New kit needed, any help ?

Well as I’m going out and about more on the bike, I’m going to start using it to commute to work and make the most of the dryer weather while it lasts, so would like some help on some bits to get to help me.

I use my phone for satnav and music streaming, can anyone recommend any intercoms for on a budget? I have seen the scala and for the price of a duo setup it’s worth it, but I’m solo so just need something for myself.

Does anyone use or recommend an action camera such as the GoPro session? Doesn’t need to be 4K, as long as it’s good quality/doesn’t break the bank, iv got an action camera but it’s quite heavy and don’t really fancy mounting that under my visor.

And lastly trousers/pants- iv seen a generic eBay set, cordura with the hip and knee inserts- do they offer good flexibility or can anyone else recommend something in the £40 range or less?

I have a scala Q3. I cannot fault it, works flawlessly every time and has a pretty decent battery life.

I've got a session 4. I use it mostly for Airsoft but occasionally on the bike if I go somewhere nice. It gives a lovely view...

Trousers... Unless you are buying second hand, I don't think you'll get anything reputable for £40. A good pair of Kevlar jeans will be around the £80-£100 range. Similar for decent textiles.

If you have a budget for all three, I would scrap the coms and camera and spend more on trousers.

Have a look at RST, halvarssons/jofama/lindstrands. I would recommend both.

Depends what you want the camera for....Sena 10c does the lot but it's £240......

As far as kit goes, .......wait for it.......Aldi and Lidl do quite decent cordura garments but you have to keep an eye on their websites. Zillions of Chinese generic intercoms about for about £40-ish. If you're handy with a soldering iron, graft the drivers out of a pair of £10 headphones onto them and get great sound quality.

I’d get the clothes sorted before anything else. If you are wet and/or cold biking will be miserable.

Amazon sells cheap Chinese intercoms that get reasonable reviews. Scrimp on those, not the trousers - your skin comes off if you crash in budget gear.

I’d get the clothes sorted before anything else. If you are wet and/or cold biking will be miserable.

X1000.......Mike is right. You need to be dry and warm first.....everything else is secondary.

Perhaps I should have added safety to the clothes requirements. Cheap gear is worse than useless if you come off.

Cheers all, I appreciate the feedback, the pants I’m thinking were along the lines of the msr mx or the textile trousers, apart from extra pockets they all seem to range between £35-£50? With a removable thermal? And then there’s more premium ones such as the jeans for a fair bit more. Bearing in mind I mostly ride on back roads, B roads, country lanes and the occasional single/dual carriageway, I Normally wear shin and knee pads.

Or would anyone care to step in and help out? Most I would like to spend on trousers would be around £80 if possible?

Perhaps I should have added safety to the clothes requirements. Cheap gear is worse than useless if you come off.

Any clothing that is specifically sold as being for motorcycle use now has to meet the appropriate CE standard for protective clothing.......what did the EU ever do for us, eh?

So even cheap gear now has to comply with minimum standards.

See https://www.bennetts.co.uk/bikesocial/news-and-views/features/product/motorcycle-clothing-the-ce-approval-law-explained

https://www.xlmoto.co.uk/snell-s-6-bluetooth-headset?dfw_tracker=24769-957650&gclid=CjwKCAjwrNjcBRA3EiwAIIOvqxNJc_T9hXGYKhTRFd46039z35PAc2zSXiIig_nnn4hwn0X751LOrBoC1KgQAvD_BwE

Plenty of options for cheap Bluetooth headset, I would get some good clothes first though.

I have a scala Q3. I cannot fault it, works flawlessly every time and has a pretty decent battery life.

I've got a session 4. I use it mostly for Airsoft but occasionally on the bike if I go somewhere nice. It gives a lovely view...

IMG_20180124_184635.jpg

">

Trousers... Unless you are buying second hand, I don't think you'll get anything reputable for £40. A good pair of Kevlar jeans will be around the £80-£100 range. Similar for decent textiles.

If you have a budget for all three, I would scrap the coms and camera and spend more on trousers.

Have a look at RST, halvarssons/jofama/lindstrands. I would recommend both.

I think youve hit upon something here. I often have boring tasks that I have to remain focussed on and music with riding in the baclground (where your not waiting for some disaster to happen) is just the thing to allay the boredom without distraction. It reminds me of bars in the alps where they having skiing/snowboarding on the TVs while musics playing. Don’t suppose youve got an hours worth of this stuff have you?!

It reminds me of bars in the alps where they having skiing/snowboarding on the TVs while musics playing. Don’t suppose youve got an hours worth of this stuff have you?!

That is possibly the most "useful" reason for me taking video when out and about I've had yet! Sadly I deleted my mass of pointless videos when I filled up my hard drives and needed space to download civ 6... Thanks to buying many more hard drives I now have tons of space again. So I might take some more when I'm off in a few weeks time. I was thinking of going for a ride around the cairngorms if it was dry.

That little commuting clip was me just testing out settings for the gopro when I first got it. I'm not a fan of the fish eye look, so that setting is the one I've stuck too. Still wide, but hardly any distortion.

It reminds me of bars in the alps where they having skiing/snowboarding on the TVs while musics playing. Don’t suppose youve got an hours worth of this stuff have you?!

 

That is possibly the most "useful" reason for me taking video when out and about I've had yet! Sadly I deleted my mass of pointless videos when I filled up my hard drives and needed space to download civ 6... Thanks to buying many more hard drives I now have tons of space again. So I might take some more when I'm off in a few weeks time. I was thinking of going for a ride around the cairngorms if it was dry.

That little commuting clip was me just testing out settings for the gopro when I first got it. I'm not a fan of the fish eye look, so that setting is the one I've stuck too. Still wide, but hardly any distortion.

It’s good and I’d like some more!

I bought a set of cheap bluetooth intercoms from eBay. £58 I think for a pair.

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/2X-Excelvan-Motorcycle-Helmet-Headset-Motorbike-Intercom-6-Riders-BT-1200m-NEW/192642066810?epid=10023239813&hash=item2cda5ca97a:g:cdQAAOSwfN5a8AR8

They work fine, not quite loud enough when you're at high speeds but that will vary depending on your hearing, how you position the speakers inside your helmet, and the wind noise you get around your helmet.

Battery lasts for over 2 hours, we haven't really measured that. They charge up pretty quick.

You just clamp the bracket onto your helmet, and then the unit clips on and off easily. Inside your helmet you stick the speakers behind the lining using sticky pads with a hook and loop side which lets you reposition the speakers. The microphone is wired into this lot and has a wire arm which lets you position it wherever you like.