I'm looking at purchasing a 2002 CBR F4i in a couple weeks. This will be my first bike so I have very limited knowledge when it comes to riding gear. I'm looking at the Joe Rocket Honda Brand textile jacket, JR Alter Ego pants, Shoei TZ-R helmet, and JR Sonic gloves. I havn't decided if the budget will allow for a pair of boots yet, eventually I'll buy a pair but will I be ok without them starting out? What do you guys think of the rest of the gear? Let me know, your input will be a big deciding factor when it comes time to buy everything.

 

sounds good and you sound prepared and safe! if you cant afford the riding boots at the moment, pick yourself up a pair of over the ankle/steeltoe work boots! thats what i ride w/ everytime.

 

Yeah it seems like a good pair of work boots would be a good alternative

 

I've found through searching the forum (this one and www.DCsportbikes.com) that alot of guys prefer leather over textile for obvious protection reasons. Personally I will be riding the bike for pleasure on occasional twisty roads so I think the more protection I have the better, so I'm sort of swaying away from a textile jacket and gloves. I have a budget of about $900 for all the gear (helmet, jacket, pants, and gloves). I want the most protection and best quality I can get for the money. Let me know what you guys wear, and where I can find some good deals on gear.

 

Yea man, i really don't feel comfy riding without my leather jacket. I wore a textile jacket for a week until i couldn't take it anymore. Leather is more comfy, doesn't shift in the wind, and a lot safer. I wear an all black joe rocket superhawk leather jacket and couldn't be happier. It give's 'me' the comfort i need to feel when im on the bike. It takes the wind away.

Gloves are gloves for the most part, most have leather and padding in the important places. What you want to get is gauntlet gloves, the kind that come up past your wrist.

Alter Ego pants are good. I usually wear blue jeans with Icon leg armor underneath. The strap on armor fits tighter to my legs then slip over pants, thus i feel safer and usually do that. The best way to go here is obviously leather but i haven't made it there yet.

A decent pair of construction boots will work until you get real riding boots. Make sure they are on tight when you ride, and cover your ankle bone. Tuck in the laces !!

For a helmet i went to the local stealership and tried on most of their helmet and walked out with one that fit right. I don't like to wear glasses and do 95% of my riding when the sun is up, so i went with a dark tint visor. The difference it made was huge, no more squinty eyes !

Goodluck.

Most of your local dealerships have gear if you haven't checked them out. If im ordering online i get most of my stuff from kneedraggers.com

Hope this helps

 

X1000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000000 00000000000000!!!!! otherwise you'll go to put a leg down at a stoplight and *BAM*. You'll be asking someone to help you get the bike off you're leg! never happened to me but a few close calls!

for good prices on gear, CHECK OUT www.sandhillspowersports.com !!!!!!!!!1

 

i posted last night about a bunch of gear for sale here locally - leather, cordura, and mesh jackets, cordura pants, cowhide full compression suits, vests, etc. it would be a great idea to go try some stuff on, and then buy from this guy - you can't beat $150 for a brand new track-approved leather jacket and pants.

it's not alpinestars or joe rocket, but i'm very happy with the jacket. the pants could fit a little better, but i'll lose some weight and it'll be fine. i'm 5'5 and 155lbs, so nothing is going to fit me right. the boots i wear were leftovers from when my buddy was in basic training - they were gonna throw them out. plain leather boots don't give you a ton of impact protection, but they are better than running shoes. if you can find a decent set of riding boots, the soles are a lot comfier and less cumbersome than those of work boots and combat boots tend to be, the toes are a little thinner, they flex in the right places, and i'm told they feel like slippers, though i've never worn a pair.

scorpion makes a great helmet - measure around your head to get a good idea of the size (i.e. 55-56cm = small), try some helmets on, and then buy a scorpion exo-700 - they are on clearance a lot of places right now for 150 and down, and are a GREAT helmet, especially for such a low price.

i don't wear gloves, though i probably should, but i haven't found any that don't make me REALLY uncomfortable yet. you want hand protection if you fall down, as well as protection from rocks and bugs, but if the protection interferes adversely with your operation of the bike (especially throttle and clutch control), you're probably better off without.

hope this helps - i'm pretty new to the game, but these are my experiences thus far. good luck and be safe, and ideally you'll be able to sell all your gear as "like new" years down the road. It's kinda like airbags in a car - you feel great knowing they are there, but you hope never to test them out. if you want more info on that riding gear, let me know, and i'll put you in touch with that guy. his stuff is all for sale on the dallas craigslist.

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I found a pair of "reasonably" priced riding shoes. (http://www.newenough.com/boots/sport...cle_boots.html)

I havn't read any reviews about them except for "pauls review" on the new enough site but given that Alpine Stars has a good reputation amoung alot of riders and given that a good pair of work boots would cost me around $60-$70 anyway, paying another $40-$50 for a what sounds like will give me comparable protection and be much more comfortable/fexible to ride in sounds like a worthwhile investment. Does anyone have or know someone who has had any experience with these shoes?

I also found a perferated leather jacket i like. (http://www.newenough.com/protective_...le_jacket.html)
Any thoughts on this one? This may push me over my original $900 gear budget, but if it will help save my *** why not spend the extra money.

 

Send me a link to his page if you can

 

Don't mean to hijack your thread or anything, but, I also am planning on picking up an F4i soon and am in the same predicament.

I the one helmet I really seem to like the designon is the HJC CL-15 pegasus. Is this a "good" helmet?

As for a jacket, I was looking at this joe rocket repsol textile thing.

Is the difference between "textile" and leather really night and day? Thanks for any help guys/gals.