Upgrading armour in leathers
Discussion
With the improvement in kit in recent years, I now rarely wear my leathers, in preference of various more comfortable Kevlar pieces of attire.
However, for the occasional track day I use my leathers dating back to the mid noughties. The level 1 armour in them is very rigid and it’s hard to see how they’d absorb much impact. In contrast to the level 2 ‘ghost’ armour in my casual wear which is very comfortable and supposedly safer.
Therefore I bought some of the modern armour to replace the old stuff in my leathers. Whilst in theory it’s an upgrade from level 1 to 2, and from nearly 20 years old to new, I’m wondering whether the old rigid armour was primarily intended to act more as a splint than an impact absorber? Have I actually downgraded the safety of my leathers by using the modern flexibility armour?
However, for the occasional track day I use my leathers dating back to the mid noughties. The level 1 armour in them is very rigid and it’s hard to see how they’d absorb much impact. In contrast to the level 2 ‘ghost’ armour in my casual wear which is very comfortable and supposedly safer.
Therefore I bought some of the modern armour to replace the old stuff in my leathers. Whilst in theory it’s an upgrade from level 1 to 2, and from nearly 20 years old to new, I’m wondering whether the old rigid armour was primarily intended to act more as a splint than an impact absorber? Have I actually downgraded the safety of my leathers by using the modern flexibility armour?
mrtomsv said:
With the improvement in kit in recent years, I now rarely wear my leathers, in preference of various more comfortable Kevlar pieces of attire.
However, for the occasional track day I use my leathers dating back to the mid noughties. The level 1 armour in them is very rigid and it’s hard to see how they’d absorb much impact. In contrast to the level 2 ‘ghost’ armour in my casual wear which is very comfortable and supposedly safer.
Therefore I bought some of the modern armour to replace the old stuff in my leathers. Whilst in theory it’s an upgrade from level 1 to 2, and from nearly 20 years old to new, I’m wondering whether the old rigid armour was primarily intended to act more as a splint than an impact absorber? Have I actually downgraded the safety of my leathers by using the modern flexibility armour?
I think you are right, I feel more 'secure' with all round hard armour supporting rather than the flimsy jelly like thing that acts an an impact absorber (I have both types). That is also why leathers are still preferable to even AAA rated Kevlar jeans as I was told they act more of a supportive 'splint, should the worse happen.However, for the occasional track day I use my leathers dating back to the mid noughties. The level 1 armour in them is very rigid and it’s hard to see how they’d absorb much impact. In contrast to the level 2 ‘ghost’ armour in my casual wear which is very comfortable and supposedly safer.
Therefore I bought some of the modern armour to replace the old stuff in my leathers. Whilst in theory it’s an upgrade from level 1 to 2, and from nearly 20 years old to new, I’m wondering whether the old rigid armour was primarily intended to act more as a splint than an impact absorber? Have I actually downgraded the safety of my leathers by using the modern flexibility armour?
My understanding is that armour spreads the impact from a point load, over it's area
The old armour did that without absorbing any / much of the impact, the new armour is supposed to do the same whilst also absorbing some of the impact
I'm not wholly convinced that the lab tests are reflected in the real world
The old armour did that without absorbing any / much of the impact, the new armour is supposed to do the same whilst also absorbing some of the impact
I'm not wholly convinced that the lab tests are reflected in the real world
I suspect that in 20 years, the combination of understanding of how best to manage the energy of a crash and the materials available has changed- hence the change in armour. While the old armour may well have been designed, at least in part, to act as a splint/support, it's quite possible that it has been shown in the intervening 20 years that such an approach is less effective than not having that support and simply concentrating on the energy absorption and dissipation.
That said, the great advantage of one piece or two piece full zip leathers was that they ensured that body parts remained located in approximately the right place even when there were major skeletal issues.
That said, the great advantage of one piece or two piece full zip leathers was that they ensured that body parts remained located in approximately the right place even when there were major skeletal issues.
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