Textile Jackets.

[Funky]

I wanted to ask, is "Textile Jacket" worth getting? Over regular jackets for riding?

Do they give more protection? And how much more over regular jackets?

Been looking at 100-200€ Jackets.

[Eucner]

Do you mean textile motorcycle jackets vs. regular jackets? MC jackets give protection against abrasion and impacts. Highly recommended for EUC riding.

[Forwardnbak]

I use this Alpinestars jacket it’s a summer textile with great airflow. Has elbow pads and back protector can be added. 
 

thats AUD price

Edited February 8, 2022 by Forwardnbak

[Paul A]

Full grain leather motorcycle suit is best.

One piece or two piece.

Custom made to measure.

Available online.

CE certified protection at shoulders, elbows, back, hips, knees.

Dainese, Alpine Stars etc.

[Denny Paul]

2 hours ago, Paul A said:

Full grain leather motorcycle suit is best.

One piece or two piece.

Custom made to measure.

Available online.

CE certified protection at shoulders, elbows, back, hips, knees.

Dainese, Alpine Stars etc.

Totally overkill. You’re going to be drenched in sweat on a cold day and it’s going to pain to move in a properly (tight) fitting suit.

having been down at 40 mph on a motorcycle, even mesh textile will hold up on a crash. It’ll have some tears, but it’ll hold and you’ll be covered. Regular textiles would be the extra cautious but the arguably sensible step up. Full leathers sound a bit ridiculous.

or maybe you’re intending on crashing several times at 45+mph. In which case I think we may a different problem on our hands, but that’s none of my business. 

[Funky]

The thing is i'm on 6xl-8xl size (Weist alone is 130cm) and there isn't many options for my size. xD Have seen only 1-3 jackets. One maybe had those elbows, shoulders, back protection. (For big guy there's not a lot of options..) At least in local shops.. Online shops and their measurements are kinda meh.. For us big guys as we got bigger stummy than shoulders.  

Edited February 8, 2022 by Funky

[Forwardnbak]

I agree that full leather for everyday is a bit keen. Even on my motorbike I only full leather up the mountain.  
I think if you start going hard on 100kph wheels or racing leathers would help with confidence but where I live the heat is just killer and I think with decent riding jeans (draggin jeans 7sec slide rating) and textile jacket, plus trying to learn to fall correctly can help. Knee pads are good if you can learn to land knee first and keep all your limbs tucked in. 

[mike_bike_kite]

5 minutes ago, Forwardnbak said:

trying to learn to fall correctly can help.

Just start at the bottom of the stairs and slowly work your way up. With enough practise you'll be falling of balconies without a care  

[Paul A]

Full leather suit made to measure is very comfortable.  Much better than off the rack.

On very warm days, it's going to be hot whatever the clothing.  Either don't ride, or wear an ice vest.

Thicker clothing actually shields against heat better than thin.  Think of the clothing worn by firefighters and chefs.

Much better than the flimsy plastic guard tops held with straps/Velcro/elastic mesh....they probably won't stay in place. 

They do not provide all over secure coverage.

 

[Funky]

4 minutes ago, mike_bike_kite said:

Just start at the bottom of the stairs and slowly work your way up. With enough practise you'll be falling of balconies without a care  

Better not to fall at all.

I have fallen only 2 times. Once at learning.. And second time at lower speed turning.. (My upper body went to much in circular motion than wheel..) I simply landed side ways and did 2 rolls on ground. 

I'm simply looking at jackets, mainly that they have those elbow, shoulder protection built in. Otherwise i'm not using any of those at the moment. Mostly wrist guards, as i land mostly on hands first. For long "fun" rides etc.. I take helmet, knee guards.

[Funky]

12 minutes ago, Paul A said:

Full leather suit made to measure is very comfortable.  Much better than off the rack.

On very warm days, it's going to be hot whatever the clothing.  Either don't ride, or wear an ice vest.

Thicker clothing actually shields against heat better than thin.  Think of the clothing worn by firefighters and chefs.

Much better than the flimsy plastic guard tops held with straps/Velcro/elastic mesh....they probably won't stay in place. 

They do not provide all over secure coverage.

 

Yeah that won't be happening, thanks doh.. xD I don't see myself in one anytime soon.

Simple jacket, like everyday jacket.. I'm looking for something like that. You could wear it to store and ride euc. Something like that.  

Edited February 8, 2022 by Funky

[Funky]

In "local" store we got: (SECA) Katana III  / (SECA) X Tour Black

These would "fit" me. I'm looking more at katana III one. Any inputs how good could it be? As i have never owned one, so i don't know anything, or what to look for in these "textile jackets"

[Tawpie]

7 hours ago, Funky said:

what to look for in these "textile jackets"

I looked for two things: ability to hold all my upper body pads securely without moving around (shoulder, elbow and back), and abrasion resistance.

To hold things in place, the jacket must fit properly or have adjustments. I wanted something that fit level2 pads, and wanted them built in because it makes gearing up so much easier.

Abrasion resistance: I went with 600 denier in a mix of mesh and not-mesh, no kevlar or other supplemental linings... I shouldn't be going fast enough to slide for very long.

So far many crashes at low speed, no rips, tears or other visible damage. Pads have stayed where they belong. Only one crash on the road while 'moving briskly', jacket didn't really get a test because I slid it out on palms and knees.

Lastly, my jacket zips to my pants. It won't ride up in a slide, I consider that very important!

(Jacket is a Rev'IT Tornado 2, got it on clearance with a L2 back protector for 320USD. Rev'IT caters to the slim european look though, I'm not sure how well their line fits on more typical body shapes. Motorcyclists aren't known to have exceptionally athletic builds though, so I would certainly think there are vendors that have styles more suitable to regular people)

Edited February 8, 2022 by Tawpie

[Paul A]

Lower half of body needs protection as well.

[Funky]

1 hour ago, Paul A said:

Lower half of body needs protection as well.

Nah.. Best protection is the one you chose to wear in first place. No point buying something you won't really use.

Aka my 55year old rides without any. Then again he only has ks16s. I at least use some.

[Skeptikos]

10 hours ago, Funky said:

what to look for in these "textile jackets"

@Tawpiehas a good response, but let me add some more:

EN 17092 class A or class AA certification. This just means that the material and the seams have been tested in a lab and held up reasonably well. Class A is the less protective class but it's good for 18XL speeds. You have to read product descriptions carefully, because sometimes they'll say something is CE certified, but it's talking about the pads and not the garment itself. So you should look specifically for EN 17092, which covers both the pads and the garment. Since this is a European standard, and you're in Europe, I'd definitely look for this-- there's really no excuse for not having it in your area, except that the protection is subpar.

Fit. Fit is important to hold the pads in place. You generally want a snug fit. Arm adjusters (for elbow pads) and adjustable knee pad heights are a good idea. If you plan to upgrade the pads or wear armor underneath then make sure to leave some room for that-- you might need to size up. If you can try things out in person that's the best option. A lot of jackets and pants have waist adjusters too, which might do what you need.

Pads. Better pads have CE level 2 (the highest) certification, while many garments come with CE level 1 pads. They can be upgraded, but you want to check that there are CE level 2 pads in a similar size/shape if you plan to do that. You can cut pads up to make them fit if needed but it's better not to.

Chest protectors. Most motorcycle jackets don't have pockets/velcro/etc. for including chest protectors, which provide very useful rib protection for us. But some do. I think chest protectors are a good thing to have.

Reflectivity. Reflective elements on the jacket are a nice safety feature, especially important if you do a lot of night riding. Bright colors are good too.

Jacket/pants connector. Many motorcycle jackets and pants come with connectors that hold the two together, so the pants can't slide down and the jacket can't slide up. But the connectors aren't all compatible with each other, so you have to check that they're compatible if you want that feature.

Weather. Windproof jackets are great for winter, and mesh jackets are great for summer.

 

Anyway, there are a lot of considerations and you probably won't find something that has every feature you want.

The Lazyrolling reflective jacket from e-Rides, or performance hoodie for the summer, looks like one of the better options out there, so if it has a decent fit I would totally endorse that. I got this Macna Aytee NightEye jacket for the winter and I like it pretty well (it turns bright white at night when lights hit it).

 

10 hours ago, Funky said:

In "local" store we got: (SECA) Katana III  / (SECA) X Tour Black

These would "fit" me. I'm looking more at katana III one. Any inputs how good could it be?

I can't find anything saying it has EN 17092 certification. If it doesn't then I would consider it to be on the very low end of protection. One easy way to tell is to check the tags in person-- if it doesn't have the CE tag then it isn't certified. Here's the tag from my Macna jacket:

Spoiler

Even if it's not certified, it's still a big improvement over nothing. Just don't expect too much from it when it hits asphalt.

[magalingako]

If you’re in the USA, Revzilla has a nice selection of gear, including textile jackets.

[lazybones99]

On 2/8/2022 at 11:50 AM, Tawpie said:

Abrasion resistance: I went with 600 denier in a mix of mesh and not-mesh, no kevlar or other supplemental linings... 

Anyone have an idea what the minimum denier should be for 40mph+ street riding? I assume 600 is okay but I’ve seen a few 300 jackets that I really liked… but not enough to accept road rash.

[Tawpie]

1 hour ago, lazybones99 said:

Anyone have an idea what the minimum denier should be for 40mph+ street riding?

Good question! Probably doesn't have a good answer though. Higher denier is probably better, but how much is enough?

I think the one thing I've discovered with my low speed crashes (and watching videos of other people crash) is that it's amazing how quickly you stop. There hasn't been much 'slide'. That surely changes as speed goes up or when you weigh more than I do (kinetic energy being higher). Perhaps the motorcycle forums would be a resource?

[Forwardnbak]

14 hours ago, magalingako said:

If you’re in the USA, Revzilla has a nice selection of gear, including textile jackets.

They also do great gear reviews. I’m in Australia and always watched their gear guides. 

[GothamMike]

On 2/8/2022 at 12:22 AM, Paul A said:

Full grain leather motorcycle suit is best.

One piece or two piece.

Custom made to measure.

Available online.

CE certified protection at shoulders, elbows, back, hips, knees.

Dainese, Alpine Stars etc.

Would be nice to slip on a suit, pull up the zipper and you are ready to go.

[Skeptikos]

11 hours ago, lazybones99 said:

Anyone have an idea what the minimum denier should be for 40mph+ street riding? I assume 600 is okay but I’ve seen a few 300 jackets that I really liked… but not enough to accept road rash.

I think it depends on the specific material.

But anyway, it's not just denier but also seam strength and what specific parts the denier covers.

A simpler way to decide is to look for the certifications. EN 17092 class A garments are meant for city riding and you're around the top end of what they're supposed to handle. If you want more of a safety margin you can look for the class AA garments.

You can also check MotoCAP for their test results. It seems like they're focused on highway speeds, so we probably don't need something with a MotoCAP 5-star abrasion rating. I guess 2 or 3 stars is probably adequate for us? I haven't looked that closely at their rating system yet.

[Skeptikos]

38 minutes ago, GothamMike said:

Would be nice to slip on a suit, pull up the zipper and you are ready to go.

This might work for Shane's Aerostich suit, but from what I've heard the one-piece leather suits are pretty inconvenient.

[magalingako]

10 hours ago, Forwardnbak said:

They also do great gear reviews. I’m in Australia and always watched their gear guides. 

YES! My favorite was watching Anthony do reviews back in the day - he always got me amped up! It worked cause I always ended up buying what he was reviewing haha.