have put 70-75k miles on that jacket and it's still in one (well, three) piece(s).  Entomology students from colleges all over the country come to see it just to study the vast collection of bug species stuck to it.

GT

[WhiteBeard]

Just wanted to write an update to this old topic.

It's a late update, because I had to really save some money before I had the funds to buy this:







They are outrageous clothing items and, I have to say, well worth the money.
The quality is top notch, the seams are strong and well made, the cut is perfect (custom made).

I bought the two piece suit, mainly because I like the looks of it more than the one piece.
It zips together and is very easy to put on, using a well thought out procedure, once you get the hang of it.

The leather on the boots is THICK. I mean THICK. I had to soak them in water and walk with them for about two hours before they started breaking in.
I really like them, you rarely see this kind of leather when buying boots anymore.

Well, I just wanted to express my happiness and thank you for your advice. If it hadn't been for this forum, I wouldn't have found out so many things.
It's one of the great things in life! 

Nat

[ribbert]

The leather on the boots is THICK. I mean THICK. I had to soak them in water and walk with them for about two hours before they started breaking in.

Nat

Great looking gear Nat. I see some very comfortable rides coming up for you.

I have been fine tuning leather care products for decades. Bringing old back to life and preserving new. I have shelf after shelf of products I have tried over the years but keep coming back to this one, it's leather oil, soaks right into the leather.



The first thing I do with new boots is treat them with this, repeatedly. It helps soften them, and even if they aren't waterproof, it makes them so. You can get it at any saddlery. I also use it on horse tack with spectacular results. Starts out like cardboard and finishes up soft and supple.
Long term it stops it drying out and cracking.

I sit them in the sun (if possible) and have a bowl of this and a paint brush next to them. Every time I walk past I apply oil to the areas that have soaked it up until they have plenty of oil in them. Then periodically apply it over the life of the item.

The last thing I would do is soak them in water.

Do not use boot polish on them!!!!

Noel

[Capn Ron]

The leather on the boots is THICK. I mean THICK. I had to soak them in water and walk with them for about two hours before they started breaking in.
I really like them, you rarely see this kind of leather when buying boots anymore.
Nat

Thick leather is a GREAT thing!!!  While I was sliding sixty feet, head-first up Little Sycamore Canon Road a few weeks ago, my gear was put to the test.  The jacket sleeves weren't very snug (I hadn't cinched them down) and I got fabric-burned on the right forearm.  I wasn't wearing my overpants on that hot day and my jeans ripped through at the knee like tissue paper.  My jacket shoulder padding was torn up, but my shoulder was unharmed.  My gloves had hard plastic over the knuckles and they ground down, but left my knuckles unharmed.  My right Timberland *very* thick leather hiking boot took an enormous amount of abuse and wore through in one tiny spot.  There is a tiny matching cut on my foot in that area.

Everything that was properly protected was unharmed.  Any area of my gear that seemed hinky left me with very painful road rash.  Nice gear you have there...hard to put a price on that!

Cap'n Ron. . .

[The General]

I mean THICK. .
Nat

Thick leather is a GREAT thing!!!  While I was sliding sixty feet, head-first up Little Sycamore Canon Road a few weeks ago, my gear was put to the test.  The jacket sleeves weren't very snug (I hadn't cinched them down) and I got fabric-burned on the right forearm.  I wasn't wearing my overpants on that hot day and my jeans ripped through at the knee like tissue paper.  My jacket shoulder padding was torn up, but my shoulder was unharmed.  My gloves had hard plastic over the knuckles and they ground down, but left my knuckles unharmed.  My right Timberland *very* thick leather hiking boot took an enormous amount of abuse and wore through in one tiny spot.  There is a tiny matching cut on my foot in that area.

Everything that was properly protected was unharmed.  Any area of my gear that seemed hinky left me with very painful road rash.  Nice gear you have there...hard to put a price on that!

Cap'n Ron. . .

I had on all the right gear with my last get off. However I`ve yet to find good armour to protect my dodgy Hip...as ya can see from my XRay I still have trouble walking from the last break..

[Derek Young]

I had on all the right gear with my last get off. However I`ve yet to find good armour to protect my dodgy Hip...as ya can see from my XRay I still have trouble walking from the last break..

Yes, I see quite a problem with your hip.  I had to scroll down to the bottom of the xray before I could see it though.  Awesome post Doug!

Derek

[rlucas]

+1 on those boots (Aerostitch Combat...not the Combat Lite). My favorite riding boots. Unobtrusive enough to wear in civilized company, sturdy enough for a little off-road use, pretty comfortable...excellent choice, IMHO.


Rossi

[FJmonkey]

I had on all the right gear with my last get off. However I`ve yet to find good armour to protect my dodgy Hip...as ya can see from my XRay I still have trouble walking from the last break..

Just what the hell are you trying show off?  That other shape ain't your hip. 

[baldy3853]

I had on all the right gear with my last get off. However I`ve yet to find good armour to protect my dodgy Hip...as ya can see from my XRay I still have trouble walking from the last break..

Yes, I see quite a problem with your hip.  I had to scroll down to the bottom of the xray before I could see it though.  Awesome post Doug!

Derek

Boasting again Doug tell them to take away the magnifying glass next time 

[ribbert]

Are your sure your hip didn't just give way under the weight?