The very excellent jeans I am wearing here are by Saint – or SA1NT, as the firm prefers to write it.
I am always interested in advancements in clothing technology and these represent the absolute cutting-edge of protective wear for motorcyclists.
The founders of the firm, based in Melbourne, Australia, were fed up with bulky, hot, double-layer Kevlar-based bike trousers and set out to create something different.
The solution lay in a very special material called Dyneema.
Co-founder Aidan Clarke told Mirror Motorcycling: “This idea came from our own experience of riding motorbikes, but being uncomfortable off the bike – not to mention looking like a storm trooper.
“Existing solutions involved multiple layers and often very dated blocks and designs.
“We launched the concept of SA1NT in 2014, as we had the firm belief and audacious goal that it was possible to make a single-layer safety denim for motorcyclists.
“We wanted to blend form and function, and deliver safe yet sartorial motorcycle gear that wasn’t about bulk and layers.
“We spent 18 months on R&D and product evolution before launching our first tough moto offering in late 2015.”
By using Dyneema, the firm was able to create a super-strong denim, which only required one layer.
So, what is this wonder product?
Dyneema is the trade-name for Ultra High Molecular Weight Polyethylene.
It is produced in a patented gel spinning process in which fibres are drawn, heated, elongated and cooled.
The stretching and spinning process allows for molecular alignment, high crystallisation and low density.
What does all that mean?
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Well, it’s the world’s strongest fibre, it’s 15 times stronger than steel, it’s used in the armour plating on Apache helicopters and to moor space shuttles to space stations – and it floats on water.
And Saint uses it to make super-strong single-layer bike gear.
I have been wearing the top-of-the-range Model 4 jeans.
They are CE AA rated and come with D30 “Ghost Armour”, and they are in a beautiful over-dyed indigo colour.
I found them to be an excellent fit, lighter than standard denim/kevlar jeans, and with just enough stretch in the denim/Dyneema mix to make them supremely comfortable.
They have a classy, vintage styling and the quality and finish is superb, with a leather patch on the waistband, a leather tab on the coin pocket and Saint’s wing logo on the rear pocket.
There are plenty of strong belt loops and the jeans come up reassuringly high at the back, even if you’re bent forward on a sportsbike.
At £385, these jeans are not cheap. However, believe me when I say they are like no other motorbike trousers you have ever worn.
Highly recommended.
* Saint also offers other styles of jeans – without armour, with pockets for armour, slim-fit, women’s styles etc.
And there are also jackets, leisure wear and accessories.
The socks, by the way, are excellent!
Browse more than 19,000 new and used bikes for sale at Autotrader.co.uk/bikes
