Here are some pictures of the leathers....... They come with TPro armour as standard but you have to use your own back protector as they say fitted backprotection is not as good as finding one which fits you. They just say that back protectors are like helmets get one which fits and is comfortable and is the best you can afford. I use my older protek as it has been modded to suit me and fits me perfectly.
As you can see the shin,shoulder and elbow/forearm protection is made of 4 layers and this is supposed to give the protection of all 4 layers but the flexability of two of those layers because they are only joined down the middle and the outer edges can slide over each other for flex.
The inner arms have a kevlar stretch material this is supposed to be almost impossible to rip but make the suit flexable when worn.
Kevlar is also used over all the seams so that if any stitching is worn through or is burst the kevlar will stop the suit from coming apart !! They have thought very hard about protection.
The Kevlar stretch material is also used behind your calves and helps stop that cramp you can get when your legs pump up on a long ride out.
The back of the suit has a single piece of leather on your back. Most suits have two sections but I was always told the best suits have one because every seam is a weak point and if you have a raised seam on your back you can wear through is because all your body weight is on that one seam. So I am a bit picky about how me leathers are made !!
But as you can see the arms are made with a seam which is where you need protection as well so Carrera have had longer fore arm protection made and the suit has double thickness leather as you can see with the stitching round where the protection is fitted. You can see the white stitching but there is also black stitching which goes all the way round as well.
The one other thing which I have but is an option is the perforated front. If you have a solid front it can get very warm in summer if we ever get a warm summer! The perforated front is great for summer and autumn and because it has holes in the leather I think they have put a layer of Kevlar material in as well, which will let air through but adds to the strength of the suit. In winter I wear a jacket anyway so the extra ventilation is not a problem.
OK style wise my suit is not brilliant black and a red/orange makes it vivid but I bought a bargain and it should last as long as my last suit which was also a custom made suit. I had that one 18 years. As you can see from my 1980's avitar I would rather have a simple suit which does not date after 2 years and keep a good strong suit for as long as possible.
OK I am tight with my money or rather my wife is tight with my money but the quality is stunning and I feel that this suit is a safe as you are going to buy with all the protection and added features which keep you in one piece if you crash.
If I have to buy a suit ever again it would be a Carrera.
John Renolds used to buy his suits and wore Carrera for a good few years before he was paid to wear the ones he used for the past couple of seasons. They even have a set he crashed in on display at the factory and they did still looked strong enough to wear !!!
10/10.
