Fashion leathers?

[Guest]

I have spent 2 years commuting on my bike year round with good leathers that have padding and kevlar but now I have my own car I don't ride very often. I only ride for pleasure but with this years heat wave in full swing I am looking into buying some new lighter gear to wear.

I have a cruiser bike and am quite vain and want to look cool so am sticking to leathers, my question is are leather "jeans" ok to wear on your bike? I know lots of pillion ladies wear them but I'm worried with padding of re-enforcement they wouldn't be enough protection if I went for a slide (which hasn't happened in 3 years touch wood). Obviously steer clear of fashion leather trousers (from the high street) but I was thinking leather jeans would be ok as long as they are stitched correctly and are made from cow hide, what do you think?

Also while I'm on the subject of new gear what about boots? I have seen some "biker" boots that are that are really great value but again am not sure they would be suitable protection. Any suggestions on how to tell if items that are not new from shops are any good?

http://i.ebayimg.com/21/!BU7L(gw!Wk~$(KGrHgoH-DsEjlLl)w!eBKP9JWs+zQ~~_1.JPG

Any advice would be greatly appreciated Thanks for your time, Lei

[Sheep_onna_Bandit]

Stop being a poseur and wear full body armour!!

[Korben]

Leather jeans should really be biker ones.. Their are a lot of good looking stuff out there nowadays so you might be able to find what you are looking for.

You can buy armour that go under leathers (Knox and Alpinestars do a pair of shorts with CE approved protection in them), but wearing none biking leather won't protect you as well as biking leather. You freely admit to being vain so how would you feel about permanent scars all the way down your legs as the trousers you were wearing fell apart on you as you slid down the road?

None biker boots... Bad idea. Biker boots have protection in the right areas for a reason. Again the need for good looking footwear has led to some half decent looking stuff....

Hope this helps!!

Oh, drop into Newbies and introduce yourself... Tell us all about yourself as well!!

[Ratser]

I used to have a pair of boots like that, before I started biking.

Compared to the ones I have they offer absolutely no protection.

They are basically movie 'biker boots'.

[Guest]

I used to have a pair of boots like that, before I started biking.

Compared to the ones I have they offer absolutely no protection.

They are basically movie 'biker boots'.

Thanks for clarifying I'll stick to proper biker boots then lol

I would never dream of going out in fashion clothes, I was curious of the level of safety of leather "jeans" in bike shops and the like compared to proper armour with padding and kevlar.

As a lady I often get the chance of good second hand leathers on EBay from pillion passengers who sell their hardy worn gear for pennies Does make chasing up brands/safety a bit tricky though so I am always cautious.

[Pete]

Leather's OK in a slide, providing the seams are all stiched well enough. But don't forget the impact from hitting the ground/tree/cars/street furniture. Like others have said always go for as much protection as possible, if you (not only you, anybody really) can't commit to wearing adequate protection for the sake of not getting a sweat on then don't go out.

Speaking of impact protection, imagine what'd happen to your ankle if a car side swiped you whilst you were wearing those boots. No more walking without a limp for the rest of your life!

There're plently of cool looking clothes out there that offer great protection. It all depends on what styles you want to go for and how much you want to spend.