I know a lot of people don't like the Alpine Stars, but I love them and that's all I wear. They have excellent feel/dexterity and I have never had a glove come-apart during a crash....no hand injuries ever. I do know, that Held is supposed to be the bast glove(s) available.
Is Komodo still around, the web site doesn't appear to be working. Also haven't seen much activity by Komodo on the BBS in quite some time. I seem to recall that one of their riders Danny Kelsey had jumped to another brand of leathers....
I bought a set of Komodos the finger stitching blew out first time I rode with them. They offered to replace em but I declined. Went to Kobe.
I really like the knox handroid's. They are up there in price, extremely comfortable, 1 crash and they were done though. They did the job just fine and i really liked the feel they provided. I am going to try out a pair of the Held Titans this year.
My Komodo gloves lasted 6 crashes/3 full seasons before I threw them out. I would recommend them to anyone.
When have you ever crashed??? Thanks for all the good advice folks, and a big thanks to the '08 ESS Nat'l champ!!!
Nope. Those aren't hard sliders; they are just extra padding. They are still leather, and will still grab/absorb the impact...and your scaphoid will still explode into 9 pieces. Ok, yours may not, but mine did. Oddly enough, I landed in the exact manner depicted on the SPS (Scaphoid Protection System) pamphlet with my left hand out (I wonder if that is me in the picture ) and my shit exploded. Granted, i had some good air before landing, so it might have exploded anyway. But all of the force/impact was sent straight into my wrist, instead of being deflected/dispersed like it illustrates in the pamphlet. Could the SPS have prevented it? Who knows, like i said, i was launched pretty high. But, i think it would have at least deflected some of the impact because my palm would have kicked away due to the hard slider, instead of absorbing all of the force. Even if there is only a 5% chance that the slider would have prevented it, after 4hrs of surgery, 4 weeks in a cast and 9 weeks of physical therapy (including that electric shock bullshit) just so i could touch my thumb to my pinky, 5% is good enough for me. The thing is, sliders aside, i think the Handroids are more comfortable and provide better feel (due to the Kangaroo palm). .02
I like the Knox Biomechs also (they have the sliders in the palm too). I like the Handroids a lil better because the moving armor on the back is cool to me, it reminds me of RoboCop or some shit. But i successfully crash tested the Biomechs and they did great (as did my hands/wrists, which is obviously the most important thing).
I second the Held Phantoms. Got it from UK. Paid less than the current STG promotion price. Second best gloves for me has to be the Knox Biomech.
Going into my third season with my handroids..... awesome gloves. I find gloves to be a drag to get the right fit, but when they fit right buy them. Never tried helds yet, lots of ppl swear by them.
I find my AGVSport "roo" racing gloves to be the most comfortable and durable I have ever owned. I'm not sure what model they are, got them from Paris Tato at www.motogearu.com. He had them at Summit Point when my gloves fell apart without the assistance of a crash. To be fair and impartial, the guy did buy the gloves back when he heard that I was unhappy with them. Can't fault that. I am a total glove whore. I own about 25 pairs of riding gloves of various types, maybe more. I can't seem to walk past a glove display without trying them all on, and if one pair fits and feels good, I end up owning them.
Like Randy and Steeltoe I'm into the Kobe Pro's. I'm on my second set now. The first set survived three crashes over several years and were retired only because the leather was getting fatigued. Two years now on the 2nd set and they've kept me from crashing even once! Can't beat those results!
