Newbie gear and such.

[Schattenjager]

As some of you know, I just came into the possession of a Triumph Tiger. I had an old vintage car racing helmet that I have worn to get me this far, but tomorrow I am off to get some brand new gear. Any ideas would be appreciated!

Helmets are a really individual fit kinda thing, but is there one brand better than the next? I will have a full face for sure. I am ugly enough... might as well keep it from getting any worse. Plus chicks may finally wave to me now that I have a bike - and they can't see me.

Jackets - this is tough - there are cool styles out there - the BMW guys define fashion here - but I have my eye on a neon yellow coat that screams: CAUTION!!! The idea here is that is would be best for others to see me weaving around before they are right on top of me.

Gloves - are these necessary? It seems like a good idea - but do they get in the way? I will probably get some, but wanted to ask anyway.

Boots - my ignoramus thinking is that my heavy duty hiking boots will do what I need done - am I crazy?

Brand name plugs are welcome - and is there a better place to get gear rather than the BMW dealer???

THANKS!

[goodtimes]

Look around the 'net at pictures of people who have layed their bikes down at freeway speeds and you will be looking for a full set of gear. Helmet, jacket, gloves, pants, boots....get it all. It only takes one person to not pay attention and the next thing you know, you are sliding down the road at 70mph. ATGATT (all the gear, all the time).

Helmets....to each their own as far as style and fit are concerned. Wear any helmet you are considering for at least 20 minutes before you buy it....if it is uncomfortable after 20 minutes, it will be even more uncomfortable after 8 hours. I am happy with my Shoei RF1000. It is heavy off road though...

BMW gear is nice....and expensive! It is way out of my price range! On the street, I wear stuff from Olympia (Airglide II), jacket and pants. Happy with them...lots of air flow in the summer. Not water proof unless you wear the liners too, which makes them hot and bulky. Better than cold and wet though....

Boots, I wear Sidi disco's. Happy with them as well. Ankle support is not 100%, but you can comfortably walk around in them for a few hours if the situation calls (like stopping in small towns for lunch, and end up walking around to check things out....)

For rain, I have a set of Frogg Toggs. Work great...live in one of my panniers. Light weight, cheap ($65), so if I destroy them, not that big of a deal.

Gloves, I have one pair from Marsee...perforated leather for the summer....and some other brand (don't recall) for the cold weather....lots of insulation, nice and warm. Gloves are important, for 2 reasons. One, they keep the skin on your hands in place should you go down, and two, they keep your sweat from turning your grips into a nasty mess over time.

Off road, I have riding pants from Klim and Fly. I prefer the Klim gear...personal preference kind of thing. I don't usually wear a jacket, but prefer a pressure suit from Koerta. I tend to ride solo, so the added protection is nice. The pressure suit is kind of overkill since I am not blowing down single track.....but I don't like pain, so I wear it anyway. I have gone down once with it on....15 mph high side on a powerline road....didn't feel a thing until the bike landed on top of me (but that is another story).

If I had $1200 to kill....I'd look at the BMW Rally pro II....but I am a poor working stiff, so I look the other way when I pass by that section of the dealer floor....

Remember, any gear is better than no gear, and the pain created by the hole in the wallet for the most expensive gear is still less than the pain of having your skin removed by the asphalt. It is not a matter of when you will go down, it is only a matter of how long before it happens, and how much of you sticks to the road when it does happen.

[Schattenjager]

It is not a matter of when you will go down, it is only a matter of how long before it happens, and how much of you sticks to the road when it does happen.

And THANK YOU GOODTIMES for those words of encouragement and inspiration.

[Kermit]

Cycle Gear usually has good deals on gear.

Buy it all! Good helmet is a must, yes a $120 and a $500 helmet are both DOT/Snell aproved, the $500 one will have move features, and fit better, more vents, removable liner and padding, differnet size padding too, to get the fit just right, buy an expensive one I have Shoei's, Aria's and Foxes. I like the Shoei the best..it cost the most too, near the $500 mark.

Gear...it all depends where you will riding the most, mostly street, get leather, it slides better when you hit the tarmac..

Mostly dirt, I use enduro stuff with armor underneath (downhill mountain bike armor) I really like the MSR ISDE stuff, Gore-Tex pant $180, Jacket with lots of vents, removable sleeves, sure is nice for changing weather conditions.

Sidi, Alpinestars, and Gaerne make great boots, I alwasy buy the top of the line ones, but the middle of the road ones are nice too. Spend some money boots, your ankles and shins will be thankful.

I feel very comfortable with my offroad gear on the street. Especially on a dual purpose type bike.

But, when I ride the crotch rocket, full leather suit is a must, and a street helmet.

So if I had your Tiger I would go with the enduro oriented gear, completely weather proof and versital.

Nice off road helmet my Fox VR3 is 2.9 pounds. $250

I like goggles over a full sheild..(to each their own) $40 Sheilds are better in the rain, pouring rain at 80 mph with goggles is no fun, stings!

The MSR outerware I mentioned, the jacket is cut for a rider postion. $180 Pants $120 jacket.

Fox bomber gloves, decent padding, carbon knuckle protection $40 I also like my Alpinestars Super Moto ones too. A trick in cold weather is to wear latex/nitrile gloves under your leather ones.

$60

Alpinestar Tech 8 $300. Thigh high performance socks $30

Fox Launch elbow and knee guards. $70/$50

Cycling shorts. $70

Chest protector.$120 I also have a MSR roost back that connects to the chest protector, nice to keep items handy. $20

$1200-1300. Give or take...yes it is expensive, you only have to the good stuff once....well...I have multiple sets...(whoops)

I am weaing the MSR pants here, they have cargo pockets too, you can see the MSR roost pack too. I am wearing my pack jacket, the other one was a bit too hot for that day. What you don't see is all of the armor I am wearing, I don't like pressure suits, too hot, pain in the *** to get off when you break for lunch, I prefer the chest protector better.

[bj70_guy]

Helmets really are a personal thing. Different brands fit different shaped heads. Actually, different models by the same brand can fit different shaped heads. Shoei and Arai are 2 top end brands.
After wearing a useless beanie for 15 years I got a full face. The Shoei RF1000 was a perfect fit for me. I agree with goodtimes: wear any helmet you're interested in for at least 15 minutes. The first helmet I tried was an Arai and it felt GREAT! For 5 minutes. Then the hot spot started on my forehead. Had I bought it it would have been a $700 mistake.

I really like cordura gear. I don't like having to stop to gear up when it starts raining. I started out with Joe Rocket stuff, which was excellent value for the money. A couple of years ago I went for an Aerostitch Darien jacket and pants. It's nice gear, well made, pretty good armour, waterproof, and definitely designed with a touring bias. It's not cheap, but it's cheaper than BMW gear. I'm of 2 minds with it. It's great 3 season gear, but it's pretty hot in summer. It doesn't vent as well as some other gear. The collar on the jacket sucks. It's not exactly stylish. I still like it a lot.
Aerostitch has lots of cool gear, check out their website and ask them for a catalogue. They also have gear available in a very obnoxious "safety yellow". You see it a mile away.

I need my hands to make a living, so even when I was a young dumbass I wore gloves all the time. T-shirt, jeans, beanie, and gloves. Safety first!

Have you had any formal rider training?

[dirtysouth]

Helmets are something that you will indeed have to try on to see which one fits your head the best. I've owned Sidi Discoveries for the past 4-5 years and really like them, they're comfortable enough to walk in at the mall if you have to, offer enough protection offroad but are also not so bulky that you can't shift with them. I like the Tourmaster Transition jacket that I have now. I've owned a bunch of gear in the past but this one beats out the Firstgear, Joe Rocket, Aerostich stuff I have had in the past. The new Transition 2 even comes in a Hi-Viz Yellow for under $175. It's warm in the winter, vents well in the summer and is waterproof. I am looking toward getting the Olympia Ranger 2 pants after seeing them in person a couple of weekends ago, alot of people rave about the Olympia gear so I don't think you'll go wrong with it.
As mentioned in a previous post; it's not a matter of if you'll go down it's a matter of when. I have been riding on the street for 8 years now and have been laughed at by others for wearing my gear. I never tested any of it until a month or so ago when I went down not once but twice in the same week, nothing more than some gimping around and very minor road rash from friction. Jacket held up well in both instances but my pants need replaced. The most important piece of gear that needs to be worn at all times is a fullface helmet, which hit face first on the first incident and took a gouge out of the plastic and scratched my shield. Keep the rubber side down!

[robert]

Check out the adventurerider.com forums for tons of info.

The problem with so much of the motorcycle gear out there is that the sizing is all screwy- they seem to do it so that you have to try on everything.

If you want a bright high quality coat, check out the Olympia AST. Expensive, but well made and you definitely stand out! You can get decent gear at discount prices if you shop around. Ironpony and Newenough have good prices and I've had great service from both. Amotostuff has a good selection and I like their website but they are sllllllooooooow shipping.

[Wanderlusty]

For gear, check out www.newenough.com.

Despite the name, it is not used stuff....

Lots of good prices.

[Hltoppr]

Yup,

Hit advrider.com for the full skinny on everything....

They have a saying on Advrider...ATGATT. All the gear, all the time. Mantra...repeat....live...

Helmet...full face, DOT rated...I'm an Arai guy...but then they ain't cheap...

Jacket. I like cordura. Leather makes me look like I should be singing with the Village People....I've also found that I like the fit and armor of BMW stuff...but I get it on sale or used....I got my Ralleye 2 Suit for $400....Savannah Jacket for $250....

Check out the Olympia stuff...great quality and price points. Plus...they do come in bright colors.

Pants. I like BMW Summer pants for 3 season riding. I have a pair of Aerostich Darien pants for cold/wet weather and my BMW Ralleye pants for all around use...

Gloves....you'd be amazed how much blood you can lose from your hands...'nuf said...I use BMW Ralleye gloves, and they've held up well. BMW Winter gauntlets for winter use.

Boots. My Sidi Discovery boots have been hammered, dragged, wet, muddy and generally abused for 2.5 years and are just now showing some wear...Highly recommended.

as for bright colors, I've found that a white helmet makes all the difference in visability. Second to that, I really like my PIAA 540s, used as running lights, with the high beam on during the day....I'd rather burn some retinas than have some yahoo make a left in front of me so they can get into the Starbucks 5 seconds faster....

If I had, say, $1500 for the whole thing:

$550 Arai XD helmet in white
$110 Olympia Summer Pants in Khaki
$250 Sidi Discovery Boots
$50 Fox Bomber gloves (or similar)
$260 Olympia AST or the like Jacket

You could likely find a used Aerostich Roadcrafter suit on AdvRider for cheap too....but I've found these to be pretty hot, unless it's for winter riding...

-H-

[HMR]

Great advice so far! Remember: Dress for the crash, not the ride.

I'm a firm believer in ATGATT. Here are a few pics after I hit a deer at 70mph in 2005.

Definately get a full-face helmet:


You asked about gloves? See the button on this one?


It got so hot during my slide across the asphalt that it burned a hole in the top of my hand. Glad I had them on or I wouldn't be typing right now:


Thinking of riding in Levi's? I was wearing heavy cordura riding pants and still managed to do this. The doctor explained what would've happened had I not been wearing pants with armor... (I'll spare you the story):


ATGATT was the difference between an ambulance and a hearse:


ATGATT was also the reason I was back on a bike within 2 months: