| Author | Message | ||
     Lost_in_ohio |
Just curious......I own one and was looking at it and wonder how it will actually stand up to a good hard rub on concrete.....any opinions or actual experiences? | ||
| Lorazepam |
I have seen the Joe rocket phoenix and the first gear after crashes, and the first gear tighter weave holds up much better and protects better. Just my opinion from what I have seen. | ||
| Whodom |
LIO, Motorcycle Consumer News did a comparison test on a bunch of mesh jackets in the July 2002 issue and rated them on comfort, quality, apparent safety features, etc. They solicited letters from readers who had actual crash experience with them. All the feedback I saw said the jackets worked great, and this was from riders who'd actually crashed wearing the things. A non-mesh jacket may provide better abrasion protection, but if you're so hot that you're delirious from the heat, it's a poor trade-off. | ||
| Rex |
I have a joe rocket jacket and mesh pants. so far have worked great. I went down a couple of years ago. the only abrassion I had was on my knee where the pants and pad moved since they were a little loose. the joe rocket pad on the shoulder actually did not slide. Not much abrassion, but I broke most of my ribs, collapsed a lung, broke an ankle, and broke my shoulder clavicle. not much abrassions though. rex | ||
| Nasty73z |
I have a Vanson Ventilator mesh/textile jacket that I purchased two years ago from newenough.com. I went down hard approx. 25-30 mph on my old SV in gravel/concrete and the jacket and myself walked away with only a tiny scratch on the patch on the sleeve. Would I trust it down down at 100mph? Probably not but for the 100+ degree days I absolutely love it. | ||
| Aldaytona |
A friend of mine "skated" down the road on his back after being rear ended at an intersection wearing a BMW brand AirFlow suit and had barely a scuff mark on it and no split seams. Quite a bit pricier than my Joe Rocket and Teknic gear. I'm waiting for a closeout sale so I can get one too. | ||
| Skyguy |
Once again folks I would point folks to the motoport gear. Kevlar Mesh will not ever melt into your skin. It also has some of the best integrated body armor I have ever seen. I want this stuff badly and have been saving my pennies as it is also expensive. Jacket and pants with zip in winter liners (Gortex) run around $1,100. I ran into quite a few online reviews and it seems there are quite a few people that used to ride Aerostitch suits running the Kevlar stuff now. I had an Aerostich | ||
| Lonexb |
found this on a web site a while ago.  | ||
| Josh_ |
I'm trying to find a ventilated/perforated leather jacket for the Missus. Harley just came out with one but we have yet to see it in a store. Harley, Vanson ... who else makes very breathable leather gear? | ||
| Hacksaw |
Went down with Firstgear mesh jacket on. Was traveling about 50 MPH. The only place the jacket wore though was back on shoulder blade. Only abrasion I got was on top of wrist where gloves and jacket sleeves separated. Had my Buell sling bag on too which took some of the abuse. Never even pulled a thread on the shirt I had on underneath. | ||
| Jayvee |
I can't make out the brand name on that jacket that scraped through, Lonexb do you know what brand jacket that is? It certainly is a "mess jacket" (sic) but it might not even be kevlar. I have an old Motoport under-garment mesh jacket with pads. Goes under any jacket, I use it with windbreakers or even by itself when it was 103 here two weeks ago. It isn't kevlar, and aside from the pads themselves provides very little protection against abrasion type injury. Needs some kind of shell on top for that. These new mesh kevlar deals really seem like a major advance. For about the same money I paid for a armor under-jacket, you can now buy a whole kevlar mesh armored jacket. Is there any link available to the review mentioned? Or can anybody say what the top-rated brands were, from that MCN comparison? | ||
| Cheesebeast |
I haven't given my Vanson Vent Max 3 a horizontal road test, fortunately. It really is the only solution for me at 90+ degrees, though. The mesh is so free flowing I can feel the juices from the squished bugs hit me. I don't expect that would make much of a commercial! | ||
| Diablobrian |
The jacket in the pic above is a Joe Rocket Phoenix full mesh. I have a Joe Rocket Reactor in my closet that survived a really nasty crash with only minor blemishes. It has perforated leather on the sleeves and over the shoulders. I have a First Gear "Speed Freak" perforated leather jacket and pants combo (with full circumference zipper) that breathes well with the vents open. It has removable liners. I also have a Field Sheer Mach 3 jacket that breathes very well and is a tighter weave than the Joe Rocket stuff. I think the field sheer is probably a better choice for a full mesh jacket than the Joe Rocket gear. With mesh gear you have to understand before you buy it that it is not as durable as leather, and should be considered almost a disposable piece of gear in that it will only be good for 1 wreck. Much like a helmet, Where a leather jacket can be good for several crashes, as many racers can attest. | ||
| Jayvee |
Joe Rocket Phoenix seems to be a "Poly-Mesh" but not Kevlar. Is that right? | ||
| Whodom |
There's some excellent info and reviews of various mesh motorcycle gear at this site: http://www.webbikeworld.com/r2/rev-it/airforce/ The link is to a review of a "Rev-it" mesh jacket. These guys are out of Europe and have some very high tech and innovative riding gear. Along the right side of the page there are links to a bunch of other mesh gear they've reviewed. This is a great site for info like this if you're ever shopping for gear. | ||
| Darthane |
~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ With mesh gear you have to understand before you buy it that it is not as durable as leather, and should be considered almost a disposable piece of gear in that it will only be good for 1 wreck. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ A delusion I've never suffered under, nor do I believe for a second that my Phoenix jacket (which I love) is 'serious' protection. It's peace of mind more than anything, since I flat out refuse to ride in a t-shirt, and until I take a serious dump in it and get to evaluate its performance first hand, that's all it will remain. I don't break out the Phoenix until the thermometer crosses at least 90, if not higher. I've got a nice, heavy jacket from a 2-piece suit that works just fine until the mid-80s, and a perforated leather/nylon Vanson that I liberated from a foolish HD dealer that's quite comfortable in the 'tweener' range. When people ask me about it, that's pretty much what I tell them. The upside to the Phoenix is if you insist on riding in scorching weather and likewise refuse to ride without at least SOME protection, it's pretty damned cheap.  | ||
| Mbsween |
I've done an extensive test on the AGV mesh jacket. I threw a Suzuki 550 down the road (outer part of an onramp) through about 50- 75 ft of crap @ 50 or so mph. I was wearing the AGV jacket, Buell summer gloves and some aplinestar boots. The reason the test was so thorough was my leg got stuck under the bike so I slid the whole way on my left shoulder/arm. The jacket performed remarkably well. The jacket was destroyed, but I essentially came away with no rash. Some of the stones I was plowing through made their way up my sleeve and got wedge in the elbow pad. That gave me a tiny bit of rash. The left glove also ground through at the knuckle. So I walked with 3 pebble size spots on my left elbow and a dime sized spot on my left hand. Given the speed and stuff I slid through, I was pretty happy. So I think Darth about nailed it, its way better than wearing a t-shirt! | ||
| Midknyte |
I look to these [armored] jackets for impact protection more than abrasion resistence. But then again, I'm not a speed addict... | ||
| Lost_in_ohio |
I agree that the mesh is disposable. one crash and its done. I imagine that how the jacket does is dependant on a bunch of thinks. Road surface, Temperature, speed, Amount of tumbling, number of times jacket was washed. I guess the jacket is better than nothing but not as good as leather for sure. | ||
| Bigj |
I went down on a Phoenix at about 35 mph. Mainly left arm. Held up really well. | ||
| Sanchez |
I have a mesh jacket, but most of the time I just wear my Joe Rocket Rasp. It's a textile jacket, but the front panels are removable for airflow. It's not much hotter than my mesh jacket, and it held up well when I low sided at the track last month. | ||
| Curtyd |
"A non-mesh jacket may provide better abrasion protection, but if you're so hot that you're delirious from the heat, it's a poor trade-off." Yeah, right, no thanks, I'll take my chances with the Aerostitch and the heat, mesh and physics don't seem to go together too well in a skid. | ||
| Buelltroll |
I wear a Mossi snowmobile textile jacket. Doesn't vent real well but does OK. Held up GREAT in a 60 mph lowside. Not one rip. Still wearing it n can't even tell its ever hit the dirt. | ||
| Whodom |
Yeah, right, no thanks, I'll take my chances with the Aerostitch and the heat, mesh and physics don't seem to go together too well in a skid. Curt, have you even looked at mesh gear? The jackets have solid textile surfaces on the surfaces that are most likely to hit the pavement (shoulders, backs of arms and forearms, etc.). They've got the same type of armor as any other jacket (back, shoulders, elbows). If you end up sliding down the road on your stomach, yea, the mesh is going to come into play and not protect you very well, but in most accidents, it works just like any other textile gear. | ||
| Buelltroll |
  |
