Hey guys, Thanks for reading my post. I've been riding for about 3 years now, and finally grabbed my dream bike. Triumph 800 xc. Been doing a lot of research on gear...and wanted some rider input. From what I've found, Klime and Icon seem to make decent gear. Along with Kilimanjaro.... but not sure what kind of results people have had? Also, really like the BMW Mottorad gear...but its pricey! Looking for something with good quality, but won't break the bank. Maybe 500 and below in price for the jacket. Also, helmets? Arai and Shoei both make decent dual sport helmets...just wanted to know what people thought. Also, please make any other recommendations about other gear as well... gloves, bike accessories, etc. I've got the bug :)
Guess most important for helmets is that it fits so preferrably try it on. And don't buy to big, many do. It's your head so don't try to save money here. What kind of riding will you do, any off road or only tarmac? Guess with that bike it's no way around the LWR/adventure style anyway If you're on a budget, buy a good helmet, gloves, back protector and boots and go for a cheaper suit. I would anyway.
Hey pingvin, Thanks for the info. I ended up getting a Rallye 3 jacket... Had the best fit, and wanted something that was going to last. Haven't plunked down yet for the pants...but I'll look into those as I start planning a trip. I'm most likely going to be riding on tarmac mainly...with the occasional backroads trip for a a week or so. Figured I could just get some dual sport tires when Im ready. The guys at the shop said that if I wasn;t going to be doing off road riding right away, which Im not, it would make more sense to stay with my shoei rf-1100. Less drag from not having the bill on the top. Made sense....so I'll just stick with that for a bit. And piece up my gear slowly. Like your idea of gloves, back protector, boots...etc.. I have the back protector and jacket done. I have some alpinestars http://www.alpinestars.com/s-mx-5-waterproof-boot.html#.UUJqf9Zwpg0 What kind of gloves would you recommend? And would these AlpineStars be alright for touring? They're pretty comfy... Thanks again... Here she is! Less than 2K on her...she's a baby
I use BMW gear as it fits me fairly okay and the have slim/tall sizes for pretty much everything. Regarding helmet: I use a Shoei flip front helmet for longer distance touring and an Arai XD-3 for some local riding where I know I'll be dealing with lots of sun/shadow transitions. But the most important thing you need when you stick around here is a mouse pad like this: Helps getting over some discussions about gear and helmets ...
I like Carhart double front (chainsaw) pants. Work great, fit like jeans. My gloves are brown leather or deer skin work gloves that I dye black. You'll find them at home improvement stores. Get the dye at a shoe repair shop. Follow the directions on the bottle, set the dye with handlotion. They'll last a long time, take a wreck and you have two pairs for the price of 1/2 a pair of bike specific gloves. After a rain you'll like a dry pair. Good boots are my biggest dollar hit. Have a wreck with sloppy boots and your feet and legs will ache for two weeks. Go down in heavy boots and knee armor and you'll be much better off, maybe no problem if you don't hit something. I've enjoyed rockgartn armor. Good looking bike there, it looks like it will go some where. Save some money and buy a good skid plate and pipe armor. You might need it, that bike may get you further off road than you ever thought you would go.
Boy, the XD is great for that, huh? Going from bright sun to deep shade, the road surface would disappear on me. The XD cured that. I have a Shoei RF 1000 and a Arai XD. Both Helmets fit me great but I rarely wear the Shoei. With the XD I can see the road surfaced much clearer. It reduces overall glare and keeps the sun out of my eyes. A lot of riders seem to have issues with the visor/peak at speed but I dont. I dont understand it. It could be that I learned along time a go how to control the visor in wind so it doesnt jerk my head around and it just second nature now. I have noticed that my head movements are naturally more restricted with the Arai and my riding posture is slightly different depending on which helmet I am wearing.
Nice bike Agree. Thay said, have X-Lite X-551 and Airoh S4 helmets with beak but their designed so you don't notice it much until very high speed. Visor can be problem if doing long gravel sections because dust from rider in front of you gets on inside of visor, then goggles are better. But guess more a future worry. Those are good boots, I love Alpinestars boots. If you start doing more offroad, you may want some heavier boots. Some good leather gloves, preferrably with some knuckle protection. You WILL touch down with your hands in a crash. NOT motocross gloves, they don't have any abrasion resistance on tarmac.
Thanks Mudcat, NJ and Pingvin... Really helpful. Think I'm going to stick with the RF-1100 for now, until I get the bike ready for off road. I'll prob look into the XD3 or 4. Def not risking it on the dirt without crash bars, sump guard, etc... Prob the list of things, in order that I'll get them (Please suggest stuff that you've guys have used and would recommend. So far, Tourtech and SW Motech look pretty good): 1. Top box with passenger rest pad 2. Center Stand 3. Engine crash bars 4. Giant Loop Great Basin bag 5. HID accessory lights 6. Headlight guard 7. Heated Grips 8. Larger Windscreen 9. Pants, Thought about Rallye 3 or something from Aerostitch) 10. Touring Boots... I thought about a tank bag, but feels tight in the front. Seems much more comfy without one. Is there a benefit, besides the obvious room? Thanks!
I've worn mostly First Gear (they make the Kilimanjaro jacket) gear and been very happy with it. It fits me and it offers features that I like. Also, their prices are fairly reasonable. For gear, check out http://www.motorcyclegear.com/. They offer closeouts and previous year's models for a lot less scratch. I used to be anti-tank bag but I finally caved and got one. There are two benefits for me: map pocket on top and quick access. With my tankbag, I don't have to carry a bunch of crap in my pockets but everything is at my fingertips and easily accessible. I use a Cortech super mini on my BMW 650 GS. It's big enough to hold my wallet, phone, sunglasses, and chapstick. (It will fit a small water bottle even). But it's not so big that it gets in the way. I find it to be a good compromise. Looks like this:
Easy access to camera, rain suit, WP gloves etc. You could try a small one, I hate tank bags restricting movement myself EDIT: shelion beat me...but his reply was better anyway EDIT 2: Maybe consider LED instead of HID??? Got Squadron LED lights from Baja design for my KTM530, increadible effective. EDIT 3: If buying boots maybe something that will also be ok for offroad like Alpinestars Durban/Scout or similar?
By the looks of your wish list...you have a lot to spend. While a BMW Rallye 3 or Aerostich suit is some very nice gear, you may also want to consider a First Gear Kathmandu. I bought one last year and found to be more than adequate for summer and cooler temps. You just have to put the liners in when it gets below 35F. I see you also noted HID Accessory lights. You may want to look in the Vendors forum for Sanjoh's ADV Monster LED Lights. I got a set of way bright LEDs for two bills. Most of my riding buddies and cage pilots HATE to see me coming when I've got them on. The only other thing that I can suggest is to check out the Flea Market here. You can score some pretty sweet gear for a very fair price and keep more $ in your pocket for gas.
I whole heartedly agree with this statement. The people here are amazing and I have yet to have a bad experience with a transaction. I am currently looking to upgrade some of my gear and this is the first place I look. Just make sure you look often because we are all vultures when it comes to a bargain!
You have bike protection and luxury items on your list ahead of your own protection. That is bass ackwards! Protect yourself and then worry about protecting and farkling your bike. EDIT: I just noticed that you said you were riding for 3 years. Maybe you already have gear, but are looking for touring-specific gear?
