Guest Posted February 26, 2015 Share Posted February 26, 2015 I'm a vegan so I don't wear leather or anything from an animal. I'm also on a budget but looking to get some essential biking gear. I'm going to need some for my riding course and when I start riding after so considering my options. I'm vegan so it must be a fabric jacket, trousers/jeans and a pair of warm gloves that allow some dexterity too. Does anyone have any experience with ARMR gear? I've been particularly attracted to this jacket plus you get a free pair of waterproof jeans too. The jacket has armoured shoulders and elbows plus a space to add back armour. The trousers have armoured knees. It sounds good value at £99 for both.http://www.sportsbikeshop.co.uk/motorcy ... rod/117261Any thoughts? Any suggestions for gloves? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fq-craigus Posted February 26, 2015 Share Posted February 26, 2015 Alright pal, forgot vegans dont wear animal product, anyways moving on.Im notnpersonally a fan of armr anymore, when i started biking they were appealing as they were cheap and decent looking gear but they dont last the test of time at all.My textile hacket which i still use for work (im a mechanic and it gets real grubby so dont care) after the first wash it started fraying and the velcro weakened, after the second wash some stitching became pulled. Im thinking about if i come off in this jacket if it cant even handle a wash cycle hows it going to cope sliding along the road, as for gloves, my leather armr gloves held up in an accident but i think thats more because they are leather not because they done anything right but as you cant wear leather and your stuck with textile, my fiances gloves have fell apart after very little use of being pillion........Moral of my story is it will do for a quick fix but like me you will end up replacing it with something better. Rst make good gear and inexpensive really. Anything rst i would say works Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soll Posted February 26, 2015 Share Posted February 26, 2015 I have Armr kit as i got it as part of a deal when i bought my bike.winter gloves are ok, jacket is ok, boots are comfy, trousers where too long for my little legs, but thats it .. its okim a bit round so found fitting the jacket around my waist made it bunch around my neck a little, but i can live with that for a bit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 27, 2015 Share Posted February 27, 2015 Cheers for that. I'm a bit unsure now. I read a review that said the velcro catches the jacket and causes fraying too. I had a look at some RST jackets and there was one I quite liked for about the same price. Thanks again. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joeman Posted February 27, 2015 Share Posted February 27, 2015 Ive just bought a Richa Canyon jacket for 99quid.Seems pretty well made, good quality textile jacket. Worth a look. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted February 27, 2015 Share Posted February 27, 2015 Ive just bought a Richa Canyon jacket for 99quid.Seems pretty well made, good quality textile jacket. Worth a look. Thanks, I just had a look at it but while I was I came across an RST Alpha 2 jacket for £49.99 http://cdn2.bigcommerce.com/server1400/ ... 80.jpg?c=2Bargain?Question: Would I be better buying a jacket with a pocket in the back for a back protector or will they fit to any jacket? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soll Posted February 27, 2015 Share Posted February 27, 2015 have a look at JTS motorcycle clothing online.... loads to choose fromhttp://www.jtsbikerclothing.com/ Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Joeman Posted February 27, 2015 Share Posted February 27, 2015 RST gear is generally pretty good, but the cheaper you go the less insulated it will be - not a problem with summer coming!I think you really need to go and find a shop where you can speak to the staff and try stuff on.you cant get a good idea of biking gear from the internet alone, and you certainly wont get the sizes right! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RantMachine Posted February 27, 2015 Share Posted February 27, 2015 http://www.veganmotorcyclist.com/gear.htm Any use? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Mr Fro Posted February 27, 2015 Share Posted February 27, 2015 http://www.veganmotorcyclist.com/gear.htm Any use?Last updated 2007 - I guess vegan gear isn't all that protective. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
RantMachine Posted February 27, 2015 Share Posted February 27, 2015 Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
soll Posted February 27, 2015 Share Posted February 27, 2015 we could always use a bacon sandwich to entice EanX back from veganism Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 3, 2015 Share Posted March 3, 2015 RST gear is generally pretty good, but the cheaper you go the less insulated it will be - not a problem with summer coming!I think you really need to go and find a shop where you can speak to the staff and try stuff on.you cant get a good idea of biking gear from the internet alone, and you certainly wont get the sizes right! Yes I'm looking for somewhere close to home. I've come across a couple in Christchurch, Dorset but they seems small and don't stock a lot. Still looking. I like a couple of the RST jackets, particularly the Paragon IV but shame they don't do it in red. I do want to try them on. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 3, 2015 Share Posted March 3, 2015 http://www.veganmotorcyclist.com/gear.htm Any use? Yes I read that already, not much help and as you point out it's out of date.Gloves seem to the the biggest obstacle for me being vegan, they mostly seem to be leather or with a textile mix. Why is it manufacturers concentrate on protecting knuckles more than palms? I think if you're going to go down, it's instinct to put your palms down. I've looked at some textile gloves in particular and I can't help but feel they'd shred if I hit the road and slid a few feet.The choice of boots are a bit limited too but I think I've chosen some: http://www.sportsbikeshop.co.uk/motorcy ... rod/107043I've got base layers already as I use them when KayakingI quite like the Caberg Duke helmet, my favourite so far on paper but I need to try it on along with some others.I'm also more drawn to something like this than standard bike jeans http://www.sportsbikeshop.co.uk/motorcy ... rod/190964A question about armour. There are some very good leather-like materials around these days (like those boots above) and you can get vegan 'leather' jackets but they don't come with armour. Would I need to sew in an inner liner to hold them? I saw a back protector with straps but I've not seen any other armour with these. Anyone use armour with a jacket that's not strictly a motorbike jacket?I've also seen motorcycle socks. Erm.., why? What's the difference to say hiking socks? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Adam Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 Some gloves come with palm sliders which are supposed to take the impact and abrasion from an off but you only tend to see them on more expensive pairs. For armour you can buy this http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.vi ... 1511020505 Just bare in mind it won't save you from road rash or anything so you'd need to pair it with a Kevlar jacket or something similar. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
maccy Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 Doesnt matter if its leather, fake leather or not. If it hasnt been designed as motorbike clothing it wont hold up in a slide.Id recommend just sticking with proven textiles. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fq-craigus Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 Knuckles are vulnrable and easily smashed up so the protection is key, yes an outstretched hand is usually how people go down and decent gloves incoorporate scaphoid and ulna impact zones and some have sliders to so the matirial doesnt grab the tarmac and jarr your hand. Aside from that you need a hardy matirial for abrasion on the palm (ive lost all the skin from both palms in a pair of magic gloves on a pushbike not fun) Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 Some gloves come with palm sliders which are supposed to take the impact and abrasion from an off but you only tend to see them on more expensive pairs. For armour you can buy this http://pages.ebay.com/link/?nav=item.vi ... 1511020505 Just bare in mind it won't save you from road rash or anything so you'd need to pair it with a Kevlar jacket or something similar. Excellent! This jacket has more armour than any jacket I've seen. It's another option. Is Kevlar better than 600D polyester than many jackets are made from? Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
wr6133 Posted March 4, 2015 Share Posted March 4, 2015 Excellent! This jacket has more armour than any jacket I've seen. It's another option. Is Kevlar better than 600D polyester than many jackets are made from? Full motocross armour on a road bike is overkill in extremis! I'd rather some comfort and the ability to clearly concentrate over being uncomfortable and having my movement limited.Kevlar can be better than cordura, depends on the construction of the garment. I've walked away from crashing in £30 Kevlar jeans, I own £160 Kevlar jeans I would not want to crash in! I've yet to see upper body stuff in Kevlar I'd want to use, I know a few people that wear the Kevlar hoodies and while the quality can't be faulted it's pretty clear looking at them that in a crash they will just ride up to your arm pits as you slide.Don't over think things textile works, my last crash I slid at around 35 Mph and the textile jacket I (had bought the day before ) was wearing ended up with a hole the size of a 20 pence piece, it was a reasonable quality Australian Bikers gear one, far from high end but not at the bottom of the budget bin and it saved my skin. I've also crashed in a very very cheap textile jacket that disintegrated (though arguably it did its job).and yes I crash a lot, I spent most of last year doing food delivery on a series of dangerously faulty bikes Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest Posted March 5, 2015 Share Posted March 5, 2015 Thank you Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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