Is cheap gear a false economy?

TallPaul_S

TallPaul_S

TallPaul_S

Soldato
Joined
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Kent
What's better when starting out? Buying reasonably expensive gear, so a decent helmet, jacket, trousers, boots, gloves, or buying cheap(er) stuff then upgrading/buying more kit later?

I'll be doing my CBT in the next couple of months with a view to picking up a cheap YBR/CG/Varadero (if I can find a cheap one!) to use in all weathers for the commute to work (could be a 5 mile commute, could be a 30 mile commute) and have naturally started to look at some gear. My head says to buy properly, and buy once for textile gear/helmet and boots/gloves, so I've been looking at the following stuff (had a try on of the jacket/helmet in my local J&S which was previously a HG store and better for it, huge range of helmets/gear now).

Shoei Qwest
RST Paragon 4 jacket (brand new out, literally - says coming soon on the RST website!)
Matching trousers
Goretex IXS Antaris gloves
Sidi Goretex boots (from the aucton site, a new pair is waaay over budget!)

The jacket was very very nice, full waterproof double zip on the front, weighed a frickin' ton (was working up a sweat just putting it on!!) throat coat, level 1 back armor etc.

The Shoei Qwest I tried was also very nice, light, L size fitted pretty nice for a 2 min try on.

Thing is, all the above will come to about £800, I'll hopefully be able to get a bit knocked off, and the boots will be bought from the auction site. But even if I was to pay £100-£150 less on a helmet, then a jacket for £80 less and trousers for £70 less that's only saving £250-£300 and if I'm out in all weather, getting rained on and arriving at work with a wet crotch and wet patches all over, I'd probably end up buying the more expensive kit a few months later anyway! :D

For instance, I tried on an aplinestar drystar jacket as well as the RST and it felt nowhere near as well built, less armor, single zip with press studs on a waterproof flap vs the full waterproof outer zip etc, and it was only £20 less.

So yeah, bearing in mind I'll be pootling about on a 125 after my CBT in all weathers doing anywhere up to 300 commuting miles a week for the next 6-12 months, is it worth skimping now and having to pay out extra later?

I'll have a proper look around at helmets once I've done the CBT, I did try on an AGV and it was a bit loose around the forehead areas, but fitted well elsewhere, the Shoei fitted bloody lovely. Plus it's sharp 5* rated, which is a nice thing to have, as well as the Shoei name and (supposed quietness), but I know there's a lot more choice out there in the £150 price range vs the £250+ range that the Shoei is in.
 
If you want to skimp buy clothing (apart from helmet) on ebay. You can get top quality gear for the price of budget new as lots of people get into biking, buy all the gear and then give up
 
Sagalout said:
If you want to skimp buy clothing (apart from helmet) on ebay. You can get top quality gear for the price of budget new as lots of people get into biking, buy all the gear and then give up
Click to expand...

I'll be doing this with the boots, should be able to get a pair of sidi goretex for under £100 - tried on a pair today, size 45 (10.5 UK) and they fitted well, a little tight across the toes so may look at a size 46 (11 UK) but for clothing it's not really possible unless I see some stuff I've been able to try on, I have long arms and am pretty skinny so getting enough length in the arms and being able to fit in other areas can be tricky.

RST stuff seems to fit pretty well, size 44 jacket was just right in the arms with a little space underneath for a layer or 2, the armor seemed to be in the right places too. Will keep an eye out though :)
 
I just hope rst make better/longer lasting jackets than they do boots,rst boots lasted a month tops before the sole wore out in a big hole

for textile coats/trousers weise are among the best imo,one I had lasted 7yrs atleast and a few crashes

sidi boots are also tough as nails,expensive but tough,good cheaper alternatives are spada boots,pair I have are lasting well so far

get yourself a neck tube aswell,keeps all the cold out of your helmet underneath
 
Yeah boots is one area I don't want to compromise, not only for protection but also as I would imagine your feet get the wettest in heavy rain, hence I'll be going for some goretex booties. My feet get cold at the best of times (poor circulation) so cold and wet feet would be a big no no for me. Got a couple of thin snoods but we'll pick up a thermal tube when it gets cold again, the jacket has a 'throat coat' too, which should offer some protection.
 
I try to buy quality gear, not necessarily super expensive stuff but just getting what you pay for and you like.

Just spent ~£300 on a jacket + back protector but it is super damn plush and a far cry better than my £90 jacket I first got when I jumped onto a 125 :D

I commute with my gear so it gets some abuse, especially zippers etc.

Wearing Alpinestars SMX5 Boots (Waterproof version) - never let a drop in and no quality issues to report £140. Halvarssons abrasion resistant jeans £80ish and a Panzar textile jacket £300. Set of winter gloves from REV-IT, not exactly a top tier brand but the gloves have been great for me ~£60. Set of Alpinestars summer gloves ~£35. Have some cheapo Weise rain trousers to wear over jeans when needed and helmet wise I bought a HJC which offered the best price/fit/features compromise for me at the time. ~£180.

All in, gear wise around £800. A fair old amount, but almost half of that was jacket + back protector alone. Don't NEED to spend that much but depends what you want. My £90 jacket 'did the job' but had so many shortcomings - just had to get rid of it and buy something better.

For something you are going to commute with get gear that's going to last. Zippers, velcros etc are all prone to failure and it's a waste if you have a piece of gear that is utterly fine but failed on a zipper!

Edit - Final note. Buy a helmet with preinstalled PinLock pins OR supports a PinLock visor - Then buy a PinLock insert. Worth EVERY DAMN SINGLE PENNY! :p
 
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I've been biking since November 2013.
I bought a Qwest Helmet at MCN Birmingham and used it for a couple of months and then went out and bought a GT Air, because it has a sun visor and I couldn't wear sunglasses inside the Qwest due to a fit issue.
Most Shoei helmets ship with a pinlock- use it- they are brilliant.
It is nice to have a spare helmet but honestly I wish I'd just bought the right thing the first time.
The Qwst is a great helmet though, if you can fit sunglasses under it when needed.
I do think an integrated sun visor is worth the extra expense though- it is so much less faff.

Same with jacket- I bought a Bering textile Jacket.
I now have it and a Furygan Leather jacket.
In this case I didn't know about how jackets should fit and ended up buying a size too big.
The Bering is fine but just not cut right for me, the Furygan is a perfect fit.

One thing I absolutely wouldn't skimp on is winter gloves.
Definitely get something with knuckle armour and Goretex if you want to be safe and are doing any wet weather riding.
Cheap gloves get soaked through and any time you take them off, getting them back on is unpleasant.
I have some Rukka gloves that never get soaked through, even in torrential rain.
There was a review of loads of winter gloves in Bike or Ride a few months ago- there was one glove under £100 that was better than gloves that were twice the price- worth hunting them down.

Absolutely get back armour for your jacket too.

The best way to get a good deal on a helmet (and many other things) is to go to MCN Birmingham or the London show and haggle.
My Shoei was £220 from the MCN show and I paid £320 for the GT Air from the London show last week.
It is a while until the next show but you know for next time.
I found Lids Direct to give the best deal on the day and I've bought both my helmets form them at the shows.

One final thing- a posh helmet won't necessarily be any safer than a cheap one- or at least they WILL meet the minimum safety requirements required by law.
It will just be more comfortable and have features the cheaper, basic helmets don't.
Cheap helmets can save your life as eel as expensive ones- but you might not enjoy wearing it as much as a nice helmet.
Personally, I buy a good helmet because I spent 40+ hours a wear wearing it and I want to be comfortable.
 
You can get a cheaper helmet, the Qwest is really nice (have one) but there's helmets for almost half the cost that will be fine on a 125.

I've found boots to be the thing not to scrimp on, currently been using the same pair of Daytona's for about 3 years now, they just survive everything and stay waterproof. Had Sidi rains before and they cooked my feet in the summer and started to leak after about 1 year.

For jackets and trousers, try and get textiles that will do all year round, then also get a one piece rain suit for when it's really chucking it down, 2 waterproof layers will keep you dry. Still not found a jacket/trouser combo that's truly 100% waterproof :(

Gloves are another one, as they are so exposed I've found cheaper ones to usually leak. currently using Racer Novus and they are pretty damn nice. Stayed dry so far and fairly warm.
 
wazza300 said:
I just hope rst make better/longer lasting jackets than they do boots,rst boots lasted a month tops before the sole wore out in a big hole
Click to expand...

Saw the thread title from motors and even though I don't ride anymore thought I would post to mention this!

Cost about £100 and really didn't last long at all before under the toes began to fall apart. Use them for washing the car now :p

As with most things you get what you pay for.
 
When first starting out i would only advise cheap gear. Then when the season`s change you will know what you want to upgrade or throw.

Lidl and Aldi do some great gear that will sort you out till you know what you really want.

(lidl bike gear is on now btw)
 
i bought boots/jacket/trousers/summer gloves al together last year just before i did my CBT.
Helmet was £229, jacket was £40, trouser £120, gloves £30, boots £40.

Since then, I've replaced the jacket for one which should've been £160 but was reduced to £40, and I'll be needing new boots soonish. Helmet is good, trousers are excellent and gloves are fine.

I'd say pay once to be honest, but as mentioned, get on ebay, and make sure you know your sizes. Remember sizes will be different for different manufacturers.
 
SPG said:
When first starting out i would only advise cheap gear. Then when the season`s change you will know what you want to upgrade or throw.

Lidl and Aldi do some great gear that will sort you out till you know what you really want.

(lidl bike gear is on now btw)
Click to expand...

and Aldi's is in 7th march
 
I tried some aldi boots

cheap and didn't last long,better put the extra and buy quality,they will last far longer
 
Yeah I'm gonna pick up a pair of the lidl £17 gloves, and I'll have a look at the Aldi stuff (9th march I think it's out) to see if it's any good, although the jacket isn't that much cheaper than a branded one in the sales. Will still get a pair of decent gore tex gloves though for the wet/cold and have the Lidl ones are a spare set.

It will probably come down to how many miles I'm doing, if it's a 5 or 10 mile each way commute I can skimp a bit, but if it's 30 miles each way I'll spend a bit more. Nothing worse than arriving at work soaked through because of cheap jacket/trousers that let in more water than the titanic. I also want this stuff to last so Ill have decent when get around to doing the full test in 6-12 months time and move onto a big bike. Can see me picking up a leather jacket and pair of Kevlar jeans for the couple of weeks of proper summer we'll probably get this year. :D

If I end up buying most of the gear at my local shop I'll try and haggle for a bit off too.
 
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