TJ, Absolutely. Alpinestars has truly shit all over what should have been an incredible product launch. You know the effort it took for me to get my stuff. They pretty much screwed over good vendors like you, and in the course of it screwed over a lot of US riders. Then on top of that, there was the fiasco about the single versus multiple discharges. They seemed like they'd have screwed up a two piece puzzle. That being said, as far as the product itself, the fact that it's so good make it even more sad that the launch was handled so poorly.
The D-axial boots of the most comfortable street boots out there. I wear them all the time running errands on the bike because they fit under my jeans and with a black pair they don't look that out of place (not like a standard pair of boots that look like storm trooper boots). As for the suits and systems, as everyone has mentioned, it's great that there are choices. The near future you will see many changes to the airbags and systems because the technology is so new it's still being refined. I'd love one for dual sport/off road, but hitting the ground every time I ride it would get expensive quickly. I could foresee the day where you put in a new cartridge and take off again. Now if they can just figure out how to make a perforated version for the hot south east...
Kas, don't completely agree with this. As far as what is good "on the bike" and "off the bike", the AStars fits me off the rack perfectly. But I'm lucky, though I'm a big guy, a 48/58 suit from AStars, Heroic, Teknics, etc all fit great. The Dainese frankly was pretty tight in the shoulders and arms for me. That's just a function of the different brand designs and not quality or effectiveness IMHO. In other words, in terms of fitment your body shape is frankly going to have a lot more to do with how the different brands fit. I don't agree with the comment that you're "spending a lot more than just the suit and the vest". That's exactly what you're spending on. Nothing more IMHO. And assuming they're available, you can have two AStars V2 suits and a vest for the cost of a single Mugello R IIRC. I have a chest protector. It doesn't serve the same purpose as the air chambers in the vest in terms of how it deals with the energy of a crash. In fact, the reason I wanted air is because the chest protector still resulted on 3 broken ribs in a crash. In fact, the fundamental reason people move to these systems is because of the increased protection while being able to depend on the electronics working - just like we depend on the electronics working on our fancy bikes. It's pretty friggin reliable and is constantly being updated - assisted by the ability to flash new SW versions into the stuff periodically. Quality is subjective, as is the durability. I have an old AStars suit I had been using as a rain suit - made in Mexico IIRC. I know it's at least 10 yrs old. It's been repaired a couple times. AStars suits have held up OK for me. Gloves not so much. We'll have to see. That being said, for the money this stuff is awesome, and I agree it's only going to get better.
I can't find a V2 suit, not sure if that's the top of the line Astars suit? The GP Pro is $1350, doesn't come with an airbag OR back protector. The D-Air Misano is on sale now for $2080 and comes with a back protector and airbag. And you can get one RIGHT NOW. Like you, I can't wait for the days when we all have them, regardless of which brand fits you best, they are a great leap forward in safety. Before we get upset at the manufacturer, think about how small the market is here in the US. Not many people even racing anymore, and I usually see MAYBE one or two airbag suits at the track on a given weekend.
Um..... The V2 is the new Tech-Air compatible versions of the Missile, the GP Pro, and the GP Tech. https://www.ridersdiscount.com/alpinestars-mens-gp-pro-1-piece-tech-air-suit-1062128 https://www.ridersdiscount.com/alpinestars-mens-missile-1-piece-tech-air-suit-1062143 https://www.ridersdiscount.com/alpinestars-mens-gp-tech-v2-1-piece-tech-air-suit-1062080 Pretty easy to find. As for as being upset at the manufacturer, I think you're a bit mistaken about demand. How about asking RJ about demand? I also don't think you have any idea how many airbag suits there are at the track. It's just about impossible to tell a D-Air from a non-air suit unless you look close, and it IS impossible to tell whether or not somebody actually has a Tech-Air setup in their compatible suit unless the suit is active and you notice the light. Additionally, you've missed the point where AStars actually targeted both race and street with their products - so yet even larger demand. AStars really marketed the hell out of TechAir in the US - and then IMHO completely dropped the ball with execution. Further, they absolutely and without a single, solitary possibility of debate dropped the ball completely as to the entire sizing and single versus double deployment issue for the 2XL sizes. I should know. I'm the guy that prompted the advertising changes due to the discovery - dealing directly with AStars AFTER I had purchased the vest. There's a lot more detail behind the scenes there, but suffice it to say that AStars effectively screwed over vendors like Riders Discount in how they released this product IMHO. I was running a Hit-Air setup. Given a choice between it and the D-Air, I stuck with the Hit-Air. I didn't want to give up the entire suit in the event of a minor crash for weeks at a time. And frankly, the fact that the D-Air (other than the Mugello R) doesn't provide protection for the area I injured (ribs) it was just too hard to justify. I think Dainese is also learning from what AStars has done as well - which is why I'm not surprised to hear rumors of a new pending product.
I am not arguing about which is better, I'm legitimately shopping for a second suit. I like the D-air system thus far. What piqued my interest in your post is that you said you could get two suits and one airbag for the price of one D-air suit. I didn't know the V2 was also the GP-Pro that I mentioned in my post- which is $1350 and the airbag is $1150, from what I'm seeing. Not sure how the Mugello compares to the Misano, in any case the Mugello is too rich for my blood.
The Mugello R is the larger coverage airbag and kangaroo leather and the latest construction and materials. The Misano is the standard leather and the original air bag system. Both protect the shoulders and collar bones, but Mugello R also has the bigger airbag with additional protection on the sides and front. The street system from Dainese has full coverage on the front and the back as well as the collar bone and shoulder area. All of the suits/jackets have the Dainese back protectors, so even if you do need to run it without the airbag you are still getting all of the traditional protection (CE armor) of all of their other suits, just not the airbag protection.
It takes the mugello r to try and equal the protection of the tech air. The Misano would have done nothing to prevent my broken ribs. That’s why d-air other than the mugello r is - for me- not an answer. So, 2 suits and a vest cheaper than a single mugello. Obviously everyone has different goals. None are bad. That being said if ce2 were the equal of air MotoGP wouldn’t have driven the move to air. The hit-air imho while inconvenient provides more coverage that I want than the misano. Again - just my thought process.
“v2” does not necessarily mean it’s tech air compatible, it just means it’s the second generation of that product. There’s a ton of other products with the V2 designation that has nothing to do with tech air.
So I made a quick update in another post but here is all that went into getting my suit repaired... Damage to the suit-none; air bag needs repacking. 1. Suit sent to dainese corporate and received on June 14th. 2. June 25th- after a few emails and voicemails I finally get a quote for repairs $275 to repack and ship back the suit. I will say their communication and service was poor however I was able to get all the answers I needed. 3. Should have the suit by the end of the week. So tentatively two weeks is what it takes if you have a simple air bag deployment. If additional repairs are needed I’m sure it’d be longer. Interestingly the longer part of this is data upload. They use data from every crash to improve their software, which is pretty cool IMO.
Anyone know if there are new systems due for 2019? Compatibility and new stuff, vs. same technology for cheaper is always the question around this time of the year. . .
Anyone use HSA funds to buy their gear? I want to get in on this sweet air bag action: Sports Gear, Protective - Special equipment purchased and used during sports activity to protect from injury is covered. For example Heart-gard shirts or mouth guards. https://www.cigna.com/individuals-families/member-resources/hsa-fsa-hra-payments/eligible-expenses
If there is anything new from astars it will be released at the end of August. Until then it’s under embargo so we can’t talk about it.
This is the best damn thread on airbag tech on the beeb so I figured I'd throw my question in here. I've been doing a lot of research but can't find out definitively if the Misano 2 has gotten the same coverage as the previous Mugello R or in what way the Misano 2 has improved over its predecessor? Online it states it's gotten the new 3rd generation D-Air system without any reference to coverage. In my opinion it is the major weakness with Dainese's airbag tech barring the Mugello R. And again no clue if there has been any improvements to the Mugello R either.
