4SR Will Advise You
Getting the size right is the foundation
The wrong size can ruin everything. Not only does the gear look wrong, more importantly it doesn't function the way it should. If elbow protectors aren't held in place because the sleeve is too loose, for example, they can shift or twist in a crash, which seriously cuts into their protective function. 4SR gear is engineered down to the smallest detail so that even a close-fitting one-piece suit is comfortable — there's no comfort reason to size up.
Look after your new leather properly
Falling for a new piece of gear is easy. Keeping it looking sharp long-term is the harder part. Ideally, wipe off dirt and bugs with a damp cloth after every ride. Once dirt is left to dry on, it's much harder to remove. For a deeper clean, use a damp, soft cloth with a leather-safe soap. Once dry, treat the leather with a leather balm or conditioner. If a sunny ride turned into dodging rain showers, dry the leather first, then treat it with a balm or conditioner. You'll find leather soap and conditioner in our online store.
What to avoid
Don't store or dry your gear in direct sunlight. This matters especially right after cleaning, when the leather has lost its protective layer and is more sensitive. Extended sun exposure can cause fading or colour change. The softer leathers 4SR often uses can be scuffed by rough surfaces or sharp objects. If your gear does get damaged, get in touch — we'll do what we can to repair it. Also keep in mind that pairing light-coloured leather with dark jeans can transfer colour onto the leather.
Not perfect? That's the point
Because the genuine leather used in every 4SR leather product is a natural material, it can vary in appearance, flexibility, and grain depth. That's what makes it distinctive and one of a kind — it shouldn't be read as a flaw. Large, perfectly uniform areas of leather are actually a sign that the top-quality outer layer wasn't used, and that you're instead looking at one of the inner layers that had a flawless finish pressed into it by a rolling machine.
Leather or textile — which one?
An age-old question hundreds of riders ask, and there's no single right answer. The two extremes are clear enough. Track = leather. An expedition to Iceland = textile. In between sits an endless range of situations where both materials have their pros and cons. Leather gear is safer, and with a well-designed ventilation system or perforation, it works fine in summer heat too. Textile's edge on water resistance is matched by a packable rain layer.
Choose gear with quality protectors!
Hard to argue with that — but how do you actually tell a good one? The current standard requires every protector to carry a precisely defined label. Alongside the standard reference, it shows a rider pictogram and the test result. The number 1 or 2 indicates Level 1 or Level 2 protection. The best protectors are marked Level 2, T+, T-, where T+ and T- mean the protector meets the strictest criteria at both higher and lower temperatures. European protector manufacturers are open about where their protectors were tested — something you can't say for manufacturers of imitations. Many of them haven't even noticed that protectors have carried this information label since 2012.
