Team-BHP - The Riding Gear thread

Quote:

Originally Posted by n.devdath (Post 2829294)

They do look good but they are only for the upper body, how to I protect my lower body, especially the ankles and shoes that are prone to slush and water from my bike's tires?

Devdath, if you are open to buying online then take a look at this.

Quote:

Originally Posted by n_aditya (Post 2829400)

Devdath, if you are open to buying online then take a look at this.

I m certainly open to buying online Aditya, but do you know if the brand is good, the price competitive and the website safe with shipping to India?

The apparel certainly looks appealing.

Quote:

Originally Posted by n.devdath (Post 2829423)

I m certainly open to buying online Aditya, but do you know if the brand is good, the price competitive and the website safe with shipping to India?

The apparel certainly looks appealing.

In no particular order, the suggested brands you could consider are:

1. Nelson Rigg
2. Joe Rocket
3. Tour Master
4. Icon
5. River Road
6. First Gear

Performance Racing Store in Mumbai stocks Joe Rocket. Please check with them if they have rain gear in stock or if then can get a set down for you.

I've bought gear from these sites but the items were all shipped within the USA and my friends got them down for me. Not sure of international shipping (duties could be as high as 30% in addition to shipping costs). But sites like this (Motorcycle Superstore and Bike Bandit are very reliable and transparent).

Check this and this for actual reviews.

When I was planning for my Leh trip, I went through a long list of jackets etc. I zeroed in on trekking jackets. These will be available at your adventure gear shop. High quality stuff. Jacket and lower. Very nice quality fabric. very warm removable liner and completely waterproof.
What I did for ankles was I bought a pair of very good quechua trekking boots. slightly higher than the ankle. After this there is an elastic piece of cloth in the trekking lowers. Snap this over the boots and come what may your feet will not get a single drop of water into them. I rode through a wet and slushy Rohtang. Wore this through all water crossings most of which needed me to put my feet down a number of times. No water at all.
I wore this throughout the trip.

I bought it from the Adventure 18 shop in delhi. I think Decathalon etc should have this stuff. Plus the sizes are pretty loose to enable wearing multiple layers of clothes of maybe an exoskeleton type armor if you need.

Best bang for buck!

Plus looks good too.

PS: this is not a rain coat. This is proper trekking jacket and lower set. It is expensive but perfect!

Quote:

Originally Posted by n.devdath (Post 2828178)

With the monsoons around the corner, my office commute will become a messy squelchy affair unless I purchase proper rain gear for biking, not only in the city but also on the highway.

I tried various unbranded raincoats in one and two pieces but they either wear out too fast or are not comfortable.

Can someone suggest a good quality rain gear for the upper and lower body please? Most posts here either suggest something for the upper body and something else for the lower. Is it not possible to get something which is a pair? Also, I ride a bullet so would prefer something which is sedate and goes with the bike, if possible.

Dev, I think you should check out the rain wear by WILDCRAFT. They have stores almost all over, plus an 'online' purchase store. One of my friends uses a pair. (He does not feel comfortable with the riding pants so he uses this over his jeans and knee guards). He got them for Rs.3000/ - 1300 for the bottom and 1700 for the top.
He has not used the top so far, but the bottom is pretty good. He used it coupled along with his riding jacket (Joe Rocket) during a 4 day ride we had 2 weeks back. We had to do a few stretches in heavy rain and the WILDCRAFT bottoms held on well. It has got two side pockets but without a zipper and the bottom has got an elastic band, so it stays over the riding boots.

Quote:

Originally Posted by n.devdath (Post 2829294)

They do look good but they are only for the upper body, how to I protect my lower body, especially the ankles and shoes that are prone to slush and water from my bike's tires?

The pants that you purchased, are they effective?

1 + 1 = 2. I meant order the top and bottom separately lol:

Yes, the pants have been tested under the shower - which produces a more concetrated, heavier downpour than any rain ever can. It passed the test fine. These pants flow over my ankles and even have a elastic at the bottom which goes over the heels. The front part of the pants have a flap at the bottom which I can unpin to put over my shoes - it covers 90% of the shoes this way. No - have not tested this last part.

Quote:

Originally Posted by navpreet318 (Post 2829458)

After this there is an elastic piece of cloth in the trekking lowers. Snap this over the boots and come what may your feet will not get a single drop of water into them. I rode through a wet and slushy Rohtang. Wore this through all water crossings most of which needed me to put my feet down a number of times. No water at all.
I wore this throughout the trip.

Riding through a wet Rohtang means quite a test. I Let me see if Adventure 18 has a store in B'lore. Do you if these products exist online?

Quote:

Originally Posted by CAPTAIN REX (Post 2829743)

Dev, I think you should check out the rain wear by WILDCRAFT.

Thank you Cap'n. I will browse their site now.

Quote:

Originally Posted by naveenroy (Post 2830109)

1 + 1 = 2. I meant order the top and bottom separately lol:

Ah, that was kinda dumb of me. Also, what is the top you use("Top" sounds very feminish when it comes to clothes:D)?

Quote:

Originally Posted by n.devdath (Post 2830184)

Ah, that was kinda dumb of me. Also, what is the top you use("Top" sounds very feminish when it comes to clothes:D)?

Yeah. Jacket sounds better. Yanyways - like I mentioned before, I use a jacket from a raincoat set that I had bought some years back. Its the usual PVC thingie. Or I manage with a cloth jacket - that has a semblance of a lining inside that protects me from most of the rain.

I don't really mind getting my upper body slightly wet. Its the shoes and ankles that I cannot stand getting wet. Thats why these pants are great. Moreover, I have a laptop rain-cover too. So not worried about riding in rains anymore.

Quote:

Originally Posted by naveenroy (Post 2830482)

I don't really mind getting my upper body slightly wet. Its the shoes and ankles that I cannot stand getting wet.

Ask any biker. The final frontier is breached when the first drop gets through and trickles down you know where. :Shockked: After that its open season and one ceases to care.

Quote:

Originally Posted by ebonho (Post 2830493)

Ask any biker. The final frontier is breached when the first drop gets through and trickles down you know where. :Shockked: After that its open season and one ceases to care.

Hahaha, I totally agree mate! But the cloth jacket that I wear does not even allow water to seep in. At most - in the heaviest of rains, it has become wet to allow a dampness in my T-shirt inside. But yes, many of my friends have bought Cramster pants and all - the crotch area becomes wet in heavy rain. Bugging eh! :D

Quote:

Originally Posted by naveenroy (Post 2830514)

Bro, Cranmster pants do not claim to be water proof (correct me if I'm wrong). In fact, the ones I saw a friend wearing on the way to Ladakh last year, were of the mesh/textile type variety (I think Cramster makes only one kind).

Very few so called pricey water proof firang riding gear is also anything but when exposed to our knd of rains for a length of time. Water will get through. Its only a matter of how much and after how long.

In fact, if riding through long stretches in heavy downpours, I would still prefer to slide my 2000 buck Duckbacks over my 20000 buck firang water proof riding gear (DriRider! :D).