more modern body armor options.

misterprofessionality

misterprofessionality

Road warrior
Thread starter
I've always worn hard leather as my default upper body armor, but this year i've been thinking of moving toward something a bit more modern (with actual armor).

some candidates: fox titan (https://www.foxracing.com/titan-spo...QaApMVEALw_wcB&source_FoxCampaign=UniShop) seems to have the edge on maximum protection and maximum airflow. i could just throw my warm layer over this when necessary, but i worry that the serious armor plating could be a bit bulky? thoughts?

EVS comp jacket (https://www.btosports.com/p/EVS-COM...c712q3Hi366pkPTsEF7-KYxkjiuq0EiQaAoetEALw_wcB) is also very light, and while less armored, seems much more wearable (meaning i lookand feel a bit less like i'm headed to a motocross event...)

finally, i've considered adding armor to an existing jacket. this seems to be the least expensive option. It seems like i can just sew some pockets on the interior of my elbows, shoulders, and back and sew in these plates nice and secure. thoughts on this? has anybody done this?
 
LOL I think most of us are too old to wear something like those..they look like an Iron Man outfit to me. Probably good protection though.

The new D30 armor is very light, very soft (until impact when it becomes stiff). You might see if there are any suits with D30 that would please you, but be prepared to pay. My wife's riding jacket with D30 was $500.
 
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This was the reason I didn't venture towards buying a d30 suit, i'm looking into buying d30 individual plates to sew into an existing jacket. i think that's my most low key option.

The reason the other jackets i linked look like iron man outfits, is because i'm specifically looking for something that's "just" armor. I don't want leather or textile or any other lining on it because i want to be able to wear it in sweltering heat with no problems. these are just kind of meshy, or very thin, so all the plates are exposed, which causes that "iron man" look. i'm not too fond of it tbh, but i'm trying not to think about it because i'm not out to buy a costume, i'm out to buy armor.
 
misterprofessionality_imp said:
I've always worn hard leather as my default upper body armor, but this year i've been thinking of moving toward something a bit more modern (with actual armor).

some candidates: fox titan (https://www.foxracing.com/titan-spo...QaApMVEALw_wcB&source_FoxCampaign=UniShop) seems to have the edge on maximum protection and maximum airflow. i could just throw my warm layer over this when necessary, but i worry that the serious armor plating could be a bit bulky? thoughts?

EVS comp jacket (https://www.btosports.com/p/EVS-COM...c712q3Hi366pkPTsEF7-KYxkjiuq0EiQaAoetEALw_wcB) is also very light, and while less armored, seems much more wearable (meaning i lookand feel a bit less like i'm headed to a motocross event...)

finally, i've considered adding armor to an existing jacket. this seems to be the least expensive option. It seems like i can just sew some pockets on the interior of my elbows, shoulders, and back and sew in these plates nice and secure. thoughts on this? has anybody done this?
Click to expand...
Bohn makes mesh base layers with armor. That way, you can wear your existing gear over it.

Bohn Armor

My brother rides with the Klim Induction mesh jacket. It has D3O armor. He really likes it. He says he never feels hot at speed because the jacket flows so much air. Plus, the cool thing with Klim is that if you crash while wearing their stuff, send it in for analysis and they will send you new replacement gear.
 
Another product for your consideration is the Helite Turtle self-inflating vest, about $600. They also make leather and Cordura jackets with the inflatable technology already built in. Alpinestars has a similar product but it needs to worn with specific Alpinestar garments, and is a bit pricier.
 
I have the Turtle Back Helite vest and love it. I wear it over an Aerostich Road Crafter jacket most of the time and a Cortech mesh jacket in hot weather.
 
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some thoughts: Klim looks really good and high quality, but it's outside the budget by more than 2x I think. probably should avoid

Those turtle back helite vests are extremely cool and gadgety, but that's about 4x my budget, lol! also not going to get close to that.

I'm interested in the Bohn gear if i can get a decent price on it somewhere in the next couple of months. it's certainly very low profile, and would fit under my warm gear really handily. my only concern is that it looks a bit loose, and that the protective plates might slide around a lot in an accident. I'm not basing that on anything but cursory observation though.
 
I’ve been wearing an Olympia Bradley this summer and I love it. Comes with a rain/wind breaker that honestly looks good on its own off the bike. It’s roomy, I had to size down. Comes with back armor too. CE armor is not great, but I put some C3PO or whatever in there from another jacket. $200
 
riggies_imp said:
I’ve been wearing an Olympia Bradley this summer and I love it. Comes with a rain/wind breaker that honestly looks good on its own off the bike. It’s roomy, I had to size down. Comes with back armor too. CE armor is not great, but I put some C3PO or whatever in there from another jacket. $200
Click to expand...
:rofl:
 
riggies_imp said:
I’ve been wearing an Olympia Bradley this summer and I love it. Comes with a rain/wind breaker that honestly looks good on its own off the bike. It’s roomy, I had to size down. Comes with back armor too. CE armor is not great, but I put some C3PO or whatever in there from another jacket. $200
Click to expand...
I have a 5 year old Switchback from Olympia that I like. I didn't realize that they updated their product line. I like the Bradley. I may pick one up. Is the back armor triangle shaped or rectangle? I think I would upgrade to better armor. I love that you can use the rain jacket inside or outside.

to the original post...I'm not sure that the full body armor you displayed would actually be cooler on the bike.
 
Mate ... forget the armour. Buy the H2.
 
Thread starter
Cormanus_imp said:
Mate ... forget the armour. Buy the H2.
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Lol,

Believe me, it was on my mind. The H2 is still up in the air though. Suspicion has arisen that the CL post is in fact a fake. I'm grateful if that's the case though.

edit: whoops that comment from riggies wasn't for me.
 
"my only concern is that it looks a bit loose, and that the protective plates might slide around a lot in an accident. I'm not basing that on anything but cursory observation though."


I wouldn't worry about this. The armour is there for the impact once you're sliding it's done its job.

I've got a Joe Rocket mesh jacket that I like a lot. I upgraded the armour to R2D2. I'm looking to replace it soon. The sun has turned it from black to some vague charcoal and I worry the integrity of the material is compromised as well. I've had it for two years and about 50,000 KM between two bikes. It's looking a bit like an old golf bag now. It was all black but I think I might move to something with a hint of colour and some reflective piping.
 
riggies_imp said:
I’ve been wearing an Olympia Bradley this summer and I love it. Comes with a rain/wind breaker that honestly looks good on its own off the bike. It’s roomy, I had to size down. Comes with back armor too. CE armor is not great, but I put some C3PO or whatever in there from another jacket. $200
Click to expand...
:rofl: I used to think the armor was called D3O as in dee-three-oh but later realized it's D30 as in dee-thirty. Their font choice was definitely a marketing mistake because it renders the name of the product indecipherable.

I think "D30" means "durometer 30" which is a measure of hardness for materials.
 
I wear the Bohn products and like them. Haven't tested them and not in a rush to do so. Advantage to me is ability to wear under existing gear. In summer wear under vented rinding pants. Peace of mind.
 
Thread starter
to close up this thread a bit, I actually ended up buying a Bilt mesh jacket with a back armor upgrade. total cost, about 110. such a good price i bought my wife one as well.
 
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