Help us newbies with safety gear

[shane-o]

Total coverage is best

however

For me, helmet, gloves, and Jacket are the most important, I will spend most of my money on these 3, as they are nearly always the first points of impact.

Boots, as long as they are of rugged build and are above the ankles then kool, and pants are prolly the leaset important for me, I use draggin jeans, and although they are good they are def' not any where near great protection.

You will here people quoting budgets as to justify spending less on what they buy for protection, for me, I would spend my last dollar on the best equipment I could get.


I have worked in intensive care units for years, I have seen people come in with relatively low speed accidents wearing next to nothing with half their skin ripped off their bodies down to the bone and Ive seen poeple come in from high speed accidents in full gear with not so much as a scratch, of course both have severe skeletal & organ damages, but one has 6 months worth of skin grafting while the other doesnt...which would you prefer

[jstark47]

Now the helmet. I tried on a “Shoei X-11 Replica Helmet.”
I know from reading some of the other posts that I need to wear a helmet for at leas 15 minutes. To be sure it fits properly. I wasn’t buying anything today so I only had it on for about 5 minutes. It was snug but it pushed my cheeks a little like I was puckering. I’m guessing that the foam will recede a little?

Pushing in on your cheeks just a little bit is exactly what you want in a new helmet. Any looser than that and you can't trust it to stay put in an accident. And yes, they do get a little more comfortable after a few hours of wear.

[dean owens]

Question: How tight should a jacket be and how much movement should I expect to have?

it should cut off all blood supply

nah, the jacket should fit. you don't want to fall on your rump sliding feet-wise and have your jacket ride up your back because it's too loose. but you have to be comfortable so it can't be that tight. if it's so tight that you're focusing on being uncomfortable then you won't be focusing on the road or your bike.

a few months ago i got a winter coat. i actually got it a smidge loose so i could wear a sweat shirt for added warmth if i needed to. but it still fits nicely without the sweat shirt - partly because the jacket has straps to adjust it around the waste.

hope that helps.

[dean owens]

i can tell y'all as someone who is relatively new to this i agree with the premiss of the original post. it was really nice to have the helmet sticky to help me go out and find the right helmet. but i was completely lost with everything else. even if there was a sticky that gave some examples of jackets for temps and what pants for what temps and some pretty good and well priced online stores just to give some ideas so one can make better decisions. i'm having to do a lot of trial and error.

jackets - i think i'm covered. i have a joerocket alter ego for spring/summer/fall. it's still hot on really hot days.
i have a fieldsheer jacket for winter.

i have summer and winter gloves but would like something in-between.

for boots i'm using some doc martins. i'm still unsure on what i want for real riding boots. i want something that i can walk around it so racing boots aren't for me.

pants are where i'm having the hardest time. i have some draggin jeans for summer but i would like better protection. i have some alter ego pants but they are too warm when it's warm and don't really keep me warm when it's cold. i'm thinking i would like some leather pants - but i need something that will zip down the side so i can take them off easily when i get to work. and i'd also like protective padding in them.

but to find all this out, i've had to do trial and error.

[Dragonhawk]

So do these recomendations meet my requirement? It has to comforatable in real hot weather, easy on and off and wearable in public places without causing alot of attention. I don't want to look like the road warrior or terminator going into a store. Im kinda small and it would look like I has some kinda ego problem if I were wearing some black armor suit. I have a good helmet already but it is an open face. I think I will go to a full but I don't like them. Harder for me to see and a pain to take off and on. I wear glasses.

You're absolutely right.

Don't wear a full-face helmet. They are too inconvenient. Besides, when you grind off half your chin in an accident, it will make your Halloween costume scarier! Bonus!

And you certainly don't want to feel self-conscious or look stupid walking around in fully-armored motorcycle gear. You're better off wearing the absolute minimum, so you can meet a hot and sexy nurse who will be scrubbing out the roadrash which ripped the skin off half your leg. But, hey, at least you didn't look like the Terminator when you went in the supermarket. Woohoo!

Half helmet and Levis should do just fine. Maybe even some flipflops!

As Fernando used to say, "You know, dahling, it's better to look good, than to feel good!"

[tanitatt]

for pants I'd go with these ...

http://www.compacc.com/prod.cfm/cid/1001002/pid/18074

they are comfy, look like regular jeans ... have abbrassion protection in the seat and knees plus CE rated armour in the knees.

for a jacket ... get a leather jacket with armor in the elbow, sholders and back ... if you're in the south ... get a fully perforated one with a liner for colder days... you can get awesome deals off of craigslist and ebay for leather jackets. i have two vanson jackets that would have costed over 1100 new but got both for less than 400 with armor already included.

get a good pair of boots ... SIDI B2 are a good start.

You can get cheap DOT and SNELL helmets just make sure they fit and are NEW.

The biggest mistake I've seen people do is spend all their money on their first bike and go on the cheap with gear ... to me you should check out your budget and spend half on the bike and the other half on gear ... you can alway upgrade your bike later ... but you don't want to be regreting getting sub-par protection.

gear up ... 600 in gear is A LOT cheaper than 60+ grand in skin grafts

[lunchmeat]

for boots i'm using some doc martins. i'm still unsure on what i want for real riding boots. i want something that i can walk around it so racing boots aren't for me.

I don't know if you're still looking for boots but I would recommend the Tourmaster Response SC boots. I realize I've said this before but they're pretty nice...they will protect your feet and are made for riding (they've got the shift pad and reflective patches on the back) but are incredibly comfortable. I could walk in them for a day and not have an issue (actually, I've done this). Check them out. I think I got mine for about $60 or so...

[ANDS!]

Don't wear a full-face helmet. They are too inconvenient. Besides, when you grind off half your chin in an accident, it will make your Halloween costume scarier! Bonus!

The best way to combat an impression of extreme unsafety - go for extremem hyperbole!

And you certainly don't want to feel self-conscious or look stupid walking around in fully-armored motorcycle gear.

I wouldn't wear it simply because its a bit excessive for daily commuting riding.

You're better off wearing the absolute minimum

Because lord knows there's no middle-ground.

The biggest mistake I've seen people do is spend all their money on their first bike and go on the cheap with gear

Cheap gear does not necessarily equal ineffective gear - ESPECIALLY with a helmet that is DOT/Snell approved.

I would recommend eBay for incredible deals on gear - you can easily get loaded up for less than 500 dollars (80 dollar helmets, 30 dollar gloves, 200 dollar or so leather jackets, etc. etc.)

[TorontoBoy]

I guess what to wear depends on how hot is your location, how fast you will be travelling, and how much traffic will try to run you over.

Let's take Thailand in the summer (34C/93F, high humidity), travelling at an average of 40kph/25mph. I would wear a polyester mesh jacket, a full face helmet, leather gloves, jeans and leather boots (over the ankle). If the heat was unbearable, I'd switch to a 3/4 helmet (or risk heat exposure/heat rash). The mesh jacket is very porous, and has many small holes throughout the material, so when you're moving this will keep you somewhat cool. When it rains you can put a rain jacket over your mesh jacket but you will get hot. In hot weather at 32C with high humidity a nylon or leather jacket will be unbearably hot.

If you are in Northern Thailand, where it can get cooler in the winter, maybe a nylon or leather jacket can work.

If you fall most people will put their hands out to break their fall, so gloves with fingers are important. Any exposed skin can be rubbed off by falling on the road, and this is very painful, so wear jeans and boots. Shorts, t-shirts and sandals are not safe.

Gear should adapt to your environment, your roads and your speed. The faster you go, the more protection you need. The higher chance you have of getting into a crash, the more protection you need. If it's too hot to wear your gear, and you leave it at home, the gear is not going to protect you.

Watch out for the elephants and large trucks!

[Kuhnfyoozed]

If it's too hot to wear your gear, and you leave it at home, the gear is not going to protect you.

If its too hot to wear your gear, then I'd say its too hot to ride, unless if you have some hot weather gear to wear instead.