www.sportriders.com - Vanson Leathers Review

www.vansonleathers.com

Six feet, two inches. Two hundred eighty pounds. Oh yeah, shopping for riding gear is a snap for a guy like me. For that " full figured " man who loves to ride. When I stood next to Chuck Graves in the tech inspection line at Willow Springs in 1995, I was thinking about how a guy this small can hustle a F-USA bike around the track? He looked like a 4th grader next to me! I bet I could take him in a pizza eating contest, though! Probably kick his ass, too! Small riders have an easier time shopping for gear than larger riders and I was no different. I had wanted a set of street leathers for a long time, and had to go custom made. Since I'm less than two hours from Vanson Leathers in Fall River, Mass the choice was simple.

My usual riding gear is a set of MotoPort Ultra-2 jacket and pants. They have served me well for several years, but I had always wanted a full set of leathers. I knew what I wanted - two piece for ease of use and the ability to just walk around at a stop with the pants only, full armor for maximum protection, and retro-reflective material for visibility at night. I had also wanted a few custom things done to the suit, too. For what I knew this was going to cost, I wanted to get exactly what I wanted as it was going to last me a long time.

Here is the two piece custom suit I had made. They are everything I wanted, and get more comfortable with each wearing.

Directions were on Vanson's website and I made the trip out with my friend Rafael in his BMW. It was just a matter of walking in and telling them what I wanted. I told them about the two-piece, armor, reflective issues, and now ventilation. I wanted a jacket with the perforated chest for the summer, but I also wanted to wear the jacket in the winter. They had a solution. A kind of "convertible" jacket, with a liner that folded in for summer breathing, and then folded back in place for colder weather riding. I also wanted expansion joints around the knees and elbows for more movement, and replaceable knee pucks - to impress the chicks! For retro-reflective material, I wanted piping on the legs and jacket, but I also wanted a big smiley face on my back! Imagine that at night! However, they could not make the material turn in a circle like that without causing a problem, so I settled for a big stripe across my back and arms. I was told that at night, you can see it from a distance behind me, and that its bright. Visibility is the name of the game.


On the left, you can see the heavy padding in the knee area and the Kevlar expansion joint behind the knee. On the right, you can see more expansion joints and some of the 3M piping.

The saleswoman recommended the coat and jacket to me. She had made two piece suits custom before, and with the features I wanted knew which units would best work together. The jacket would be a Vanson Cobra Jacket with the Vanson Air Curtain. The curtain would block air coming through the perfs in cold weather. It was a very neat, very simple system that added a degree of versatility to an expensive jacket. The pants chosen were the Vanson Night Rider Pants. These pants also came with the 3M reflective piping built in to the side seam. Just what I was looking for. After being measured for about forty minutes, we were done. They measured EVERYTHING. Arm length, diameter from different heights, chest waist, thighs, inseam, outseam, everything. These were being made to fit me!


On the left is a shot of the hip armor in the pants. On the right in the front view of the jacket.

The final decisions to be made were the type of stripe on the back, and the type of Vanson logo on the shoulders. The armor was going to be a thick, firm foam Street Armor. This is removable, pliable and includes a back protector! The hard armor is road race ready, but too firm to spend all day in. I choose the soft. The Vanson logo on the shoulder can be in the standard black/yellow, or now a black/silver. This matched my suit, so I chose the black. I also ordered the Kevlar expansion joints at the backs of the knees and elbows, to help prevent binding. After paying for the suit, I was told about six weeks for delivery. I ordered the suit on July 31st. I was told it would be ready on September 9th. It was ready on the 8th and was perfect. Everything I wanted was there, and they fit me like a glove. I was one happy motorcyclist!


On the left is the outside of the jacket front showing the perfs allowing air flow to cool the rider on a hot day. On the right, you can see the Vanson Air Curtain. When you unzip it, the curtain tucks into the jacket. On a cold day, just zip it back up! A very versatile unit.

My first days with the leathers were going to be a four day trip out to Ohio on my Concours, with my friend Tim Moore on his K1200RS. We were going to visit the BMWRA Rally in Lancaster, and then swing out to Dayton to visit the Wright Patterson AFB Museum (we are both aviation nuts). Initially, the leathers were VERY stiff, so stiff that I needed help zipping them together from Tim. But, as I spent more time in them, they softened up. I noticed that they felt more comfortable when I was riding, and that they took a certain shape that felt natural when riding. Using the Air Curtain's, I found that they did as advertised. I was quite pleased. I was impressed. After about 5000 miles in them, they get more comfortable every time I wear them.


The shot on the left shows the outline of the back protector. A very useful piece of equipment in a fall. On the right is a shot of the stripe that runs along the back of my arms and back. You can see it from behind, making me very visible to the drivers behind me.

I have no major complaints with this suit, and only one minor one. I lost 23 lb's since I was measured for the suit and now cannot wear the pants alone as they would fall to my knees. And since I wear only long boxer briefs underneath due to the soft liner, it would be a little embarrassing - unless the ladies wanted a show! Whoooo-weeeee! What I wish Vanson did was add a couple buttons to the front and back on the top lip of the pants, so that suspenders could be worn. And that is my only complaint. Materials, workmanship, quality, everything I expected was there. I ordered exactly what I wanted, and they promised nothing they couldn't deliver. They listened, made suggestions, and answered every question.

Finally, the big question is how much? All the custom work added up very quickly and I expected this. With everything I wanted, the suit came out to almost $1400.00. However, since I'm a MSF Instructor I was given a 20% discount, and this dropped the price to a much more manageable $1100.00 range. I don't regret spending the money one bit. I had wanted a suit that would help me walk away from the accident, and I believe I bought the best I could afford. I also think its one of the best money can buy.

Note - this glowing review came from a real consumer. Vanson didn't pay me for this. I really paid for the suit. To me, money well spent.

Dave
04/09/01