The Bike Gear Thread - Wilsons leathers need not apply.

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Nerobro: Nov 4, 2005; Rider now with 100% more titanium!

Well it's time for a gear thread.

So, who do you buy your stuff from? Who do you trust? What do you actually wear? What do you want to know? Feel free to tell me what should be in this first post And correct me if I'm wrong.

I'll be adding to this post as people add good information. To start off, here's a short incomplete list. I'll be adding links to all the manufacturers as time allows.

Cheap Gear:
https://www.motorcyclecloseouts.com
https://www.motorcycle-superstore.com (closeouts rock..)
https://www.newenough.com

Manufacturers:
Fieldsheer: Textile, Leather, Gloves
AGV: Helmets, Textile, Leahter
Arai: Helmets
Icon: Helmets, Textile, Leather, Boots, Gloves
Sidi: Boots, Leather
Shift: Boots, Leather, Textile, Gloves
Daniese: Leather, Gloves
Joe Rocket: Boots, Leather, Textile, Gloves
HJC: Helmets
KomodoGear: Leather, Textile KomodoGear
Firstgear: Textile, Leather https://www.firstgear-usa.com
Vanson: Duh.. Leather https://www.vansonleathers.com
Alpinstars: Boots, Gloves, Textile, Leather https://www.alpinestars.com
Tourmaster: Boots, Gloves, Textile, Leather https://www.tourmaster.com
Aerostitch: Textile Masters. https://www.aerostitch.com

FAQ:

Q: Is leather safer?
A: Yes. Textile however is not suicide. Leather is the best we've got, and if you want the best protection without considering any other factors, leather is what you wear.

Q: Why can't I wear my normal leather jacket?
A: Well you can wear it riding. Just don't pretend to think it will protect you. Riding leathers are made from 1-2mm leather. Some seriously thick stuff, that is also tanned for strength. Your average fashion leather jacket is half grain or less, some fraction of a mm thick, and contains no armor, no facilities for cooling, no design features to prevent it from riding up, no way to attach it to pants... And I could go on.

Q: What does Snell and DOT mean? What's it mean to me?
A: Snell and DOT stickers on a helmet mean they've gone through an approval process. DOT is mandatory for any street helmet. If your helmet doesn't have a DOT sticker on it, it's not a helmet. Snell is a voluntary testing standard for helmets. It's required by most racing bodies. It is a much more stringent test, and it costs the MFG a signifigant amount of money to retain the right to put that sticker on a helmet. The stickers can be taken away at any time.. so MFGs are apt to do everything they can to keep this approval.

How to fit a helmet:

This is not something you can do without going to a motorcycle shop. Please, please buy the helmet from the shop you try it on at. We need to keep the local buisnesses around.

Go find the display helmets, try one on. Don't strap it on yet. Shake your head violently. If the helmet moves in relation to your face, it's to lose. Go try the next size down. The helmet will feel quite snug, do yourself a favor, and wear the helmet for five or ten minutes if you can. If you don't feel any hot spots, or sore spots you probally have a good helmet on.

All helmets are NOT made alike. Each manufacturer has their own shaped head that they use. (or several heads) So if one MFG's helmet fits but leaves your forhead hurting, another may not. Try a few on, see what feels right.

Now you may not find a "perfect" helmet. Remember you can do a little sculpting of the inside of the helmet. If you have one particular spot that's giving you a problem, take a spoon and rub the spoon against the inside of the hemlet where you're having the sore spot. That will depress the foam a little and alievate the issue. (it's likely only to need 1/16" or less, so you're not exactly hurting the safety of your helmet, and if it's more comfortable, you're more likely to wear it!)

Fitting Leathers:

Leathers should be snug. If they can move around signifigantly their protection is reduced. When you chose leathers for street riding you should also consider a little extra room for a long sleeve shirt or long underwear. Nothing off the rack fits me, so I'll need to defer to others here who can for further advice.

Update:

goddamnedtwisto posted:

Okay peeps I've (as always) seriously overshot on this, but still feel like there's quite a bit more that could go in - please take a read and let me know if i've made any major cockups or omissions. I feel like I should probably put in a few more images if only to break up the wall of text a bit.

I'll also do up other posts on helmet cams and headsets - I think the new OP should be like the OPs in the SH/SC megathreads, where they're basically just an index to other (preferably front page) posts for people to refer to.

Choosing a helmet: Shininess is not the only factor.

I'm not going to bother talking about *why* you need a helmet, if you genuinely think you need no head protection on a motorbike you're probably right because you're too loving stupid to live anyway. I *will* try and address the most common bullshit about helmets as it comes up though.

Construction

All crash helmets work on the same basic principle, which is that it isn't speed that kills, it's the sudden stop. The human skull is actually pretty loving robust when dealing with the kind of damage that could be done before some far-ago genius looked at a rock and at the bloke in the cave over who had all the food and invented toxic masculinity. You can take some pretty impressive blows to the skull and get away with nothing more than a cool scar (or in my case, several uncool scars and a big divot I can't really explain). What you *can't* take is sudden, violent changes in direction - that nice hard skull is suddenly a liability when it tries to go into reverse in a hurry and your brain doesn't get the message until it slams into it.

What a crash helmet seeks to do is slow the rate at which your head changes direction in an impact. Consider one of the standard BSI certification tests, of dropping a helmet from six feet onto an anvil. If that was your head, it will be trying to decelerate from about 15mph to zero more-or-less instantaneously, surprisingly (but not coincidentally) close to the 100g deceleration that is the area where brain damage becomes likely. If you can instead spread that deceleration over 5/100ths of a second the deceleration is a mere 13g, or about the same as sitting heavily on a chair.

The way almost all crash helmets do this is with EPS foam - a high-tech name for what is, essentially, the stuff you get in beanbags and dodgy 70s ceiling tiles. Expanded polystyrene is lightweight, very cheap, easy to form, and crucially is perfectly suited to absorbing and dispersing the huge amounts of energy involved in slowing your great big melon down. It's basically molecular-scale bubble-wrap - billions of little closed cells that pop when it's compressed. Because it takes time for that pressure to build up and the bubble to pop, it tends to gently slow any impact in a way that scales perfectly with increased force, without rebounding (and just causing you the same problem in the opposite direction.

Incidentally this is why the received wisdom in some quarters (including the OP of this thread) that you can just squash it to shape is dangerous bullshit. Don't do that. It's very, very easy with surprisingly little pressure to compress EPS to the point where any protection it gives is completely gone. More on that in the selection and replacing sections, below.

EPS also has a number of drawbacks though. First of all, it's fragile - obviously, because that's how it works, but it's not just fragile in desirable ways. It tears easily (as anyone unpacking an appliance with a cat around can tell you), is very sensitive to solvents (particularly hydrocarbons), is sensitive to both heat and cold, and degrades quickly in UV light. This is solved by having a hard shell surrounding it, normally of some sort of plastic but increasingly nowadays a composite of some kind - more on that in the selection section below.

EPS is also an extremely effective thermal insulator, which is not a desirable property of anything touching your skin - a bare foam interior would be intolerably hot in anything above arctic temperatures, which is also a problem because another thing that can dissolve it is sweat, as well as the oils in your skin and hair. It also, as mentioned above, *cannot* be safely compressed to fit, so unless you have it custom-moulded it will not fit snugly enough to stay in place (and because most people's heads are wider at the top than the bottom, it would be impossible to put on without compressing the foam anyway. So helmets will also have an inner liner, normally of some kind of synthetic fabric (some have cotton but that gets really nasty really quickly) with some ordinary open-cell foam rubber in it. This allows the helmet to fit comfortably *and* snugly, and helps keep the helmet in place, as well as protecting your foam.

However, there's a limit to how far padding can accommodate the very different shapes of heads people have. Manufacturers will use a form for the interior of the EPS that is something close to average but will vary a bit based on customer feedback. There's old bikers tales about Shoei being shaped like Japanese heads, AGV like Italian ones, etc, but - whatever the brightest minds of the 19th century will tell you - there's not actually an Asiatic skullshape, let alone ridges that denote untrustworthiness. It's literally that there's such a wide variation in head shapes that all manufacturers - even ones like Shark, who change shape with each model - can claim to be working with an "average" shape.

(If you're even now flexing your calipers ready to prove that I have the brow of a Welshman, just try on a Shoei and an Arai - both Japanese manufacturers, but they sit at almost exact opposite ends of the range of shapes that helmets come in)

Selecting a helmet
If at all possible, this is so much easier to do in a shop than online. Nobody really knows what shape their head actually is, and I've never seen two sites (or even two posters) agree on exactly what a "long oval" compared to a "short round" head shape is. There's also a massive range of different options, from cosmetic to functional, which we'll cover first before telling you to completely ignore them. It'll help if you have a rough idea of price and features you're after when you go in, but as with any purchase don't convince yourself you *need* any of them. Let's start with the actual type of helmet first.

Broadly there are 3 types of crash helmet:

Open face

The original and (not quite) the worst. There is no justification for an open-face helmet - you don't look like Steve McQueen, you look like a muppet. Theoretically provides some protection against head injuries, but...

they fail to protect you in over 30% of crashes where your head touches the ground. In fact the sacrificial structure that saves your brain in those types of crashes is... your face. Even your average goon isn't going to be improved, looks-wise, by using their chin as a crumple zone - get a proper helmet. One thing advocates of open-face helmets will tell you is that they're actually safer, because full-face helmets just snap your neck. As with most bullshit there's the tiniest grain of truth buried in there - the very first full-face lids were just old open-face designs with an added chin-bar, like this monstrosity which is for some reason still on sale in 2020:

We'll loop back round to this in a minute, but for now it's just to illustrate that - unlike a modern helmet - the back of it extends considerable past the base of the skull. An impact that lifts the head - say going over the handlebars - will bring that lip down onto your spine like a guillotine. This was not a problem with open-face lids with this design because of the whole "face as deformable structure" situation. Modern helmets - even open face - naturally no longer have that design.

If you (think you) have a reason to actually have your face uncovered, consider the next, and newest, entrant onto the scene:

Flip-front helmets

Also known as "system" helmets (after the BMW System 3 that was the first to properly implement the idea), or "modular" (strictly this is only for helmets where the chinbar is completely removeable).

They come in two main flavours - by far the most popular is the Caberg-invented rotational style, where the chinbar and visor rotate up from a position more or less where the visor hinge is on a normal helmet:

(The visor may or may not be flippable independently of the chinbar)

There's also the original BMW "Ferry leaving the harbour too quick" style where the entire front of the helmet pivots up from a hinge above the visor, now so rare I can't even find a picture of it - even newer BMW helmets are the rotational style, although considerably chunkier than most.

Now it's really important to pay attention to the small print with these kinds of helmets. Some of the cheaper and/or cooler ones aimed at scooter riders are actually legally classified (where the law makes the distinction) as open-face helmets - the chinbar is non-structural and is not likely to offer much protection in a crash. Some are classified as full-face helmets because the chinbar is essential to the structural rigidity of the helmet and they fail crash tests if the chinbar is open, and some (mostly the really expensive, heavy ones) are properly safe in both positions (facial injuries notwithstanding).

Personally, I don't see the point if you're not a delivery rider or police and so need lots of face-to-face contact, but I know a lot of people like them. The rules for buying them, apart from the above, are exactly the same as for...

Full-face helmets

You know what these look like. Generally speaking the safest and most comfortable.

Of course there's also an absolute fuckload of...

Not actually helmets

There's an awful lot of things that people wear on their head that are not helmets. Bandanas to cover up bald spots, anything sold as "DOT APPROVED!!!" (the DOT certification we'll come back to, it's the exclamation marks telling bandana-wearers that this is the bare minimum they need to do to avoid being prosecuted in states that require helmets in the US that we're looking at here. They're basically kiddies riding helmets painted gloss black:

What's great about them is that the fact they have so little foam they're literally pointless in a crash is completely negated by the fact that they'll just fall off in a crash (or after a violent sneeze) anyway. Anyone wearing one of these is a wanker and a coward who's saying "MEEH I'M A SCARY OUTLAW BUT I DON'T WANT THE POLICE TO SHOUT AT ME".

Less common nowadays are things that are actually normal helmets but are fatally flawed in some way for bike use. The OG Simpson Bandit, darling of the 90s streetfighter crowd long before The Stig got his supermarket-denim-dad stink on it, is the best example of this:

It's actually designed for open-cockpit car racing and not only lacks enough EPS to pass even the laxer BSI tests for helmets at the time, it also has that spine-guillotine back design (specifically to interact properly with the horse-collar neck protection that some racers wore before the HANS device came along). Simpson do make a compliant helmet now but like I say Top Gear have ruined it.

Finally of course we've got those retro helmets like that Bell I posted earlier (and that a company like Bell would *dare* sell something so dangerous should be enough to put you off their allegedly safe ones). Anyone wearing one of these is, if anything, even more of a wanker than the armoured yarmulke types - because they're not even street legal, they're just cosplay items. They're for mods who think they're rockers, and frankly anyone in either camp should be getting the flickknives and chains out.

Once you know what type you want, you should think about features that you want. Like I say, almost all of these are optional (and you certainly shouldn't pick a helmet that doesn't fit just because it has a particular farkle you have your heart set on).

Selecting a helmet - features

Shell material and size

Shell size is a really useful indicator to look out for - most manufacturers will have less shell sizes than they sell head sizes, meaning if for example you take a Medium helmet you might have a 2XL outer shell with the difference made up with extra EPS. At first this sounds like a good thing, giving you extra protection, but suddenly you�re dealing with a much bulkier and heavier helmet than you need to. Most manufacturers do 2-3 shell sizes, but premium models may have a different shell for each size.

Material isn�t as important a consideration as it once was. Nowadays it�s basically a choice of two - polycarbonate and composite.

Polycarbonate is lightweight, cheap and easy to work with. However until recently received wisdom was that it offered less protection than other materials, particularly ABS, because it is much more flexible (ping-pong balls are made of polycarbonate, Lego bricks from ABS, to give you an idea of the difference). The thinking went that in a crash, that tendency to bounce rather than crack would increase the loads on your head and neck, and the flexing of the shell might compromise the EPS before it even had a chance to do its job. As such polycarbonate was banned from most race tracks.

However actual testing proved that not to be the case, especially for thicker shells, and in fact that ABS had a tendency to shatter and penetrate the EPS. As such ABS is now basically never used in (road-legal) helmets.

Composite materials started turning up in the 70s with glass-reinforced plastic, harder to work with but lighter and stronger than other plastics, and by the 90s various combinations of GRP, carbon fibre, and carbon-kevlar were de rigeur in high-end helmets. Lighter than other plastics and stronger than steel it�s still found in race helmets, where the grams shaved are worth the expense, but mostly now not found in any but the most expensive road helmets. Composite lids are still considered safer than other materials, because the shell is also a sacrificial structure - they�re designed to crack in an impact (technically the epoxy cracks, the substrate retains the integrity of the helmet), meaning that there�s even more impact protection than from the EPS.

This however is another advantage of polycarbonate for everyday use - a slight drop of a polycarb lid will have no effect on the crash protection of the helmet, but even a one-foot drop of a composite lid may be enough to start it fracturing internally and compromise the integrity of the shell - see the Replacements section below though.

Lining

Although it may not appear safety-critical, as your �interface� with the helmet, this may be the most important part. It will determine the fit, the comfort and generally your experience, and it�s definitely something that helps explain the big price differences between cheap and premium brands.

The most basic lining is just some foam rubber with some nylon over it. The padding will be thickest around the cheeks, and this is critical for a good fit (see below), and thinnest around the brow area (which stops the helmet vibrating as much in turbulence).

As you go up in price, you start to get some more exotic materials, particularly microfibre to wick away sweat, and/or with antibacterial coatings to keep the smell down.

At the top end you start to get interchangeable padding sections to improve the fit, completely-removable liners to allow you to pull the whole lot out and throw it in the washing machine (something that can completely rescue a seemingly terminally-sweaty lid), cutouts for installation of comms systems (see separate post), and even air-bladder systems to get you a perfect custom fit.

Visor

I didn�t put the visor in the construction because construction-wise (and certainly safety-wise) there�s very little to choose between them. However the visor is one of the most important parts of your interaction with the helmet and absolutely should be a major part of your decision. Legally the visor must be clear, although you can buy third-party tinted visors for almost every helmet out there. Tool-free/quick release visor mechanisms are basically universal now and they�re all way more fiddly to deal with than they pretend to be, so having a spare visor to swap in when needed in your bag is possible.

As well as various degrees of tint, you can usually find various other treatments, either cosmetic (gold/silver/iridium) or functional - yellow tints to reduce glare (old wisdom that�s probably bullshit), polarising filters to reduce dazzle from reflected light (will probably make your LED gauges unusable) and the inexplicably popular photochromatic visor - like Reactions sunglasses, in bright sunlight these visors will slowly darken, then clear as the light goes away. Personally I don�t get the point - they take up to 90 seconds to change, so can leave you badly vulnerable for example going through tunnels - but other people absolutely swear by them.

Note that many or all of these may be illegal in your particular area. Across most of Europe anything more than a 30% tint (a very light smoke effect that�s basically useless) is illegal, which also includes most of the other types of visors above. Ridiculously you can have sunglasses as dark as you like on underneath though.

Some visors are double-glazed to reduce fogging but they�ve almost entirely been replaced by Pinlock. Pinlock is a hydrophilic internal visor insert that - if properly installed - basically eliminates visit fogging. The name comes from the installation method - two small pins glued into holes at the sides of the visor which help keep it pushed tightly in place. Pinlock can be installed on almost any visor but extra points if the pins are already there, and double extra if it comes pre-installed (the inserts aren�t cheap). Pinlock also make inserts with most of the treatments mentioned above too, which is usually legal.

Some helmets also come with a second, internal tinted visor that can be flicked up and down separately which is a really useful thing if you do a lot of urban riding, coming in and out of shadow a lot, or live somewhere where you�ve literally no idea whether or not the sun will be out. Arai and a few other manufacturers do the same trick but with an external visor that covers a small portion of the main one (a high-tech and expensive version of the old racer trick of just putting tape across the top of the visor to use like a sunshade in a car).

One feature some riders appreciate is a way of locking the visor a little bit open - sometimes this is on the ratchet of the mechanism itself, sometimes it�s a little wedge on the mechanism or the chin bar that stops the visor closing all the way. Pinlock and improved vents make this pretty much redundant (and noisy!) but it�s a nice-to-have feature if you�re going to be in particularly hot or cold weather.

Strap closure

Most helmets come with the standard D-ring closure on the strap - it�s easy to use, very reliable, and very secure, but some people really struggle with them especially with cold hands, or might want to take the helmet off without taking their gloves off, or just fancy something different. Some helmets come with a quick-release - basically like a car seat-belt release - which is a bit bulky and requires readjustment if you want to wear a scarf or something, but is without a doubt the easiest one to use. The other common method is the ratchet - basically something like a very sturdy ziptie with a release, which is almost as quick to use but retains the flexibility of the D-ring.

However, note that both of those systems *may* fail unsafe, unlike the D-ring, and as such are banned at many tracks if you are thinking about going racing.

Vents and aero features

Almost all helmets will have some sort of ventilation built in (beyond having an opening visor). Vent design, along with the rest of the aerodynamics, is one of the features that really differentiates the cheap from the expensive - it�s not as simple as more vents = better than. Vents - being holes through the shell and EPS and having a moving part on the outer shell - need careful design to avoid weakening the helmet, and badly-designed ones will introduce a load of noise into the helmet at speed.

Broadly you want at least two - one at the front and one at the back - to allow hot air to be drawn out (although some designs use wizardry to eliminate the exhaust vent). A well-designed lid will also have some sort of aerodynamic features. Those old ping-pong-ball helmets were almost the worst possible design - at speed they generate a huge amount of drag and lift that put a huge amount of strain on your neck. Newer helmets have shapes that are designed to eliminate that as much as possible, but again on cheap helmets they can produce odd effects like vortex shedding (which feels like someone pulling the helmet side-to-side) and turbulence throwing you in every direction.

This is something you can�t really assess in the shop and you�ll have to read reviews about, but like I say this is definitely something that more expensive helmets do better than cheap ones.

Chin curtains, neck rolls, and other ancillaries

Some helmets - particularly ones designed for touring and long-distance riding - will come with a detachable chin curtain, a little strip of cloth that covers the gap between your chin and the chin bar. This can considerably improve the noise insulation of the helmet, at the expense of reducing the amount of ventilation (which might be a good thing in colder climates).

Similarly some will have a detachable neck roll, a thicker bit of cloth that covers most of the bottom of the helmet - this can improve fit and comfort, although they�re mostly out of fashion now, with the neck roll integrated into the lining or absent altogether.

Other useful little things to have are nose guards - a little bit of plastic you can attach to the chin bar to bridge the gap between your nose and the chin bar, to deflect your breath down and away from the visor to reduce fogging.

Certifications
There�s a fairly baffling array of different certifications for crash helmets - I�ll cover the main ones here. Suffice it to say if the one you�re looking at doesn�t have at least one of them, forget it.

ECE 22.05
This is a worldwide standard that guarantees a minimum baseline of protection (based on the old green-label British Standard BS 6658:1985.1, fact fans). Any ECE-certified helmet should be road-legal in just about every country on Earth apart from the US (of course).

DOT (FMVSS 218)
A US standard required for a helmet to be legal on the road in the US. The standard is slightly more generous than ECE (allegedly because ECE was converted to metric and rounded up from the old BSI standard which, as the first legal standard in the world, was copied by everyone else) but crucially unlike all of the other certifications here is it *self certified* - that is the manufacturer can just slap a DOT sticker on anything they want and sell it as DOT-approved. In theory the DOT are supposed to test random samples and fine the manufacturer for any non-compliance. Guess how well that�s going?

If you see a helmet with *only* a DOT certification, just walk away.

ACU
The Auto Cycle Union, the governing body for UK motorcycle racing, certifies helmets at two standards - the ACU Silver Star (very rarely seen) is for open-face helmets, and the Gold Star for full-face.

The FIM, the international body, has adopted the ACU standards so you�ll see the gold stars on helmets all over the world (although they�re not an absolute requirement outside of the UK). You�ll need a Gold Star (or international equivalent) helmet to compete in almost any kind of motorsport, and it�s also a handy �This helmet is better than the bare legal minimum� standard).

Snell
The Snell Memorial Foundation in the US run an independent testing programme that is considered about the highest standard for helmets in the world. It�s entirely voluntary, but if you�re buying a US-model helmet and it�s *not* Snell-certified that�s probably not a great sign.

There�s some people who claim - like with SHARP and ACU - that the racetrack-focused standard is actually too high, and somehow makes helmets less safe in lower-energy impacts. This opinion is very popular among makers of helmets that pass ECE or DOT but fail Snell - but it is, of course, complete bollocks. Notably none of these complaints are ever able to point at a helmet that passes Snell but fails other standards.

SHARP
Not technically a certification, the Safety Helmet Assessment and Rating Programme is a UK government initiative seeking to close the gap left by the deprecation of the old BSI standards when the UK adopted the ECE standard. The BSI offered three levels of certification (known as white, green and blue by the colours of the labels applied to helmets that passed the tests).

Similar to the Snell standard, SHARP uses a much higher-energy impact, as well as multiple impacts on multiple points. Unlike Snell, it also publishes the full results and offers a score out of 5 rather than a simple pass/fail.

A 1-star SHARP rating is equivalent to an ECE certification (technically it�s actually slightly below the ECE standard but it�s not a distinction worth bothering with). 3 stars is roughly equivalent to both Snell and ACU Gold (although SHARP allows open-face helmets unlike those), and a 5-star is informally �Any crash that beats this rating is going to kill you half a dozen other ways first�.

The SHARP website is searchable and also includes info on other features like closure type, shell sizes, and other information handy for selecting a helmet.

As with Snell, manufacturers who regularly score low on the SHARP ratings claim that it�s too harsh and actually leads to a less safe helmet, and just like Snell it�s a completely ridiculous insinuation that they�re never able to prove without the sort of tortured logic you hear from �Actually helmets kill more people than they save� types

The only real drawback with SHARP is it only tests helmets sold in the UK - as some manufacturers don�t (officially) export to the UK they�re missing from the list, and other manufacturers have different helmets for different markets. If you can�t find the one you�re interested in on SHARP but it is at least Snell or ACU-rated it�ll probably be fine. .

Fitting a helmet
This is absolutely the most important part. A �50 helmet that fits will give you much better protection than a �500 one that doesn�t.

If at all possible, do this in a shop rather than online, especially if you�re not sure what size and shape your head is. I personally have a prejudice against online shopping for helmets *anyway*, but this isn�t the time and place.

Once you�ve found one that�s the right combination of cool graphics and amazing features, grab something that�s close to your size - manufacturers publish sizing guides but as they never seem to measure from exactly the same spot it�s still pretty hit and miss. Pop it on (resist the temptation to force it on - if it�s too small you�ll know, go up a size).

It should feel very slightly too small around your entire head (think of a baseball cap done up a bit too tight). Don�t worry if it feels really tight around your cheeks, that�s normal for a new helmet. Do the strap up and try to rotate the helmet on your head in all directions (moving the chinbar left and right and up and down, then trying to twist it), and try to pull the helmet off from the back.. If it moves any further than a cm or so (basically the slack in your skin) it�s too big, go down a size.

Sometimes you get lucky with your head size and shape and find one that doesn�t feel tight but which still won�t move, which is why it�s important to do the tests with trying to move it rather than just going on feel.

If it *doesn�t* feel equally tight around your head it probably isn�t the right shape for you. A little gap above the ears is fine (particularly if you�re going to wear glasses under it), and a gap at the very top of the head is okay too. Try a helmet from a different manufacturer (this is where a decent shop is invaluable, because they should be able to advise you what to try based on where it feels tight.

Once you�ve found one that doesn�t move and feels okay, leave it on for a good ten or fifteen minutes (this is a good time to try out the vents, and also confirm how cool you look in it). If you notice any hot-spots - areas that get more painful as you leave it on - then again it isn�t the right shape for you. Some people will tell you that you can compress the foam in those areas to rectify this but that�s a really, really bad idea. Compressing the foam in one spot can fatally weaken it, and while it�s extremely unlikely, that sort of compromise could be the difference between having a cool story for the pub and having your loved ones at the side of your bed saying �He�s in there, I know he is�, which really isn�t a price worth paying for the Monster Energy Limited Edition lid you�ve got your eyes on.

If after ten minutes the helmet still feels good, you�re good to go. Don�t be afraid to keep trying different ones on until you find a perfect one.

It�s also a good idea to bring any glasses/sunglasses you�re going to want to wear with the helmet to make sure you can get them on and off with ease - most helmet liners are designed with this in mind but some aren�t, or some combination of the liner, your particular head shape, and the design of your glasses might make it impossible to get them on or wear them comfortably.

Once you�ve settled on one, make sure you get a fresh, boxed one. Don�t accept the display model - you�ve absolutely no idea how it�s been treated. Ever noticed just how flimsy the boxes helmets come in are? There�s a reason for that - it�s a great telltale for how the helmet has been shipped or stored. If it�s damaged, ask for another. When they bring it out, it goes without saying that you should check it actually fits (again, you�ve no idea how old the one on the shelf is and how many giant melons have been thrust into it).

Congratulations, you�ve got a new helmet. Now let�s talk about getting another new one!

Replacing a helmet
Probably nothing causes more spirited debate among bikers than when it�s time to replace a helmet. Of course many will do it every year when the new colours come out, but for the rest of us, there�s a few clear end-of-life indicators.

Crash damage
If you�ve had a crash at any speed and the helmet hit the ground, it�s replacement time. EPS is a one-time thing, and even the most measly walking-speed crash, if the helmet touches down, is enough to weaken it considerably. If this seems harsh and expensive, try crashing less.

Wear and tear
This is going to vary hugely depending on the helmet and your use of it, but the reliable indicators are that the helmet starts to feel looser than before, any kind of fraying on the straps, notable cracking or discoloration of the EPS (move the liner around to be sure), any noticeable discoloration of the outer shell, and any scratches or dings that go through the paint to the shell underneath.

More subjectively, stuff like visor ratchets getting too loose, fraying or tearing of the liner, scratches that don�t go through the paint, and just general shabbiness are an indicator that you should at least be considering a new lid.

Non-crash damage
On top of general wear and tear, you should consider replacing the helmet if it sustains any kind of damage likely to compromise its safety. As mentioned with composite helmets, this could be as small as a drop from a couple of feet, or from 4 or 5 feet for polycarbonate lids (the mechanism is different - a polycarb shell will easily survive a fall from far greater heights, but by deforming and springing back. As the EPS is much less flexible than the shell, this could lead to it cracking or otherwise deforming in a way that fatally compromises it.

In both cases, major manufacturers may offer an inspection service for this kind of damage - 99 times out of a hundred they�ll tell you to replace it for liability reasons, but again we�re talking about your head here so it�s not something you want to take a chance on.

Age
Almost all manufacturers specify a lifespan for their helmets - normally 5-7 years - but this is a shelf life, not a service life. The date of manufacture will be clearly marked on the box and should be on a label somewhere in the helmet (check inside the liners and under the straps). Once you reach that lifespan, no matter what state the helmet�s in, you should seriously consider replacing it. EPS degrades over time, as do most shell materials.

Because of the massive difference in uses, it�s impossible to say what the actual service life of a helmet should be. Personally I�ve found 3-4 years is generally the point where I want to think about replacing it, but that�s going to be a personal thing.

Somebody fucked around with this message at 14:37 on Aug 27, 2020

# ? Mar 24, 2007 18:57

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# ? Apr 19, 2024 12:19

atomic johnson: Dec 7, 2000; peeping-tom techie with x-ray eyes

I don't ride, but how about NewEnough for cheap gear?

# ? Mar 24, 2007 19:11

TurboLuvah: Jul 24, 2004; Scientifically proven to be more fuel efficient than hybrids!

Might as well post this here too

While we're talking about them, does anyone have an experience with the Icon Accelerant leather jacket? I currently have a textile that I love, but my brother is going to start riding, and I figured I'd give it to him.

http://tinyurl.com/ys9r9q

# ? Mar 24, 2007 19:33

Swingline Savvy: Aug 10, 2005

In to pimp KomodoGear, as it's some of the best stuff I've ever owned. Also, their custom-fit pricing is very nice.

# ? Mar 24, 2007 20:10

LordOfThePants: Sep 25, 2002

RealDealNamowicz posted:

Might as well post this here too

While we're talking about them, does anyone have an experience with the Icon Accelerant leather jacket? I currently have a textile that I love, but my brother is going to start riding, and I figured I'd give it to him.

http://tinyurl.com/ys9r9q

The impression that I got from all the Megathreads is that Icon stuff is generally lovely and not worth buying. One exception may be their helmets, which are made by HJC (but then again, some people have the same opinion about HJC helmets).

Nerobro, you can add FirstGear, Vanson, Alpinestars, and Tour Master/Cortech to the list. Here's the URLs:

http://www.firstgear-usa.com/

http://www.vansonleathers.com/

http://www.alpinestars.com/

http://www.tourmaster.com/

Forgot Aerostich too:

http://www.aerostich.com/

# ? Mar 24, 2007 20:13

Sir Tonk: Apr 18, 2006; Young Orc

What leather jacket would ya'll recommend for an old Shadow? Something perforated, preferably, since it regularly tops 100degrees in August. And it's Houston, so it's way humid. Have any of you had hot weather time with a perf leather jacket and want to share the experience? Or something that's vented, like FirstGear's Honcho...doesn't seem like it would be enough in high heat, but I like the design. And most of my riding is downtown stop and go traffic.

Most of the perf ones I like are designed with CBR's and other sport bikes in mind, but might end up getting one like that anyway. Also, it should have pockets for armor.

# ? Mar 24, 2007 20:15

TurboLuvah: Jul 24, 2004; Scientifically proven to be more fuel efficient than hybrids!

Wow, maybe I'll forgo the leather, I just found a sweet Cortech textile jacket.

# ? Mar 24, 2007 20:32

bung: Dec 14, 2004

My leather gear is Dainese and my textile/wet weather stuff is Frank Thomas.

http://www.frank-thomas.co.uk/

Frank Thomas gear is only available through Cycle Gear in the US.

# ? Mar 25, 2007 02:54

Road_Warrior: Sep 16, 2005

Eeeexcellent NeroBro :cheers:

Perhaps goons can help me with my little conundrum then. Do I buy a proper 2 piece leather suit (I dont want a 1 piece suit) or do I buy a jacket now and pants later, given the fact that I will probably only wear the pants once or twice a year for trackdays etc.

What is the consensus of the quality of Teknic's leathers?

# ? Mar 25, 2007 04:10

greg_graffin: Dec 10, 2004; he died for your sins!!

Road_Warrior posted:

Do I buy a proper 2 piece leather suit (I dont want a 1 piece suit) or do I buy a jacket now and pants later, given the fact that I will probably only wear the pants once or twice a year for trackdays etc.

If you don't want a 1 piece suit, just go ahead and buy a 2 piece. I've always heard that 2 piece suits are sufficient requirement-wise, although not always recommended, for the track.

# ? Mar 25, 2007 05:58

n8r: Jul 3, 2003; I helped Lowtax become a cyborg and all I got was this lousy avatar

I recently got a new fieldsheer jacket from ridegear.com - their blowout section has some very reasonable pricing.

I would just like to point out to everyone that jeans apparently have less abrasion resistance than skin. I don't always ride with proper riding pants, but when I'm wearing jeans I figure I have essentially no leg protection. The couple of times I crashed at the track I did the majority of damage to my hip area on my leathers. To be honest if I had to choose between crashing with leather pants or crashing with a leather jacket I'd choose the pants.

# ? Mar 25, 2007 06:20

Riven: Apr 22, 2002

I have BMW textile gear. I don't own a car, so I ride year round. I also spent all my money on my bike (F650GS), so I only had money for one set of gear, not summer leathers and winter textiles.

I have the Commuter 2 Jacket, which is 500 Denier Cordura with shoulder, elbow and back pads. It also has 3 vents on each side. It has a zip-in waterproof liner. It's really nice in summer with the zips open, and in winter it's nice with the liner. I've ridden in the jacket in a thunder and lightning storm with torrential rain, and although the outer jacket was moist when I was through, the inner liner remained dry. I also have washed in in Nik-Wax Direct Wash-in, which has improved the water-proofing of the outer jacket. Overall, I really like this jacket.

For pants I have the BMW City pants. I'm slightly dissapointed with these pants. Although they were waterproof when I got them, that wore out after a few washes, and the Nik-Wax doesn't seem to wash it back in. It gets water-resistant, but not proof again, due largely I think to the fact that they're partially denim, not all Cordura. They're very hot in the summer. They also have knee and hip pads. The pants also don't fit that well over other pants, which makes me less likely to wear them, something I'd like to improve upon with my next pants.

I have two sets of boots. One set is BMW, they're the cheapest ones, that are designed to look like street shoes. They're really comfy in Summer and have good grip. They're also really comfy to walk around in. I've walked around zoos and towns and beaches and never had sore feet. But when it started raining I had to get different ones. Alpinestars makes good boots with a Gore-Tex liner. They're also pretty comfy on the bike, but impossible to walk in, the upper velcro comes loose.

For summer gloves I have the Held Steve kangaroo skin gloves. The only problem I have with these gloves is that the middle finger on both gloves came unstitched after I accidentally got rained on in them. I have to keep restitching them. My winter gloves I bought for emergency purposes when it poured on me the next day after that and I can't really recommend them. They take away alot of feeling at the grips, and I know that's pretty standard but I'm sure there's something better out there.

For my helmet, I have a Schuberth C2. I have a wierd shaped head, and it fits pretty well. I look like a complete loving dork when the face is open, but it's got really good venting, even in the rain, and the flip down sunshade is executed very well too. I have to drive through a tunnel twice a day, so being able to have sunshade and then flip it up in the tunnel is really cool.

I really like the BMW gear, and will probably continue to buy it (if I can afford it). Alot of my purchases have been purchases of necessity rather than research, so I have a feeling I'll be even happier with my next set in a few years. It's well designed, durable, and even though I haven't put my bike down (yet?), I feel very secure in it (if only for the one fall it'll survive through).

Most of my stuff, except for the winter gloves, was pretty expensive, I'll admit. I only make about 34k a year (and live in the SF Bay Area), so I'm not the kind of guy who can just go out and buy pricey gear cause I can. But when it comes to safety on the road, I figured it was all worth the investment.

# ? Mar 25, 2007 06:52

R-Type: Oct 10, 2005; by FactsAreUseless

bung posted:

My leather gear is Dainese and my textile/wet weather stuff is Frank Thomas.

http://www.frank-thomas.co.uk/

Frank Thomas gear is only available through Cycle Gear in the US.

I have a full Frank Thomas 1PC racing suit, purchased from Cycle Gear. Protip: They are a low-cost Dainese line. FT are more general in sizes and fitment, and while the crash protection is just about as good, some of the amenities of the suit are not Dainese - nice. If you can't afford a $1800 race suit, the FT gear will work just fine for you at $699. Slap your velcro pucks of choice on the knees, and go drag one with confidence

R-Type fucked around with this message at 07:08 on Mar 25, 2007

# ? Mar 25, 2007 07:05

R-Type: Oct 10, 2005; by FactsAreUseless

EDIT =/ QUOTE

Mod please delete this poo poo, sorry

# ? Mar 25, 2007 07:07

PlasticSun: Feb 12, 2002; Unnaturally Good

Another big BMW gear fan here. I used to go for the cheaper middle of the road products, like Tour Master, Alpenstars and Fieldsheer, the gear was nice and held up ok with a few lose threads here and waterproof being a myth.

I picked up an F650 GS Dakar a couple of months ago and it came with a BMW Rallye 2 suit that was a bit too big for me. At first I thought of it as a nice extra chunk of change that'd I'd sell and use to buy some extra tires or something. After a 1200 mile ride home in freezing early February temps I'm convinced, it's the nicest gear I've ever worn. The suit was too big for me so I sold it and bought a new Rallye 2 Pro jacket and I'll likely soon buy a set of Dakar pants from Rev'it (many claim their gear is right up there in quality with BMW) or a set of BMW's Savanna II pants. The goretex liner in the pants is as nice as some of my North Face and Mountain Hardware clothing that I use for mountaineering. The logical and useful vent placement as well as the adjustable contoured armor makes the jacket feel more like a fitted suit jacket than a bunch of material that I'm stuffing between me and asphalt. I've never felt a drop of rain, and with the wind and water proof liner in I feel like I'm wearing an environment suit.

It's expensive stuff, crazy expensive as a matter of fact, I could have bought a new business suit and taken my girlfriend out for a full dinner at the nicest restaurant in town for less. I don't regret the purchase for a second.

My other gear consists of Tour Master Apex II pants which I like just fine for pavement non-rainy riding. The mesh liner inside them is starting to tear in a few spots after ~40K miles. I'll likely wear the new pants more often once I get them.

I have an Icon Motorhead leather jacket which would be great if I lived in Southern California, here in Denver I need to pair it with a heated liner in all seasons other than summer. I like the fit and the vents are ok but nothing in comparison to my Rallye 2 Pro.

My HJC AC-12 Carbon is a nice helmet if the visor didn't have a few distortions and if it was a little quieter I'd say it was perfect, but as is it's a nice looking very light helmet. I expect my next one will be an Arai to see what all the fuss is about, but I'm also leaning more towards Shark too. I wish I had a Shoei shaped head so I could use their kick rear end visors and retention system. I'm still bothered by the Arai side pucks that make changing visors a pain.

I've been really happy with my Alpinstars SP II gloves and my Tour Master Winter Elite 2s. The Winter Elites are truely water proof and have served me well down to 9F. The SP-IIs are a little thin but I like the feel of the controls with them on.

I had a set of GPS-3 boots which were great and I logged ~30K miles in them, after that they were pretty worn and I've passed them onto Xaine. I now have a set of Garene Explorers which are black and don't have any velcro, they're lacking in ankle support but are easy to hike in. I also have a set of BMW GS 1 boots, I like these but I can't wear them indoors as it sounds like I'm walking on a bed of ducks with all the squeaking and quacking that the plastic does. Their protection is second to none though.

My faviorite piece of gear still remains my heated liner, it lets me ride year round and keeps my focus on the road rather than on the temperature. It has never dissapointed me and after ~25K miles it still works as well as the day I bought it.

I'll be happy to answer any questions about the gear.

For those that have the Shoei X-11 and have tried Arai helmets how does the fit compare? I love Shoei's stuff but I have a very Arai shaped head, (the Quantum feels like angel hands cupping my face.)

For those that have the Arai helmets, how often do you change visors? After a while can you do it in the dark by the roadside?

# ? Mar 25, 2007 07:15

teknicolor: Jul 18, 2004; I Want to Meet That Dad!
Do Da Doo Doo

What is everyone's opinion of knee armor worn under regular jeans? If I'm driving less than three miles to work, it just doesn't seem worth it to put on my leather trousers, drive 15 minutes, then take them off and change into my regular jeans. Should I just shut up and deal, or does the knee armor sound ok for short distances?

edit: something like these: http://tinyurl.com/356l5s

# ? Mar 25, 2007 21:04

Uthor: Jul 9, 2006; Gummy Bear Heaven ... It's where I go when the world is too mean.

Haha, I was just telling my mom how it's gonna get hot riding around in the leathers and she was all, "then why wear it?" I was, "because I don't want to get hurt when I fall." She said, "then don't fall." Oh, mom.

# ? Mar 25, 2007 21:21

Skier: Apr 24, 2003; Fuck yeah.; Fan of Britches

teknicolor posted:

What is everyone's opinion of knee armor worn under regular jeans? If I'm driving less than three miles to work, it just doesn't seem worth it to put on my leather trousers, drive 15 minutes, then take them off and change into my regular jeans. Should I just shut up and deal, or does the knee armor sound ok for short distances?

edit: something like these: http://tinyurl.com/356l5s

That's still only half the protection you need for your knees. Impact protection and abrasion protection is required and jeans provide neither. Those pads only provide impact protection on your knees.

# ? Mar 25, 2007 21:25

Neck Tooth: Sep 8, 2003; How I hate him.

PlasticSun posted:

For those that have the Arai helmets, how often do you change visors? After a while can you do it in the dark by the roadside?

Changing Arai visors, for me at least, requires every curse word I know and occasionally the sacrifice of an innocent's blood. Sometimes they go right in. Usually, they don't. The Arai I bought last year even came with a CD-ROM instructional video, it's THAT unintuitive.

I swear, I must have changed out visors on both my old Arai and new a hundred times. It doesn't seem to get any easier.

# ? Mar 25, 2007 22:14

Leroy Diplowski: Aug 25, 2005; The Candyman Can

Visit My Candy Shop

And SA Mart Thread

I have an Arai, and I just don't bother with changing visors. I wear glasses anyway, so if it's bright I just clip on my shades, and keep the visor clear. Seems like you could do that with sunglasses as well if it's really that much trouble.

Also, I've been looking for a good leather jacket for a while now. I want one that's neither harleyish, nor one of those carnival colored crotchrocket jackets. I went into a local leather shop the other day, and found one that I really liked, but I'm not sure it it's going to offer the protection of a name brand jacket. It was obviously meant for riding, with a zip out inner liner and vents. The material seemed pretty thick, but how can I tell if it's going to be as safe?

Lastly, what's preforated leather? My guess is it has tiny holes, but why?

# ? Mar 25, 2007 22:36

orinth: Apr 15, 2003; NFC WEST IS THE BEST

I can probably change the shield on my Arai in under 15 seconds. The first few times I thought I was going to break the drat thing though.

My Suomy on the other hand is a bit weird. You either need a key or a screwdriver to pop the sides off and then swap the shield out. But that helmet fits soooo nicely.

# ? Mar 25, 2007 22:43

Tremblay: Oct 8, 2002; More dog whistles than a Petco

On the whole Icon thing: I have the Daytona jacket and its very sturdy. The shoulder and forearm armor are nice, although the back pad is junk. Not sure about their other gear.

Can anyone recommend some gloves? I've been looking at A* and Held. This is just for street use. The Joe Rocket shorties I have are pretty cheap, I'd just like something better.

Tremblay fucked around with this message at 23:21 on Mar 25, 2007

# ? Mar 25, 2007 23:18

ranathari: May 26, 2006; by elpintogrande

What do you guys think of RST leathers? I'm thinking of getting an RST SRT leather jacket with a view to buying the trousers at a later date (click for bigger):

In an ideal world, where I had �220, I'd get this gorgeous jacket from Hein Gericke:

# ? Mar 25, 2007 23:38

orinth: Apr 15, 2003; NFC WEST IS THE BEST

I also bought some new knee pucks yesterday. The ones that came with my pants weren't that great. These new ones are a bit bigger and will make contact with the ground a little sooner and last longer. The new ones are also ceramic where the old ones were plastic. Got them for $35 as a local shop that just opened had all motorcycle apparel and parts for cost +10%.

# ? Mar 25, 2007 23:42

TurboLuvah: Jul 24, 2004; Scientifically proven to be more fuel efficient than hybrids!

Skier posted:

That's still only half the protection you need for your knees. Impact protection and abrasion protection is required and jeans provide neither. Those pads only provide impact protection on your knees.

Wait, you're telling me that thick composite/whatever plastic won't be better for abrasion resistance than leather? I think I would rather have my knees dragging on concrete in those than a set of leather pants.

# ? Mar 26, 2007 00:44

Uthor: Jul 9, 2006; Gummy Bear Heaven ... It's where I go when the world is too mean.

Leroy Diplowski posted:

I went into a local leather shop the other day, and found one that I really liked, but I'm not sure it it's going to offer the protection of a name brand jacket. It was obviously meant for riding, with a zip out inner liner and vents. The material seemed pretty thick, but how can I tell if it's going to be as safe?

Lastly, what's preforated leather? My guess is it has tiny holes, but why?

Did the jacket have armor at all?

Perforated leather has holes to allow wind to get in to keep you cool in the summer. Sounds nice to me and I may look into getting some myself later this year.

Tremblay posted:

Can anyone recommend some gloves? I've been looking at A* and Held. This is just for street use. The Joe Rocket shorties I have are pretty cheap, I'd just like something better.

I've got these that I like a lot:
http://www.newenough.com/gloves/street_short_cuff/cortech_by_tour_master/accelerator_motorcycle_gloves.html
I bought them a little tight, and now they are perfectly formed.

# ? Mar 26, 2007 00:44

Swingline Savvy: Aug 10, 2005

R-Type posted:

...Frank Thomas...Protip: They are a low-cost Dainese line.

What? Oh, and check your knee armor, it's more than likely not actually CE armor, probably just a plastic shell with padding under it.

PlasticSun posted:

For those that have the Arai helmets, how often do you change visors? After a while can you do it in the dark by the roadside?

Whenever I go from daylight to dark, I keep a high-def shield in my little riding pack to compliment my dark smoked daylight one and yes, it's easy as hell to do it in the dark, you just have to get used to it.

Neck Tooth posted:

Changing Arai visors, for me at least, requires every curse word I know and occasionally the sacrifice of an innocent's blood.

Sorry man, this made me lol.

orinth posted:

My Suomy on the other hand is a bit weird. You either need a key or a screwdriver to pop the sides off and then swap the shield out. But that helmet fits soooo nicely.

Yah, no poo poo, I finally broke down and grabbed a Suomy and just decided that it's a daylight-only helmet for me, gently caress that shield change poo poo of theirs, gently caress it up it's rear end.

# ? Mar 26, 2007 01:10

OMGWTFWALLHACK: Jan 28, 2004; Hated by the internet.

I have two questions:
Are mesh pants really going to do much more than jeans for me? Would they be comfortable to wear over shorts? They don't look all that sturdy but if mesh pants +shorts is better than just plain jeans which is what I wear now I'll do it for the shorts.
Edit: Obviously I am talking about just driving around town at low speeds, not racing or anything.

2. Can you get replacement liners for First Gear jackets? Somehow my liner disappeared and I can't find it anywhere.

OMGWTFWALLHACK fucked around with this message at 03:31 on Mar 26, 2007

# ? Mar 26, 2007 01:23

Bob Morales: Aug 18, 2006; ~~Just wear the fucking mask, Bob~~

I don't care how many people I probably infected with COVID-19 while refusing to wear a mask, my comfort is far more important than the health and safety of everyone around me!

Leroy Diplowski posted:

Also, I've been looking for a good leather jacket for a while now. I want one that's neither harleyish, nor one of those carnival colored crotchrocket jackets.

ICON is making a ton of black jackets.

# ? Mar 26, 2007 01:54

Jazzzzz: May 16, 2002

PlasticSun posted:

For those that have the Arai helmets, how often do you change visors? After a while can you do it in the dark by the roadside?

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8IfuA9b_75g

It is very easy once you have done it a few times, but goddamn the first 10 or so tries at getting the visor to latch into the pods is :argh:

I still don't even bother trying to do it with the helmet on my head, but it's no problem in low light areas.

I emailed KomodoGear about that "Classic" jacket of theirs - turns out it is perforated, so I'll be putting in an order for one once I find a new bike.

Bob Morales posted:

ICON is making a ton of black jackets.

ICON is the riced-out V6 Mustang of motorcycle gear - all show, no go

Leroy Diplowski posted:

Also, I've been looking for a good leather jacket for a while now. I want one that's neither harleyish, nor one of those carnival colored crotchrocket jackets. I went into a local leather shop the other day, and found one that I really liked, but I'm not sure it it's going to offer the protection of a name brand jacket. It was obviously meant for riding, with a zip out inner liner and vents. The material seemed pretty thick, but how can I tell if it's going to be as safe?

Check out newenough, kneedraggers, motorcyclecloseouts.com, ridegear, etc. FirstGear makes a few understated jackets; RevIT has a really nice one, the style is called "Moto". IMG here (not my host): http://www.autoserviciomotorista.com/images/productos/cuero/4005.jpg

Jazzzzz fucked around with this message at 02:22 on Mar 26, 2007

# ? Mar 26, 2007 02:15

Skier: Apr 24, 2003; Fuck yeah.; Fan of Britches

RealDealNamowicz posted:

Wait, you're telling me that thick composite/whatever plastic won't be better for abrasion resistance than leather? I think I would rather have my knees dragging on concrete in those than a set of leather pants.

Negative, I'm telling you your knees aren't the only part of you grinding away at the pavement. Unless you're really talented.

If you wear those under a pair of jeans, you gain very protection for the amount of effort.

# ? Mar 26, 2007 02:25

n8r: Jul 3, 2003; I helped Lowtax become a cyborg and all I got was this lousy avatar

teknicolor posted:

What is everyone's opinion of knee armor worn under regular jeans? If I'm driving less than three miles to work, it just doesn't seem worth it to put on my leather trousers, drive 15 minutes, then take them off and change into my regular jeans. Should I just shut up and deal, or does the knee armor sound ok for short distances?

edit: something like these: http://tinyurl.com/356l5s

Look into textile overpants.

# ? Mar 26, 2007 04:02

Uthor: Jul 9, 2006; Gummy Bear Heaven ... It's where I go when the world is too mean.

OMGWTFWALLHACK posted:

I have two questions:
Are mesh pants really going to do much more than jeans for me? Would they be comfortable to wear over shorts? They don't look all that sturdy but if mesh pants +shorts is better than just plain jeans which is what I wear now I'll do it for the shorts.
Edit: Obviously I am talking about just driving around town at low speeds, not racing or anything.

I don't know much about pants, but I have a leather and a mesh jacket. The mesh was fine in the summer until I got sick of wearing a sweatshirt in 70 degree weather and bought a leather jacket. The leather is so much nicer and feels much sturdier than the mesh. Right now, I'm thinking I would rather ride in the leather (it has removable panels for warmer weather) than the mesh, even in the heat. If I were you, I would look into perforated leather pants.

# ? Mar 26, 2007 04:06

TurboLuvah: Jul 24, 2004; Scientifically proven to be more fuel efficient than hybrids!

Skier posted:

Negative, I'm telling you your knees aren't the only part of you grinding away at the pavement. Unless you're really talented.

If you wear those under a pair of jeans, you gain very protection for the amount of effort.

Ohhh I got what you were saying, thanks.

This is the Cortech textile jacket I just bought (black)

http://tinyurl.com/32mgqv

# ? Mar 26, 2007 04:23

Road_Warrior: Sep 16, 2005

So can anyone give me some feedback on Teknic stuff, like their leather jackets and suits. I got my eye on a particular jacket but I don't want to buy any of their gear if it is like the stories I have heard about Icon's stuff.

# ? Mar 26, 2007 04:59

Jazzzzz: May 16, 2002

Road_Warrior posted:

So can anyone give me some feedback on Teknic stuff, like their leather jackets and suits. I got my eye on a particular jacket but I don't want to buy any of their gear if it is like the stories I have heard about Icon's stuff.

Teknic is OK if you stay away from their lower end stuff (Lightning/Chicane) - the stitching isn't so great.

# ? Mar 26, 2007 05:01

orinth: Apr 15, 2003; NFC WEST IS THE BEST

Jazzzzz posted:

Teknic is OK if you stay away from their lower end stuff (Lightning/Chicane) - the stitching isn't so great.

I have a chicane 2 piece and it's not bad except for the crap knee pucks (see 10 posts above). I really like the jacket as well.

# ? Mar 26, 2007 05:11

Jolci: Mar 29, 2004; deliberate

teknicolor posted:

What is everyone's opinion of knee armor worn under regular jeans? If I'm driving less than three miles to work, it just doesn't seem worth it to put on my leather trousers, drive 15 minutes, then take them off and change into my regular jeans. Should I just shut up and deal, or does the knee armor sound ok for short distances?

edit: something like these: http://tinyurl.com/356l5s

I was looking at doing this for my commute to school, since it's only a few minutes ride and I don't particularly want to be walking around in campus in full leathers. What I heard on some other bike message boards though was that after the initial impact unless it's directly straight on, the pads get absolutely wrenched around. For shits and giggles, I went by the local cyclegear and tried on a pair of the knee/shin armor they had and it wasn't strapped on nearly as tight as I'd like. Thinking about it now, for reference, when I slide tackle or similarly slip/fall when playing soccer my shinguards have often been twisted around, and they are very form fitting, under tight socks, and held in place with tight athletic tape. I really wouldn't have much faith in just a few velcro straps, especially when knee pads are notoriously loose fitting to allow for knee movement.

I have a pair of mesh overpants being shipped right now that have full length zippers on them and armor in the knees/hips, so I should be able to put them on/take them off/roll them up in a few moments time.

# ? Mar 26, 2007 05:52

rope kid: Feb 3, 2001; Warte nur! Balde
Ruhest du auch.

Where are the Aerostich superfans in this thread?

PlasticSun posted:

For those that have the Arai helmets, how often do you change visors? After a while can you do it in the dark by the roadside?

Well, before I started questioning the integrity of my helmet after dropping it a few times, I could do it in the dark. However, it will feel like you're breaking it the first few times.

I'm enjoying my Scorpion EXO-700 helmet so far, but it certainly isn't as comfortable as my Arai. I attribute some of this to a hot spot on the forehead, but overall it's louder and not as nice. Of course, it was also literally half the price of my Quantum II.

# ? Mar 26, 2007 06:06

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# ? Apr 19, 2024 12:19

Neck Tooth: Sep 8, 2003; How I hate him.

Mapless posted:

Sorry man, this made me lol.

I swear to sweet baby hay-soose that whenever I'm on a group ride and it's getting too sunny, I'll say, "Hold on for ten minutes while I figure this loving thing out, these visors drive me nuts!" And the visor change will happen in ten seconds.

But sitting at home, saying, "Well, I'm going on that long ride tomorrow, I'll change my visor NOW so I don't have to do it in the morning!" that fucker'll take me five-ten minutes of cursing and crying.

Mr. Arai hates me, that's the only answer. But goddamn, do I love his helmets anyway.

Jazzzzz posted:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8IfuA9b_75g

loving black magic. BLACK MAGIC.

Ha, but I think my issue is that it really DOES feel like the visor/helmet's gonna break when you change them out. I just can't get used to bending a piece of (expensive) plastic like that without getting all worried. I'll go to a therapist, maybe that'll help.

Neck Tooth fucked around with this message at 07:02 on Mar 26, 2007

# ? Mar 26, 2007 06:58

The Something Awful Forums > Discussion > Automotive Insanity > Cycle Asylum > The Bike Gear Thread - Wilsons leathers need not apply.

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