Gear- review and personal opions.

[2ndSpace]

Sorry I can't type. Should read "opinions"

I have noticed that the number of crash reports is on the rise. Just a few weeks ago I had a 2 guys go down on a ride I was leading. Personally I have never been down on the street and hope to keep it rubber side down.

My intent here, for you who care to, is to share personal opinions of the gear you ride in or have ridden in or what you have witnessed.

I am not a fan of anything that says Joe Rocket. I have spent hundreds on riding gear, gloves, boots, and a tank bag. Zippers have broken, soles have fallen off, gloves have torn and magnets have fallen out. None of this from abuse. The boots had less than 1k on them gloves were 2days old. Not mention that their claim of water proof was BS.

My first real riding suit was the First gear Kilimanjaro. I like it. Still have it as a spare. It is somewhat cumbersome on and off and the venting system works but can be difficult. Never ever once did it soak through in the rain. Mine was the original, I understand the new ones are much better.

Milline 2 piece leathers. Comfortable dual zippers.

Sidi boots. No complaints. The tepors were water proof until I punctured them and the airs work. For me they fit better than the A-Stars

Held and Power Trip gloves work well

Shuberth Concept 1 heavy and loud. Good for commuting

Arai RX-07 Corsair I F'ING love this helmet too expensive though!

Aerostich Roadcrafter. I should have bought the one piece. I have never taken it apart. On and off on 15 seconds. Vents well. Lots of options and custom fitting. I have 30k in it and can't say enough about it or the company. If you intend to get the back pad order a bigger size. They talked me out of it and with the pad installed, which is always, there is not much room for layering. My only complaints are the same that a lot people. The crotch can leak, only happened once to me. And the collar is rough, but there are fixes for that.

Post up your opinion. You may turn some to the product they have been looking for! :-D

[ This message was edited by: 2ndSpace on 2006-08-23 17:48 ]

[steventhechef]

For what it's worth

Jacket - Leather AGV sport, great jacket, suitably soft but durable
Pants - Leather Bikers Own, comfortable but they did stretch more than I imagined (now good with jeans under, a bit sloppy without)
Gloves - Leather Dri-Rider for summer. Rivets for winter
Helmet - HJC Symax flip front, comfortable but a bit noisy, I have Titanium glasses so a normal full face is a pain in the Ar*e
Boots - Sidi, comfortable enough but I wouldn't want to walk a long way in them
RJays neck scarf (the circular type) certainly worth the $10.

I try to be rational and purchase for the long term, but I am not prone to paying a fortune for the bits unless there is a good reason - durability, value for money, not colour, fashion or the latest..

I can hear Cheapbastard saying "Yeah baby" from here!!

[2ndSpace]

I try to be rational and purchase for the long term, but I am not prone to paying a fortune for the bits unless there is a good reason - durability, value for money, not colour, fashion or the latest..

I can hear Cheapbastard saying "Yeah baby" from here!!

Agreed. Price doesn't mean its a good value.

[BlackBeauty]

Good post. i like to blabber about gear!! I'll start from the head and work my way down.

Helmet: Arai RX7 Corsair. It is SO comfortable and I feel good every time I put it on. Paint looks brandnew despite 12,000 miles ridden in it. I suppose it is kinda noisy but a report I read with actual decibel levels said it was no worse than others. Great ventilation. Anyway - I wear earplugs. Pricey - yes. But I want the Haga Aztec replica.

Earplugs: Howard Light Max. Very good. Re-usable. Cheap if you buy in a box of 100 pairs. The best decibel reduction rating out there.

Neck tube thing - thin for summer, fleecy for cool winter riding.

Cortech Impulse leather jacket: heavily ventilated, pretty well-made although it has loosened up ALOT. I only wear this as I need the venting.

EDZ Windproof Innershell: wear under leather jacket in cooler weather. Amazingly efficient and folds up into a tiny roll. I also use their inner layers - makes getting into and out of leathers a breeze, especially when hot.

Held Ninja gloves: Incredible feel, amazing fit. But this is at t he cost of thinner construction.

Spidi Tre Composite gloves: Took a while to break in for the finger length, even the XXL size I got. They run very small, I suppose. They are now very comfy with good feel. They feel much more solid/protective.

MotoGP Leather pants: ventilated. Very comfortable. Lots of thick padding and good armour. Uselessly short zip that doesn't even connect to the newer MotoGP jackets.

Sidi Vertigo boots: very comfy on and off the bike. A little loose around the heel without thicker socks. Sufficiently water resistant. Hard to keep really, really clean. The colour seems to come out of the Lorica if you get too frisky with the cleaning products.

Is that it?? Hhmmhh - I need more kit!! I plan to get a good textile jacket and/or a non-vented leather jacket (and possibly non-vented leather pants) for the winter. Probably Spidi all round.

Oh - Alpinestars back protector and Impact Armor chest protector. Always.

Take care - BB

[katrider]

I have a different more 'old school' approach to gear, but I am modifying my preferences as time goes by.

I have an older KBC Galaxy helmet that is getting loose and I need to locate the inner replacement pads so it won't want to lift off my head at 70 mph.

I have two jackets: a First Gear non-armor winter/rain jacket that is 100% waterproof and quilted but is only good after November 1st. I also have a retro leather jacket with funky shoulder padding that makes it look like something Flash Gordon had in his locker, but it is thick and very well made with lots of features. Oh yeah, I just today bought a JR Comet textile/leather jacket...my first venture into modern gear!

NewEnough

I have a pair of JR Ballistic heavy riding pants. Mucho good in winter!

I wear zip up trooper boots, same as I wear on wildland fires or when I get to wear my really cool FF uniform...easy on and good ankle protection...sorta.

I have like four pairs of gloves: Icon, JR, Motoboss, Cortex. I also have been seen wearing extrication gloves and those fabric Mechanix gloves.

Mix and match hodgepodge but I'm actually comfortable and feel fairly safe. The new JR Comet will add armor and bright colors to the mix, but I think I'll keep the leather for those retro nights at the A&W

[ This message was edited by: katrider on 2006-08-23 18:41 ]

[dolson]

Top To bottom:

Arai

Respro Foggy. best thing I've found for fog and misting visor.

JR Ballistic 4 Jacket and pants. Doing fine and love them in the rain and winter. 4 years and no problems with quality.

H/G two piece full zip leathers. Fit great and well made.

Triumph raptor for when it's around 100. can dump water on it and cool off quickly.
H/G mesh pants.

Winter gloves, can't remember who makes them but nice warm dry and protected.

Real light armored gloves, CRS.

My favorites are my Lee Parks gloves.

Oxtar EVO Ti boots. Good quality and comfortable with anti-hyper extension protection at all joints.

Don

[DaveM]

Oh boy I havent done this for at least a month! :-D

Suomy Trek lid with Iridium Visor.
Comfortable and visor is fantastic in Queensland's bright sun

Winter Jacket; "Arlen Ness" "All Weather"
Cordura with a lot of CE armour; forearms, elbows, back, shoulders.
Very comy and has zip out thermal liner.

Summer Jacket; "Joe Rocket" Phoenix" Mesh jacket
Very cool in 30 degees plus Celsius heat and well armoured.

Winter gloves; "Joe Rocket" medium weight carbon fibre reinforced. Comfy and very good protection.

Snow and ice gloves: "Tecknic" "Storm" bulky 100% waterproof with thermal lining. Big and bulky but dry and warm.

Summer gloves; "Dry rider" Mesh with carbon fibre knuckles etc.
Comfy and good protection.

Pants: "Tiger Angel" Leather touring pants (see review)
Custom made excellent quality and fit, heavier leather than most European brands. Roo and Cow hide. Good armour.

Cold and wet pants: "Tecknic" Cordura touring pants
With zip out thermal liner. Very heavily armoured knees and hips. 100% waterproof. Good Sh!t.

Around town pants; "Draggin Jeans" 1 pair blue 1 pair camo
Kevlar lined very good comfort but no armour, not for scratching in.

Boots: "Oxtar" "SS Performance" race boots. Very comfy and so far havent leaked. Armour is very good.

that's about it apart from a haevy quilt lined Leather Jacket by Rebel Armor Tek. It is comfy but not armoured and has a few war wounds on the back etc.

Davem

[tojohn]

When I was younger, I thought I was a good enuf rider to avoid any situation. Owning mostly Har(d)leys, I wore the traditional Harley gear; (non) DOT approved helmet, tank top or black T, sneakers and sunglasses!
...Graduated to Buell's years later, gear didnt improve. Untill, one cold day in december. Showing off cause of my new pipe, I went down hard at about 40MPH. Being winter I at least had a jacket on, but still the non-DOT clam shell helmet. Then, when I thought of what could have happened to me when i went down that day I greatly improved what i would wear.
...Now that i ride a real bike LOL ('02 ST), I ALWAYS wear my....Bieffe Full face (even tho we have no helmet law now in PA) First-Gear leather Jacket for the colder days, Nex-Gen full-mesh w/removeable liner for the warmer days. H-Gericke gloves in summer, padded snow gloves for winter. Draggin-Jeans on the long rides (more than 100miles) Regular jeans for everyday rides. And full lace work-boots, always.
...Only once this year did i go out without a jacket on. But it was a 90DEG. very humid summer day. Otherwise I try to protect my Bod as much as possible. Not that I ride any more reckless, but more and more people are moving in around my area, TOO MANY. Traffic is 100 Times worse than 8 years ago. And it seems like no-one pays any attention when they are in thier cars!!! Streets are overcrowded, and everyone seems to be in a d@*#+ hurry.

[2ndSpace]

Sorry DaveM. I did a search and returned a thread from 2003. Figured it would not hurt to have an update.

[DaveM]

2ndSpace,
no worries mate! :-D

I did not intend to be sarcastic just a bit of my evil sense of humour.

I apologise if it sounded like that, it sincerely wasn't meant to sound annoyed in any way.

I hope we were able to give you some help.
In brief I think whatever you buy should have some decent armour in it and be pretty slide resistant.

Most offs involve either a superman flight and a hard thump when you land (please try to avoid solid objects like trees) and lowsides often result in slides at speed on the bitumen which is why it essential to keep the skin covered.

Onya mate!

Davem