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A few short impressions after a couple of months of use on a few products. I haven't included photos as I have done so before and most pics are available online.
1. HJC CL-17 Mission Helmet: 7/10
It was hard for me to find a helmet that fit me well. Tried everything from Kranos to MT to SOL to THH and a few others within my price range. This was the one piece left with Rahul at Moto101 Khar. It is a bit heavier than most helmets I tried and the shell is actually quite big. I use a XXL. So not one of those super-sleek Bell type CF shells but still DOT and SNELL certified. The vents do their job well but get noisy at speed. The internal padding is easily removable and can be cleaned quite easily. The visor is not as scratch resistant as I expected. It gained scratches faster than the old Studds Ninja helmet I used to wear back in the day. Still, visibility is not compromised. 2 months of use has not made it much looser and it hasn't felt too heavy even on long rides.
Negatives are that it doesn't come with a chin curtain, the damned visor is more expensive that a lot of helmets and it takes up way too much space. Little stuff that take those 3 points away.
2. Gianni Falco Liberty 2 Boots: 8.5/10
Spartan is importing these to India now. I think I was among the first to buy it too. Feature wise its not too packed. The material is all synthetic except the flap inside the zipper. I also have very wide feet from many years of barefoot training and running. I needed something that I could wear at my site offices in case I did nit have time to change to formal shoes. It actually passes under the radar very easily and looks good under jeans because it doesn't have the protruding bits like external toe sliders. Downside is that it does not offer the protection a proper sportboot would. Falco has those too. Having said this, the protection it offers is nothing to scoff at unless you are planning to ride at serious speeds. Strong heel and toe cups (internal), good lateral protection (again internal), absorbent insides, waterproof outsides (tested in Mumbai monsoon), triple layered ankle protection and a flexible shin plate. The quality of construction is significantly better than any others that fell within my budget and I dare say it is comparable to the Dainese and Alpinestar boots I have seen my friends use. And it is ridiculously comfortable. I have worn them all day at my company's construction site and felt no more discomfort than with formal shoes. It does not breathe well being waterproof but cotton socks and a dusting of talc before the socks come on solves that. And if it means anything to you, they are made in Italy. Despite its downsides I give it 8.5 because I was looking for a boot that doesn't look "crotch-rockety" and while I have seen some offerings at this price and lower by Zeus, BB, TBG, Solace etc they don't seem to make a "stealth" boot. The Liberty 2 is a touring boot and works very well in the city as well. The closest option to these are the Solace Kinetic Boots at 1000+ cheaper.
3. Zeus Dark Rider Motorcycle Jeans: 5/10 (@Shaktiv3 look this up)
This is an early impression so things might change later. Now, riding jeans are a step lower than proper cordura pants in terms of abrasion resistance despite the addition of kevlar to the necessary parts. I chose to buy jeans because 95% of my riding is in the city and I could just keep wearing them after work
. Having said this, the Zeus Dark Rider jeans seemed to tick all the right boxes in terms of safety. Kevlar ARAMID fibre at the hips and knees, Knox armour at the hips and knees. They also fit me better than the Spartan mesh/cordura pants and the jeans. The spartan stuff is more expensive and offers less protection i.e no armour at the hip or not knox armour. I bought it at SM Studio in Mulund and when I tried it I puled and yanked at all the stitching and stressed bits and was quite satisfied with the quality of the stitching. The big minus was that the buttons at the waist came off even when I was trying it on. Harmesh at SM Studio, volunteered to provide me a new piece that he would deliver. When the new peice arrived, the exact same thing happened at home i.e the buttons just popped off. Obviously this reflects badly on Zeus' QC whether it is just a bad batch of buttons or a systemic QC issue. I have decided to keep the pants because the rest of it still is good and the price (4500) is right. I have since had a tailor replace the buttons with higher quality bits. I was advised to not adjust the length because the reflective strip on the inside would get hidden but I had the tailor remove the safety strip and stitch it to the outside after he adjusted the length. You will have to buy a size larger than what you normally wear. So, all told a bit disappointed with the button issue, but I am keeping them because of the fit, the armour and the price, but until they prove themselves in the medium to longer term, the Zeus Dark Rider Jeans get a 5/10.
Questions are welcome because I am sure there are things I haven't covered.
1. HJC CL-17 Mission Helmet: 7/10
It was hard for me to find a helmet that fit me well. Tried everything from Kranos to MT to SOL to THH and a few others within my price range. This was the one piece left with Rahul at Moto101 Khar. It is a bit heavier than most helmets I tried and the shell is actually quite big. I use a XXL. So not one of those super-sleek Bell type CF shells but still DOT and SNELL certified. The vents do their job well but get noisy at speed. The internal padding is easily removable and can be cleaned quite easily. The visor is not as scratch resistant as I expected. It gained scratches faster than the old Studds Ninja helmet I used to wear back in the day. Still, visibility is not compromised. 2 months of use has not made it much looser and it hasn't felt too heavy even on long rides.
Negatives are that it doesn't come with a chin curtain, the damned visor is more expensive that a lot of helmets and it takes up way too much space. Little stuff that take those 3 points away.
2. Gianni Falco Liberty 2 Boots: 8.5/10
Spartan is importing these to India now. I think I was among the first to buy it too. Feature wise its not too packed. The material is all synthetic except the flap inside the zipper. I also have very wide feet from many years of barefoot training and running. I needed something that I could wear at my site offices in case I did nit have time to change to formal shoes. It actually passes under the radar very easily and looks good under jeans because it doesn't have the protruding bits like external toe sliders. Downside is that it does not offer the protection a proper sportboot would. Falco has those too. Having said this, the protection it offers is nothing to scoff at unless you are planning to ride at serious speeds. Strong heel and toe cups (internal), good lateral protection (again internal), absorbent insides, waterproof outsides (tested in Mumbai monsoon), triple layered ankle protection and a flexible shin plate. The quality of construction is significantly better than any others that fell within my budget and I dare say it is comparable to the Dainese and Alpinestar boots I have seen my friends use. And it is ridiculously comfortable. I have worn them all day at my company's construction site and felt no more discomfort than with formal shoes. It does not breathe well being waterproof but cotton socks and a dusting of talc before the socks come on solves that. And if it means anything to you, they are made in Italy. Despite its downsides I give it 8.5 because I was looking for a boot that doesn't look "crotch-rockety" and while I have seen some offerings at this price and lower by Zeus, BB, TBG, Solace etc they don't seem to make a "stealth" boot. The Liberty 2 is a touring boot and works very well in the city as well. The closest option to these are the Solace Kinetic Boots at 1000+ cheaper.
3. Zeus Dark Rider Motorcycle Jeans: 5/10 (@Shaktiv3 look this up)
This is an early impression so things might change later. Now, riding jeans are a step lower than proper cordura pants in terms of abrasion resistance despite the addition of kevlar to the necessary parts. I chose to buy jeans because 95% of my riding is in the city and I could just keep wearing them after work
. Having said this, the Zeus Dark Rider jeans seemed to tick all the right boxes in terms of safety. Kevlar ARAMID fibre at the hips and knees, Knox armour at the hips and knees. They also fit me better than the Spartan mesh/cordura pants and the jeans. The spartan stuff is more expensive and offers less protection i.e no armour at the hip or not knox armour. I bought it at SM Studio in Mulund and when I tried it I puled and yanked at all the stitching and stressed bits and was quite satisfied with the quality of the stitching. The big minus was that the buttons at the waist came off even when I was trying it on. Harmesh at SM Studio, volunteered to provide me a new piece that he would deliver. When the new peice arrived, the exact same thing happened at home i.e the buttons just popped off. Obviously this reflects badly on Zeus' QC whether it is just a bad batch of buttons or a systemic QC issue. I have decided to keep the pants because the rest of it still is good and the price (4500) is right. I have since had a tailor replace the buttons with higher quality bits. I was advised to not adjust the length because the reflective strip on the inside would get hidden but I had the tailor remove the safety strip and stitch it to the outside after he adjusted the length. You will have to buy a size larger than what you normally wear. So, all told a bit disappointed with the button issue, but I am keeping them because of the fit, the armour and the price, but until they prove themselves in the medium to longer term, the Zeus Dark Rider Jeans get a 5/10.Questions are welcome because I am sure there are things I haven't covered.
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I cant try them on before ordering so a bit skeptical about them. and does the armors stay in place while riding ? and how comfortable they are in a scale of 10 while riding? Picture of armours as well.
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