Fancy Soft or hard shell armor (possibly with airbag?) for ebike rider (20-30mph)

venexiano

New Member
I wanna play it safe and I am about to purchase a full face DH helmet. I ride my ebike in town and I do not ride more than 5-10 miles at the time and I mostly throttle so sweating not a big issue. I want a good armor, soft shell or hard shell. Money not much of a problem since we talk safety and we spend thousands in bullshits in every day life. I want something easy to wear, as protective as possible. Possibly something for legs and upper body. I can get gloves seperately. Here in Gainesville FLorida it can be very hot in summer and around freezing in the morning in the winter. SO it should be something breathable that I can wear under the winter jacket in winter, and above a t-shirt in the summer. I was looking at thorse airbags models but it seems hard to trigger the functioning on a ebike, plus if I wear under my winter jacket I think I could have serious compression concussions because the thick jacket might being more stiff than my chest, which will get badly compressed. Thoughts? I do not mind spending 1-2k. Hospital care and being off work after a fall costs more.

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I've hit the gravel and pavement at 25 mph in dickies mechanic's wear. No road burn. No broken bones except my chin which was not protected by a helmet guard before 2018. No pain in knees & elbows. Long pants long sleeves, plus $1 polyester gloves with the plastic dots. Dickies have a double knee version for flooring layers that is not stocked in stores. In summer when it gets 99 F here Red Hat has a long sleeve mechanic's tunic that is 100% cotton. Again, thick tear resistant cloth. Red Hat is available only on the internet unless you find a safety shoe truck at a factory somewhere. Welder's 100% cotton jackets are even thicker, I buy them at the welder's supply. I wear dark blue to prevent sunburn. I have pink skin that does not tan well. If you are heavier than me (I have been 213 to 160 lb the last 25 years) your results may vary.
If you look at the threads on parts & accessories forum, you will find people that prefer plastic wear suitable for motorcycles. I do not have a hazard of bashing into trees and rocks; I ride on road.
 
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I wear body armor all the time riding both my Class I and Class III bikes in the Hollywood Hills, whether on trail or off, whether it's a little three or four mile fitness ride or a 32+ mile trek out to the Verdugos. I'm on blood thinners, so my main concern is internal bleeding, though road rash could be a problem too. It's weird, I just don't bleed that badly, even when my INR is in the 'target' range-- dog bites, T-boned in car wrecks, and big drops body boarding. But anything that can decrease the risk of bruising, internal or external bleeding is a good thing for me.

Living in Los Angeles, we have a lot more variation in climate, so I realized I really needed two different solutions, one for warm weather, one for cold-- it does get shockingly cold in the Verdugos, can go from the low 70s to the 40s within about two hours even in the spring or fall.

Cost WAS definitely a factor for me. In fact, I got the cheapest gear I could find! The first option, the lightweight armor with mesh, can work over a T-shirt. It looks like a total piece of junk, I doubted it would last a season, but I've been riding with it four over two years. All the zippers work, no tearing anywhere. I would recommend a more high-quality version of this -- like Indianjo says, it's motorcycle gear, motocross specifically.

The jacket with armored inserts is for colder weather, probably not for you, but it has been flat-out fantastic, best $40 I ever spent, still a bargain at $60. Over two years, and not a loose seam or cross-threaded zipper-- and this, regrettably, did get tested. Was riding angry one night, went up a trail that was too steep and covered with leaves, lost traction completely, slid backwards, fell on my back and the bike fell on top of me. Zero injuries from the ground or the back. I did throw out my neck and needed PT for that, but my neck wasn't covered by my jacket. Took about a year for that to resolve. I think the armored padding would slow down a knife, and provide at least some feeble defense against mountain lions, though that's not what it's meant for, and those are low-percentage threats even when I'm riding in the inner city, by the LA river, in abandoned industrial areas or near homeless encampments. Likely better than denim, and way better than nothing.

I will say this-- both types of armor do get a lot of strange looks on the road. Expect to attract attention. You look like a character in a science fiction movie, which sometimes amuses people-- or frightens them, particularly children. A friendly wave or laugh in return usually solves the problem!

I have thought a lot about knee and leg protection. I think I only need it for the more serious trails in the mountains, where I do sometimes see mtb or eMTB riders wearing shin and knee guards. One guy I met keeps them in pack for the ascent and wears them for the descent. If you find anything interesting and lightweight, please post back.



As a practical matter, I never actually wear my respirator with armor on the trail, but I couldn't resist taking this picture. In this outfit, I may be addressed as "Cromilar 23, VoidMaster."

Cromilar 23 - 1.jpeg
 
Searching for MTB Armour will give plenty of products to check out and overload on. Usually, MTB gear is designed with more breathability and movement in mind than MC armour. If you want to minimize the Transformer look, a lightweight fishing shirt works pretty well worn over the armour. Look for one that was the full back vent flap, underarm vents, etc. and UV protection.
 
I wanna play it safe and I am about to purchase a full face DH helmet. I ride my ebike in town and I do not ride more than 5-10 miles at the time and I mostly throttle so sweating not a big issue. I want a good armor, soft shell or hard shell. Money not much of a problem since we talk safety and we spend thousands in bullshits in every day life. I want something easy to wear, as protective as possible. Possibly something for legs and upper body. I can get gloves seperately. Here in Gainesville FLorida it can be very hot in summer and around freezing in the morning in the winter. SO it should be something breathable that I can wear under the winter jacket in winter, and above a t-shirt in the summer. I was looking at thorse airbags models but it seems hard to trigger the functioning on a ebike, plus if I wear under my winter jacket I think I could have serious compression concussions because the thick jacket might being more stiff than my chest, which will get badly compressed. Thoughts? I do not mind spending 1-2k. Hospital care and being off work after a fall costs more.

Best
A

Here's what O.S.H.A. did to the cowboy. Will E-bikes be next? :)

osha_cowboy.jpg


I couldn't resist poking fun at the subject but seriously though, protective clothing is always a good idea. Finding gear appropriate for climate and riding conditions can be tricky. In my case, I use knee and elbow protectors on some rides and am also considering body armor. Hopefully, others will recommend more good products.

BTW, Welcome to the forum!
 
I have G-Form Pro knee and elbow pads when I ride single track. I had a few wipe outs and now lifetime scars was the reason for the pads now. They are very light, breathable, I can wear during summer time +100 degree F heat, and comfortable to wear. I once had a wipe out on my fat tire ebike on a muddy single track trail after work before heading home. I had my commuter backpack on and that acted like an airbag to soften my fall. I did land on my shoulder a bit and that was sore for over a week.

G Form MTB pad.jpg
 
To the original poster, just get some motorcycle gear. See if there's a Cycle Gear in your area. The Bilt line is good stuff for a honest price. They also sell pants that look normal but have armor in the hips and knees.
 
MTB armor in whatever flavor would probably work. You can do individual pieces (knee/shin, forearm/elbow, gloves) or get a full jacket generally used for DH racing. Leatt/Fox/Troy Lee Designs/7iDP/etc all make good options. The main issue is they take time to put on and off. Not a ton, but if you use your bike for commuting you may start finding them annoying pretty fast. MTB armor is nice because its generally designed to stay in place while pedaling a bike and to breathe reasonably well. I raced DH for many years though and even the most well ventilated armor is pretty unpleasant on hot days.

On my esk8 I have an armored hoodie. Its easier to put on and off. Mine is by Lazyrolling, but there are others. Easy to put on and off and pretty inconspicuous. No leg protection though (I have separate MTB leg pads).

Motorcycle gear makers make numerous options as well. Do note that if you go motorcycle gear, avoid the roost protectors (which are just hard shells mainly designed to protect you from rocks kicked up by the dirtbike in front of you, not crash/impacts). Anything designed for general motorcycle riding will give a lot of protection, though can be bulky and hot.
 
I've got a selection of both motorbike and mountain mike armour, and my motorbike protection ranges between hard core dirt protection and convenient dual sport bump resistance. My advice is sit down and have a REALY good think about what you're trying to achieve , then come back with your priorities.

Things to consider:

Ease of use - don't ask how I know that it doesn't work on the shelf for short rides....

Flexibility vs bulk and comfort - the old plastic and foam suits of armour are great in a crash, but not really convenient

Abrasion resistance - this is something that moves to a whole new level of expense if you want something flexible that ventilates well . Eg those g form pads are great for single impact - I use them on my elbows mtb riding. They're NOT ideal if you intend to slide down the road motorbike style.

If you're really using the bike like a motorbike, then start considering quality motorbike gear. But sit down before looking at the klim website..... and lie down before researching kevlar suits! Klim is goretex with ventilation and inbuilt d30 padding, HEAVY , but a true investment. The kevlar stuff like motoport is next level abrasion protection at the compromise of comfort.
 
If money is not an issue, I would highly recommend checking out Aerostich/Rider Wearhouse's Roadcrafter suits. I bought one way back in 1988, when I got my first motorcycle, and it was a wise investment.

I currently just wear a Land's End set of rainproof parka and snow pants, with a scooter helmet and leather motorcycle gaunlets, and heavy duty UGG boots.
 
If money is not an issue, I would highly recommend checking out Aerostich/Rider Wearhouse's Roadcrafter suits. I bought one way back in 1988, when I got my first motorcycle, and it was a wise investment.

I currently just wear a Land's End set of rainproof parka and snow pants, with a scooter helmet and leather motorcycle gaunlets, and heavy duty UGG boots.

I've watch a mate slide down the road in their darien suit, he was on the wrong side of 100 k and escaped without a scratch! Great gear.
 
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