I ran across the Italian site Scale Racing Models and was astonished by the detail of the 1/12 scale model racing bikes shown. Long ago I used to own a hobby shop and know something about model building or thought I did. I wouldn't even begin to know how to build a model of this caliber. There are model builders out there who go beyond hobby and their creations rise to the level of art. The SRM site is short on info and long on pictures and in Italian but I can say the builders' work shown there has my total admiration.
A site about memories, thoughts, photos, and unrepentant opinions about motorcycles and motorcycling after four decades of twisting the throttle.
Monday, December 30, 2013
Extraordinary Scale Model Motorcycles
I ran across the Italian site Scale Racing Models and was astonished by the detail of the 1/12 scale model racing bikes shown. Long ago I used to own a hobby shop and know something about model building or thought I did. I wouldn't even begin to know how to build a model of this caliber. There are model builders out there who go beyond hobby and their creations rise to the level of art. The SRM site is short on info and long on pictures and in Italian but I can say the builders' work shown there has my total admiration.
Thursday, December 19, 2013
Product Review: VikingCycle Leather Jacket
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I tapped my buddy Dave to model the jacket for the pics. He's a real person,
not some GQ cover boy so you get an idea of how the jacket might actually look on
a normal rider. |
I've wanted a new leather jacket but spending a lot of money on one is hard to justify when you live somewhere with weather that makes it usable only perhaps four months out of the year.
The Warrior jacket is an economy motorcycle jacket priced at an amazingly low price of $99. A premium leather jacket like one from Schott or Vanson will dent your wallet for something past $600 so I was curious and a little dubious that VikingCycle could offer anything worth wearing for such a low price. As you might expect, a $99 jacket isn't going to be equal to the very best stuff out there but if you're on a tight budget and want leather it is a way to get a piece of cow wrapped around you for very little money.
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Fitment for a man. |

Zippers are all the standard YKK brand and seem sturdy and appropriately sized to the duty. I like the traditional look of the jacket, there is no armor in the modern sense, just padded panels at the elbows, shoulders, and kidney area just like my old jacket. Fitment around the waist is good and uses the traditional leather side laces, something that allows the jack to be well fitted around the middle, much more so than merely having snaps or Velcro adjustment straps.
There are two snapped inside chest pockets for whatever suits you, cell phone, wallet, etc. The zippered side pockets are there but not as deep as I'd like. My Motorola Maxx smartphone in it's protective case barely fits into the side pocket.
The jacket was warm enough in the cool weather, a sweatshirt or long sleeve t-shirt and the big Gold Wing fairing left me plenty warm at 48°. The vent zippers on the chest and back leak a bit of air and some sort of wind flap would be nice. The collar is a competition style collar and not as wide as it appears on the product page and while it has two snaps, can't be snugged up on my 16" neck. A higher collar would be good, the low collar lets cold air in and makes some sort of neck scarf almost mandatory.
The jacket has a "quilted" zip-out liner but it's not worthy of the name. It's little more than a two pieces of cloth diamond stitched together as an inner vest. It provides no extra warmth whatever and I finally took it out entirely and relied on the leather and my sweatshirt for warmth. All that is sort of a round about way of saying this is a cool weather leather jacket but not a cold weather leather jacket, at least for us Arizona types.
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I tried to get Kate Upton and her bikini to model but could only afford Dave and his Road King. |
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