New Kris Holm Unicycles clothing and armor

[danger_uni]

Hi,

In addition to unicycles, I've been working on a few other projects including a clothing line and armor. Pictures are on the advert section of krisholm.com or directly at http://dangeruni.unicyclist.com/myuni.html

Shirts will be long and shortsleeved T's in high-quality riding jersey fabric, with an embroidered KH logo.

The shorts overlap with leg armor for skin protection, and have fully gusseted crotches for flexibility and comfort. They have two really cool vertical pockets that hold stuff without it binding your leg or sloshing around, and they double as mesh side vents. Fabric is tough but lightweight brushed ripstop nylon, with a stretch-cordura back panel.

The armor incorporates all of the design improvements I've wanted to see in Roach pads for a long time. They will be more expensive than 661 pads but will last a LOT longer and have a much better design around the knees.

I need to know people's preferences for waist sizes. It's expensive to make lots of sizes because I have to pay for pattern changes for each size. I'll post a poll about this.

-Kris.

[Max_Dingemans]

Sounds like a sweet deal for us unicyclist!

[onewheeldave]

Nice looking shorts on the website!

[paco]

How adjustable will the shorts be in the waist department? They look like they have some sort of belt that could change them a size or so.

[john_childs]

Roach's sizing for shorts works well for me. The sizes go in 3" increments and the built in belt and elastic waist are able to cinch up any excess for me.

For the armour I like it extra long. I get the XL size Roach and it fits me OK. Armour a little longer than the Roach XL size would actually work better for me. I like the armour to be long enough so it rests just above the shoe so it doesn't slide down off my knee during a UPD. Armour that is too short does no good for protection when you need it.

[nikkifrog]

I voted 30", but my waist is really about 31". So if they are adjustable to cinch up a bit, then I would want 32".

Looks like some cool stuff! I like how the armor just has your signature kind of small instead of big letters. My armor says "NUKE PROOF" on each leg, and it's quite large.

I'll definitely want a long-sleeved shirt. Maybe short-sleeved, too! Will they be available in different colors, or just red?

Thanks!

Nikki

[danger_uni]

Originally posted by nikkifrog
I voted 30", but my waist is really about 31". So if they are adjustable to cinch up a bit, then I would want 32".

Looks like some cool stuff! I like how the armor just has your signature kind of small instead of big letters. My armor says "NUKE PROOF" on each leg, and it's quite large.

I'll definitely want a long-sleeved shirt. Maybe short-sleeved, too! Will they be available in different colors, or just red?

Thanks!

Nikki

Right now there's long and short-sleeved jerseys in red and also charcoal colors. No huge banner logos- just cool shirts.

Sizes on armor will be Small, Med. and Large for the first batch. If things go well then I'll add XS and XL.

The pants are properly tailored (ie not elasticized) at the waist, and will come with a belt, so adjusting down an inch or two shouldn't be a problem.

Thanks for voting on the waist sizes.

-Kris.

[Ben Plotkin-Swing]

Thats some good looking stuff. What changes where made to the armor other than removing the material from behind the knee?

Ben

[nbrazzi]

Are the shorts the type with the riding shorts built in, or do these fit over cycling shorts? I'm sure I'll pick up a few of these items...

when is the runway fashion show to premiere the new Kris Holm designer clothing line?

[danger_uni]

Originally posted by nbrazzi
Are the shorts the type with the riding shorts built in, or do these fit over cycling shorts? I'm sure I'll pick up a few of these items...

when is the runway fashion show to premiere the new Kris Holm designer clothing line?

Ha ha about the fashion show. The shorts are overshorts- you need to wear bikeshorts underneath. The fabric is the same as on the Roach shorts I wore every day in Bhutan and Mexico and practically every day in between (with a few washes here and there...), so it's pretty well tested.

Personally I'm way more inclined towards lifestyle-oriented clothing that works for lots of different things but also happens to be technically good for cycling. That way it doesn't look like "cycling clothing" if you know what I mean, and it's a lot more versatile.

Here are some differences between the new armor and Roach armor:

1) There's no seam on the inside of the calf- the front fabric is one piece ballistics nylon with the back panel around the back of the calf. This seam wears out on the Roach and 661 pads
2) The back fabric only comes up to the top of the calf, not behind the knees. This avoids fabric bunching and discomfort when you bend your legs.
3) The wraparound the back of the calf is full coverage, but can easily be folded back if you want ventilation rather than protection on the back of the leg.
4) The KHU armor uses Canadian-made 1200 denier Senior Ballistics Nylon, which is what Roach used to use before they started producing them in Taiwan (more durable than the fabric on the new Roach pads and way more durable than 661 pads)
5) Padding extends fully around the inside of the knee, just where you might bump your knee on the uni.
6) Thin padding protects the ankle bone on the inside.
7) The diagonal straps around the back of the knee both start on the inside and velcro on the outside. On roach and 661 pads, the inside-attached velcro starts peeling back and falling off, when it wears a bit.
8) They are much more articulated (pre-bent) at the knee than 661 or Roach. This feels weird at first but is much more ergonomic for the typical bent leg position during riding.
9) A 2" wide polyester webbing "tendon" connects the plastic in the knee with the front shin plastic (hidden under the fabric cover). This prevents the Knee padding from sagging over the shin, as Roach and 661 do when they get old.
10) A second webbing "tendon" is sewn over the plastic in the knee (under the fabric cover), where it extends to the sides of the knees. This prevents the plastic from cutting through the outer fabric on the knee part, as it eventually does on 661 and Roach pads.

-Kris.

[merrill]

The leg armor sounds great! When will it be available? I hope my old Roach armor can hold out a bit longer.

Joe

[john_childs]

Originally posted by danger_uni
Sizes on armor will be Small, Med. and Large for the first batch. If things go well then I'll add XS and XL.

I'd have no problem if the XS and XL sizes were more expensive than the standard S, M, L sizes. The XS and XL would be for a smaller market segment so a higher cost for those sizes would be justified.

Roach's sizing for their leg armor seems to be a bit on the short side. The Roach XL seems to be about the same length as the 661 Large. I don't know if it's because Canadian bike riders are shorter or maybe the bike riders prefer shorter armor.

[danger_uni]

Originally posted by john_childs

I'd have no problem if the XS and XL sizes were more expensive than the standard S, M, L sizes. The XS and XL would be for a smaller market segment so a higher cost for those sizes would be justified.

Roach's sizing for their leg armor seems to be a bit on the short side. The Roach XL seems to be about the same length as the 661 Large. I don't know if it's because Canadian bike riders are shorter or maybe the bike riders prefer shorter armor.

The KH armor comes up slightly higher than the Roach, and the straps are slightly closer to the top to prevent the armor from folding down over the knee when you crash. This may mean, along with the increased articulation at the knee, that you fit a size large whereas you might have wanted an XL in the Roach.

Good suggestion though.

All of this stuff will hopefully be at the Unicycle.com outlets by mid-October. The delay is due to the time it takes to manufacture and then ship products.

-Kris

[Dirtsurfer]

One complaint I have for the Roach Indy shorts is they are a bit too baggy (see pic). This could pose a danger to those using QR at the seatpost (though I do not). I don't know if yours follow a different line but it's better to be aware then not. Are the shorts available in other colors? Picture by Stine at Palos, where they built the "a-bomb" used on Japan in WWII.

[danger_uni]

Originally posted by Dirtsurfer
One complaint I have for the Roach Indy shorts is they are a bit too baggy (see pic). This could pose a danger to those using QR at the seatpost (though I do not). I don't know if yours follow a different line but it's better to be aware then not. Are the shorts available in other colors?

They are slightly less baggy than Indy shorts and longer, so catching on a quick release shouldn't be a problem. The bagginess of the cut was actually designed so that the bottom just barely clears a Coker tire. Or you can roll them up to the bottom of the vertical zippers for regular length shorts.

I haven't done colors yet, but to start with I was thinking of just three colors: black with blue panels, like the picture, black with grey panels, and blue with black panels.


-Kris.