When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
I've had a Nelson Rigg rainsuit for years, and has always done me well the few times I've used it (I usually just ride through rain if not already in the rainsuit). It's comfortable and dry, even when it rained from So Cal all the way up to Monterey along the coast. I remember it was a miserable ride at times - slow going and visibility not good), but at least I was dry. I think I paid something like $80 new - as others have said, it will stay rolled up most of the time and crammed someplace. I could've spent more, but I don't think spending more would've kept me any dryer, just my .02.
My wife and I wear the HD Hi-Vis Rain Suit and stay perfectly dry. We like it so much that we wear the jackets for our everyday rain coat. She has the orange and I have the green just so we don't look like book ends. It's pricey but I bought the gear with my H-D rewards.
I bought a set last year after melting my Tourmaster pants on the exhaust. There were dark clouds on the horizon, and the first place that I could find that would have rain gear was the Harley store. It was more than what I wanted to spend, but that was the only option available, so I went with it. It turned out to be a great decision, as it (along with rain gaiters) kept me 100% dry whenever I needed to put it on. And that includes some serious downpours where cars were pulling over. I just kept rolling along.
Nice idea, but more than 3 stays even at a Motel 6 starts to become more expensive than the cost of rain gear. I'd rather ride wet than sit around a motel room.
If you only occasionally ride in the rain and maybe avoid the harder storms just buy what you can afford but if you travel longer distances and can't or won't stop and need the best to stay dry then you need to go top self Harley and you won't be disappointed. When you are in a group and all riding in the same weather look to see who is the driest . Good rain gear is also multi purpose for cold, damp, or just wind breakage , cheaper gear won't take the additional usage. Only get what you pay for applies big time in the rain gear department.
That would kinda depend on who I am riding with...
Been riding with my wife for 40 years. Not changing now. We do ride in a lot of rain. About 4 years ago 750 miles in none stop rain in one day. Gatlinburg to home
We both have the Tour Master Sentinel jacket and pants. They were in the middle of the price range, about $75 for the jacket and $80 for the pants. We've used them a few times and they worked well. I was looking for something that was decent, but not too heavy since most of the time when it rains here in FL, it's hot too.
7 Surprising Harley-Davidson Products that Are Not Motorcycles
Slideshow: The bar-and-shield logo shows up on far more than motorcycles, some of the company's most unexpected products have nothing to do with riding.
Slideshow: From the troubled AMF years to modern misfires, these bikes earned reputations for reliability issues, questionable engineering, or disappointing performance.
Crazy Bunderbike Build Looks Amazing, But Is It Impossible to Ride?
Slideshow: The Swiss custom shop has taken a Harley Softail and stretched it into something so long and low that it looks closer to a rolling sculpture than a conventional motorcycle.
Engraved Rebellion: Inside Bundnerbike's Glam Rock II
Slideshow: A standard cruiser becomes an intricate metal canvas in the hands of a Swiss custom house known for pushing Harley-Davidson platforms far beyond their factory brief.
Slideshow: Harley-Davidson's challenges aren't abstract; they show up in dropping shipments, shrinking dealer traffic, and strategic decisions that aren't yet translating into growth.