As I've mentions once or a hundred times, I've got a new bike. And you know what that means: new gear!
First up is my Bell Star Carbon helmet. I got a smoking deal on it from Riders Discount.
I like this helmet a lot. The thing I like most about it, other than the SolFX transitions visor which is awesome, is how comfortable it is. Between the comfort and visor, I forget I even have a helmet on. Until I go to change lanes that is. That's my biggest problem with this helmet; the limited peripheral vision. The eye opening is much narrower than other helmets I've owned. Makes doing over shoulder lane checks harder.
The second issue I have with this helmet is the wind noise. A fair bit louder than my Icon Airframe helmet. Another FZ6R owner I ran into the other day who also had a Bell Star helmet mentioned that it was noisy when we were talking also, so it's not just the Carbon version.
On the plus side, I love the fit and finish of the helmet, the carbon fiber version is lighter than my Icon, and it looks bad ass. Matches my Triumph's mufflers and other parts I have/am getting too.
Overall this helmet gets a B+.
Next up is my new Scorpion Eternity phantom jacket I just picked up last week. I LOVE this jacket. Fits like a glove.
I liked my other Scorpion jacket (for sale here), but it didn't fit right. I normally wear a medium in jackets, shirts and other torso related gear, but my All In jacket was always a little bit loose and let too much wind in. That's the trouble with buying online sometimes. The Eternity jacket I was able to try on in the store and loved the way it fit snug, but wasn't restrictive in the shoulders or arms. Plus the added aluminum sliders on the elbows and shoulders are a nice bonus. Better airflow, but like I said it keeps the wind out of the neck better than my larger sized jacket and with the liner in it blocks out the air that flows through the inner part of the Kevlar sleeves.
Overall, I'd give this jacket an A.
Last up is the Alpinestars GP Plus gloves I got off of eBay. Having another pair of A* gloves, I knew what size I needed, so I felt confident ordering them without trying them on first.
They fit great, and were one of the reasons I got a new jacket. Another issue with the All In jacket is that these gloves didn't fit well over the thick snap cuffs on it, but the Eternity jacket has much better fitting sleeves and cuffs that slip right into the gloves. I love the fact that the pinky is connected to the ring finger with these gloves since I recently sprained my pinky by it being bent out away from the rest of my fingers. Nice feature I haven't seen in too many gloves. Nice feel on the bars and great protection over all parts of the hand. Very confidence inspiring. Great in between glove from my Icon Pursuit perforated glove and my A* WR-3 Gore-Tex glove. They are my new every day glove unless it gets either too hot, or too cold/wet. Very happy with them.
I'd give them an overall grade of A.
Overall, I've spent a lot of cash on these items, and luckily I'm very happy with them and how well they work together. I'd be very confident in recommending any/all of these to you guys. If any other shortcomings come up in the future, I'll be sure to update this review. Now here's a shot of me actually wearing the gear:
First up is my Bell Star Carbon helmet. I got a smoking deal on it from Riders Discount.
I like this helmet a lot. The thing I like most about it, other than the SolFX transitions visor which is awesome, is how comfortable it is. Between the comfort and visor, I forget I even have a helmet on. Until I go to change lanes that is. That's my biggest problem with this helmet; the limited peripheral vision. The eye opening is much narrower than other helmets I've owned. Makes doing over shoulder lane checks harder.
The second issue I have with this helmet is the wind noise. A fair bit louder than my Icon Airframe helmet. Another FZ6R owner I ran into the other day who also had a Bell Star helmet mentioned that it was noisy when we were talking also, so it's not just the Carbon version.
On the plus side, I love the fit and finish of the helmet, the carbon fiber version is lighter than my Icon, and it looks bad ass. Matches my Triumph's mufflers and other parts I have/am getting too.
Overall this helmet gets a B+.
Next up is my new Scorpion Eternity phantom jacket I just picked up last week. I LOVE this jacket. Fits like a glove.
I liked my other Scorpion jacket (for sale here), but it didn't fit right. I normally wear a medium in jackets, shirts and other torso related gear, but my All In jacket was always a little bit loose and let too much wind in. That's the trouble with buying online sometimes. The Eternity jacket I was able to try on in the store and loved the way it fit snug, but wasn't restrictive in the shoulders or arms. Plus the added aluminum sliders on the elbows and shoulders are a nice bonus. Better airflow, but like I said it keeps the wind out of the neck better than my larger sized jacket and with the liner in it blocks out the air that flows through the inner part of the Kevlar sleeves.
Overall, I'd give this jacket an A.
Last up is the Alpinestars GP Plus gloves I got off of eBay. Having another pair of A* gloves, I knew what size I needed, so I felt confident ordering them without trying them on first.
They fit great, and were one of the reasons I got a new jacket. Another issue with the All In jacket is that these gloves didn't fit well over the thick snap cuffs on it, but the Eternity jacket has much better fitting sleeves and cuffs that slip right into the gloves. I love the fact that the pinky is connected to the ring finger with these gloves since I recently sprained my pinky by it being bent out away from the rest of my fingers. Nice feature I haven't seen in too many gloves. Nice feel on the bars and great protection over all parts of the hand. Very confidence inspiring. Great in between glove from my Icon Pursuit perforated glove and my A* WR-3 Gore-Tex glove. They are my new every day glove unless it gets either too hot, or too cold/wet. Very happy with them.
I'd give them an overall grade of A.
Overall, I've spent a lot of cash on these items, and luckily I'm very happy with them and how well they work together. I'd be very confident in recommending any/all of these to you guys. If any other shortcomings come up in the future, I'll be sure to update this review. Now here's a shot of me actually wearing the gear:
