Jackets Clothing Safety Standards

I thought I'd keep the initial post clean and add my comments here.

Shortly after I started riding again, I went from cheap motorcycle clothing to something a bit more substantial. Expensive for my cheap soul,, but less expensive than the premium brands. I ended up with Olympia gear. Two jackets and a pair of pants. They were some of the best investments I made in gear.

Eventually, the zipper on the pants failed, so I started looking for replacement pants. What I found, shocked me. The materials seemed off. Sure they were smooth and nice to the touch. But they were so thin, I had to wonder if they would really do any protection. And then I found the safety standards that were enacted.

If you think the people who enacted the safety standards were doing so to look out for you, I think you're wrong. Safety has become a consideration only after making the item fashionable and soft to the touch. Soft to the touch and good abrasion resistance shouldn't be in the same sentence. The safety standards seem designed to limit entry to the market and limit competition.

600D Cordura that used to be in the main body of the garment, is now held up to be suitable for the impact areas...where 2000D Cordura was used. And you need to watch your material descriptions. 600D Cordura is not 600D Oxford or 600D polyester, or 600D ripstop nylon.

An "A" rated garment per EN17092 means it'll last for a certain length of time at a certain speed. In this case, an A rated garment will last 1.4 seconds at 28 mph. That's just about as fast as a bicycle going downhill will reach. An AA rating means it'll last 2 seconds at 43 mph.

Question: Well, what if I ride at 70 mph?
Answer: You need to slow down to 43 mph before you have your accident.

Here are materials descriptions of a sample of jackets you can buy.
  1. HEAVY-DUTY 600D CORDURA TEXTILE MOTORCYCLE JACKET WITH CE ARMOR: Built with a 600D Cordura outer shell for maximum abrasion resistance through every ride. CE armor at the shoulders, elbows, and back provides protection whe
  2. 100% Waterproof, Abrasion Resistant and Windproof. 600D Oxford cloth high performance fabric.
  3. removable CE Armor on the elbows, shoulders, and back, polyester 600D Cordura fabric on high-impact areas
  4. 600D Cordura Ripstop Stretch Polyester, 600D Ripstop Stretch Nylon
They sell for:
  1. $110
  2. $110
  3. $70
  4. $450
The first three sell on Amazon. The last one is a name brand. I'm not sure there's $300+ dollars of quality in the last jacket, no matter what the name is.

So the bottom line is be smart. Do your own homework. Some of the jackets in my earlier thread asking for recommendations cost several hundred dollars, but only had an A rating. In other words, you're down to your skin in a second at residential speed limits.

Chris
 
Don't know what my First Gear Sonora Air was rated, but it held together pretty well in a real life 75 mph, 50-100 foot body surfing on the interstate.
And so did my Tourmaster Mesh trousers.
There was a little burn through at the elbows and knees but not enough to cause any road rash.
But I sure don't like being a 'live test' subject ... ;)
 
I can agree with that. There are not nearly enough AAA garments available, at any price. With respect to cost, nearly all of my gear has been bought as a closeout or similar at a substantial discount. Being patient is a huge help in the quest for good value for money.
 
From Motolegends
"Sliding, as some wag once pointed out, is not the problem. It is the coming to a stop that is the problem. It is when we hit things that we really do ourselves damage. The road, as we go over the bonnet of a car and land on our back or shoulder. A tree. A lamp post. A wall. A car. A kerb. Indeed anything that is solid and unyielding. And frankly it matters not what the EN17092 rating of a garment is when this is the outcome. A, AA or AAA; a stronger, more abrasion fabric will not have a bearing upon the situation. In such circumstances, it is the armour that you wear that can be decisive."
 
Al st1100 said:
From Motolegends
"Sliding, as some wag once pointed out, is not the problem. It is the coming to a stop that is the problem. It is when we hit things that we really do ourselves damage. The road, as we go over the bonnet of a car and land on our back or shoulder. A tree. A lamp post. A wall. A car. A kerb. Indeed anything that is solid and unyielding. And frankly it matters not what the EN17092 rating of a garment is when this is the outcome. A, AA or AAA; a stronger, more abrasion fabric will not have a bearing upon the situation. In such circumstances, it is the armour that you wear that can be decisive."
Click to expand...
Unfortunately, the armor is helpful but not enough during high speed impacts to the asphalt like mine.
That's why I wear an air vest and I believe it was a major factor in minimum damage to my upper body at 75 mph.
After I completely broke 4 ribs in a 5 mph low side without one, I don't want to think of the results had I not been wearing my air vest.
You need all the protection that you can deal with (if you don't wear it, it is worthless).
But I also realize there are some accidents where nothing would save you.
 
tonythecarguy said:
I can agree with that. There are not nearly enough AAA garments available, at any price. With respect to cost, nearly all of my gear has been bought as a closeout or similar at a substantial discount. Being patient is a huge help in the quest for good value for money.
Click to expand...
I wonder what my Olympia gear would test out to be? At least AA....but probably AAA. :unsure: I pick up the Klim Induction jacket I bought last summer and it is nothing like the Olympia Dakar jacket that is replacing as a mesh jacket. And the Olympia AST2 and now Ranger jackets for the winter months are pretty hefty. I finally put the Dakar jacket away and bought the Klim simply because the zipper had finally failed. The Dakar jacket held up to that 70 mph accident with only a tiny place with some scuff marks. I'm thinking of replacing the Ranger jacket finally because the stitching is finally starting to come apart. It wasn't made bad; the gear just endured ten years or so of being in brutal southwestern summer sun.

Al st1100 said:
From Motolegends
"Sliding, as some wag once pointed out, is not the problem. It is the coming to a stop that is the problem. ...."
Click to expand...
I suspect that discussing that is like oil. If your accident was primarily a slide and your injuries came from that...you'd rank abrasion protection higher than impact protection. And vice versa.

I used to think that if I was in an accident and found my gloves were not protecting my hands, that I would have the presence of mind to get them out of the way. Maybe you could do that in a 10 mph accident, but at higher speeds...nah. It's been 2.5 years since I went off the road at 70+ mph. It took me 30 days to come up with an explanation of why I wasn't paying attention to the road, and even that is simply putting pieces together and coming up with a logical explanation of what happened. What I can tell you for sure was that I remember the front end of the bike going down and knowing I was going up...and some woman in my face telling me the EMTs would be there shortly. I have no clue of anything else except one picture from my dash cam of me about to hit the ground with my Hit-Air airbag vest already inflated and I was facing the bike. I had no control over what happened.

So the bottom line for me is to get the best gear I can buy, because it will protect me when I can't. :)

Chris
 
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