The Bike Gear Thread - Wilsons leathers need not apply.

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

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Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

rope kid posted:

Where are the Aerostich superfans in this thread?

either out riding their $20,000 2007 bmws with the $2000 navigation system to their winter beach homes, or selling their bodies on the street because they have no money for food now that they bought aerostich?

# ¿ Mar 26, 2007 11:11

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# ¿ Apr 16, 2024 17:12

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

how awesome i look in my paper thin mesh jacket and bmw pants.

someone on irc said i look like a character from robot jox. i said gently caress yeah.

# ¿ May 14, 2007 04:36

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

VTNewb posted:

Summary:VTNewb 37 31

sup fellow new england thin dude.

my measurements aren't much different. it's tough to find snug fitting gear. that chart you quoted doesn't make sense though, i've never seen any jackets that go down to 32 or 34. i got the smallest size i could find (in fieldsheer anyway) and it's still a little bit loose on me, especially around the waist. looking at a*'s official size chart, S should be good though.

# ¿ May 15, 2007 19:51

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

nbv4 posted:

I just want to be able to get on my motorcycle, ride somewhere, be able to get off and go walking around, go to a restaurant, and not look like I just stepped off a space shuttle. Is there a company out there that specializes in gear for this purpose?

there are more bland items out there you can get, just not a huge number of them. thumb through an online store like http://www.newenough.com/ and you'll see some. keep in mind though that if it really is good safety gear it's gonna have armor in it at the knees and elbows and stuff, so whatever it might look like, it's not going to FEEL like a pair of jeans and a long sleeve shirt while walking into that restaurant.

# ¿ Jul 8, 2007 15:00

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

rope kid posted:

I tried the Olympia AST and Ranger II pants.

so you like it then? any problems with it? i'm strongly considering this cause i want a more robust touring jacket than the inflexible thing i have now. it's amazingly hard to find gear in my size (<40 chest) and olympia seems to be one of the very very few manufacturers who make these sizes. only problem is i've never seen them at an online dealer and the closest local one is 3 hours away according to olympia's site.

# ¿ Oct 3, 2007 11:46

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

look they all have airbags

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# ¿ Oct 16, 2007 02:14

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

am i the only one that thinks one piece suits look kinda queer? what's the benefit? if you've got a connecting zipper on your 2 piece, i can't see one.

# ¿ Nov 25, 2007 20:07

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

don't think that would work on mine, the shifter is pretty stiff, and all the rubber is worn off so it's just an aluminum rod. not PennState student friendly.

# ¿ Jan 6, 2008 05:54

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

Doctor Zero posted:

Where the gently caress is he going? All the cool toys are behind him.

he's so cool with his hi-viz 1-piece that he doesn't even care about all that weak-rear end plane/motorcycle poo poo behind him. he's probably going to screw keira knightley who is waiting behind the camera. (AND IS ALREADY WET)

# ¿ Jan 22, 2008 19:54

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

predictive posted:

(I have heard from friends that the AST isn't totally waterproof, but I don't own one myself).

just got my AST last fall and rode it once in a good solid rain, and it worked great. this was with the liner in. i hear it might be less waterproof without the liner. rope kid or somebody here has one too.

# ¿ Jan 24, 2008 06:29

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

devnull420 posted:

What amount of gear is necessary for "really good" protection? Thinking about taking the MSF at the end of the summer, and if I like it and don't completely suck will probably buy a small beginner bike and gear. I'm planning on doing it the right way - lots of money on gear and a cheap bike that won't make me cry if I drop it.

i'd say one of everything. gloves, boots, pants, jacket, full-face helmet.

quote:

From what I can tell I'm going to need pants, a jacket (that hooks up to the pants with 360 degree zipper?), boots, gloves, back protector, knee armor, and of course a helmet. Anything I'm leaving off?

good jacket and pants will have armor in them so you shouldn't need extra knee/back/etc stuff. gloves seem to vary a lot. some have fancy hard parts in them on the knuckles, some have really minimal padding.
leather holds up better in crashes, but is less temperature-flexible and is more expensive.

quote:

Also, how do contacts work out while riding? Does the wind dry them out completely? Even in my car my contacts get dry and hard to see out of sometimes, I would not want that to happen on a bike. Do certain helmets work better in this regard than other? I'd imagine ones with less airflow, but have no idea.

in my experience, contacts are actually more comfortable when riding than when sitting around say at a computer. i think the wind must subconsciously induce you to blink more which offsets the dryness.

# ¿ May 1, 2008 11:29

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

my understanding with mesh is that you'll survive the crash but the jacket won't. they just kind of fray apart and "melt" like a torn rope.

# ¿ May 10, 2008 22:47

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

i dig his logo.

# ¿ Jun 10, 2008 00:54

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

OptimusMatrix posted:

(USER WAS PUT ON PROBATION FOR THIS POST)

thanks.

anyone have some advice on rain suits? are they all pretty much the same?

# ¿ Jun 14, 2008 17:56

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

i don't see why not. feet don't have boobs, right? can i get a ruling here, tek?

# ¿ Jun 27, 2008 11:33

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

cheese eats mouse posted:

I get so many compliments on my jacket.

what is it?

my mom just bought this and i'm jealous. wish they made something like that for men.

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# ¿ Jul 9, 2008 01:10

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

jhh posted:

Holy crap that thing is awesome. How are the patches and the lettering on the back attached? Can they be removed?

i think she said they're sewn in and not designed to come off. she plucked the arm patches off and is gonna put a honda wing on, but the big letters on the back are a bit too much work to remove.

# ¿ Jul 9, 2008 05:02

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

i also have two (2!) 10% off coupons for newenough. i need no gear so pm me or something if anyone wants one.

# ¿ Nov 25, 2008 03:00

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

do they do anything more than regular CE jacket back armor?

# ¿ Nov 25, 2008 07:28

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

any mesh jacket. http://www.newenough.com/protective_apparel/mesh_jackets_and_pants/

they're all pretty cheap and all pretty much the same as far as i know.

# ¿ Jan 31, 2009 14:33

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

i got HT2 overpants. they're like snowpants, for cold weather. i like em, mostly, although i wish the waist area was shaped a bit different to make them fit better when sitting down.

# ¿ Feb 1, 2009 09:04

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

100 Years in Iraq posted:

If you're sitting at lights you're gonna want to die even if you're just wearing jeans and a jacket.

+1

even if you had just sandals and boxers. roads and vehicles generate even more heat in hot weather, so i just wouldn't ride at all if it's above the mid 90s.

# ¿ Feb 1, 2009 21:50

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

well they don't have any armor. armor is important, cause your knees are important parts and they're likely to smash into something in a crash. those things might just protect you from road rash.

# ¿ Mar 11, 2009 00:06

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

TapTheForwardAssist posted:

I can find almost nothing about them on the internet, except a couple of them being sold for $379: a "Champlain" leather riding jacket for $45 at a pawnshop is good, yes?

It's heavy as hell, has the proper curved sleeves, etc. so it is a riding jacket, not a fashion jacket. It's apparently made in Burlington VT, so presumably something decent. It fits me almost perfectly, any reason I shouldn't blow $45 on it?

i live near burlington and was unaware we had any bike gear makers here. does it have armor? that's really what tells you whether it's for riding or fashion.

# ¿ Apr 17, 2009 02:01

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

BotchedLobotomy posted:

I'd love to hear discussions about saddlebags/good tailbags,

i got one of these http://www.newenoughhp.com/luggage/tail_bags/nelson_rigg/cl800_rear_tote_motorcycle_tail_bag.html and i like it a lot. just make sure you have a big tail to put it on.

# ¿ May 12, 2009 14:44

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

8ender posted:

Speaking of flip up helmets, check out this one:

http://www.webbikeworld.com/r2/motorcycle-helmet/nexx-x30/

Pretty interesting. Its a flip up, but the chin bar is integrated into the main shell of the helmet so it manages to get the safety ratings.

forget the flip, look at the styling. that's awesome. how great would that look on an rc8?

# ¿ May 21, 2009 06:30

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

Gay Nudist Dad posted:

Considering the chin bar broke at the hinges, yeah, I do think a FF could've held up better.

it pisses me off too because there's no reason a flip couldn't be as solid as a full. just make the latching mechanism and reinforcements out of stainless steel or CF or something. it doesn't have to be made all of brittle plastic like they are now. is this just manufacturer laziness? i mean poo poo, it's a safety issue. that's not a minor thing.

# ¿ May 21, 2009 19:06

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

BlueBayou posted:

Sigh, why are all the cool jackets for men

i don't know what you're talking about, every cool looking bike jacket i've ever seen was for women. men only have two styles: power ranger and biker gang.

my mom had an icon rogue for a while that i envied. she said it kinda sucked though.

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# ¿ Jul 10, 2009 06:38

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

Uthor posted:

Not as good as leather, but if you do your research and buy a well constructed jacket made out of good material (Cordura), they'll probably be good enough to save your skin. The trade off is that textiles will be lighter and generally more adaptable than leather jackets. I've worn my textile jacket exclusively this year due to the mild summer where my leather would have required a lot of layers and added weight on cool days.

my understanding from reading crash tests online was that textile/meshes do protect nearly as well as leather, but they'll never last more than one crash. leather can be crashed in a few times before the gear melts.

# ¿ Sep 12, 2009 17:30

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

BlueBayou posted:

Not from noise. From the front of the helmet being pressed into my forehead. I need a helmet that is longer

both my helmets are uncomfortable on the interstate. i think what's really needed is a windshield.

# ¿ Sep 27, 2009 13:01

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

i know someone here did a thread on this a while back but that's long since gone so i thought it was worth another link:

http://www.instructables.com/id/DIY-heated-clothing/

# ¿ Oct 30, 2009 21:45

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

i recently got one of these because i had chronic problems with my chin freezing in cold weather. on my naked bike it doesn't work tremendously well. needs a better seal between the skirt and jacket. i'd have to modify it somehow. but on my faired bike it works great. still got some issues with air coming in around the visor but my chin was just fine today at 34 degrees. i recommend it. schampa helmet skirt. got it from motorcycle-superstore.

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# ¿ Dec 6, 2009 06:53

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

Uthor posted:

Over or under the jacket? My balaclavas come down low, but I never know i I'm supposed to put them underneath or not.

balaclavas generally go under. this goes over. makes it a lot less of a hassle to use. balaclavas never totally worked for me either. lots of air still got in and at 30-40 degrees, a little air does a lot of harm.

# ¿ Dec 6, 2009 15:12

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

gerbings makes the best heated poo poo. it's expensive though.

# ¿ Dec 21, 2009 17:58

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

she likes leather twinks huh?

# ¿ Jan 12, 2010 07:09

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

buildmyrigdotcom posted:

Also it won't cover neck tattoos, one of the few places they will be visible if you're wearing a jacket/helmet/pants.

why get a neck tattoo if you don't want people to see your neck tattoo?

i actually have a reason not to wear collarless jackets. i once got stung by a wasp on my neck while wearing a collarless jacket. stung me in the half inch of exposed skin between helmet chin and jacket.

# ¿ Jan 20, 2010 20:29

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

shipwrek posted:

I have long taken issue with most manufacturers concept of waterproof.

thank god someone agrees with me. if i can't ride in "waterproof" gear for more than an hour without getting waterlogged, it's NOT loving WATERPROOF. seems like every manufacturer lies about this poo poo. but at least rain suits aren't expensive.

# ¿ Feb 27, 2010 15:28

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

Z3n posted:

They sell novelty stickers. Not for use on their helmets.

that's an extremely generous interpretation of it. we all know they sell them at harley shops because a significant number of harley owners wear novelty helmets with no impact absorbing foam and they want to put these novelty stickers on their novelty helmets to pretend they're legal.

# ¿ May 6, 2010 12:06

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

i got a review to pass on here, of the Veskimo cooling thing.

my mom recently bought one, cause she lives in memphis and was going to try to ride from there to vermont in late august. it's a cooler to hold ice+water with a pump in it, and a vest with a bunch of water tubes going all through it that connects to the cooler.

here are the pros and cons as she told me:

- expensive. about $350 for a set.

+ works really well in the heat. she rode up in the mid 90s with full gear and still had to turn the pump off fairly frequently because it was too cold.

- if you get the battery pack for it, it takes like 10 AAs

+ because it cools so well you won't have to leave the battery pack on all the time, so it should last a while. (they say 8 hours of continuous use) there is a switch on the power cord so you can turn it off and on easily while riding, as long as you can reach the cooler.

+/- ice lasts a reasonably long time if you get the big cooler like my mom did. on the 95 degree days she did have to refill it with ice but only about once a day. and ice bags are fairly cheap and easy to find. if you got the backpack model, i think it would need a lot more refilling. the big cooler takes up space, it'll occupy most of your passenger seat.

+ also offers a 12v connector you can plug into the bike

- the water hose is a bit poorly designed i think, it has like 8 clear tubes going from the vest to the hose connector, which makes it kinda bulky and stiff. i don't see why 2 wouldn't work. and the connector itself is a 2 piece deal, not rigidly held together, so you have to click 2 connectors together and apart when you connect or disconnect the hoses. it ought to be a 1 piece connector.

+ it all seems pretty well made, the materials don't look cheap, although the vest itself is quite thin by necessity. i expect the connectors and hoses and things would last a long time.

- not that big a - but the cooler is actually a tupperware type thing with a locking lid inside the outer (fabric) veskimo insulating jacket. i think ideally it would all be a solid 1 piece deal to make it easier to open and close.

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# ¿ Sep 7, 2010 13:14

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# ¿ Apr 16, 2024 17:12

Rev. Dr. Moses P. Lester: Oct 3, 2000

unless you're concerned with cold or wet weather, or pockets like you said, i don't think it's really relevant. 3/4 is just a bit longer, with kind of a skirt shape to the extra length.

# ¿ Sep 26, 2010 04:00

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

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