New gear time...

veeeffarr · Super Spammer Joined: 22 Jul 2004 Karma :

Hi,

Basically looking for some new gear, my 18 month old textiles are a bit worse for wear and I fancy upgrading my kit.

I'm thinking of leathers this time around but I don't want to spend too much money (Budget under £300 preferrably for jackets and pants) What brands am I looking at for that money?

I'm thinking of pure black leathers, purely because my bike is teal and anything else would look shit.

Couple of questions tho:

Will it be significantly colder than textiles? I wore my textiles without the lining in last year during the snow and was fine.

Anything to look out for that will tell me I'm looking at a quality item? Triple stitching? Armour? etc.

I'm also looking for a pair of jeans, but does anyone know if HG's jeans have a facility to zip into a jacket? (I would imagine the zip would be on the inside, or am I just being stupid? Razz

)

Thanks for the help, In summary I'm looking for good quality nice looking kit but nothing TOO expensive like A* or Dainese and preferrably with armour.

I would also be tempted by textiles again if someone knew any that weren't baggy and 'flappy' but quite tight? My Voyager gear has big massive pockets and looks crap.

T!

P4LERIDER · Nitrous Nuisance Joined: 17 Aug 2006 Karma :

If you shop around a bit there are plenty of deals on 'last years' colours etc..

I think all of HG leather jeans zip to their own leather jackets but I'd double check before your buy. Don't expect them to zip to any other make jacket though as you may well find the zips are different.

Leather jeans are not too warm if you just wear them over your bare skin depending on how many air vents etc there are in them but if you're gonna be wearing them in the winter there's a host of decent quality linings you can get that are light weight and fit under the leathers easily.

Don't make the mistake of buying a pair of leathers that are 'big enough to fit a big wooly jumper under' as you'll find in the summer that these'll be too big for you & flap about. You don't wanna compromise on safety for the sake of being warm & like i said there are plenty of decent linings that are extremely thin to fit under your leathers but do an excellent job of keeping you warm.

Your best bet would be to visit your local dealers & just try on whatever you can in your price range until you find something that fits you nice - get advice from the people that work there - they should be able to talk you through getting the right fit.

For prices Ride mag might be a good guide? I know that Frank Thomas & HG leathers go pretty cheaply but are decent quality... shop around mate & see what you can get in the sales

Good Luck

veeeffarr · Super Spammer Joined: 22 Jul 2004 Karma :

Thanks for that.

When I was referring to zips, sorry, I was talking about demin/kevlar motorcycle jeans and not leather jeans, I forgot leather pants were also referred to as jeans

nrml76 · Brolly Dolly Joined: 05 Nov 2005 Karma :

Get yourself down to J&S in Northwich. You will probably end up buying something totally different from what you plan to. Unbeatable choice and excellent customer service! Thumbs Up

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mchaggis · World Chat Champion Joined: 10 May 2004 Karma :

froggeh · World Chat Champion Joined: 20 Jul 2006 Karma :

froggeh · World Chat Champion Joined: 20 Jul 2006 Karma :

P4LERIDER · Nitrous Nuisance Joined: 17 Aug 2006 Karma :

agree with all of you. my leathers just about let me squeeze a little jumper underneath.. got have something to keep you warm.. all i meant was don't go too mad with the layers under the leathers...

Never tried the fleece over the top.. some people say it stops your leathers sliding down the road if you ever had an off with your fleece over the top but i can't say i've ever tried it.... Wink

If i'm freezing my bollox off and i've got my water proofs with me i sometimes pop them on over my leathers.. they do a decent job of keeping you warm if you've got nothing else handy..

KLR600 · World Chat Champion Joined: 15 Mar 2005 Karma :

I just bought an RST leather jacket (I forget the model off the top of my head sorry) but it was £170, has knox armour in the shoulders and elbows, has a removable thermal waistcoat inner and has triple stitching all over it. I got it from Woods in Abergele (North Wales) and the sales girl there gave me a free knox back protector (that fits into a pouch built into the jacket) which was very nice of her! I asked for their help when I got my jacket and they were great, she didn't try and push the more expensive things on to me and she made sure that I had a jacket that fitted well. The matching trousers for my jacket are about £120 I think and they zip to the jacket aswell.

My jacket is pretty warm but not quite as warm as my old textile jacket although an extra t-shirt usually sorts that out.

Also, I read somewhere that it's best to wear lots of thin layers as opposed to a few thick ones as the air gets trapped between the layers and keeps you warm better or something, I forget the science bit but I can vouch for it working!
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mchaggis · World Chat Champion Joined: 10 May 2004 Karma :

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veeeffarr · Super Spammer Joined: 22 Jul 2004 Karma :

It's all so tempting.

I would like a new helmet too as my AGV Airtech hurts my ear on long rides.

I tried on a few helmets, like an AGV St George and the lining feels about 100x better than my Airtech ever did. I like the way it doesn't squash your ears.

I have too many things I want and only £700 though Razz

EuropeanNC30R... · Gay Hairdresser Joined: 20 Jun 2002 Karma :

I've crashed wearing a fleece over leathers at 70ish and slid some way on tarmac. Suprisingly it didn't rip up too badly, holes in elbows and one on the lower chest but only abrasions elsewhere with no holes. Though it was a half-decent craghoppers one.

It didn't grip at all as far as I'm aware.

Crash

Damage

froggeh · World Chat Champion Joined: 20 Jul 2006 Karma :

EuropeanNC30R... · Gay Hairdresser Joined: 20 Jun 2002 Karma :

Maybe, but it was a nice thick one, lot thicker than my other ones for example. Good example anyway, if that one didn't grip a lighter one is less likely to.

froggeh · World Chat Champion Joined: 20 Jul 2006 Karma :

stinkwheel · Bovine Proctologist Joined: 12 Jul 2004 Karma :

veeeffarr · Super Spammer Joined: 22 Jul 2004 Karma :

I went to a bike shop this weekend in Lancaster and saw some Frank Thomas Titanium 2 PC leathers, Am very impressed, so going to have a look around again next weekend.

veeeffarr · Super Spammer Joined: 22 Jul 2004 Karma :

Bought a Frank Thomas Titanium Fusion Sport 2 piece textiles.

Really pleased with them, the collar of the jacket makes lifesavers a bit of a pain but it's warm as hell and quite tight as well unlike my HG one which was loose as fook.

2 year warranty as well, seems like decent quality gear as well, got some gloves too.