Airbag Jacket any good? ( Hit Air Safermoto jacket & vest)

I noted that hit-air used to have a deployment mechanism which would fully inflate the system in 0.5 sec, then a retro-swappable system allows deployment in 0.25sec - which is better - this is when i decide the system is quick enough to be provide some protection in certain type of accidents. I bought one as a result - not yet test it in action except for accidental deployment when i drop my bike from forgetting to deploy side stand - right in front of a crowd of beautiful ladies which probably explain why i was forgetful in the first place

One of hit-air competitor has now produced a system which deploys in less than 0.1 sec on a airbag jacket with similar volume coverage. Are you able to explain what mechanism was improved when hit-air cut down the 0.5 sec system to the 0.25sec system and whether any plans are on the way to cut it down further?

I hope the beautiful ladies were suitably impressed

I believe the changes made to lower the inflation time were in the keybox design, change in the spring and the rates(I dont know all the technical data and could not divulge it if I knew anyway)

Hit-Air are constantly trying to improve the product and will make improvements as they find them and it is cost effective for you the customer. Along the same lines of changing the keybox for $45 allowed you to move your inflation time from .5 - .25 sec on older vests and jackets.

Which "competitor's" vest are talking about? Point 2?

One thing that I was unprepared for (but which is to be expected once given a tiny bit of thought and a moderate understanding of physics) is how cold the vest gets upon inflation.

I really got to notice this the first time I "deployed" mine as it was done for the benefit of the idiot TSA and to waste out the CO2 cart.

Nice work - that is a huge improvement.

I dont know whether the ladies were impressed- i kept my head down and got out of there as soon as i could.


There shouldnt be any secret about the design- if one has the 2 systems in his hands - a comparison should not be difficult - no point worrying whether someone would steal the technology (it's kind bare for all to see) - stronger spring seem like a plausible contributing factor - i was just curious for a comparison anyway.

http://www.motoairbag.com/motoairbag_certificazioni_prodotto.php

Motoairbag claims to inflate in 0.08 sec and the associated video seem to indicate that - it's also been certified to CE EN1621/4 - airbag only force attenuation standard, not a bunch non-relevant standards some other manufacturer confuse people into.

I must say i dont like how head/neck support is positioned on Motoairbag as i dont think it provides lateral movement support like hit-air and a number of other manufacturers product - i am however quite impressed with the claimed 0.08 sec inflation rate though.

A guy told me this afternoon that Evel Knievel came up with the idea for an airbag vest. I found a couple references online to Evel promoting some kind of safety vest but didn't find much about it. I saw lots of folks concerned about it exploding and accidentally being activated by forgetting to unclip it. The videos don't show it exploding, and I can personally vouch for it not going off just because you forgot to unclip it when you step away from your bike. :blush
Oh, and the other main concern people have is thinking you need to send it off to repack the airbag - nope you can just snap it back together following the instructions on the video. I haven't set it off (yet) but I have an extra co2 canister in case I do.

Just thought you guys would be interested in seeing this short video

http://youtu.be/VqnLLy0NsiI

Well, I ended up inflating my HitAir YS vest this morning. Practicing this concept of bump starting while trying to waddle the bike fast enough on the flat road, letting out the clutch in second gear poised to pull the clutch back in if it doesn't start, and relaxing a moment too soon when it seemed to start then changed it's mind, means coming to a very quick stop. "There was nothing I could do, I had to lay 'er down." But let's not dwell on such trivial details, shall we? No pictures = never happened...

It inflated very quickly. I landed on my shoulder so the vest didn't cushion the main part of this particular type of fall. But it puffed up in front and back. It stayed inflated for longer than I can imagine anyone would need it for protection. It was a little hard to wiggle out of so I could turn off the fuel petcock. I wear the vest over an Olympia Motosports Air Glide 3 Mesh Tech jacket that has armor in it.

Deflating the air chambers and snapping it back together took only a minute to do, very easy. There's a video http://www.safermoto.com/media/reassembly.html with peppy music showing how to put things back to usefulness. It's almost as easy as falling off a motorcycle. *ahem*

Moving on, another concern I've seen people asking about is having a metal canister going across the ribs. When changing the co2 canister, I noticed there is a flat rigid protector area behind the cartridge which would likely spread out any force the canister might put on your ribs. But the front also inflated a lot and it seems unlikely that a force would be strong enough to get through the air bag and past the shield to make much of a difference between having the canister there or somewhere else. Not tested science though, just an observation.

Only one question remains, what to do with the used canister? I emailed our trash and recycling company to find out.

Just ordered two additional cartridges, and a buckle connector holder for when I forget to drape the detached tether across the seat and it dangles by the hot exhaust pipes! Too bad there isn't airbag pants or sleeves.

Just saw your order come in, now I have an answer

Another thing on the canister/ribs question, our newer -C vests also inflate between the CO2 and the chest minimizing any impact in that area.

We have a HUGE box of used CO2 in our warehouse, to expensive to ship back to the manufacturer in Japan, so we will eventually take it to a scrape metal place and hope they can re-cycle them.

Glad to hear there were no photographs so it never really happened

Oh, and in addition to the flat rigid protector behind the canister, you can also get chest armor that velcros in between the vest and your ribs. Just another layer of protection you can add.

Always glad to help out and serve as a warning, I mean example, to others. That's my story and I'm sticking to it! I should have kept my feet out until I was sure the bike was accelerating. Lesson learned for the next time I went around the block and tried again. Too bad easy drops like that aren't the only kind of get offs.

Since the canister is on the outside of my vest, I'm not worried about it causing any damage to my ribs.

I'm surprised there isn't a place that refills the canisters. Reduce isn't practical in this case, but ideally reuse and recycle should be.

Canister should at least be recyclable although probably too small for safe refilling:
http://www.ehow.com/info_10025254_proper-disposal-paintball-co2-tanks.html

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=tpIW2oX7rI0

http://www.drs.illinois.edu/css/factsheets/pdf/CompressedGasCylinderSafety.pdf

I cant get any of the US CO2 manufacturers to produce the CO2 with the pressure we need Sent samples to all of them with a resounding NO from them all :eek1

Thank you for the links

If anyone is interested I just put a new one (size XL) in the fleamarket.

http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=839813

See my replies in that thread. Dont use Bungee cord to tether the airbag to the bike

Just thought I would post up after reviewing the whole thread, and getting to talk to Neil (niel?, neal? bob?) at Long Beach.
Yes I will have one (soon), but like most 'mericans that get injured, I added the recovery 70. (fatty gunna fat) and almost all of it in the belly.
Dont laugh, I had every question answered, danced around the tiny booth, wanted to adopt one to take with me everywhere, and even got a fitting. Yeah the look on his face when my "no it wont fit" was realized (hurt puppy look).
I will be back to order one up - soon. Probably even in the dont hit me day or night setup and spot me from 2 cities over color.

Oh and the new vest is nice, even though I am in fatty no buckle size, the vest is tall enough for a 6'2 or 3" almost all torso build. I have wide (swim) shoulders and had no fitment issues in the try on. Build quality is clean and tight.

Thanks again for the time (I still do not understand how you can answer so many crazy "wat is dat?" and "do it go under my jacket?' style questions at the show)

Jay
(and thanks for the info on the NEXX helmets)

Jay,

Not sure who you were talking to but my name is Alan I was so sad to see your "puppy dog" look and your dancing was smooth :)

Let me know when you are ready and we will take care of it. My wonderful wife Beth keeps me sane after 10 1/2 hours of answering the same questions over and over. People get mad when you anticipate the question and answer it before they ask

Nice meeting you at the show and we are always happy to answer questions on the product

Alan

Yeah so I should have mentioned, me and names, not so much.
But I will be sending my buddy to your booth in Seattle, and I will tell him to get fitted and purchase.
(he may fight me on this but I if you tie him down we can get him in better gear and maybe a sale)
I think his name is still Erik, and he is a lanky fellow, show no mercy.

Thanks again.

We are not going to be at the Seattle show we have had long standing plans for this weekend that involve beer and dirt bikes so they cant be cancelled

His loss for being in the PNW, thanks for the heads up.