Lightweight / all day / xc knee and elbow pads ?

elredso

As above really, looking for a decent set of knee / shin guards that are comfy / light weight enough to wear all day.

Mostly trail centres and maybe some light downhill duties.

Have been looking at 661 Veggies or EVS Glider Lite

Any other recommendations ???

tarbot18

nukeproof critical armour are very comfy and tough cost about £45

paul.skibum

POC Joint VPD if money is no object - not used them in anger but tried some on and they felt lovely - then I saw the price and my legs fell off so I didnt need them any more.

grenw

Got some veggie shins and they are very comfortable. Hardly know I'm wearing them. Get sweaty underneath but you only realise when you take them off. Mainly used to protect my shins/calves from pedal strikes.

Those POCs look very nice but it would be cheaper to get reconstructive knee surgery!

SIRPSYCHOSEXY

Has anyone tried those G-Form knee/elbow pads. They look lightweight and now them come in black(if you are not a fan of the bright yellow). Think they are about £40-£45.

.blitz

Have got some 661 Rhythm elbow guards. There's not much to them but they fit just where your forearm scrapes along the ground on a lowside and are quite effective

Easy to fold up and put in the rucksack

ilovedirt

SIRPSYCHOSEXY wrote:

Has anyone tried those G-Form knee/elbow pads. They look lightweight and now them come in black(if you are not a fan of the bright yellow). Think they are about £40-£45.

I was going to mention these, I've not tried them, but they look better than most of the other alternatives, Nukeproof/POC etc ones all look a little bulky for all day riding.

jairaj

Friend of mine has the G-form knee pads. Says they are good for XC rides where you don't want lots of extra bulk but still want a bit of protection for small bumps. Tend to stay in place OK but can slip a little bit as they are just held on by elastic. Although he's never actually had to use them so no idea how much protection they offer or if they will stay in position. He did a non scientific hit his knee against a wall and they damped the impact well but how this compares to a person falling off a bike I don't know?

I have 661 Kyle Strait Knee pads. For me these are the defacto knee pads. Very comfy, stay in place and offer good protection. I have managed to use them in anger many times and although I'm speculating I believe they really lessened the blow enough for me to carry on riding. Eg bike washed out, I fell to the side and noticed there was a jagged stone digging into the side of my knee. While I was a little bit sore I think my injury would have been a lot more painful with out the pads.

I also own some POC hard shell gear this stuff is a little overkill for XC duties but I bet their soft shell stuff would be great. I find the POC stuff is better than the 661 (for both comfort and protection) gear I have but I'm not convinced the high prices are justified over the 661.

If you have the money go POC otherwise 661 seems to be a good compromise.

ilovedirt

jairaj wrote:

I have 661 Kyle Strait Knee pads. For me these are the defacto knee pads. Very comfy, stay in place and offer good protection. I have managed to use them in anger many times and although I'm speculating I believe they really lessened the blow enough for me to carry on riding. Eg bike washed out, I fell to the side and noticed there was a jagged stone digging into the side of my knee. While I was a little bit sore I think my injury would have been a lot more painful with out the pads.

I have some 661 Kyle Straits, they're very good pads (saved my knees a lot of times), but I don't like using them for XC as they're pretty bulky and have caused some pretty uncomfortable chaffing a few times. They also have a tendency to fall down when they get waterlogged on wetter rides (which is a pretty frequent thing in North Wales). I use them for downhill though and they're great.

paul.skibum

I use 661 Kyles for my xc rides and they are ok - can cause a little sore at the back of one knee - not sure why but its one small place and only notice in the shower after the race as the soap hits it.

Those G Force ones do look good - forgot about them - depends where you ride - I dont think they look beafy enough for very rocky terrain. But they might be alright.

ilovedirt

paul.skibum wrote:

I use 661 Kyles for my xc rides and they are ok - can cause a little sore at the back of one knee - not sure why but its one small place and only notice in the shower after the race as the soap hits it.

Yeah I get that sometimes as well. Not all the time though.

elredso

considering I can get both G Form for the cost of one POC, I think I will be looking into them ! Seem to get pretty good reviews, and seem to have more support that the 661 veggie range

elredso

£68 for the set from blackleaf seen lots of decent reviews so opted to give them a go as the POC were just too much

bennett_346

G Form very good, i really reccomend them. You won't be dissapointed.

bragawd

I'm happy with the troy lee versions ... comfy and stay putt.......

cat_with_no_tail

bennett_346 wrote:

G Form very good, i really reccomend them. You won't be dissapointed.

I'm actually looking at some of these myself.

I've already got some proper, heavy-duty 661 pads for DH, but when I'm just out for a quick XC pootle I've not been wearing anything like that. This weekend highlighted to me that I do need to start taking better care of my knees. If I undo any of the work done in the op, it's game over.

Main question, are they for little scrapes, or do they offer a good level of impact protection?

jairaj

Its one of those magic harden on impact materials so copes very well on impacts. It'll prob manage fine on scrapes as the material is quite tough even in its soft state.

But as the pads are just held on by elastic its not as secure as the Velcro straps used by others so not sure if they will stay in place?

bennett_346

Cat With No Tail wrote:

bennett_346 wrote:

G Form very good, i really reccomend them. You won't be dissapointed.

I'm actually looking at some of these myself.

I've already got some proper, heavy-duty 661 pads for DH, but when I'm just out for a quick XC pootle I've not been wearing anything like that. This weekend highlighted to me that I do need to start taking better care of my knees. If I undo any of the work done in the op, it's game over.

Main question, are they for little scrapes, or do they offer a good level of impact protection?

They're good for eliminating minor pains like knocking your needs off bars, fork crowns etc during a crash, and fending off scrapes, but my god they're unassumingly good on hard rock hits. I was amazed when i didn't feel a thing landing knee first on a jagged rock at 20mph. No damage either.

I'm surprised more people don't use them but i guess they don't market to the mtb world as much as others do.

bennett_346

jairaj wrote:

Its one of those magic harden on impact materials so copes very well on impacts. It'll prob manage fine on scrapes as the material is quite tough even in its soft state.

But as the pads are just held on by elastic its not as secure as the Velcro straps used by others so not sure if they will stay in place?

They stay in place much better than my old velcro ones. Infact they didn't budge an inch on a 30 mile xc ride a few months ago. You really do forget they're there but feel safer at the same time.

cat_with_no_tail

Ordered some today. They sound like just the thing I've been looking for. Wish I'd seen them a couple of weeks ago, maybe I could have avoided this little lot at the weekend. :roll: