gallopingby
Well-Known Member
Whats the latest research info on air jackets? Which offers the best protection for every day use. Needs to be comfortable to wear and easy to service if I forget to unclip it.
Air jackets
- Thread starter gallopingby
- Start date
ycbm
Overwhelmed
You don't need it serviced just because you forget to unclip it you just slot in another canister and it's fairly easy.
There are 3 main brands, P2 and Helite are essentially the same jackets but I know nothing about Helite themselves. P2 are really fast at servicing, it's cheap and they will continue to replace airbags when serviced on very old jackets. Hit Air don't warranty their jacket beyond three years and don't replace the air bag on service at all.
Other than that it's a personal preference what style you want, there are now several in the P2 range and Hit Air is a very different fit.
.
There are 3 main brands, P2 and Helite are essentially the same jackets but I know nothing about Helite themselves. P2 are really fast at servicing, it's cheap and they will continue to replace airbags when serviced on very old jackets. Hit Air don't warranty their jacket beyond three years and don't replace the air bag on service at all.
Other than that it's a personal preference what style you want, there are now several in the P2 range and Hit Air is a very different fit.
.
Sossigpoker
Well-Known Member
A good tack shop should be able to blow one or two up for you and then you can see what areas of your body they cover. None of them are more or less safe than the other so it's just personal choice.
Cragrat
Well-Known Member
I love the HIt Air because it covers the coccyx and ribs better. I honestly don't know about latest research.
ycbm
Overwhelmed
I don't think it does. My P2 is at least as long as a Hit Air and although the airbag configuration is different they both protect the ribs. Because of the different way they inflate, the P2 does not need actual airbag cover to provide protection. The Hit Air has an unprotected spot right at the bottom of the neck at the back that I don't like at all.
.
Cragrat
Well-Known Member
Sossigpoker
Well-Known Member
Not the best quality video but should give you an idea. I prefer the neck protection of the HitAir
ycbm
Overwhelmed
As you can see from the still showing before that video plays, there is a gap at the base of the neck on the Hit Air which is completely unprotected. Incidentally for those who don't watch the video the picture is also showing a mostly deflated P2 next to a fully inflated Hit Air.
That gap at the neck is in a very typical place for a fence rail or a pole to hit of you have a spinning fall into a fence because the horse suddenly stops or swerves.
The Hit Air does go higher at the neck but anything higher than the base of your hat is pretty pointless, imo, and I know of at least one person with a dodgy neck who says it pushed her head forwards when it inflated over her hat, and was not suitable because of that.
Some people prefer the HitAir fit. It fits close to the body and expands outwards from that. The P2 fits looser and expands in all directions. I prefer the looser fit, it's more versatile with clothes without adjustment and there more air flow to your torso if the plastic liner is not fitted close.
In addition, Hit Air guarantee their jackets for only "3-5 years" depending on use. And since you will never be able to prove how little your jacket had been used, the guarantee is in practice only 3 years. Hit Air do not replace Air bags on service and have been known to refuse to service jsckets more than 5 years old. P2 replace the airbag every time. I have had the airbag replaced on a jacket which is over 10 years old, it comes back like new every time, for £60.
I am not connected with P2, these are just the facts of air jackets.
.
Last edited:
ycbm
Overwhelmed
Well they would say that, wouldn't they?
In my opinion the gap at the back of the neck is a compromise in the design in order to cover the side of the ribs with air and extend the neck upwards, and a definite safety risk, given the number of falls you see where the rider spins backwards onto a fence.
They have to do the side bags because the jacket is constructed to fit close to the body and inflate outwards only, so only the areas covered by airbags are protected.
Looking at that photo there is a similar lack of protection for the kidneys.
In the P2, the cover stretches tight over the channel between the front and back of the airbag and the tightly stretched material protects the sides of the ribs and the side of the waist and kidneys.
.
Last edited:
Sossigpoker
Well-Known Member
The HitAir is already partially deflated in the video. See the photo posted earlier to show what it really looks like.
The P2 doesn't have any neck protection, for comparison, so as it stops at the base of the neck, surely that fence rail will hit you there ?
The P2 doesn't have any neck protection, for comparison, so as it stops at the base of the neck, surely that fence rail will hit you there ?
Sossigpoker
Well-Known Member
And I think you should get royalties from Point2 since you always come leaping to that brand's honour every time 
ycbm
Overwhelmed
The Hit Air is nowhere near as deflated as the P2. The video is uninterrupted, you can see how long the P2 has had to deflate by the time the HitAir is inflated and the comparison photo taken.
.
Sossigpoker
Well-Known Member
Clearly the HitAir was inflated before as you don't hear the bang so of course it's let more air out.
And that's a lovely slot at the base of the neck for the fence rail to nicely fall into in the Point2. Looks inviting!
And that's a lovely slot at the base of the neck for the fence rail to nicely fall into in the Point2. Looks inviting!
ycbm
Overwhelmed
And I think you should get royalties from Point2 since you always come leaping to that brand's honour every time
I wish they would
The brand deserves it. I write only fact apart from my opinion about the neck and kidney protection, a concern which I know is shared by others.
There is a reason why all or very nearly all the 2/3/4* riders who wear jackets wear P2 not Hit Air.
Seriously, would you pay £450 for a jacket that they won't replace of it fails at under 4 years old when the other fits new air bags for over a decade? (Thank you for giving me the opportunity to make that point again
)..
ycbm
Overwhelmed
Clearly the HitAir was inflated before as you don't hear the bang so of course it's let more air out.
And that's a lovely slot at the base of the neck for the fence rail to nicely fall into in the Point2. Looks inviting!
You have the brands round the wrong way I think
.
Sossigpoker
Well-Known Member
Yet you don't mind that huge gaping gap at the Base of the neck where the Point2 ends? How odd.
Sossigpoker
Well-Known Member
No I don't. The P2 ends at the base of the neck. No protection for your neck either from a pole or your neck bending back.You have the brands round the wrong way I think
.
Off you go and collect your royalties
ycbm
Overwhelmed
It stops at the base of your HAT the TOP of your neck, unless you have the most peculiar anatomy or are stupid enough not to wear a hat, in which case you'd be unlikely to be wearing a £450 air jacket.
ycbm
Overwhelmed
Off you go and collect your royalties
Thank you for giving me the opportunity to earn more of them (I wish!)
ycbm
Overwhelmed
No I don't. The P2 ends at the base of the neck. No protection for your neck either from a pole or your neck bending back.
Off you go and collect your royalties
The protection for your neck bending back is that the base of your hat is jammed against the top of the air bag. I've got a very long neck, but that's how it works with mine.
.
Sossigpoker
Well-Known Member
So if you fall face down , that fence rail will nicely go over the top edge of the P2 and into your neck.
ycbm
Overwhelmed
It won't. The top of the jacket collar on an adult's jacket meets the base of your hat. There is no gap if you are wearing a suitable hat. Even on me, and I have an unusually long neck.
.
Sossigpoker
Well-Known Member
Then this child is wearing the wrong size by the looks of it.
ycbm
Overwhelmed
I have no idea about children's sizes but that video never shows the P2 blown up anywhere near as much as my adult one.
.
ycbm
Overwhelmed
Helite, same construction as P2
Sossigpoker
Well-Known Member
Well given that it's blown up on camera, you see and hear them pull the cord , maybe there's something wrong with it.
All images I've seen on Google do show a gap between top of vest and hat when blown up BTW- ideal for a heavy object to fall or roll into.
All images I've seen on Google do show a gap between top of vest and hat when blown up BTW- ideal for a heavy object to fall or roll into.
ycbm
Overwhelmed
Well it's a good job we can all make our own choices.
I recommend the OP try the 3 main types, P2 standard, P2 gilet and Hit Air and choose the one she thinks will best suit her needs, provided she can afford the £450 replacement at 3 years if she goes Hit Air.
.
Sossigpoker
Well-Known Member
It doesn't need to be replaced at 3 years stop going on about this. I had mine serviced and it was way older than that.
ycbm
Overwhelmed
It does if it won't inflate, because Hit Air warranty is only 3 years unless you can prove it was lightly used, when it's up to 5. P2 on the other hand will simply stick a new airbag in and do on every service. So any Hit Air owner needs to allow for that.
There is someone on this forum who has been refused service on a Hit Air over 5 years old.
If you want me to stop posting, then stop making points that I want to respond to?
.
Sossigpoker
Well-Known Member
I took a break from this forum for probably a year. Good to see your obsession hasn't subsided.