Air BAg Jackets? Life saver or Useless Invention

[cali_beemer]

So, I was posting earlier about jacket recomendatiosn but I thought this was a seperate discussion. I was looking at the air bag jacket:

 

http://www.wairbag.com/

 

So, is this a valid justification of funds, or is it safety gone too far. I suppse we would all be safer if we wrapped ourselves in bubble wrap before each outing, or just not ride at all. Does this go too far? From an engineering perspective, it seems clever and smart. Anyone use one? any accidental blowups?

[Toml]

well, I bought a Hit-Air jacket 2 years ago so I guess I should comment.

 

I don't think there is a consensus on whether it's a valid justification of funds and it probably depends on your risk profile and your funds of course.

 

my reading on the net suggested that most people don't think it's worth it. Plus most people are not buying them. But a lot of people are interested and appear to have a "wait and see" attitude while the technology improves. There is a not a lot of data yet. and there's a lot of misunderstanding. There's some sterotypical ridicule or joking in most threads about the rider bouncing down the road when they have a "get-off" or setting the bag off while they're trying to look cool dismounting from their bike in front of their favorite bar.

 

The biggest negative "fact" in my decision process was that if you hit an object head-on at speed, the bag will only be partially filled in the .25 seconds it takes to inflate (and fly through the air). maybe minimally inflated. But I think that for many "get-offs" it will provide *some* additional protection in *some* instances. That additional protection might turn out to be really meaningful. So I went for it.

 

The Hit-Air jacket is a well made jacket and only a bit heavier than a normal jacket, so once I got over the sticker shock, I thought there was not much of a reason not to do it.

 

I've been in the jacket when the bag was deployed (demo situation) and it feels like you're in a steal cage. The collar inflates to protect against a compression injury to the spine (from the helmet getting forced down), a flap deploys over your butt, and 4 "pipes" of air run vertically down your body. The sales rep said it deflates in 2-3 seconds. It felt more like 10.

 

I've had no accidental blowups. I've had many times where I went to dismount but forgot that I was connected. it takes about 50lbs of force on the lanyard to set it off. so what happens with me is that I just feel a tug and then remember to unclip it.

 

 

The Hit-Air jacket is made really well. Mine is also a heavy weight (read: warm) jacket. So I don't wear it all the time.

 

One of its features is that the user can "reload" it as opposed to sending it back to the manufacturer.

 

The wairbag.com site says "The only other high selling jacket the Hit-Air fails on 3 counts, you have to leave your bike to set it off, it deflates immediately, hit going forward it has been known to bruise your ribs."

 

1. "you have to leave your bike": true. you must leave your bike because it's activated by a lanyard. I'm trying to imagine times when you drop but don't leave the bike at least a litte. the lanyard is short enough that I could set the bag off (intentially) if I suddenly jumped up on my pegs and stood high and straight.

 

2. "deflates immediately". yes, it deflates within a few seconds. I think it would be nice to have it stay inflated and release via a valve.

 

3. "hit going forward": I don't think the bruised rib is the issue. I think the issue is that airbag jackets in general can not deploy as quickly (explosively) as auto air bags because people are wearing them. and therefore, you're going to travel some distance before it is deployed enough to offer the protection it was designed for.

 

As the wairbag site says, airbag jackets are in use on police forces around the world. That implies something. Hopefully that they are effective enough to justify the cost.

 

Another reason why they might be less popular here in the US is that they are not as readily available. The distribution channels aren't there. I could not buy mine directly from the company. I had to find some "secondary" distributor. I think import is still restricted for legal or certification-type reasons. But I decided to be an "early adopter" and go for it anyway. I'm going on faith that my biggest safety issue will be that it does not protect me as well as I had hoped. Not that it will actually CAUSE injury. But I have to admit, the first time I ran my gerbings heated liner under it and really cranked the heat up, I wondered if anyone had tested this scenario and whether the deployment mechanism would activate...

 

The Hit-Air Company was great to deal with. The president (in Japan) exchanged emails directly with me. The head of their Sales (in Japan) was great in email too, answering all my questions and he is an avid biker as well. The importer I found in Texas was excellent as well. I will provide contact info if someone wants it.

 

lemme know if you have any other questions. I mean to bring mine to a New England tech daze so people can try it out. That probably doesn't help you much unless you're one of those iron butts.

 

[racer7]

Tom,

Thanks for the first hand comments. Very informative.

 

[cali_beemer]

Thank you tom for that review. If they sold them here in the US and had all the sizes to go try on I would definately make the investment in one. I have a hard time when I cant try it on before buying. I just ordered the Klimanjaro jacket online but i tried it on at a store first. I think the airbag jackets offer an extra layer of protection that will be the future standard in jackets. I think it will just take some time for the technology to advance and for the idea to grow on riders. Whe you spoke to the president, did they hint at all to a US release?

[Toml]

cali_beemer,

 

It's hard to recall (and I lost my Outlook archive on a HD crash). I think they were in the US for a brief period and then had to stop. I had found some jackets on use based web sites but everyone was "out of inventory". And I think his answer about the future was non-committal. Their web site hasn't changed much in 2 years which makes me wonder.

 

http://www.eggparka.com/english/main.html

 

I bought mine from these guys...

 

http://www.mrtrailer.com/ttt.htm

 

I was really reluctant. but the only other distributor I found was on Ebay and they looked even riskier.

 

The lady at "Triple T" turned out to be great and promised I could send it back if it didn't fit, etc. etc. I would not hesitate to buy from them again.