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Mesh Protection?

PatrickDonovan

New member
I really would like to get a pair of mesh overpants for this summer that I could wear with bike shorts or even just my underwear:whistle . I've looked at the wide variety that first Gear, Olympia ect...make and also at the Motoport Kevlar Mesh. Here is my question...how much more protective is nylon mesh if any over say Cortech riding jeans with knee armor and added leather on the hips? In the case of a low side "get off" , will the Olympia mesh pants be destroyed as quickly as a pair of jeans (both of which I will only be wearing tighty whiteys), or will they hold up longer and protect more. Obviously I'm going for the "cool" ride in temps over 80 f and also for ease of wearing my work clothes under pants for commuting puposes.

The Motoport site makes it sound like "if it aint kevlar...then it aint working"

thoughts please.
 
I think it's a personal decision. I'm no pro, but here's my 2 cents. Living in southern LA the heat and humidity just takes a lot of the pleasure out of summer riding after 10 AM. I've gone to Olympia Airglides for pants. Prior to that I had Tourmaster/Cortech full non-mesh textile in black. I'd never buy black mesh, defeats the purpose in my mind. Never the less the textile was just too hot and found myself packing my pockets with ice at every stop. So in my mind and other words of wisdom in terms of protection it's leather as #1, then textile, then mesh and finally denim jeans. The mesh being only slightly better than jeans at ripping the thigh areas out, but the sliding areas like butt and knees are heavier textile fabric with pads which will help some. Kevlar mesh must be better than regular mesh IMHO, but not sure how much added protection you get as it is still mesh.
 
I figure that mesh protective garments are a sort of trade off. Hereabouts it would be too unpleasant to ride with non mesh protective garments in the summer. I worry more about the fit of the trousers keeping the pads in place (over bones close to the skin) for effective protection.

I would recommend LD comfort bloomer style underwear under the mesh, dries quickly and does not have those torturer designed thick leg seams. Rinse them out overnight & if not entirely dry, they soon will be on the road. I bought two of the short ones, if I had it to do over I would have bought one short & one long. I cheat & use a Wal-mart synthetic t shirt on top. These would probably help under more restricted Vent wise motor garb as well.
 
I wear FirstGear HD overpants, with shorts underneath. These have remained comfortable, even in Texas heat, and provide hip and knee padding for protection. They are easily removed at your destination, or at a rest stop. They have a rain liner, if you choose to ride in it. A good product.
 
I wear first gear mesh pants with running compression shorts which wick.

Personally I find that jeans are not as cooling and cause me to sweat.

On any ride that is more than one our i am wearing mesh pants.

As to protection I would say both are about the same
 
Wow on LD shorts

I figure that mesh protective garments are a sort of trade off. Hereabouts it would be too unpleasant to ride with non mesh protective garments in the summer. I worry more about the fit of the trousers keeping the pads in place (over bones close to the skin) for effective protection.

I would recommend LD comfort bloomer style underwear under the mesh, dries quickly and does not have those torturer designed thick leg seams. Rinse them out overnight & if not entirely dry, they soon will be on the road. I bought two of the short ones, if I had it to do over I would have bought one short & one long. I cheat & use a Wal-mart synthetic t shirt on top. These would probably help under more restricted Vent wise motor garb as well.

I don't know about the mesh pants yet, but I'm definately getting a pair of LD shorts!!! I checked out their videos and I'm sold.
 
If you like LD shorts (I do) check out Under Armor shorts. They wick moisture away from your skin and are very comfortable plus they are half the price of LD shorts.
Ride Safe :usa :usa
 
I've learned that mesh melts; a lot more easily than you might think. I wouldn't wear it as pants without fabric between it and my hide, and I wouldn't wear it on any bike where it may come close to a hot exhaust. Armored jeans may be hot, but after a few desert deployments I'm used to armor being hot.
 
I don't think you can beat the Motoport Kevlar mesh for hot temps or protection. I crash tested mine and there was no damage to me or the suit. I surely would have had major road rash and a broken arm without it. The Kevlar is super tough and will outlive anything else out there, including the rider. Now, there is even better armor for the Motoport suit called Quad4. The Olympia stuff is only cheaper, the Motoport is better in every way except price. Even in a minor fall, the Motoport will pay for itself with no damage to the suit, and probably the least possible damage to the rider of any suit made.

The only problem with Motoport, and other mesh suits, is that in hot areas where it rains (Florida), it is a real hassle to get the liners in and out. I live in California, so its not much of a problem here. In hot dry weather, I find the Motoport more comfortable than normal clothes because you carry your shade around with you with the mesh.
 
Melting mesh?

I've learned that mesh melts; a lot more easily than you might think. I wouldn't wear it as pants without fabric between it and my hide, and I wouldn't wear it on any bike where it may come close to a hot exhaust. Armored jeans may be hot, but after a few desert deployments I'm used to armor being hot.

That is my primary concern regarding nylon mesh. Even though they say it's "ballistic" or "denier" (whatever that is), if it's sliding down the road, what will last longer...mesh or denim?
 
The only problem with Motoport, and other mesh suits, is that in hot areas where it rains (Florida), it is a real hassle to get the liners in and out.

Don't you think that it would be SO much easier to just use a rainsuit instead? That's what I do.
 
+1 for raingear (in my case FrogTogs) over the MotoPort/CyclePort Kevlar mesh pants. They are much easier to get into than trying to get the waterprooof liner inside the pants, and they pack easily.;)

Calmil
 
+1 for raingear (in my case FrogTogs) over the MotoPort/CyclePort Kevlar mesh pants. They are much easier to get into than trying to get the waterprooof liner inside the pants, and they pack easily.;)

Calmil

+1 Works great for me too!
 
.... "denier" (whatever that is.......

Google and Wikipedia is your friend! :thumb

Everything you wanted to know about material and then some......

Denier
Denier is a unit of measure for the linear mass density of fibers. It is defined as the mass in grams per 9,000 meters.
In the International System of Units the tex is used instead (see below).

One can distinguish between Filament and Total denier. Both are defined as above but the first only relates to a single filament
of fiber (also commonly known as Denier per Filament or D.P.F) whereas the second relates to a yarn, an agglomeration of filaments.

The following relationship applies to straight, uniform filaments:

D.P.F. = Total Denier / Quantity of Uniform Filaments
The denier system of measurement is used on two and single filament fibers. Some common calculations are as follows:

1 denier = 1 gram per 9 000 meters
= 0.05 grams per 450 meters (1/20 of above)

Tex
Tex is a unit of measure for the linear mass density of fibers and is defined as the mass in grams per 1000 meters.
Tex is more likely to be used in Canada and Europe, while denier remains more common in the United States.
The unit code is "tex". The most commonly used unit is actually the decitex, abbreviated dtex, which is the mass in grams
per 10,000 meters. When measuring objects that consist of multiple fibers the term "filament tex" is sometimes used, referring to the mass in grams
per 10,000 meters of a single filament.

Tex is used for measuring fiber size in many products, including cigarette filters, optical cable, yarn, and fabric.


A fiber is generally considered a microfiber if it is 1 denier or less.
A 1-denier polyester fiber has a diameter of about 10 micrometers.
Denier is used as the measure of density of weave in tights and pantyhose, which defines their opaqueness.
 
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