FAQ

MESH OR STRETCH GEAR

 

 

1. A very common question our customers ask: “What would work better for me, the suits made with the Stretch material or the suits made with Mesh.”? This is not a simple question to answer. Many different factors apply when trying to make this decision. Height/Weight, man/women, where the suit will be worn, type of riding, street only or dual sport, used mainly for riding to work, type of bike that will be used, fully faired or no windshield/fairing, Many customers purchase the Mesh apparel for hot weather riding only. With Motoport’s Aero-Tex Liners or wearing Motoport’s Rain Gear over the Jackets/Pants, the Mesh apparel will also work very well in cold/wet weather. The Mesh has over double the tear strength as the Stretch. Both the Mesh/Stretch have almost identical abrasion ratings. Some riders make a choice for the Mesh simply because of this higher tear strength. It is not correct to pick the Mesh over the Stretch because of Tear Strength only. The Stretch is 5 times more tear strength than new competition grade leather. Look over the following to help you make a better decision.

 

A customer recently rode in from Las Vegas, Nevada. He was riding a bike that had a no windshield/fairing. When he placed the order on the phone he told us that he rode the vast majority of time on open roads, very unusual to be riding under 20mph. With good wind flow it is impossible to sweat in the Stretch suits. Even when proper base layers are worn, if not moving the body will sweat at over 90F for most riders. As soon as you start moving, getting wind flow the sweat feels like someone just turned on an air conditioner. Majority of his riding was in the Nevada area, dry, hot weather, up to 5 months of the year. He purchased the Marathon Stretch Jacket with the Ultra II Stretch Pant. This is a good choice because of the way the Stretch material breathes. If you put your mouth up against the outside layer of the Stretch and blow through the material, air flow is a little restrictive. (Stretch still breathes better than denim, from the outside in.)   If you put your mouth up against the Stretch on the inside and try to blow through, the material breathes better than a cotton t-shirt. In temps from 90F and higher, in the dry heat, the skin will not dehydrate as compared to the Mesh material. Motoport strongly recommends wearing under the jacket, the undershirt designed to soak up water, when riding at over 90F. When these shirts are wetted down and worn under the Stretch, it feels like your riding with an air conditioned jacket for up to 2.5 hours or longer. Now if this same customer road a fully faired bike with little wind flow, especially if in traffic, the Mesh Kevlar Jacket/Pant would be the best choice.

Another customer ordered the same Stretch suit that lived in the Seattle, Washington area. He rode a fully faired bike, the majority of time around Seattle going to work. He also did some longer rides only a few times a year again mostly around the northwest area of the USA. This suit again was a good choice for the following reasons:

1. Unusual for temperatures to be over 90F.
2. Rain is common in the Seattle area. Stretch Kevlar suits can be worn in the rain on a bike with no windshield/fairing for up to 30 minutes or more at speed, before and moisture through the suit can be felt. Fully faired bikes can be ridden in the rain in some cases for hours without the rider getting wet. No need to stop to put on any rain gear before it starts raining, especially on the shorter rides to work.
3. It is possible to ride at temperatures 15 to 20 degrees cooler, with the Stretch suits as compared to the Mesh, before any layering is necessary.
4. This rider also mentioned that he planned a trip to another county that was hot/humid. Now if he was planning to ride more than 30% of the time in hot humid weather the Mesh suits would be a better choice. For one trip to this hot/humid country, the Stretch suit will be fine. Proper Base Layers are critical when wearing the Stretch in hot/humid climates.   (Base Layers Link)

Another customer that lived in the Chicago city area, that spent most of his riding time going to work in traffic, ordered the Mesh suit. Riding around the city of Chicago for up to 3 months of the year or more, can be hot/humid. Even when riding a bike with no windshield/fairing the best choice would be the Mesh suits. Now if this same rider only spent 30% of the time riding in the city, the rest of the time on the open road riding a naked bike the Stretch suit would be the best choice.

A women came in that lived in the San Diego area that was 5 feet tall, 100 pounds, riding a faired bike, the majority of time around the San Diego area. She purchased the Stretch jacket/pant. The majority of women prefer the Stretch suits. For the most part women can handle heat better than men. The Stretch material has a 4 way stretch. The Stretch is very soft/supple and feels like wearing pajamas. The Stretch material can also be made to fit the contours of the body better than the Mesh. The Mesh material when new can feel stiffer and intimidating to most women. The Mesh can take up to 8000 plus miles of riding to start to break in and soften. Stretch material is soft/supple right out of the box. No break in necessary.

Another girl from Miami that was 5 feet 9 inches tall, weighed 170 pounds purchased the suit made with Mesh. This was a good choice for her. If more than 50% of the riding will be in hot/humid weather, no matter what type bike the Mesh suits are the best choice. Even when not moving the rider can feel the wind blowing through the Mesh suits.

In most parts of North America if you plan to ride single track off road more than 40% of the time, the Mesh gear will be the best choice.

 

WHAT TYPE OF JACKET/PANT SHOULD I GET?

 

2. Motoport makes waist cut jackets and what is considered ¾ length jackets. It can be misleading to say ¾ length because we can make any jacket any length preferred. Jacket length is a personal preference. Some guidelines can be used when determining the proper jacket length for your size, type of bike along with where and how you intend to ride. Read this link if you are trying to decide between a ¾ length or a waist cut jacket style: (Put in link: Waist Cut VS ¾ Length Jackets)

 

Reading the above link along with the information provided above concerning the Mesh/Stretch suits should help you decide on the best choice.

 

Motoport makes two main styles of pants, Over Pants and Jean Style Pants. Reading the description on each pant shown on our web site will help you decide on the best choice. Here are some more points to understand when trying to decide on the best pant:

1. Over Pants can be taken off, put on in seconds. No need to remove pants, boots or shoes. Many riders that commute daily to work, want to wear work pants underneath, choose the Over Pant. Thick Denim jean pants and also the Aero-Tex Liner can be worn under the Over Pant. The Jean Style Pant will allow you to wear our thin Aero-Tex Liner for cold/wet weather underneath. It is also possible to wear the Warm&Safe Heated Pant under the Aero-Tex Liner to allow comfort even in sub zero weather, but this is the maximum that can be worn underneath the Jean Style. It is not comfortable or even possible to try to wear another type regular pant under the Jean Style.
2. Over Pants are very versatile fitting. It is possible to layer underneath in cold weather along with just wearing a thin base layer only. A rider can gain up to 20 pounds or have a 20 pound weight loss without any need to alter the Over Pant.
3. Motoport’s Ultra II Mesh Over Pant is the most breathable, our best pant for hot/humid weather.
4. We always try to convince women that order the Mesh Over Pant to go with the front Mesh and complete back panel in Stretch. The all Mesh Over Pant must be sized to be a little baggy in the butt area when standing. If the Mesh Pant is snug when standing, the rider cannot sit down on the bike. Most women don’t like this baggy look, even when the pant can go on/off in seconds when off the bike.

Motor Police in Seattle first purchased the Over Pant. After one year of use they decided to change to the Jean Style Pant. Motoport’s Jean Style Pant could be worn in the office, riding or even when directing traffic on the street. Our Jean Style Pants are more comfortable than a denim pant. The Seattle Police found that they didn’t need to take the pant on/off during the day. Many of our long distance type riders also preferred the Jean Style Pant. These long distance riders simply wear our Jean Style Pant all the time. Even after arriving at a destination the pant stays on and used for regular non riding use.

The majority of women prefer the all Stretch Jean Style Pant. This pant can feel and look better than most of stretch denim pants that women wear. For the extreme hot/humid weather Motoport recommends the complete front panel of the jean style pant be made in Mesh. The entire back panel made in Stretch. The vast majority of motor police all over the USA wear this Mesh front/Stretch back with the Jean Style Pant.

 

HOW DOES THE CORDURA GEAR COMPARE TO THE GEAR MADE WITH DUPONT™KEVLAR BLENDED MATERIALS?

In most cases riders go with the Cordura apparel because of cost. Cordura jackets/pants will cost less than the gear made using Dupont™ Kevlar blended material. The benefits of the blended gear are shown all throughout the web site. On this link you can see the tear/abrasion strengths of most of the materials used today for motorcycle apparel:   https://www.motoport.com/the-save-your-hide-guide/

Many comparisons of Motoport’s Stretch and Mesh apparel can be found all over the internet. It is difficult to find comparisons with other gear compared to our Cordura. The best Cordura gear made today is made with a plastic coated 500 Denier Cordura that tears at less than 22 pounds. Motoport only uses non plastic coated 1000 Denier Cordura that tears at 110 pounds. We have seen over the years many times when these 500 Denier Cordura jackets/pants completely fail in a 20 mph tumble. Motoport’s 1000 Denier Cordura is 5 times stronger than any of the other top brands made with 500 Denier. Here are even more facts that make Motoport’s 1000 Denier Cordura jackets/pants far better than any other synthetic gear made from other companies:

1. Better armor covering more of the body than any other gear. (put in armor link)
2. Safety Lock Stitching of all construction seams. (Put in Motoport an Evolution link)
3. No double layers of materials on the outside of the gear that cause problems in a tumble. Larger solid panels of materials.
4. Better in hot/cold/wet weather.
5. Better Warranty/Guarantee.
6. Made here in house in the USA.
7. Can be repaired/altered.
8. Each jacket and pant is made custom for any sized rider for a perfect fit.

 

 

MESH OR STRETCH SHIRT

Motoport’s Mesh or Stretch Shirt is made from the same Dupont™ Kevlar blended materials. These Shirts provide the same protection as any of our other jackets. The same Tri-Armor is standard. The Shirts also have the same tear/abrasion/seam strength. The major difference is these shirts are made to wear alone. There are no additional zippers or flaps that allow wearing our Aero-Tex Liners underneath or to do any extensive layering. This makes these shirts the best apparel for hot weather. Similar to the Jean Style Pant, many riders wear our Mesh or Stretch Shirts all day long, even when off the bike not riding. Many riders want something thin and lightweight and also have the appearance of a shirt, not a motorcycle jacket. Use the description of the Mesh/Stretch shown in this link to help decide what type of shirt to get.