Tweet
Had my ASTAR Air jacket for about 4 years now. Decided i needed an upgrade.
The parts sold by Alpinestar here are waay to expensive, so decided to make my own.
We're good at the desi jugaad...
So here are the steps.
MATERIALS NEEDED
PU foam 500mm X 500mm X 25mm thk
Cloth (preferably thin, to keep weight down) 1000mm X 1000mm
Needle and thread
TOOLS
Cutter or Blade,
Glue- fevi stick type
markers
Blank papers
Of course a jacket with a pocket for the Protector
STEPS
1. Cut out the PU foam roughly in the shape of the pocket
2. Design a pattern for the armour
My main consideration here was freedom of movement.
Central rim so that i can fold the jacket while the side structures so that i can bend my back easily.
3. Draw a proper one to scale on a piece of paper with markers.
4. Cut out those pieces carefully with the cutter or blade.
* to make the cutting easier, you can heat up the blade with a candle flame.
5. Arrange the pieces on one sheet of cloth and stick them with glue.
6. Cover it up with the second layer of cloth and use the plastic ruler to press the cloth in the gaps between the foam pieces.
7. Finally use the needle and thread to stitch all the joints and around the whole unit.
* learnt two things here, learnt how to stitch and also learnt that it is horrendous.
Finally cut away the excess cloth on the sides and you are ready with a back protector to use.
While i was at it, I used the excess foam i had to make them into chest protectors. Simple job.
No need of any cloth or anything. Just use the blade and cut the foam into pieces shaped like the chest protector pocket.
So here you go, a completely upgraded jacket without even spending 500bucks
.
Cheers, go ahead and make it yourselves. Upgrade the level of safety you jacket provides.
*only thing keep in mind it is labour intensive and requires a lot of time and patience.
Also this is not certified, though it should offer pretty good levels of protection.
ANY QUERIES AND SUGGESTION
you can email me
star.vikram @ gmail. com
The parts sold by Alpinestar here are waay to expensive, so decided to make my own.
We're good at the desi jugaad...
So here are the steps.
MATERIALS NEEDED
PU foam 500mm X 500mm X 25mm thk
Cloth (preferably thin, to keep weight down) 1000mm X 1000mm
Needle and thread
TOOLS
Cutter or Blade,
Glue- fevi stick type
markers
Blank papers
Of course a jacket with a pocket for the Protector
STEPS
1. Cut out the PU foam roughly in the shape of the pocket
2. Design a pattern for the armour
My main consideration here was freedom of movement.
Central rim so that i can fold the jacket while the side structures so that i can bend my back easily.
3. Draw a proper one to scale on a piece of paper with markers.
4. Cut out those pieces carefully with the cutter or blade.
* to make the cutting easier, you can heat up the blade with a candle flame.
5. Arrange the pieces on one sheet of cloth and stick them with glue.
6. Cover it up with the second layer of cloth and use the plastic ruler to press the cloth in the gaps between the foam pieces.
7. Finally use the needle and thread to stitch all the joints and around the whole unit.
* learnt two things here, learnt how to stitch and also learnt that it is horrendous.
Finally cut away the excess cloth on the sides and you are ready with a back protector to use.
While i was at it, I used the excess foam i had to make them into chest protectors. Simple job.
No need of any cloth or anything. Just use the blade and cut the foam into pieces shaped like the chest protector pocket.
So here you go, a completely upgraded jacket without even spending 500bucks
.Cheers, go ahead and make it yourselves. Upgrade the level of safety you jacket provides.
*only thing keep in mind it is labour intensive and requires a lot of time and patience.
Also this is not certified, though it should offer pretty good levels of protection.
ANY QUERIES AND SUGGESTION
you can email me
star.vikram @ gmail. com
Comment