For those dumping money into bike...

[Stretch_imp]

Thanks Stretch for wording it better then I did.
( BTW - which Vanson leather pants do you have and recommend? http://www.vansonleathers.com/cat-Pants_...-61-2.aspx )

For me, after I bought the CB1100, I felt it was more important to get a good leather jacket then, then a good leather seat.
Or a good pair of gloves more so then a different color side panel or chrome piece.
So people say "gear guy", just depends which you are buying gear for....yourself, or the motorcycle.
My point is I would rather spend the money making sure I have good gear rather then swapping parts on my motorcycle that are for looks only.
I guess each person enjoys motorcycles/motorcycling in different ways.

Traveler. They are the most traditional. Stiff at first but they break in beautifully and get very soft and comfortable. Too darn hot to wear now though. I have something like the MK2 Sportrider jacket although it's about 13 years old so probably some slight changes have been made.

Here's the thing: If you are a gear guy, a believer in wearing protective gear, then it shouldn't matter whether the bike costs thousands of dollars or hundreds of dollars. A crash/accident is just that, no matter how much you spend on the bike. You either place a priority on trying to protect yourself in case of such an event of you don't. That's an individual call.

If someone were to ask for gear recommendations, or about how much others spend on gear on average, then I could understand. Questioning the judgement of others when it comes to mods v.s. protective gear only seems destined to end poorly.

Another way to see it is that people are coming here to learn about motorcycling. I think, here's a guy who's making some real sense, getting his priorities right, in my view. I got a lot of respect for that. I didn't know squat when I first started riding in '83. I sure came across a fair number of guys who wouldn't give me the time of day as well as a few who passed along some good stuff. Now 30 years later I am still sitting here with two arms and two legs and all my fingers and toes, thank God. Part of that is by paying attention and asking a lot of questions. I believe the only dumb question is the one you don't ask. And by the way, the most helpful guys were always the most humble. I believe in paying it forward.

Just an example, today I went to work on my travel trailer and the guy in the spot next to me had a new trailer. I got to talking to him and noticed he didn't have a weight distribution hitch for his 4,500 lb. rig. I says, "Are you just going to tow that trailer on the ball?" He replied that the dealer said it would be fine. I told him it would not be fine, he got the wrong info. Not a real good idea to tow a 25' trailer like that at that weight. I happened to have part of that type of hitch that I didn't need any more which fit his Tundra perfectly so I gave it to him, it cost me about $125 but I didn't need it any more. He's gonna need to throw another $800 at the trailer to do it safe but he's got his wife with him and it just did not sit right to stand there and say nothing. If the guy would have been defensive and said it was fine, then I would've wished him luck and went back to working on my own rig. But I won't stand there and say nothing, I'll take the risk of being brushed off. Maybe it'll save the guy's bacon some day.

To my mind it is a little bit refreshing to see a guy asking about gearing up rather than what kind of pipe or seat to use or how to chop off the rear fender. I have seen so many guys and girls busted up on the road and hauled off with helicopters and in ambulances I can't even tally them up any more. So yeah I am a huge supporter of rider training, track days, and good gear.