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Chest protectors...thoughts?

random1781

random1781

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I had to use a chest protector for an event that I entered and wound up getting a secondhand full-coverage Fox protector (old Airframe, I think) on its last leg. It was surprisingly comfortable, so now I'm looking for something else but am not around any to try on. I'm most interested about fitment with an external backpack and airflow. Curious about how maintainable they are too. The shoulder straps on the one I had were an integrated part of the whole vest, so when one of them tore, the whole thing was basically done.

So what do y'all use, if anything?
 
Watching/commenting because I'm interested, too

Fox Titan jacket for airflow and shoulder/elbow/back protection. Chest protection is fine against roost and the kidney belt has good "love handle" protection. Not much for rib protection, though.

Leatt makes some chest protectors that have great rib protection, but the rest is kinda meh IMO.

My Fox Titan jacket is about 7 years old and still going strong, but you can't buy that one anymore. The new ones might be junk, but they still look good.
 
I wear a Tekvest Freestyle. I've had it for probably a decade now and feel naked without it.

Tekvests provide real protection and originated in snowcross.

I wear mine under my riding jacket. If it's really hot, then I wear the vest combined with good elbow pads and gloves.
 
Yooper_Bob said:
An added benefit of the tekvest is the full, wrap around, rib protection.

They offer several different models.

tekrider.com

Tekrider United States & International (makers of TekVest)

Tekrider
tekrider.com tekrider.com
Click to expand...
I'm really eyeing the Tek Vest. The level of protection and simple design are really appealing, but holy cow, I'd be looking at $650 or so for what I'm interested in. Maybe if I can find some sponsors that would work!

The other thing that gives me pause about the Tek Vest is airflow. Folks say they run pretty hot, which is specifically why I ditched jackets. All y'all Tek Vest junkies are up north though. I haven't been able to find someone in AZ who has one.

Leatt's 6.5 Pro is the other one I'm considering. I think that has the most rib protection aside from the Tek Vest that I've seen, but that back plate is massive.
 
Check the flea market section on various snowmobile sites. I got mine used off one. It was brand new and half price.

I've ridden with mine in the desert southwest, and no matter what you are wearing, it's friggin' hot!

I wear mine over a breathable jersey along with elbow pads and gloves. Flows quite a bit of air the moment you are moving.
 
Also...get the simple mesh version. Don't get the ones with a bunch of pockets or the fabric covering.

Mesh will flow the most air.

I like the zipper front, because you can take it off and on without removing my helmet.
 
Yooper_Bob said:
Check the flea market section on various snowmobile sites. I got mine used off one. It was brand new and half price.

I've ridden with mine in the desert southwest, and no matter what you are wearing, it's friggin' hot!

I wear mine over a breathable jersey along with elbow pads and gloves. Flows quite a bit of air the moment you are moving.
Click to expand...
Thanks, definitely more on those than riding forums, but so far none in my size. Unfortunately I have a narrow window to snag one, so Leatt might be the way I go here.
 
I thought Klim made the Tek vest. It never occurred to me that snow guys wore stuff like this. I guess I figured falling on snow would be soft.
 
Seems like TekVest does a lot with other brands...I've come across some Polaris and Arctic Cat branded ones already.

I guess you don't know what's under the snow?
 
Trees are the same hardness wether it's winter or summer.

They were originally created for Snow Cross racing. Those guys launch sleds incredibly high, and there is a fair amount of contact between sleds. Not to mention carbide studded tracks.

I originally bought mine for snowmobiling, but now use it on the bikes as well. Way more protection than the old "roost protector" I used to have.

Mine originally had a couple of big Bombardier patches on it. A few minutes with a stitch remover, and now it's plain black.
 
random1781 said:
Seems like TekVest does a lot with other brands...I've come across some Polaris and Arctic Cat branded ones already.

I guess you don't know what's under the snow?
Click to expand...
I'm from the South. If it snows, we view it as the apocalypse and shelter inside 😁 We don't fuck with that stuff
 
I'm from Texas, so snow mobiles are from Narnia as far as I can tell!

But when I looked for snowmobile fail videos, I can see how having stout armor would be helpful if you smash into a tree or if you sink into some snow and find your 600 lb machine on top of you, regardless of how floofy that snow might be.

So who has a size M TekVest that they don't want?
 
I always wear a simple roost guard and elbow guards when not wearing an armored jacket. I used to wear a roost guard under my armored jackets but got a little lazy doing easy dual sport stuff and started only wearing the armored jacket. That changed after taking a handle bar to the ribs in a simple fall a couple years ago.

Probably not the best protection out there but a lot better than nothing, I bought one of these to wear under my armored jackets giving rib protection where my jackets aren't armored. The back plate is removable. I have removed back plate since my jackets all have armor in them. Since you mentioned wearing a back pack something like this might work for you as well. It only takes a few minutes to R/R the back plate and it vents very well.

www.bobscycle.com

Fly Racing 2023 CE Revel Lite Roost Guard White

Buy Fly Racing 2023 CE Revel Lite Roost Guard White at Bob's Cycle Supply, Shop our huge selection of FLY Racing Adult Chestprotectors Motocross Gear, Motocross Apparel, Dirt Bike Gear, and MX Gear online at bobscycle.com
www.bobscycle.com www.bobscycle.com
 
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Simmons1 said:
I always wear a simple roost guard and elbow guards when not wearing an armored jacket. I used to wear a roost guard under my armored jackets but got a little lazy doing easy dual sport stuff and started only wearing the armored jacket. That changed after taking a handle bar to the ribs in a simple fall a couple years ago.

Probably not the best protection out there but a lot better than nothing, I bought one of these to wear under my armored jackets giving rib protection where my jackets aren't armored. The back plate is removable. I have removed back plate since my jackets all have armor in them. Since you mentioned wearing a back pack something like this might work for you as well. It only takes a few minutes to R/R the back plate and it vents very well.

www.bobscycle.com

Fly Racing 2023 CE Revel Lite Roost Guard White

Buy Fly Racing 2023 CE Revel Lite Roost Guard White at Bob's Cycle Supply, Shop our huge selection of FLY Racing Adult Chestprotectors Motocross Gear, Motocross Apparel, Dirt Bike Gear, and MX Gear online at bobscycle.com
www.bobscycle.com www.bobscycle.com
Click to expand...
Honestly rib protection especially around the sides is one of the bigger things on my list.

I think for my needs, the Leatt 6.5 Pro and the Tekvest are really the only real contenders. Here's my reasoning...
  • Protection - again with that side coverage, not many protectors have it. The Tekvest wins here though.
  • Durability/serviceability - most chest protectors like the A-10 (I think) have sewn in straps, or like the Fox Airframe Pro have shoulder straps that are part of the front and rear plates. Straps are going to be the first thing to go, whether they're torn or lose elasticity. It's stupid to replace the whole thing because of a strap, which is what happened to the one that I had. I know the Tekvests are supposed to be ever-lasting and that's why a lot of people like them, but having a long-lasting chest protector shouldn't be hard, right? It's plastic and foam, not a bunch of parts spinning around at 5000 rpm.
I was going to throw "comfort" on that list there, but just those requirements leave me with the Leatt and Tekvest.

Cost pretty much decides everything else. I don't think I'd be getting that much more out of a Tekvest for the extra $300. The Leatt is repairable, or even modifiable if I want to replace shoulder straps with something padded or maybe ditch the back plate and strap the front plate to my backpack, so the paying-for-longevity thing doesn't pan out for me. I think even if the Leatt isn't as comfortable as I want right out of the box, I can get it to where I want, whereas the Tekvest is what it is.

The Tekvest reminds me of Aerostich. It's well-made and lasts forever, but it's expensive and the overall design hasn't changed. I've had Aerostich stuff before and liked it, but I've generally moved from top-tier stuff like that to more disposable (but cheaper) gear, so I think the Leatt is more in line with what I'm looking for at the moment.

Couple other things...the Leatt is actually CE rated. I personally don't obsess over ratings, but since I'm planning on entering into more events, that might matter. And if the Leatt does fail somehow in a couple years, I'll still have gotten my money's worth and who knows what new products might be out there to try.
 
And for anyone else looking, I recently came across RXR, which looks really cool. They use permanently inflated air pockets for cushioning on their stuff. They do recommend replacing those parts every 1.5-2 years, but they're reasonably priced, and it seems like a lot of the hardware is actually replaceable.
 
Mosko Moto is supposed to release a chest protector at some point, but it may lack a rigid shell. That seems important for low speed offs into pointy things. They've been working with Rheon pads and have shown some design samples occasionally. I know their latest top tier jacket & pants use Rheon inserts. Looking at production inserts, a Rheon based system with a hard face on the pads could work very well.

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Leatte 5.5 since '17 for when I'm riding mostly off pavement in the west. T-shirt under and a jersey over the Leatt. A vortex shell works over for cool mornings or rain.
 
I’ve had for at least twelve years my Forcefield. Now its showing signs for a bit giving up but still in pretty good order.

So figured that it might be time to looks after some new upper body protection and jump into something a bit lighter. At local store I checked some Fox vest.. naa didn’t feel comfy at all. Then ordered Leatt Airfit 3DF, well a bit better but I found protectors rather small. So returned it.

Then I ordered Astars Bionic Pro V2 in XXL. Better, but the shirt-part is choking small. So I’ll return also that one. Shame because liked it otherways.

Now situation is that I ordered the new version of Forcefield. I know its heavy and bulky but some how these others felt a bit chinese compared. Maybe best part of it is the proper back protection all the way down. Maybe worst thing I could imagine would be spine or neck damage. I also use Leatt neck brace when of from asphalt. At least I haven’t broken any bones using their products, maybe some minor faults at upper end but thats normal :jump
 
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