bmw summer pants

[wolcott]

My local dealer has bmw summer pants with knee armor made out of 500 denier cordura for $182- seems like a decent deal. They have black or this real light colored beige. One of the salesmen speculated that the beige might be up to 10 degrees cooler than the black, but he also told me he was making an educated guess. I'm really leaning towards the black as they hide the dirt a lot better (one poster a while back commented on how quick the beige get dirty-especially the cuffs and lower leg). 1) Anybody care to make an educated guess on how much hotter the black pants might be? Significantly? Moderately? Just a little hotter? 2)If I end up going on my trip (still on the fence about it-hot summer & lots of rain), what do you do for detergent? I will be camping. Is it possible to buy individual packets of liquid detergent at the campgrounds or should you just pack some liquid Tide along with you?

3)Most bmw clothing needs a cold wash and cold rinse. Anybody know if most campground washing machines have a cold wash option? I know they must have a cold rinse option. Thanks.

[Hedge36]

The missus and I both have the black summer pants... they hold up fine to whatever wash temp you want to use.

 

Some downsides:

 

1. They will pick up every bit of cat hair within ten blocks

2. The lower portion of the legs (below the zipper) is unlined. Actually, it's lined with the same sort of plasticky stuff you usually find in backpacks. Translation: they don't breathe, and they stick to my legs on hot days.

3. While riding, especially when it's hot, the inside of the zipper are rubs the heck outta my knees.

4. Zip-off is cool. Shorts and Combat Touring Boots is rediculous. Thus, they rarely become shorts for me.

 

Depending on how often you wear them, and for how long, and in what temps... they're swell. Meanwhile, I've fallen in love with my Airflow 2 pants, which are more comfortable when worn all day, look about the same, and cost less when I found them on sale locally.

[BFish]

i also have the summer pants...in beige. florida heat you know. i have no prob w/ anything 'cept they show dirt due to light color. have them a year now and wear almost all the time.

[ShovelStrokeEd]

Surprisingly, the color has very little to do with the heat, even in strong sunshine like we get here. Right now I'm going through a series of 30 second showers so maybe sunshine is too strong a point.

 

I have both Airflow II and BMW summer pants, they are not cordura btw but a material special to BMW which is a good deal more durable. BMW pants in beige seem to breathe just about as well as the air flow in black. Nothing is comfortable in Florida heat and humidity. In fact, I get the best comfort wearing underarmor shorts and tee shirt under my Aerostitch one piece Roadcrafter. People sure do look at you funny in the snowmobile suit in June. The 'stitch breathes really well and the inner leg zippers make controlling ventilation a breeze if you will pardon the pun.

[DaveC]

Surprisingly, the color has very little to do with the heat, even in strong sunshine like we get here.

 

I would have to strongly disagree with this statement. Black absorbs a much higher percentage of solar energy than a light colored material. Look at any Thermodynamics textbook for charts on energy absorbtion of black material verses white material. Black absorbs about 95% of the solar energy, and a white object absorbs about 10%.

You may not be able to feel the difference as much moving 60 MPH on a hot humid day, but get stuck in traffic at low speed in the direct sunlight, and you will certainly feel the difference.

 

I own a pair of the beige pants. They do show the dirt quicker than black pants, but that does not bother me so much to wash them occasionally.

 

Another advantage of the beige pants is they have better visibility. Black is the worst color available for visibility, especially at night.

[ShovelStrokeEd]

Strongly disagree all you want. I have both black (Airflow II) and beige (Summer) and can tell no difference. You are correct about the heat adsorbtion in a solid body but, the pants are not a solid body nor do they conduct heat inward very well. There is a barrier of air between the pants and your body. So, yes, the black pants will be hotter on the outside. On the inside, where your skin lives, it makes very little difference.

 

BTW, as to the care and feeding of the pants. Remove pads, use Woolite on the cold cycle in a washing machine, tumble dry with no heat and your done. I have even, while travelling, just gotten into a shower while wearing them and used a washcloth and some Woolite to clean the lower leg area. Hang 'em up to dry in the room overnight. The pants are a very open weave and, being synthetic, don't adsorb very much water. They dry very quickly.

[GordonB]

What Ed said, I have the BMW Beige Santiago's, and the Black Venting Machine.

I just came back from a ride in 90+ heat, 300 miles, all sun, no clouds. I took both gears along so I could change midway and see if one is cooler than the other. Answer: the beige Santiago with its light color and ample venting zippers, and breathable fabric was as cool and more comfortable than the 'Black' venting machine.

[velomoto]

Hang 'em up to dry in the room overnight. The pants are a very open weave and, being synthetic, don't adsorb very much water. They dry very quickly.

 

OR in REALLY DRY HOT weather... Shower 'em in the morning and pull 'em over UnderArmor or other poly underwear and then "blowdry" on the road! If you've got a leather saddle you may want to just wash the legs or use some sort of protection on your seat.

[gec343]

I just purchased a used pair of the light colored BMW Summer pants. I have not worn them yet, but the quality seems excellent. Also, I agree that the light color makes you more visable.

[azkaisr]

Living in an Oven like I do, the BMW summer pants are pretty cool. My only bitch is they are wet when they come off because they hold a lot of moisture and are tight on my calfs. Most of that is because I am built like an out of shape Rhino. I think the pants are designed by skinny Austrians claiming to be German to punish us for having better beer. They are cooler then my black riding pants here in AZ but my black ones fit better. I am taking them both to Gunny next week. Will let you know which one is better as I cross the painted desert.

 

Kaisr