New riding kit, what have you bought lately and why?

[Scootabout]

A Speedo Angels dazzle-reducing cover for the Tracer's clocks. I was getting terrible reflections of the sun. A quick test today seems to confirm it works. 3 day trip to the west country coming up, so, if the weather forecast proves correct I should know for sure by the end of that.

https://speedo-angels.com/

[formula400]

ordered a pair of these short boots to go with my riding jeans and there not great with my full length sidi's

https://www.sportsbikeshop.co.uk/motorc ... rod/411298

[weeksy]

ordered a pair of these short boots to go with my riding jeans and there not great with my full length sidi's

https://www.sportsbikeshop.co.uk/motorc ... rod/411298

I like them... especially if they have a zipper side, mine are the TCX and they've got a couple of minor issues for me, 1 being the lace up which makes them a struggle to get on/off and 2 they're really really warm. Which admittedly isn't often a major issue in the UK, but even on warmish days they're crazy toasty.

[formula400]

Yeah tried to avoid the lace up, don’t have time for that

[Bigyin]

Thanks to the heat of summer i managed to buy another bit of bike kit.

Air Mesh jacket, cheap as chips with armour in the shoulder, elbows and back. Comes with a removable liner that fits under the seat in case you get caught out and the temp drops a bit. Mesh panels on the front, arms and back. Made by RK Sports so budget basic but ideal for bimbling around behind 125's and 50's while training

[formula400]

ordered a pair of these short boots to go with my riding jeans and there not great with my full length sidi's

https://www.sportsbikeshop.co.uk/motorc ... rod/411298

Had my first ride in these and love them, just what I wanted, go so much better with my RST jeans.

[Hot_Air]

Awesome hex key set (German quality, doesn’t round off bolt heads). It’s an ideal size for my tank bag, but I end up using it for general tinkering too

Wiha Hex Key Set

[weeksy]

It was the wife's for 2 days but she didn't get on with it, so I've bought it off her.

[dern]

I bought some forcefield pro armoured shorts to wear under my leathers on track days and also to wear when green laning. I've never felt that hip armour has been that good in anything I've owned and as I'm past 50 now everything take a bastard age to mend. I haven't crashed in them yet but wore them for a day at Brands last week and the were very comfortable. When the armour heats up it sort of moulds to your body making it fit really well. CE2 level armour too. Sportsbikeshop had them up for 70 quid but sadly they appear to be full price again.

https://www.infinitymotorcycles.com/pro ... el-2/black

[Hot_Air]

When the armour heats up it sort of moulds to your body making it fit really well. CE2 level armour too.

It's Forcefield Isolator 2 armour, which is brilliant. I upgraded some of my jacket armour to Isolator 2 protectors, and they are the comfiest CE2 armour I have tried. Also, Forcefield makes big claims about its impact absorption (but they would, wouldn't they?).

[Tricky]

A pair of Furygan "Higgins" gloves to replace my ageing Alpine Star SP8s, as the stitching was starting to go after 4 or 5 years.

Admittedly they aren't Furygan's top of the range, but they are not pennies either, but however much they cost, are certainly not worth buying - I wore them at Pembrey this week-end for the very first time, got to crash in them second time out and this was the result.

The gloves are only fit for the bin- the leather (which tears like paper) went straight through, the cuff securing strap snapped and I've got a black fingernail and a mushed little finger as a result.


Very disappointing- I haven't had any Furygan stuff for a while and never their gloves but what I have had previously has all been massively better quality than these were- makes me wonder what you need to do to get the CE mark that they have- not much going by my experience

[KungFooBob]

I've had two pairs of SP8's. Both bought on sale, they were pretty good for the money. IIRC they were under £30 a pair.

One pair crashed twice during solo racing and only the suede looking bit on the palm balled up. The 2nd pair looked quite second hand after a season of sidecar racing and holding on for dear life.

I've got some Handroids now. Not crashed in them, but they feel really premium (probably because they are).

[Skub]

A pair of Furygan "Higgins" gloves to replace my ageing Alpine Star SP8s, as the stitching was starting to go after 4 or 5 years.

Admittedly they aren't Furygan's top of the range, but they are not pennies either, but however much they cost, are certainly not worth buying - I wore them at Pembrey this week-end for the very first time, got to crash in them second time out and this was the result.

The gloves are only fit for the bin- the leather (which tears like paper) went straight through, the cuff securing strap snapped and I've got a black fingernail and a mushed little finger as a result.


Very disappointing- I haven't had any Furygan stuff for a while and never their gloves but what I have had previously has all been massively better quality than these were- makes me wonder what you need to do to get the CE mark that they have- not much going by my experience

Fook.

Did you ever have the misfortune of 'testing' the SP8s Tricky?

[Tricky]

Fook.

Did you ever have the misfortune of 'testing' the SP8s Tricky?

Yep i have and like Bob I've had more than one pair of them they've been good- the SP8s don't have the extra security of the wristband which is the only negative on them for me but it hasn't mattered in my case and I'll be replacing the Furygan's with AStars, , probably another pair of SP8s i think

[KungFooBob]

Have I got freakish hands or do the SP8's fit fine everywhere, but the thumb is half an inch too long.

[weeksy]

Went to motorcycle mega store in Swindon to resolve the wife's helmet saga.

If you'd not seen, she bought a Shoei nxr which after riding on track this weekend she declared it was too big for her. So I've now bought hers and today was shopping.

She tried 2-3 Arais first. Then onto hjc for 3-4 different models, then onto Shark, then some agv lol. I don't know how many in total but it was a fair few

In the end she went with an NXR lol. One size smaller than the other.

[KungFooBob]

That is proper 80's!

[weeksy]

That is proper 80's!

Indeedy

[Hot_Air]

I wore them at Pembrey this week-end for the very first time, got to crash in them second time out and this was the result.

The gloves are only fit for the bin- the leather (which tears like paper) went straight through, the cuff securing strap snapped and I've got a black fingernail and a mushed little finger as a result.

Fukk

makes me wonder what you need to do to get the CE mark that they have- not much going by my experience

CE Level 1 only tests the palm's abrasion resistance (the rest of the glove can have zero abrasion resistance!). Though Level 2 exists, virtually all manufacturers only bother to produce Level 1 gloves because there's no incentive to do better. Even Dainese's £440 trackday gloves are only Level 1.

I know, there's also a test for cut resistance. But I once bought CE-certified gloves and found the upper was made of Spandex. (I returned them.) How hard can the Level 1 test be if Spandex gloves can pass it?

Is there any other sector where the industry has lowered safety standards as much as bike clothing? Imagine if NCAP lowered car safety standards each time it updated them! Unfortunately, the motorcycle poachers are also the gamekeepers: the CE standards committee mainly comprises representatives from the manufacturers (not medical professionals, etc.).

And Brexit appears to have made no difference because we’ve become an EU-rule-taker when it comes to motorcycle PPE.

[MrLongbeard]

CE Level 1 only tests the palm's abrasion resistance (the rest of the glove can have zero abrasion resistance!). Though Level 2 exists, virtually all manufacturers only bother to produce Level 1 gloves because there's no incentive to do better. Even Dainese's £440 trackday gloves are only Level 1.

Most riders wouldn't buy class 2 gloves, they're bulkier than winter gloves, plus it's difficult for a manufacturer to balance the ergonomic requirements of the standard with the protective requirements.
So, no or very limited market, why spend money in developing them.

I know, there's also a test for cut resistance. But I once bought CE-certified gloves and found the upper was made of Spandex. (I returned them.) How hard can the Level 1 test be if Spandex gloves can pass it?

Buy the standard from BSI and let us know.

Is there any other sector where the industry has lowered safety standards as much as bike clothing?

Yes

the CE standards committee mainly comprises representatives from the manufacturers (not medical professionals, etc.).

The committee chairs try and get a fair share of everyone from producers to labs to experts etc etc, hell I've been invited to sit on more than a couple, but if there's no takers (I declined) then they get what representation they get.

And Brexit appears to have made no difference because we’ve become an EU-rule-taker when it comes to motorcycle PPE.

Give it a minute hey, nothing happens over night.