Armour plated jeans questions ..?

britboy4321

britboy4321

britboy4321

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Anyone that has them?

1) Are they as safe as my leathers?
2) Do they make your legs look really fat as they are designed to look like normal jeans, but have armour plates in them? So basically you look like Mr Wierdo Fat-leg if going to something social like a party?
3) Are they the kind of thing you could wear out to, say, a bar? That comfy? Also - if I biked out to a bar or the cinema, could I easily, without taking them off, somehow slide out the 'armour bits' and leave them in the back of the bike or anything? I don't want to stand in the high-street whilst wearing just my pants!!! So I am talking 'without taking them off'?? Would I be sitting in my cinema seat enjoying the film, or thinking 'This is a lot more uncomfortable than my normal jeans'?!?


Any help, as usual, appreciated.

http://www.amazon.co.uk/Kevlar-Clas...40YO/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1301483197&sr=8-1
 
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I bought some draggin jeans a couple of years ago, they came with Knox hard armour for the hips and knees. I even crashed in them once and they came out the other side just fine, still wear them occasionally.

You wouldn't win any fashion competitions wearing them though! Although they do seem to have a more flattering range of styles available nowadays.
 
I have some 'Red Route' Jeans that I usual when I'm just going out casually. They are obviously heavier than normal jeans, and the padded/wider sections over the knees look a bit a strange, but I think you'd get away with it through normal use. You certainly can't take the pads out without taking them off though!
 
I have some but need a new pair now as my gut has exceeded the waist and the zipper is also broke :D

They are very practical for summer. Less effort than leathers and keep you a lot cooler. They don't look bad and you'd certainly get away with them wondering about normally. As previously mentioned there generally isn't "armour" in them like you would imagine in gortex or leather, it's more a wider thicker layer of the material around the key areas - very subtle and comfortable.

I think its the same with a lot of summer gear, slightly reduced in terms of bulk but still decent if you buy the right stuff. At the end of the day it will save you skin but comming off at reasonable speed is still going to hurt like buggery in terms of impact.

In terms of saftey against leathers probably not as good but can't comment as I don't wear leathers and have yet to have a proper accident *touches wood*.
 
When I bought my biking kit, there was a letter pinned to the wall of the shop from someone who'd bought some kevlar jeans from them and had been involved in a high speed dismounting. The photo was astounding - I didn't expect the jeans to be nearly as effective as they were. They probably saved his life.

Even so, I think I'd still be a bit nervous to wear a pair for any NSL roads. For riding around town I think they'd be ideal.
 
The problem is that they don't have the kevlar lining throughout, only in areas where they think you might need it. So only about 25% of the jeans are covered. This means if you come off and the jeans move or twist you've got a problem.
 
Ive owned 2 pairs of Draggin Jeans, the urban camo ones and now the silverbacks.
Both I have not used armour in (probably not the best of ideas).

I have had a good crash in the camo draggins.
Had a nice hole in my right knee and buttock where the material got vaporised but the kevlar looked untouched.
Nothing more than some bruising.

Love them for summer but for long & high speed journeys put some armour in them to be safe.
 
PieEater said:
A mate reccomends Hood jeans over Dragggin Jeans having tried them both the thinks the Hood ones offer better protection.
Click to expand...

They look decent, like the fact you can actually have armour in too!

I think these might be what I am going to treat myself to when the weather improves and my arm isn't broken anymore :D


Edit:- Looking at the differences in the Hood jeans; K7, ND4 and H2. I'd be interested in K7 or ND4. They have similar descriptions but are not quite the same. The K7 goes on about extra padding and the ND4 about pockets. I would assume they are the same just different colour...they both allow extra armour. Anyone got any ideas?

Worst case scenario I'll email and ask.
 
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In a lot of the jeans there are armour pockets. Amour itself is very cheap to buy.

I tried on a really nice pair of i think Red Route (frank thomas), these weren't the standard Red Route ones and i've never seen them again since, but they looked just like normal trendy day wear, most of these type of jeans look worse than even the least trendy Primark clothing. They also came with removable armour. £120. The only reason i didn't buy is that they skimpt on the kevlar. I want it lining the whole jean.
 
I think as far as "as safe as leather" the answer is definitely no. Also they are not going to be as safe as decent textile pants either.

However, from all the reports you read, they are v good compared to normal jeans. I was looking at the hood ones myself, Brit company too :)
 
RST Jeans here, poss a bit less kevlar than Hood jeans but the armour in them and then the jeans fitting better was more important. I honestly do not see the point of bike specific trousers and not wearing armour inserts. Stuff looking 'normal' in bike gear, your a biker, bikers arent normal! Plus the hip and knee armour could stop a large amount of injury potentially.
 
After recommendations from this thread I went ahead and ordered a pair of Hood K7 jeans. They arrived yesterday and I wore them on my commute to work today. Very comfortable, look great and the quality looks good also.

I purchased the optional hip and knee armor which you can insert if/when required, but tbh it's a bit of a faff. I might stick it in if I go out for a longer ride on the hot days but don't think I'll bother for my commute.

Oh, and I have 3 pairs of Draggin jeans to sell now. 2 black standard, 1 black combat style.
 
I was looking at the K7s on their site, good to hear first-hand comments about them looking half-decent. When you have the armor in are they still comfortable to walk about in?
 
I've mentioned before but when I was looking for jeans and came across Hood, I found them really good to deal with, they sent me out some samples of the fabric they use and generally helped out in everyway.

I ended up going with Kyrano (a sister company of Hood) who did a fully lined pair of jeans, rather than the type that patches just the critical areas. Fit is great, but thankfully not had to test their abilities yet ;)

EDIT:They also sold the para-aramid/kevlar in leggings so you could wear them under normal jeans, but not sure if they had pockets for armour.
 
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Griffo said:
I was looking at the K7s on their site, good to hear first-hand comments about them looking half-decent. When you have the armor in are they still comfortable to walk about in?
Click to expand...

The armor fits in between the lining and the jean material with velcro. Bit of a faff getting it up there.

Felt comfortable enough with it in. Though I imagine if the fit was quite tight it might feel quite snug around the hips etc.

I can't really see me taking the time to put the armor in to be honest. Not for my commute to work anyway. Maybe if I had a longer weekend ride planned in extreme heat I would :)
 
I love my Draggin Jeans, the armour's a joke though. It's just armour with a 1 inch square of velcro on that you're supposed to stick to the inside of the knees.

Other brands might be better, armour wise, but I like my Draggins for what they are.

You're unlikely to die from a broken leg, but you are likely to die from sliding down the road, losing a load of skin, and bleeding to death on the road while the ambulance comes - and the Draggins give you a much better chance on that front.

Riding around town and particularly lazy days, they're great. I won't often go to work in them though, they get too hot with all the kevlar. I've worn them to the pub plenty, and the cinema and shopping and all sorts, it's just sitting in an office or standing in a shop for 9 hours they're not perfect, that's all.

They're an excellent compromise.
 
I have some sartso jeans and they are awesome, they pass all the same tests as draggin jeans and they have pockets in the knees if you want armour. Although i only use mine for commuting, if i'm going on a proper ride ill use my leathers.
 
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