It actually helped us with housebreaking Tucker. They're really used so that the dogs don't mark around the house, but Tucker wore his as a puppy. He actually wouldn't pee when he had them on, so we were able to take him out in 20 minute intervals and he would only go outside. Now he is 100% house broken!
I think that if you decide to keep them, you should give him some time to get used to them. They're different, so of course he'll cry when he first gets them on. If, after wearing them for a while, he still gets upset when you put them on, I'd abandon the idea.
Best of luck!