What are tossers views on clothing these days? I have never ventured into the realms of Rukka and other 'high end' stuff but I've had Dainese, Halvarssons and Furygan in the last 10 years and none last very long before stitching separates and zips fail, not to mention poor waterproofing. I also use Arai helmets which also recently seem to be of dodgy quality with vents failing and chin shields falling off and poorly fitting visors. It seems that the manufacturers are not catering for people like me that use a bike daily.
M/C clothing generally poor quality?
- Thread starter sherpatensing
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My Aerostich Roadcrafter suit was used every day when I was working It kept me totally dry and is fully armoured Crash tested too according to makers 
You get what you pay for. Unfortunately motorcycling is turning from a mode of transportation to a leasure pass time. 4000 miles annually seems to be the norm now. Clothing and related items are now "fashion" items. While they perform at the level they are sabost to they soon loose their shine. I am inclined to use cheapie over clothes to try and keep the good stuff from wearing out. Our bikes are the same. Imagine buying a new car and then covering it in ACF 50 or whatever. JJH
I'm a cheapskate.
My present jacket is an Oxford, my previous one a Weise. Both cost under £150. Neither has ever let water in or had bits getting unstitched. I ride 7-8000 miles a year and tour Europe in them.
I see no reason to spend more.
My present jacket is an Oxford, my previous one a Weise. Both cost under £150. Neither has ever let water in or had bits getting unstitched. I ride 7-8000 miles a year and tour Europe in them.
I see no reason to spend more.
Deleted account Aberdeen GS
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I completely agree with the OP.
Unlike other sports, Motorcycle kit is an utter rip-off.
Sadly, price or brand name is no guide to longevity/quality.
I had bad experiences with kit like £700 BMW jackets , zip pulls disintegrate, velcro tabs give up the ghost , Schuberth ( leaky C3 Pro), Arai ( everything falls off it ) that was supposed to be "top end".
Contrarily, good experiences with some cheap eg Oxford stuff.
(Visors, in particular, seem to cost up to £50 and last just weeks if you ride every day !)
Until you have owned it for a year or so, there is absolutely know way of knowing whether you have been ripped off.
My favourite "value" stuff was Hein Gericke, but they seem to have withdrawn from the UK.
Unlike other sports, Motorcycle kit is an utter rip-off.
Sadly, price or brand name is no guide to longevity/quality.
I had bad experiences with kit like £700 BMW jackets , zip pulls disintegrate, velcro tabs give up the ghost , Schuberth ( leaky C3 Pro), Arai ( everything falls off it ) that was supposed to be "top end".
Contrarily, good experiences with some cheap eg Oxford stuff.
(Visors, in particular, seem to cost up to £50 and last just weeks if you ride every day !)
Until you have owned it for a year or so, there is absolutely know way of knowing whether you have been ripped off.
My favourite "value" stuff was Hein Gericke, but they seem to have withdrawn from the UK.
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In general motorcycle clothing does not last long if you use it on a daily basis, even the high-end stuff is not really good enough.
The only piece of motorcycle gear that has lasted well when used daily is my Shoei Neotec helmet, a great piece of kit.
My Halvarssons kit is fine and very waterproof. As you probably know, you need to wash your kit properly in order to retain the proofing. Wash with soap-based cleaner, not detergent, and use a wash-in reproofing agent. I wash with Nikwax Tech Wash and re-proof with TX.Direct. Doing this regularly unblocks the pores of the waterproof membrane and makes the outer surface of the jacket shed water and dirt.
Timely post. I'm just about to contact Motocard.com regarding the velcro on the collar of my Dainese D-Stormer jacket tearing away, and two failed poppers on the hip pockets.
I paid €280, which was apparently reduced from €400. Not happy. I've always regarded Dainese as a premium brand.
For the €1250 price on the Rukka Navigator, I'd be expecting absolute perfection - unfailing performance in terms of manufacturer's claims, unfailing robustness and dependability, for the duration of the warranty
For €280, I'd be expecting performance close to that claimed by the manufacturer, and dependability for the duration of the warranty. I got my D-Stormer jacket in February this year, so I'm less than impressed. I'm disappointed too - there aren't many alternatives that offer similar levels of venting in addition to all the other features of the jacket that I do like.
EDIT: agree that Hein Gericke stuff is/was decent. I had a Tribal Evo 2-piece leather suit when I had my FireStorm. Nothing negative to say about it.
I paid €280, which was apparently reduced from €400. Not happy. I've always regarded Dainese as a premium brand.
For the €1250 price on the Rukka Navigator, I'd be expecting absolute perfection - unfailing performance in terms of manufacturer's claims, unfailing robustness and dependability, for the duration of the warranty
For €280, I'd be expecting performance close to that claimed by the manufacturer, and dependability for the duration of the warranty. I got my D-Stormer jacket in February this year, so I'm less than impressed. I'm disappointed too - there aren't many alternatives that offer similar levels of venting in addition to all the other features of the jacket that I do like.
EDIT: agree that Hein Gericke stuff is/was decent. I had a Tribal Evo 2-piece leather suit when I had my FireStorm. Nothing negative to say about it.
ninjarich1971
Registered user
Well I've just got back from a 2500 mile trip round Europe wearing rst paragon v stuff and it was flipping brilliant. One full day of relentless rain and I only got a bit wet at the back of the knees. One huge torrential thunderstorm and not wet on the inside at all. Kept me warm all through winter and keeps wind out too. For a few hundred quid I'm well chuffed. Boots are forma and I'm so impressed with them that I've just ordered a pair for the missus. I've had years of getting cold and wet in bike leathers and now I'm as snug as the proverbial bug in a rug.
Correction - I got my D-Stormer in August 2016 (where is my life disappearing to?). Still, that's still in warranty (presuming it's at least a one-year warranty), so not great durability. Awaiting response from Motocard.
Deleted account 211025001
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I'm not really sure when this golden age of motorcycling kit existed?
All I know is that these days I wear gear that keeps me 100% dry in the rain. Warmer than a warm thing in winter. Cooler than a cool thing in summer & has decent body armour that does what it says on the tin.
It never used to be like that.
Andres
All I know is that these days I wear gear that keeps me 100% dry in the rain. Warmer than a warm thing in winter. Cooler than a cool thing in summer & has decent body armour that does what it says on the tin.
It never used to be like that.
Andres
+1
My jeans, white trainers and paddock jacket were never as good as the Klim kit I wear now
That's the truth.
Plus Daytona Boots i have 2 pairs and there the best boots I've ever owned,
Wolfgang
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Pre Gore-Tex etc it was all shite.
Now there's good kit to suit all budgets, plus the heated kit which is mega. Riding through the 80's in the rain was miserable.
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Modern gear is generally more effective than the old stuff BUT it just does not last if used daily all year round.
Deleted account 211025001
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I can't say I've had any issues with my kit TBH. Maybe you need to try some different stuff
Even the kit I off road in is still, remarkably, going strong after a few years and many offs.
Andres
My Halvarssons jacket is used all year round & is doing just fine & dandy.
As are my BMW trousers.
I'm with Andres on this one.
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I can't say I've had any issues with my kit TBH. Maybe you need to try some different stuff
Even the kit I off road in is still, remarkably, going strong after a few years and many offs.
Andres
Maybe - I've tried a range over the years, the best so far in terms of daily (and I mean daily) use have been the Shoei Neotec, BMW rider trousers, BMW Tokyo jacket. The worst have been BMW Boulder Jacket x 2 (velcro and zips gives up), BMW Tourshell suit (velcro again, plus leaks), Schubert C3, Hein Gerike two piece thing from years ago (leaks), BMW Rallye Gloves (velcro and finger tips stitching).
I would not buy any gear that uses velcro as a fastening, except boots, all manufacturers seem to use decent velcro on boots.
I could go on but there's a start
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