Gloves Exploring Other Held Gloves

Bought a pair of Held Steves a couple years ago. Absolutely love 'em. But they are starting to show some signs of age. And I thought I'd try something a bit more substantial.

Went with the Alpinestars GP Plus gloves. Great protection and amazing build quality. But they didn't fit me just right and I'm spoiled by the kangaroo palms of the Steves -- you can just feel everything on the front end of the bike.

So I'm going to stick with Helds. I'm interested to hear what other Held models you folks are using and how you like them. I may just end up with another pair of Steves, but I'm inclined to make my current pair last a bit longer and add another pair of Helds with a bit more to them, like Akira's or maybe Sprints.

Input / feedback appreciated!

Love my Phantoms!

illzoni said:

Since getting my Helds, I couldn't live without the squeegee on the left index finger. Do other models sport this feature?

Jon

Click to expand...

I have a pair of Tourmaster's that have the squeegee

I have held ninja - left one showing the scuffs from my get off and one line of double stiching is gone - so shopping for another pair now.

btw - do not ever consider gloves if they have no double stiching at least!

The Held Profi is same as the Steve with just a little more armor. I like them so much, when Newenough reduced the price I bought a second pair that I'll keep in the closet until the originals wear out...and they got the squeegee...it's great!!

http://newenough.com/closeouts/gloves/held/profi_motorcycle_gloves.html

I wear Held Akira's. Love'em!

Got a pair of Held Panthers....at first I wasn't sure.....but 6 months later, I love em.

Early on, I kept scratching my nose with the squeegee thing...only problem was I was leaving black marks on my nose and no one at work would tell me...

I hate those people.

--Bryan
04ST1300A

I have both the Akira's and the Phantoms...love them both!

You ask a good question. This isn't an answer, but, I love my "Steves" and really dislike the Ninja's. The hard "knuckles" bite painfully into my knuckles when I curl up my hand. I can't imagine a better glove than the Steves around town.

I have often wondered, though, if the Steves would do the job at 80 or 90 mph on the freeway. I fell down once at 55 with leather garden gloves (the day before I became a safety fanatic) and the road surface sanded all the way through a couple fingernails and took every knuckle down to the ugly white structure underneath. THAT was a miserable evening in the emergency ward!

The Profi's look like the ticket. ARE there any competitors for the kangaroo palms?

Thanks for the NE pointer.
Russ

Thank you all for the comments and feedback.

My Steve's have held up really well and the thing I like the most about them is the comfort and being able to feel everything on the front end of the bike with those kangaroo palms. I've tried other brands and none have that feel. The current models are Phantom (race), Steve (sport touring), Akira (race), Ninja (sport), Panther (sport), Fresh (summer), Raindrop (summer rain), and Ice Breaker (winter).

The Galaxy was replaced by the Akira and that's the model I have my eye on, more protection than the Steves but still having the kangaroo on the palms.

The Phantoms are probably amazing, but I'm not sure I need that much glove and the price tag is pretty steep too. And from what I've seen of other race gloves, you give up a lot of comfort with the added protection. Sherob and Rob Hephner - is my assumption correct about the Phantoms? How comfortable are the Phantoms compared to the Steves?

ToroGuy - the price tag on those Profi's is nice, but it seems they have been discontinued and if I had to guess it was because they are so close it looks and features to the Steves. What is the additional protection you mention?

Neither the Ninja or the Panther have kangaroo palms and I'm really fond of this feature.

So, right now I'm partial to the Akira model. Coop, tell me more! Anyother Akira users out there?


[EDIT] Does anyone know the model name that the Phantoms replaced? I've been told it was the Kryptons. But someone else says it was the Galaxy. Wondering which it was and what changes were made when they became the Phantoms.

I have the Fresh for the summer. They are nice and cool, but lack the protection of other models. I hope I never regret wearing them.

I tried the Profis and didn't like them as much as the Steves. I still have an older pair of Panthers which are really good but not as good as the Steves. Of the three Helds I've worn, #1 goes to Steves.

i bought my helds so long ago that i can't remember the model names. both pair are waterproof. one is summer-weight, but they're not the storms. the other is a winter-weight glove. both have the rubber squeegee thingy and have never let me down. i'll buy helds again after i wear these out. just not sure when that will be.

The Phantoms are very comfortable... I've never tried the Steves, but I can't imagine a more comfortable glove I might have to get a pair of Steves

My only complaint about these are the velcro wrist straps are kind of a pain... but once I have them on...ooooooo, all is forgiven

I too have never worn the Steve's, but I love the feel of the Phantoms, no complaint at all from me.

I wear Joe Rocket Phoenix mesh gloves and until now I thought I was satisfied with them.



They are comfortable and all, but how do they compare in crash protection to for example the Held Steve? Anyone knows, or dares to guess?

If enough of you guys think I'm rolling the dice wearing these in stead of gloves like Held, I will switch.
I prefer not to study the inside structure of my hands after going down, you know... :shock:

pretbek - A few years ago, before I discovered the knowledgebase that is st-owners.com, I purchased a pair of JR CBR gloves (shown here). There is just no comparison between these JR's and the Helds. In a crash situation I'm guessing that there is as much difference between the JR's and wearing nothing as there is between the JR's and Helds. Just one man's .02.

Bones said:

I tried the Profis and didn't like them as much as the Steves. I still have an older pair of Panthers which are really good but not as good as the Steves. Of the three Helds I've worn, #1 goes to Steves.

Click to expand...

Just ordered a pair of Steves from Newenough so hopefully I will feel the same way.

pretbek said:

I wear Joe Rocket Phoenix mesh gloves and until now I thought I was satisfied with them.



They are comfortable and all, but how do they compare in crash protection to for example the Held Steve? Anyone knows, or dares to guess?

If enough of you guys think I'm rolling the dice wearing these in stead of gloves like Held, I will switch.
I prefer not to study the inside structure of my hands after going down, you know... :shock:

Click to expand...

Funny you mention those gloves, I just had a friend go down on the track with them at about 60. They wore through the palm and into a lot of his hand. He will be getting Helds the next time around.