Just curious why so many saddle manufacturers insist on making saddles with kevlar corners? True that kevlar has great tensile strength, but it is not cut or abrasion resistant which is what saddles need to be.
A kevlar "bulletproof" vest cannot stop a knife. Motorcycle armor is leather not kevlar.
I've ruined several kevlar cornered saddles on minor crashes and others with just the wear from my legs brushing against while getting off the back. Why the 10+ year reign of this inappropriately applied material?
Kevlar will not stop a knife. "Bullet Proof" vests have "knife plates" in the breast area.
These plates are: ceramic, steel or aluminum.
Kevlar melts when heated by friction, during a highway speed crash.
(I know that one from experience.)
Kevlar tires are more puncture prone than a 66tpi aramid fiber casing.
Kevlar beads are ad hype as well. Aramid fiber beads are light, folding and much cheaper to make as well.
I almost forgot to add. Wiki is not necessarily a good source of info. Anyone can edit an article to say what they want it to say. I mean literally anybody.
I almost forgot to add. Wiki is not necessarily a good source of info. Anyone can edit an article to say what they want it to say. I mean literally anybody.
Just curious why so many saddle manufacturers insist on making saddles with kevlar corners? True that kevlar has great tensile strength, but it is not cut or abrasion resistant which is what saddles need to be.
A kevlar "bulletproof" vest cannot stop a knife. Motorcycle armor is leather not kevlar.
I've ruined several kevlar cornered saddles on minor crashes and others with just the wear from my legs brushing against while getting off the back. Why the 10+ year reign of this inappropriately applied material?
No, the plates that go in the ballistic vests boost the ability of the vest to stand up to higher caliber/higher velocity rounds. That's why they put those in there. Whether or not it stops a knife is secondary. I've worn said ballistic vests. As was said above, a 'usual" ballistic vest will stand up to a few low caliber or standard velocity rounds. 9mm, 45, .38, etc. A more high end vest may stand up to some magnum rounds, but forget about stopping rifle or assult-rifle rounds. The plates give them the ability to stop some rifle rounds or higher power rounds. Not that they'll stop everything, but the purpose of the plates is to boost the ability of the vest to stop rounds.
who cares. really were arguing over if a bullet proof vest is knight proof. i think we can just agree that Kevlar is not a good seat material and let this thread die
Kevlar will not stop a knife. "Bullet Proof" vests have "knife plates" in the breast area.
These plates are: ceramic, steel or aluminum.
Kevlar melts when heated by friction, during a highway speed crash.
(I know that one from experience.)
Kevlar tires are more puncture prone than a 66tpi aramid fiber casing.
Kevlar beads are ad hype as well. Aramid fiber beads are light, folding and much cheaper to make as well.
I almost forgot to add. Wiki is not necessarily a good source of info. Anyone can edit an article to say what they want it to say. I mean literally anybody.
He he,
Kevlar is just a trademark name for aramid.
Kevlar is good stuff. On saddles it is not indestructible, but its better than not having it there, IMO, based on the one WTB Kevlar cornered saddle I have owned.
My experience has been that my Kevlar cornered saddles armored the saddle well, and looked as good as new much longer than my non-kevlar ones. I was disappointed when the last WTB saddle I bought didn't have them but I must admit it's held up well. Maybe I am crashing less or more gracefully anyways.
Kevlar will not stop a knife. "Bullet Proof" vests have "knife plates" in the breast area.
These plates are: ceramic, steel or aluminum.
Kevlar melts when heated by friction, during a highway speed crash.
(I know that one from experience.)
Kevlar tires are more puncture prone than a 66tpi aramid fiber casing.
Kevlar beads are ad hype as well. Aramid fiber beads are light, folding and much cheaper to make as well.
I almost forgot to add. Wiki is not necessarily a good source of info. Anyone can edit an article to say what they want it to say. I mean literally anybody.
Kevlar is used in fireproof nomex clothing and also as an asbestos replacement. I question if you could really melt it in a crash, or if it was a plastic coating or something that melted.
I posted a link to some motorbike gloves with kevlar armour plates on the knuckles. I used to have some MTB gloves with kevlar padding on the top that were similar
I've never seen completely kevlar gloves but I see you can get woven work gloves here:
who cares. really were arguing over if a bullet proof vest is knight proof. i think we can just agree that Kevlar is not a good seat material and let this thread die
I think it's quite obvious that bulletproof vests do not provide adequate protection against mounted knights. They're not designed to stop swords or lances.
I think it's quite obvious that bulletproof vests do not provide adequate protection against mounted knights. They're not designed to stop swords or lances.
FWIW, I've cut kevlar thread quite easily with a pocket knife. I've cut woven kevlar fabric with a pair of scissors. In both cases they were harder to do with than regular thread/fabric, but it wasn't a struggle by any stretch of the imagination. I suppose you could build an "knight" (hilarious, Womble) proof vest if you used enough layers of kevlar, but is that really the best way to do it?
The stuff is amazing in tension though and that's how it stops a bullet. Bullets penetrate due to kinetic energy overcoming the tensile strength of the material it hits. Kevlar has lots of tensile strength and thereby stops the bullet before the weave fails. Knives penetrate by cutting/abrading/shearing. That video up above, there's definitely a plate in that.
So back to the real question, how many have had good luck with kevlar cornered saddles? Do the people with positive experiences with kevlar saddles outnumber those of us with negative experiences?
http://www.aerostich.com/files/readings/2001Catalog/straightstory.html
"In pure, undiluted form, Kevlar® is lighter than nylon and has greater tensile strength. It won't melt like nylon after touching a hot muffler (or from the friction-generated heat of a high speed slide on hot pavement). Unfortunately, it's expensive and difficult to work with, which limits design and construction possibilities. And believe it or not, pure Kevlar® fabric actually is much less abrasion-resistant than Cordura nylon. Kevlar® fibers have far less elasticity than Cordura® nylon fibers, a crucial handicap in a crash. Even the smoothest pavements have a rough aggregate surface that causes abrasive pulling. Nylon's stretchy fibers will elongate, ride over the surface irregularities, then snap back into the weave (like a tree bending in a strong wind), but Kevlar® fibers quickly reach their tensile limit and snap."
I would rather have a kevlar cornered saddle when my bike bike is thrown in a crash than no kevlar corners. And I would rather have a kevlar vest when someone tries to stab me than no vest at all.
One time while riding in the woods, I was attacked by assassins. As I was fleeing, several rounds struck the corners of my saddle. The kevlar reinforcement stopped the bullets and saved my a$$. :ciappa:
I bought several (10 or so) Bontrager saddles when a local distributor stopped carrying their product. Half of these saddles were covered with a complete Kevlar saddle cover and the other half had a synthetic leather cover. I still have five of the Kevlar saddles, with two never having been used while my commuter has the last of the saddles with the alternative covers on it. I have to say that in my experience the kevlar material dramatically outlasts the other synthetic. One ride in the muck and one of those faux leather units looked a year old, a year of riding in the muck and the kevlar still looks great.
I have only ever owned one saddle with an actual leather cover and while it lasted well it showed considerably more wear than my kevlar covers do. As for the impact problem, the only tear I have ever had in a saddle cover from that sort of sudden trauma was caused by a car rack failure at about 120km/h.
The saddles I've had with kevlar corners seem to hold up to crashes better than the ones made from real or fake leather.
One of my buds had one with kevlar scragged when another bud, driving, forgot it was on the roof rack. The spandex replacement hasn't held up nearly as well.
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