[license2ill]

Some interesting things to note. No manufacturer yet makes a pair of motorcyclist gloves that are approved to the CE standard for them. As you can see, when tested to those guidleines, most fail to bring all of the critical aspects together in one choice, meaning that seam strength may be great, but abrasion resistance was not so good, or vice versa. The thing to note with the impact socres is that the impact test they do for gloves is really easy to pass, and in my view hugely compromised for real protective value. I believe the knuckles are only subjected to a 5 Joule impact severity and must measure under 4kN, which is not hard for even hard armor, as it doesn't have to manage much energy. The gloves without the hard bits are using the same comfort foams just exposed, rather than the type of foams found in CE-approved suits. BKS and Teknic are using impact protection found in limb armor, but neither were tested here.

http://www.robinsonsfoundry.co.uk/li...mph/gloves.pdf

[CBR929RE]

good read. looks like a bunch of people on this site are spot on with their reccomendation of the Helds.

4kN is a small amount. CE level 2 impact for back protectors allows 9kN. 18kN for level 1.

[license2ill]

Originally Posted by CBR929RE

good read. looks like a bunch of people on this site are spot on with their reccomendation of the Helds.

4kN is a small amount. CE level 2 impact for back protectors allows 9kN. 18kN for level 1.

Yeah, that force transmission level is not hard to get down to when the impact energy they are hit with is only 5 Joules though. Pretty much anything can pass, except the comfort foam with nothing over it.

I'm not sure as to how those impact and force levels were chosen as appropriate, but I can guarantee you that much of the impact energy level was a compromise within the developed CE standard had to deal with the use of the hard carbon throughout the industry that won't pass at higher severities. I guess the reasoning that may have been used is that hands are not very heavy and thus don't create as much impact energy in fall to the ground, as opposed to something like a head or arm where the baseline is 50J and up, but I think you'll find that the energies that need to be dealt with by the hands in a crash are much higher, though that may even be at the palm and not the back of the hand more frequently. Anyhow, that's why almost all of the pieces got a perfect score for impact, it's extremely easy to pass with just about anything.

The CE back protector levels are also huge compromises that were hard fought, and essentially flawed within the known info as to their efficacy. Essentially we don;t know the limitations of crash severity for any of them at the known values of bone breakage. All you can do is get a level 2 piece and hope that it passes closer to 4kN in the higher ranges, and less in any tumble that creates less than 50 Joules in the impact. As I might have said in a previous thread, those numbers and inappropriate levels were fought for by Dainese and Alpinestars, as they wanted to be able to continue selling knowningly inferior pieces with a mandate. Pretty shameful if you ask me. They put on a good face with huge marketing campaigns and spnosorship, but their real concerns seem to be fashion sales. That shows consistently in tests like this too. The Speed Metals were near the bottom, the Slams showed similarly poor abrasion and stitching performance, and the Astars offerings were not much better.

[license2ill]

A real interesting follow-up to that article:

http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c5...ial_page_1.jpg

http://i25.photobucket.com/albums/c5...ial_page_2.jpg

[sammae01]

I can't see the article, Any word on the Held Phantoms?

[SomeStrangeGuy]

Well the good news, newenough.com has helds again
GL-HD

I have a set of the Steve's and am very pleased with them.

[SomeStrangeGuy]

Originally Posted by sammae01

I can't see the article, Any word on the Held Phantoms?

They are the top rated gloves I believe with a 46/55 points and are rated a Best Buy by the rating source.

Originally Posted by Ride Mag.

Fantastic impact
protection provided
by hard carbon-look
knuckle armour,
backed up by topscoring
abrasion
test. Good wrist
restraint and
above average
seam strength
ensures this glove
BEST BUY status.
Fantastic fit, feel
and comfort with
ventilation holes
to finger sides and
backs of hands.
Index fi ngers have
a rubber visor wipe
strip. Solid and
reassuring.

Also good to see the Joe Rockets out there with some of the pricier gloves and doing well. My collection used to be A-stars and RS-Taichi's and has migrated to Rocket's and Helds now, I guess for good reason.

[sammae01]

Thats Awsome. at first me Phatoms felt like sex with 10 condoms on, but after a while, they feel like they aren't even there. Initially it felt like i was puting a bank vault on my paws because of all the velcro straps and fasteners. They are long gloves also. But all that is there for a reason, even the sting ray skin on the palm , All in all Although very pricey, I would buy another pair if I ever needed to.