Mens' Roadcrafter Classic Stealth Pants

What is the Difference Between a Roadcrafter Classic and an R3?

The RC Classic is the original Aerostich suit and it has been continually manufactured, updated and refined for over thirty-five years now. It is a fully lined garment and was created to be an armored coverall intended primarily for commuting applications. It is constructed the same way a leather rider’s suit is, but in textiles so it is lighter and cooler to wear. For this reason (the way it is designed to be put together) it isn’t perfectly waterproof. But still it has always worked better than conventional leather gear in most hot and wet situations. Roadcrafter Classic suits have been worn world-wide and they continue to satisfy thousands of riders which is why it remains available. It is comfortable and functional. Some of our customers are now on their third or fourth one.

The R-3 is the third generation Aerostich one-piece coverall. It’s unlined like a lot of today’s most technical and lightweight waterproof outdoor gear, and it does pass the rigorous certification for rainwear. We sometimes think of it as an armored and highly abrasion-resistant rain suit. Its impact armor is attached to the inside with adhesively bonded hook-and-loop. This suit wears slightly cooler in really hot conditions absent a separate inner lining. There are numerous other small refinements the RC Classic does not have.

In summary, the RC Classic has become an actual classic just as ‘Levi’s 501’ denim jeans and many other long-popular products. Many riders like it exactly the way it is. The R-3 waterproof one-piece suit is what we make today for the same intended applications but incorporating the technology and experience we now have.

Learning Your New Roadcrafter Classic or R 3 Suit: Tips and Helpful Hints.

Yes, there is a break in period…Your new suit may feel stiff compared to more familiar types of clothing. You’ll experience improvements in comfort, fit and function the more you ride, from first few miles and onward (nearly indefinitely). All Roadcrafter and R-3 suits continue to improve with added wear and miles.

The best way to put on an R-3 or Roadcrafter Classic suit is to hold it in front of you by it’s ‘chest’,one hand on each side of the fully separated main zipper. Then, lower the garment slightly while moving it slightly to the right and raise your right leg and put it into the right leg of the suit. Next, pull the entire garment upward, release your right hand from the front of the suit and put it into the right sleeve, exactly as you would pull on a jacket. Lastly, your left arm goes into the left sleeve (just where you’d expect) and you are ready to start zipping up (…down, actually).

This does take a bit of practice, but it quickly becomes natural, fast and easy. It’s the best way to get into a one-piece coverall with the least amount of bending and contorting, and the garment also spends the least amount of time dragging on the ground. That’s why it’s two main entry zippers are on the 'inside', instead of the outside (as on work coveralls, where the zippers are on the outside of the legs and the front zipper only goes to the crotch). This extra ease is important because your suit's intended purpose is as an ‘all-in-one’ protection and comfort solution for daily commuting and short-hop A-to-B riding. For when you want better protection than your street clothing provides with less rigmarole than changing into conventional gear.

To more quickly learn the suit’s unusual main zipper, which starts nearly under one's chin,practice in front of a mirror a few times to memorize how to hold and engage the two main zipper sliders. These slider ‘handles’ are captured close together between the knuckles of the first three fingers of your right hand. Your opposite (left) hand then slides the other side of the zipper’s end into both sliders. After being fully inserted, release the two slider handles from between your knuckles and grasp only the lower slider’s handle. Then zip it downward to about your knee. At that point either lift and bend your left leg slightly and complete the zip, or bend over slightly and zip to the bottom. Most suit wearers seldom (or never) use the snap at the bottom of the zipper.

The removable collar hold-open magnets make it easier to ventilate the suit in hot conditions and are especially useful if you ride a motorcycle with a fairing or windshield, but they do have limitations. If your local climate isn't always warm, remove and put the magnets on the side of your tool box or refrigerator. Otherwise you might sometimes end up fighting with them as they try to keep the collar open when you wish to keep it closed.

Your new Aerostich suit will wear perfectly when the weather is nice, and will feel even better when the weather is lousy. You may discover that riding places in bad weather, when nobody else is out riding, is fun. It can be a little extra-satisfying to be on two wheels when everyone else on the road has no idea why you are out there in the first place…much less that you are reasonably comfortable. And if you’ve ever thought some non-riders might have considered you slightly ‘off’ because you enjoyed riding in the first place, wait until you walk into a workplace or grocery store wearing your dripping Aerostich suit after riding there thru a severe rainstorm. No amount of nice friendly smiling on your part will be enough. So enjoy the ride.

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