Re: CUSTOM LEATHERS?

keith,

also realize that most textile gear [like your teknic and icon geear] is most
likely coated with polyurethane. in a serious get-off, it will melt to your
skin and cause severe burns. so i don't even put those companies in the same
league as cycleport [i can't speak for aerostich]. as far as i know, cycleport
is the only brand that reportedly does not coat their materials, so you can
wear it against bare skin without worry of severe burns. additionally, their
GP-1 kevlar suit is the only synthetic suit approved for FIM road racing. imo,
that's a pretty good testament to their stuff.

as far as textile vs. leather in a sliding-down-the road-scenario: have you
ever seen someone in leather crash on asphalt and slide? the leather suit
doesn't necessarily grab and decelerate them that quickly. regardless of what
you're wearing, if you go down at speed, you're going slide/tumble somewhere
until you hit something solid or run out of momentum. the leather "grabbing and
stopping you quickly" is a pretty relative term; it's going to depend on a lot
of things [mainly physics]. there is no question of the level of protection a
quality leather [or kevlar or kangaroo] suit gives you, but it will always come
down to the individual physical aspects of the crash itself.

good luck on whatever you choose; whenever you get it, you should let the list
know what you go with and how it works out. i will eventually be in the market
for a set of leathers and would like to see how different brands measure up and
what folks think of them.

ron


--- Keith Nyberg <[email protected]> wrote:

> I already have a set of textile clothes. it is what I wear now and  will
> continue to wear in the winters. I live in seattle and if a day hits 85 in
> the summer it is rare. most of my short 15 mile commute in with in a mile of
> the puget sound. It stays a nice 56F so it's natural air conditioning. from
> talking to all the riders at work, they say leather is the best, but it sucks
> in the wet. so i have my wet gear already now want something for the dry. the
> tiger leather site looks pretty cool. so does the other place. I am currently
> dropping weight so once it stabilizes I will have to hit one of these places.
> I have read about the textile material being stronger than leather but it
> come at a price. you slide a lot further where leather grabs and stops you
> pretty quickly. which to me seems like a good thing.
>
> Date:         Sat, 25 Feb 2006 20:12:15 -0800
> Reply-To:     SV650 Discussion List <[email protected]>
> Sender:       SV650 Discussion List <[email protected]>
> From:         ron alabanza <[email protected]>
> Subject:      Re: CUSTOM LEATHERS?
> Content-Type: text/plain; charset=iso-8859-1
>
>
>
> honestly, I would seriously reconsider leathers unless you do more track than
> street. while a quality set of leathers is a good choice, they are
> notoriously
> inconvenient for ingress/egress (not to mention hot in the summer). you would
> do well to consider what type of riding you do the most and what will work
> best
> for you in most riding scenarios.
>
>
>
> before you go the full-on racer-boy route, check out either cycleport.com or
> aerostich.com. high-quality textile kit (both of these companies are primo!)
> is
> just as good (and in some cases better than) even premium leather suits +
> cost
> much less. I have a custom set of cycleport kevlar pants and they are
> outstanding. coupled w/ a good leather jacket, I am all good. definitely not
> track-day worthy, but excellent protection nonetheless. nothing against good
> leathers, but I find my kit suits my needs well (lots of commuting, mundane
> errands + lots of weekend strafing in the local twisties).
>
>
>
> it might not be a natty leather suit, but its a hell of a lot more practical
> +
> I can wear it over street clothes. if youre still sold on leather, check out
> z
> custom leathers or barnacle bill. just be prepared to bust out the benjamins
> +
> roast like a pig come july.
>
>
>


ron alabanza
fat rabbit designs

H > 434.296.7904
W > 434.296.2886
C > 434.242.1067
F > 434.220.2887
E > [email protected]
www.fatrabbitdesigns.com

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