Hi everyone,

I currently have a A* Stunt Leather jacket and use the bio armor upgrade in the back and shoulders. My question is IF i remove the Bio armor in the back, will the Icon Field Stryker armor fit underneath ? My jacket isnt skin tight and there is enough room to have a thick sweater underneath, but what i'm worried about most is the shoulders, as i would like to keep those bio armor upgrades in there because the Icon vest doesn't really offer that much protection in the shoulders.

Simply put, i would just like to know if anyone else out there has used it under a bike jacket without it being uncomfortable ?

Also, do you think the back protector in the icon vest is better than the bio armor upgrade that i slip in the jacket ?

Lemme know guys, thanks!

Link to stryker vest:

http://www.motorcycle-superstore.com/1/1/350/35677/ITEM/Icon-Field-Armor-Stryker-Vest.aspx

Link to bio upgrade:

http://www.motorcycle-superstore.com/1/1/350/33318/ITEM/Alpinestars-Bio-Armor-Back-Protector.aspx

The Icon stryker vest is pretty beefy. I bought one to wear under my jacket and it fit fine, but I ended up returning it because it was HOT to wear. And not just a little bit. It really felt like one of those heat packs you buy for a sprained ankle at the drug store, but all over your chest, shoulders, and back. I mean, I was riding in cool weather and was baking in that thing. I imagine if I were the squid type to wear it by itself with no jacket, than it would have been fine with airflow. But underneith a jacket...it's too much. The shoulders are a bit big too so if your leathers are already tight in that area, that vest will only make it worse.

I currently run the Knox Contour back and chest protectors. The back protector is much more comfortable and the chest protector is a lot more protection than the Icon vest. If you're set on a vest, Knox makes a vest with the contour protectors built in basically that you could check out. I also hear a lot of good things about the Forcefield brand protectors.

I think any quality brand-name strap-on back protector or vest will be better than a jacket insert protector. They'll usually be longer to cover your lower back too and have less chance of moving around on you.

There is back protector test floating around and the ICON did not do well.

The knox did very well and the Forcefield was top rated.

My buddy wears the ICON one with out any issues.

Forcefield here, so damn good.

There is back protector test floating around and the ICON did not do well.

The knox did very well and the Forcefield was top rated.

My buddy wears the ICON one with out any issues.

Yea i hear similar things but i know some people that swear by it (under a proper jacket of course). Also, the new one has this new technology that is apparently pretty good under impact, but i have nothing to back this up.

Hopefully Icon has smartened up over the years and finally decided to make a decent product.

Anywhoo, here is the info about the new technology they apparently put in the most recent Icon vest:

D3OŽ Intelligent Shock Absorption™ is a patented, shock absorbing material, engineered with Intelligent Molecules that flow with you as you move, but lock together on shock to absorb the impact energy. D3OŽ is rate sensitive, meaning that when moved slowly, the molecules flow freely, making it soft and flexible. At high speeds however–like in an impact–the molecules lock together, making the material an excellent shock absorber. The whole process occurs instantly, returns to its original state as soon as the impact is over, and is repeatable. These qualities make it perfect for any application where you need total freedom of movement and excellent shock absorption. D3O™ is also extremely low profile, meaning it integrates seamlessly into garments, so neither style nor function has to be compromised.

Surely you want a shock absorbing material to compress a little bit, take some of the energy out of the impact and slow down the transfer of that energy...