Anyone rocking an Aerostich R3 in all black?

Hi gang,

New member here and I promise I used that search function before posting this... but yes, another 'Stich thread!

I've never worn an Aerostich, but placed an order today for an R3. I'm difficult to fit, so even ordering the "off-the-shelf" Short option just to try one on meant eight weeks of production lead-time.

I ordered the gray with black ballistics option. However, I'm second-guessing myself a bit. I definitely prefer the look of the all black/black ballistics suit. I do typically wear black gear, but also naturally run warm. So I figured the grey/black would be a more versatile option for year-round use. I live in the Bay Area and ride year-round in temps ranging from the 40s to 110. But most typically, I'm riding in temps from the low-60s to mid-90s.

My question is this: I understand that black fabrics generally absorb more heat (science!), but I've also read a couple of accounts of color choice not affecting temperature too much on the R3 garment, specifically. So, I'm curious: does anyone have any personal experience with a black R3? If you did it all over again, would you choose a different color?

TIA. (Photo from Aerostich's Instagram page.)

This reviewer said the suit vents so well that it was comfortable even at 102.

https://www.motorcycle.com/products/aerostich-roadcrafter-3-review

Hope you like it.

No experience with the Aerostitch, but I bought a silver/gray mesh jacket with wide black bands across the arms and shoulders and noticed the heat from the black fabric. I did more shopping and found a silver/gray mesh jacket with very little black and noticed the difference right away. I would never order a black jacket expecting to wear it in hot temps.

I did the all black thing long ago 'cause I thought it looked better. I rode the track in all black leathers too. Never, ever, ever again.

Has nothing to do with brand names.

Black absorbs heat.

I don't do black, but I have ridden my 'Stich Darian in triple digit temps on any number of occasions over the years. With the underarm vents open and the across-the-back-shoulder vent open you will be comfortable ... as long as you are moving. But when you have to stop you will be shedding gear pretty quickly. Seriously, I rode the interstate from LA to Yuma in the dead of summer, stopping only for fuel every two hours or so and had no heat issues. I used a camelback for hydration and I soaked a t-shirt under the Darian. The other item of gear I had that you did not mention was a white helmet. To me, a light-colored helmet is probably more important on really hot days than a light-colored jacket.

Good luck.

Thanks, all!

During the 2003 Iron Butt Rally Voni and I were approaching Las Vegas from the north in triple digits reaching 114 degree temperatures when we arrived in the town. Somewhere approaching 100 degrees we stopped and I took off my mesh pants and jacket and put back on my Aerostich Roadcrafter two piece riding suit. With the vents slightly open I was MUCH more comfortable than with the mesh gear. I have discovered from experience that once the ambient air temperature reaches about 94, maybe 95, it exceeds my exterior body temperature and above that exposure warms and doesn't cool. From then up mesh is possibly fatal.

Classic suit owner here. According to the Aerostich website, the R3 and classic have the same vent system, so I would recommend that you keep moving on hot days.

Color choice, for me, is a matter of safety and comfort. Typically, you'll want something that contrasts with the surrounding structures and doesn't function as a solar collector.

Wearing all black will be hotter and less safe: https://www.bmj.com/content/328/7444/857.full

At a minimum, a white full face helmet will give you a better chance of being spotted in traffic.

From the webpage: Conclusions Low conspicuity may increase the risk of motorcycle crash related injury. Increasing the use of reflective or fluorescent clothing, white or light coloured helmets, and daytime headlights are simple, cheap interventions that could considerably reduce motorcycle crash related injury and death.


And: The study suggests that low physical conspicuity is a contributing factor in a significant proportion of road traffic crashes causing injury.

Harry

Appreciate it. I wear a white Arai, both for a little more coolness on the dome piece and more conspicuity. I've also added more lighting to the XR for increased visibility, too.

For those interested, here's an article from Iron Butt magazine that explains why mesh is a bad idea once the temperature gets over the mid-90's, and explains Paul's experience (above) perfectly. Basically your sweat evaporates too fast to cool you down, and to make things worse you can't drink enough water to replace what you lose. So you end up with heat exhaustion AND dehydration. The solution - soak your clothes under the textile gear - works. I did it in Death Valley (dry heat) and was actually cold, and I did it in Georgia (muggy heat) and was ... not hot. But still an improvement!

Black has never appealed to me, neither from the heat standpoint nor from the visibility standpoint. Right now I have a tan/orange Roadcrafter Classic that I need to replace because I'm swimming in it (finally got serious about losing weight). Also a plain white helmet. A friend says I look like a Q-Tip.

I purchased a new R-3 in May, took 12 weeks for the suit to be made, I had to send it back for a custom fit. Another 5 weeks. I did get the grey - black colors. I live in Virginia, hot and humid it the summers. To me, the all black while it will hide dirt the best would be to hot in the sun. In some ways I wish I would of gotten a lighter color than the grey, but I like the grey and black. The grey is not a true grey but a green - grey.

var1200rt said:

... To me, the all black while it will hide dirt the best ...

Click to expand...

Black hides dirt the best??? Exactly the opposite of my experience, in almost everything from clothing to vehicles. If you want to constantly look dirty, wear black clothes and ride/drive a black machine.

royce said:

Black hides dirt the best??? Exactly the opposite of my experience, in almost everything from clothing to vehicles. If you want to constantly look dirty, wear black clothes and ride/drive a black machine.

Click to expand...

This.

And counter-intuitively, for my money, white seems to highlight dirt generally less than black. I have two white automobiles and one white motorcycle, a set of black leathers, and a set of white leathers. As an observer, I find white more visible yet harder to discern as dirty (unless you're talking about straight mud or dirt caked on the given object). A black object looks dirty (to me) the moment following the moment when you've finished cleaning it. White can be dirty—filthy, even—without seeming so.

P.S. In my experience, anyone "rocking" anything isn't.

Two observations: 1. To me when stationary in a black Darien Light, it's only the elbow to wrist part that feels hot, which I attribute to its "perpendicular" to the sun attitude - as with a black car whose roof is much hotter than its sides. 2. A non-black jacket (eg, gray or yellow) always develops a non-cleanable grime in the stomach area, particularly when worn with a tank bag - black seems to be better in this regard.

Where I live and ride most of the time "dirt" is mostly a sandy colored tan. So tan or beige or yellowish brown, that color by whatever name hides dirt the best.

Gray for me. I won't wear black, too hot. I can't keep white looking good, I am a dirt magnet! I can put on a white dress shirt, be extremely careful and in five minutes it will have a smudge on it. Gray will get dirty, but harder to see.