WARNING-Hard plastic bits in leathers.

[FROSTY]

A conversation I had to day sent shivvers down my spine.
Those hard plastic knee cap and elbow protectors are fantastic things when the leathers fit you properly.
My worry is when you're wearing second hand or borrowed leathers.
If the protectors sit either too high or too low by about 75mm (3 inches)the edges are now the point of contact with your body.Like a cheap plastic knife they can now cut pretty deep into you given a hard enough impact.In essence they have totally the opposite effect to what they are desighned to do
If they sit above or below the knee cap Id suggest getting em removed or -moved so they sit propperly
basicly make sure they fit right or they can do more harm than good

[k14]

What leathers have hard plastic bits in them??

My spidi's have soft foam padding on the shoulders, elbows, knees and shins, but none of it would do any harm in an impact, even if it wasn't sitting correctly.

The only hard plastic on my leathers are the sliders, they could make a decent bruise or maybe even a break, but I highly doubt they could cut me.

[FROSTY]

Ive seen a few suits with hard plastic cups -actually the kbc suit Ive got has some in em

[curious george]

MIne has the plastic cups. I've tried it once in a crash, and they worked really well, but they are damn uncomfortable if improperly fitted. I like them, seem so much asfer than just foam.

[FROSTY]

they must fit you propperly then ?

[FzerozeroT]

only applies to some leathers, my plastic bits are in a pocket with leather on inside and out. but they fit anyway.

and 75mm is like 3 inches.

[FROSTY]

Hey if it doesn't apply to you cool -but I'd feel like s@#@# if some newbee got hurt cos I forgot to mention something

[phil_elvey]

My Dainese 2pc leathers have the hard plastic inserts. I was told the the main advantage of these is that if you hit the seal they help you go from a vertical motion (falling) to horizontal motion (sliding) as quickely as possible and therefore minimizing the impact at your point of contact with the road.

[DEATH_INC.]

Hey if it doesn't apply to you cool -but I'd feel like s@#@# if some newbee got hurt cos I forgot to mention something

Fair call.This applies to all yer gear,poorly fitting helmets can do more harm than good in a crash,for example.'Make sure you use stuff that fits right' I think is the message here....
My Teknics have hard armour in the shoulders,elbows and knees,they've been well tested and work really good,but then they fit properly too.

[FROSTY]

yep you said in 2 words what took me 10 toi get out :done:

[Slim]

I've got the foam padding in my leathers, but I was told by someone that the hard plastic can cause different or more complex injuries because it transfers the force/energy of the collision. eg: You fall off & hit your elbow & the force is transferred up your arm, creating a multiple/compound fracture in your upper arm or even into your shoulder.

Foam padding is like helmets though - once you've had a major impact & the foam is compressed, it's future effectiveness is reduced & you should replace it.

[FROSTY]

I think the idea behind the hard stuff is to disperse the impact over a greater area in order to reduce tthe effect-In theory a fall that could cause a broken bone will only cause bad bruising.

[DEATH_INC.]

Yeah,that's it,just like yer helmet.Dunno where they get the idea it can transfer more impact,it still has the foam padding inside.....

[FROSTY]

dunno but hey every little bit helps aye?

[Slim]

Dunno where they get the idea it can transfer more impact, it still has the foam padding inside.....
The older Dianese leathers didn't.

[bluninja]

I had a major impact with a tractor and my armour was of the plastic cup and foam inside variety. They definately saved my knees (the plastic of the cups was hit so hard the plastic was pushed along the surface), probably saved my shoulder too, but the impact there pushed the cup off the joint when it split under impact and it looked like my bicep had been ruptured. I've since been told that the plastic cups even with foam can actually cause a worse injury in an impact, and that the dense foam (I have the Hi protec rubber stuff instead) is best.

Wonder how this applies to back protectors...my dainese has a plastic cover...is this dangerous?? I highsided with it on and I had an outline of the edge of the shell on my back after....still better than not having had it on.

[Coldkiwi]

mm.. best possible is probably hard exterior to take point impacts and prevent puncturing type wounds and soft interior to load spread. That said, it ain't gonna work if not fitted right... like has been noted before. Also, iahevn't really found anything that fits that bill too well. My cheap ol Nazran jacket has dual density foam in the elbows and shoulders but thats about as close as I've seen. I have much harder armour in my one piece but it fits very snugly
Really, protective gear has GOT to be comfortable otherwise
a) it probably isn't going to work right and
b) you're probably not going to bother wearing it!

[FROSTY]

I had a major impact with a tractor and my armour was of the plastic cup and foam inside variety. They definately saved my knees (the plastic of the cups was hit so hard the plastic was pushed along the surface), probably saved my shoulder too, but the impact there pushed the cup off the joint when it split under impact and it looked like my bicep had been ruptured. I've since been told that the plastic cups even with foam can actually cause a worse injury in an impact, and that the dense foam (I have the Hi protec rubber stuff instead) is best.

Wonder how this applies to back protectors...my dainese has a plastic cover...is this dangerous?? I highsided with it on and I had an outline of the edge of the shell on my back after....still better than not having had it on.
When back protectors first came out -the armadillo type.I got the blurb from dianese--the idea is to spread the impact over your entire back so there is no single point of impact