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Review


The Sargent “World Sport Performance” Seat The World Sport Performance seat is the original Sargent seat design. It’s been manufactured since 1996 in stock and custom versions. The price is reasonable, especially since you don’t have to trade in your old seat pan. That means you can sell the Sargent seat to recoup some of …

Inexpensive Winter Gloves From Pilot The Pilot Obsidian gloves have just about every feature you need for winter, all at a great price. Materials used include about 40% soft leather and 60% textile. There’s a big carbon fiber main knuckle protector and a secure wrist strap. Touch-sensitive overlays are included for working that smartphone. The …

A Rainbow of Windscreens From France Ermax windshields (aka windscreens) are made in France. Although the Ermax name may be unfamiliar in the U.S.A., Ermax windshields are distributed all over the world. They make a huge number of windshields in all shapes, sizes and many colors, for many different motorcycles. Ermax has been involved in …

2004 CRF230F Engine Type 223cc air-cooled single-cylinder four-stroke Bore and Stroke 65.5mm x 66.2mm Compression Ratio 9.0:1 Valve Train SOHC; two-valve Fuel Delivery 26mm piston-valve Ignition CDI Transmission Six-speed Final Drive #520 O-ring-sealed chain; 13T/50T Front Suspension 37mm leading-axle Showa fork; 9.5-inch travel Rear Suspension Pro-Link Showa single-shock with spring-preload adjustability; 9.0-inch travel Front Brake …

The Search for a Lightweight Winter Outfit The goal: a winter motorcycle riding outfit without the bulk. We’ve done this before — sort of. Long-time webBikeWorld readers may recall our 2009review of the Firstgear Teton jacket. That review had a similar objective: a lighter-weight, short jacket with matching pants for winter. This review isn’t necessarily an update on …

Waxed Cotton and Leather? The AGV Sport Compass jacket combines a unique and “modern retro” look with protection of a modern motorcycle jacket. Accommodations are present for back protection and CE rated elbow and shoulder protection is include. The unique construction consists of a brown waxed cotton and buffalo leather to deliver a look that …

The Unknown Motorcycle Jeans The Lindstrands Blaze pants may just be one of the best motorcycle jeans you’ve never heard of. Lindstrands Blaze jeans are one of the few bike jeans that don’t use Kevlar or aramid fibres for abrasion protection and are all the more comfortable for it. The Blaze jeans are available in …

Super Sport for the Street The TCX S-R1 boots are a “hypersport” street version of the TCX racing boots. A Gore-Tex membrane is included to make the boots waterproof and the S-R1 boots are also CE certified to EN13634. Paired with the built-in safety features and reasonable price, these boots are a winner. My apologies, …

Work Boot Style With CE Certs The TCX X-Blend boots combine a classic leather work boot look and feel with CE certified protection. (For more information, be sure to read the wBW report “CE Certified vs. CE Approved“, because their is a difference.) Most people would never know these are motorcycle boots unless the details …

UClear AMP Go and Pro Intercoms UClear has revised its Bluetooth intercom lineup with the new AMP systems. The popular UClear HBC100 (review) and UClear HBC200 (review) will be gone when current stock is depleted. There are now three AMP systems: the AMP, AMP Plus and AMP Pro. That’s more or less a “good, better, best” hierarchy, with the …

A Compact Motorcycle Tire Inflator The MotoPumps Air Shot is a very compact tire inflator. It provides pressures up to 100 psi and it’s small enough to fit under the seat of many motorcycles. The kit has everything needed to inflate a tire at the roadside. Multiple power cables, a zero-loss air hose and even …

Motorcycle Wheel Info Tachyon motorcycle wheel balancer review  |  Akront wheels are back – Billet Boys is the U.S.A. distributor  |  Alpina tubeless spoked wheels for Supermoto and other bikes; here are some photos from the 2008 Dealer Expo  |  Buchanan’s Spoke and Rim has custom spokes and wheel rims by Akront, D.I.D., Excel and Sun; also British bike rims and others  |  wBW Review: Carrozzeria forged racing …

The Bestem Carbon Fiber Front Fender for a BMW Recently, a confused driver in front of me at a stop sign suddenly decided to try a high-speed reverse fake-out. The result was that he quickly ran right into the front of my 2007 BMW F 800 S (Blog). It trapped my front tire and fender under …

Sport/Street Gloves for Women and Men The Spidi STS-R gloves come in a variety of colors for women and men. They’re racy looking and the price seems reasonable for all the features they have. They are also very comfortable, well constructed and have technical features, but there’s something missing: a wrist retention strap. When I think of …

A Simple Power Control HQ for Accessories The INNOVV Power Hub1 is a power distribution system for motorcycle accessories. Up to 5 different accessories can be connected to the fused power wires. Connect a wire from the Hub1 to the battery and one to the ground. Then connect the yellow wire from the Hub1 to …

Zooke Z-Spritz. Does It Work? Zooke anti-fog treatment is popular with skiers. It’s available as a wax or spray. Unfortunately, it did not prevent visor fogging during our review. This review will be short and sweet. Zooke “Z-Spritz” (the liquid version of Zooke anti-fog) did not prevent visor fogging during our evaluation. That doesn’t mean …

Waterproof Luggage With A Unique Mounting System The Hepco & Becker Royster C-Bow side cases straddle the line between hard cases and soft bags. The semi-rigid design offers light weight while still being strong enough to maintain the shape. Capacity is a bit limited but is in line with the intended use for commuters and …

Retro Leather Jacket With a Modern Twist The iXS Curtis leather jacket is a different take on retro leather. It also helps to illustrate the range of products available in the very broad iXS catalog. The Curtis comes in two striking color combinations: the chocolate brown shades shown here and a red/black with cream combo. The …

Night Eye for Night Riders The Macna Ivy RL jacket is comfortable and functional. It has all the features you need to keep riding from autumn, through winter and into spring. When it’s bathed in the glow of headlights, the innovative Night Eye material makes the Ivy RL light up like a Christmas tree. With …

Leather, Airbag and a Back Protector This is a “Quick Look” at the Helite leather airbag jacket. We have reviewed several Helite airbag products so far. Those include the Helite Adventure airbag jacket (review) and the Helite Turtle Airbag Vest (review). The Turtle airbag vest is included as part of the Adventure jacket and the leather airbag jacket. In …

Max Volume and (Slightly) Better Sound Quality The Tork “Maxx” system is a combination set of speakers with a new inline micro-amplifier. It’s similar to the Tork XPro speakers I reviewed 4 years ago. That kit also included the Tork Booster, a much larger amplifier. The Tork Maxx speakers are thinner than the XPro at around 8 …

It just doesn’t get any better than this! The new Nolan N87 beats every other helmet in its price range. In fact, you’d be hard-pressed to spend twice as much and still get as much. The N87 has fantastic build quality and just about every feature you need in a full-face helmet. Its new double-density …

Haynes Ducati Service – Repair Manual 600, 750 and 900 2-Valve V-Twins Service and Repair Manual, 1991 to 1996 Models by Penny Cox, Matthew Coombs, Haynes Manuals Hardcover: 250 pages ; Dimensions (in inches): 0.69 x 11.06 x 8.42 Publisher: Haynes Pub Group; (January 2000) ISBN: 1859602908 More:  wBW Ducati Page  |  Motorcycle Repair and Maintenance Article Index …

Ducati: The Official Racing History by: Marco Mesetti, Eugenio Martera, Marco Montemaggi, Patrizia Pietrogrande Hardcover: 287 pages ; Dimensions (in inches): 1.22 x 11.44 x 9.89 Publisher: Virgin Publishing; (March 2000) ISBN: 1852278935 More:  wBW Ducati Page  |  Motorcycle Racing  |  Vintage, Classic, Antique Motorcycles Page For new generations of Ducatisti to understand the legacy of this legendary motorcycle …

Ducati Desmoquattro Performance Handbook by: Ian Falloon Paperback: 160 pages ; Dimensions (in inches): 0.38 x 10.66 x 8.32 Publisher: Motorbooks International; (April 2003) ISBN: 0760312362 More:  wBW Ducati Page  |  Motorcycle Repair and Maintenance Article Index Recently Released: Tuning tips for Ducati’s Desmoquattro superbikes. Includes charts with specific suggestions by model and a section that helps determine how …

Protect Your Hearing!   Everything you need to know about ear plugs, earplugs, hearing protection, wearing earplugs, sources for earplugs, or earplugs and motorcycling! Riding a motorcycle creates a lot of noise, even when wearing a full-face helmet. Depending upon circumstances and the helmet’s design, wearing a helmet may actually increase the noise level! I …

A Unique “Streetfighter/Retro” The Caberg Ghost iterates the “streetfighter” motorcycle helmet trend with a unique new design. The Ghost is available with a tri-composite shell or as the Ghost Carbon shown here. The Ghost Carbon in size XL weighs just 1188 grams, which makes it one of the lightest helmets we’ve ever reviewed. What’s unique …

The TecMate O-105 OptiMate Weatherproof Charger With 3300mA Dual-Port USB Output for DIN Motorcycle Outlets The TecMate OptiMate O-105 Dual USB Port Charger is likely to become an indispensable piece of kit for motorcyclists. It plugs into a Euro-style DIN power outlet (ISO 4165) on your bike. These are the smaller or narrower style outlets …

Wet Is Bad; Dry Is Good The Touratech Waterproof Moto Tank Bag system is also made by Ortlieb in Germany for Touratech. It is a direct-fit solution for wide range of motorcycles, but a workaround or compromise for others. With a universal-approach tank harness, the 18L Moto Tank Bag has a removable clear map case …

Made in the U.S.A. Luggage Combo: The RKA Shiloh Road Tank Bag and the RKA Starr II Seat Bag RKA Luggage has been made in the U.S.A. since the early 1980’s. The company now offers a huge line of tank bags, seat bags, saddlebags, bag liners and more. Each luggage piece also comes in a …

Crash Tested Overpants for Men and Women The Joe Rocket Ballistic 7.0 textile riding pants offer versatility, protection and bang for the buck. In fact, this pair survived a crash that totaled the bike; more on that below. Also, both men’s and women’s specific versions of the Ballistic 7.0 pants are available. A huge size …

Round Heads Rejoice! The Arai Quantum is back! Round-heads, earth-shaped heads and “bulb” heads finally have a helmet that fits. It’s been a long time — nearly 7 years — since Arai had a “Round Oval” helmet in their U.S. lineup. The last Round Oval helmet offered by the Japanese company was the Arai Quantum II …

Gore-Tex, Waterproof, CE Certified “Handschuhe” The iXS “Vidar” gloves may look fairly basic but the details and execution are what make the difference. First off, the Gore-Tex waterproof guarantee is the headliner here. But there’s a lot more than that… The Vidar gloves are not heavily lined, so they’re not necessarily designed for ultra-cold weather. But they are …

Motorcycle Gloves by Oregonians? HMK designs and sells outdoor gear, specializing in winter sports like snowmobiling. The company recently started developing a line of motorcycle-related products. The small lineup includes motorcycle gloves and some crossover products such as protectors, backpacks and goggles. There are even a few HMK-branded off-road helmets now available. HMK is an …

The Latest in Heated Grips The Koso Apollo heated grips are simple and innovative. The left grip has a built-in controller and on/off switch, which definitely streamlines the installation process. These are the top-of-the-line Koso heated grips with a unique built-in controller. They have five heat levels, controlled by a simple thumb button that has …

The New C4 SCHUBERTH has announced the long-awaited update to the popular SCHUBERTH C3 (review). There just aren’t many details about the SCHUBERTH C4, but here are three photos showing a sample of the graphics. SCHUBERTH also hasn’t said whether the C4 will finally get at least one more additional shell size; let’s keep our fingers …

Soft and Stylish Retro Leather for Women and Men The very retro Spidi Ace leather jacket is also very popular. It’s available in both women’s and men’s specific sizes and styling in black only. There’s a “blackout” version for both women and men, with blacked-out stripes instead of the “Black/Ice” version with white stripes shown here. …

Warm and Waterproof Street Style for Women The Spidi Stormy H2Out Jacket combines street wear with waterproof motorcycle protection. It has “Urban” style that makes it versatile off the bike as well as on. The jacket is very comfortable, warm, windproof and waterproof, making it an excellent choice for three-season use. It has Spidi style and construction …

A Cheap GoPro Clone The SJCAM SJ4000 action camera is a pretty close copy of the GoPro Hero series. But it’s about 1/3 the price. I’m guessing neither GoPro or SJCAM will like that comparison, but there it is. In fact, the SJ4000 is so close in shape, size and format that it fits in …