Putting patches on the new jacket....

[SCJJR65]

This morning, I finally decided to join the 21st century and put my beloved 22 year-old leather jacket into "semi-retirement" and ordered a mesh jacket by First Gear! Woo-Hoo!!!  

No more sweating my brains out in the hot sun while riding!!  

I want to put some patches on the jacket, but don't really want to have to get them sewn on.  It seems like someone here mentioned that they had found some sort of glue that worked well for them.  (Melena?  Sue?  Was it one of you two?)   :-?

For that matter, if anyone else out there has found an alternative to the needle & thread, I'd love to hear about it!


(Oooh.... I just realized this is my 400th post.  Almost halfway there to Rob and Justin!)  

[Justin B.]

I have been very happy with my First Gear Mesh-Tex jacket.  

[SCJJR65]

Yeah, a couple of my riding buddies have First Gear jackets like the one I ordered, and they said that First Gear was pretty good in every product they offer.  I also noticed that in a recent issue of Motorcycle Consumer's News that this jacket was given a "Best Buy" rating in a comparison test of several different brands of mesh riding jackets.  

That sealed the deal for me!  

[NC Steve]

How interesting, I'm waiting on one just like it to arrive too.
Isn't that the Firstgear Mesh-Tex 2 (or II)?
It looked to me like a "Best Buy" when I was pricing mesh jackets, checking specs, etc. too.

[SCJJR65]

Yeah, Steve, spooky.....  :-/

I ordered what is described in the Summer 2007 issue from Whitehorse Press as the Mesh-Tex 3.0 Jacket from FirstGear, priced at $129.95.  I had seen it get a favorable review in an issue of Motorcycle Consumer's News, and figured if it was good enough for them, then it should be good enough for me.  So I pulled out the plastic and placed my order this morning.  With tax and S&H, the total came to $142.95.

I'm excited about having it to wear this summer!  I've been wanting one of these new-fangled hi-tech jackets for a long time, and I'm looking forward to being a little more comfortable while on Britta when I'm out for a ride!
Hot Damn!!!  I'll be "stylin' n' profilin'!"   8-)

[NC Steve]

Oh, now see, you got the new-fangled 3.0  , while I ordered the plain ol', obsolete Mesh-Tex 2  .

Still, it should be a lot cooler than the big ol' Tourmaster jacket I've been riding around in!

PS: Put me down for a Conebutt t-shirt too when they come in, okay?
Thanks! [smiley=thumbup.gif]

[Jon_P]

and i just got a tourmaster transition and that thing has more vents and such when i had them all open last weekend when it was 82 degrees it felt like my mesh jacket and i have had icons and a joe rocket.

[SCJJR65]

No prob, Steve.  The Ts should be here in a couple of weeks, and I think we're going to sell 'em for about $10 or so, just enough to recoup our costs of having more printed up for us.


Wearing the same jacket, we could be "the Mesh Twins"!  (separated at birth)  Nuk, nyuk, nyuk....  

[Melena]

I want to put some patches on the jacket, but don't really want to have to get them sewn on.  It seems like someone here mentioned that they had found some sort of glue that worked well for them.  (Melena?  Sue?  Was it one of you two?)   :-?

For that matter, if anyone else out there has found an alternative to the needle & thread, I'd love to hear about it!

John,
I sewed my patches (by hand, not machine) on my mesh jacket as that was easier and faster for me to do.  But I glued it onto my Kilamanjaro jacket.  And this stuff works great on that fabric.  It's called "Fabri-Tac" and can be bought in any fabric store, I'm sure.    It's supposed to bond fabric, lace, trim, leather & wood and is washable.  

I'm not sure this stuff will work well on the mesh because of the spaces in the fabric.  I notice on the picture that there are some patterns of a tighter weave fabric on the sleeves.  Maybe you could glue a patch on that part.  

Anyone else got any ideas?

[Justin B.]

I feel down right obsolete with my original plain ol' Mesh Tex...  

[Rob Valdez 79 R65]

Hey, I still suffer along in hot leather.  I guess I am going to have to pony up if I want to ride all summer seriously.

[thrang]

How well do the likes of a mesh tex protect you if you have a prang in comparison to a leather? I've looked at a few 'summer jackets' but always been put off by how flimsly they felt.

[Rob Valdez 79 R65]

I would say a good fit would be essential, to ensure that the elbow pads would be where you want them when you want them there.

For that reason, I would do my shopping at a local bike dealer, and pay a premium, just to get a good fit.  It doesn't hurt to spend money close to home, either.

Anyone here ever here of Pop Dryer?

http://www.motorcyclemuseum.org/halloffame/hofbiopage.asp?id=63

His Japanese superstore lives on.  He used to be the BMW dealer back in the sixties.  I didn't even know BMW's existed, except for maybe some funny little cars with round tail lights, and a exhaust pipe that exited at the center of the car.
The "Monk" in me liked that.  

Oh yeah, I bought my last helmet there.  Still had to order it in after I tried several on, and used up some of a nice young ladies' time.  Something to be said for getting away from the computer screen every now and then.  

[Rob Valdez 79 R65]

How well do the likes of a mesh tex protect you if you have a prang in comparison to a leather? I've looked at a few 'summer jackets' but always been put off by how flimsly they felt.

This was the heart of a particularly favorite thread on the subject over at Boxerworks:

http://www.boxerworks.com/phorum/read.php?f=4&i=29367&t=29301#reply_29367

[suecanada]

I agree with everything Melena said about stitching or gluing. It is amazingly easy even for me to sew the patch on a mesh jacket as the holes make is easy. Glue wouldn't work too well because of the mesh. I suppose it depends on the size of the holes.

The fabric glue is good and I used it but to really glue down the corners of my patch on my other cordura non mesh jacket I have taken to using silicone sealant! Choose your shade either clear, white or black. I leave a heavy weight on the patch overnight and it may be even better than the fabric stuff. I bet "shoe goo" would be good too as it remains flexible when dry.