I don’t often wear knee pads, and my riding is largely natural trails, west of scotland stuff, with the odd trail centre. I have a pair of Kyle Straits that go in the bag on big mountain days and get worn on the descents, but I always find them a bit uncomfy. Couple of recent silly falls and my kness are suffering (and aged 47 with some knee op history).

So is there a light, comfy, unobtrusive, reasonably protective kneee pad out there that stays put, doesn’t chafe, get in the way – more so than my current Kyle Straits ?

kyle straits are one of the more ‘all day’ knee pads out there.

i also like fox launch pros, which are similar…

or maybe try troy lee KG5400s

I have tried several 66 d30’s, fox and kyle straight and in the biggest size of each found them all uncomfortable. Just got the nukeproof ones in XL for 35 quid ish from chain reaction and they are really good. Found them comfortable enough for full days.

I have a similar dislike of the Kyle straits, found the Troy Lee Knee/Shin ones much better, but not really suited for pedalling in.

The Troy Lee Knee ones above apparently aren’t as good, the shin piece helps keep the knee bit in place, those without the shin piece tend to slip.

I find that wearing knee pads causes cramp when pedalling for over an hour, anyone else experience this?

I sometimes get it when wearing knee pads, guess its how tight you have them

anyone tried the Endura MT500 ones ?

G-form meet the comfort and protection requirements but they are not cheap. Most comfortable conventional pads I have found for big knees are race face dig – the more expensive ambush d30 ones I simply could’t get on with as they went lumpy in use and dug into my shins.

thanks all, think I’ll go round a few of the LBS and try some on, cheers

I’ve recently started wearing the Troy Lee’s above, rides around 3 hours, 25miles.

Pretty happy, they rubbed a bit on the last ride that was the first time, I’ll investigate why. The key seems to be that they’re not that tight, just tight enough to stay in place.

Yeah ive got endura mt500s find them very comfy.after the first couple of rides I barely notice them on and regularly ride for 3 hours in them.

POC VPD 2.0, forget I’m wearing them for a whole day, riding and walking in the mountains.

I’ve got 661 evos and they’re ok, don’t normally wear pads but thought I ought to for the Alps tomorrow, tried them a couple of times, do notice them but not too restrictive. Getting the positioning right appears to be key to comfort though.

I find that wearing knee pads causes cramp when pedalling for over an hour, anyone else experience this?

Yes, so I slide them down on long pedally bits.

my original Kyle straits were a bit big, so got a medium instead – they are ok, but I feel them quite obstructive.

I guess I am chasing the holy grail of something that is minimalist but will offer some reasonable protection.

The Endura ones look quite light/thin, which is what I am after, recognising that most of my offs are silly rather than knarly !

Same dilemma as you this time last year. Difference is I’d already tried the MT500’s for a year. The 500’s rubbed and fell apart after a year.

Someone on here recommended these to me Oneal Sinner and they’ve been great. Really comfortable and I’ve done some big 66k rides on both naked knees and over thermal tights (make sure you cream up though when putting them over tights). Some of the stitching came undone on the first pair but they were replaced under warranty no problem.

If you want something a little more minimalist I can highly recommend these:

http://www.raceface.com/guards/legs/charge-leg/

They fit like a pair kneewarmers. They’ll not same you from kneecap smashing horror shows but they will with their kevlar covering stop cut up knees (deep gashes in across my knees scare me) and take a bit of the sting out of impacts.

ive got g-forms for when i have to pedal

those Raceface ones look exactly what I amn after, just ordered a Med and an L on Wiggle, as not available locally, many thnaks for all ideas 🙂

I love my Nukeproofs and could easily wear them all day. Some say they’re too bulky, but I don’t find that is an issue and if I did fall off I’d be glad of that extra padding, it’s sort of the whole point really.

The RaceFace Ambush pads are pretty good too, low profile & D3O. They really handy bit is they open at the back, rather than having to slide them over muddy legs, which inevitably means grit doesn’t ingrained into the material, which even with washing does an amazing job of sandpapering the top of skin off the kneecaps.

G-form. Fold up to practically pocket size if you do need to take em off, but basically a lycra tube with rubber block stitched on it so like wearing knee warmers.

Another vote for G-Form here. Very comfy, not had to use them in anger but have passed the “knee into wall test” with flying colours. Sweat build up is minimal too.

another g-form user here, again not tested them in anger but they fit well & once I’m riding I don’t notice them (again they work well as knee warmer in winter). They ‘apparently’ move on impact from reports, but I’m only looking to alleviate the initial impact, so are fine for what I want.

+1 for O’Neal Sinner. Dead comfy, and more importantly, they work

I’ve been really happy with my Fox Launch Pros. No chafing, no cramps & most importantly, no knee injuries despite a number of crashes.

Just waiting for Jedi to come along in a minute saying “Scott Grenades FTW”. Very consistent that man 😉

Scott rockets, updated version!

POC VPD 2.0 fan here, hardly notice them. Last well too so i reckon they are worth the premium. Lasted longer than 2 pairs of Kyle Straits i had.

If you want something a little more minimalist I can highly recommend these:

http://www.raceface.com/guards/legs/charge-leg/

They fit like a pair kneewarmers. They’ll not same you from kneecap smashing horror shows but they will with their kevlar covering stop cut up knees (deep gashes in across my knees scare me) and take a bit of the sting out of impacts.
+ 1 am really liking mine but they are minimal

Also try the Leat ones- fine to pedal in.

Another G-form user here.

After degloving my knee at Glentress last Autumn I wanted a knee pad that was so comfy I had no excuse not to put on for pretty much every off road ride.

I’ve also got a pair of Fox Launch Pro which are much more protective but also get very hot on a warm day and are far less comfortable.

I’ve worn the G-form pads on 5 hour rides when the weather has been pretty warm – sweating like crazy but they have remained comfortable and not too warm. I simply forget I’m even wearing them which can’t be said for the Fox pads.

Has anybody used both the G-form and the TL KG5400? Or even tried both of them on? Just wondering how they compare, as I’ve got some of the Troy Lee pads from CRC, but they’re still in the packaging with labels attached, and if the G-form ones really are more comfortable then I could send them back. I’m certainly not after the ultimate in protection, only for low speed falls (for use on a uni) – comfort is a far bigger priority.

bump for the weekday daytime crowd – anybody got comments on G-form vs Troy Lee KG5400?

I wear the kg5450 shin jobs which are ok but found they can rub a little…but this maybe because of my hairy and oddish size legs.

Very good ventilation unless really hot weather and gave me a bit more confidence on the downs.

No idea about gform but hear good things mostly.

Hated mt500, big bulky things, rubbed constantly, restricted movement and poor ventilation.

Always got on brilliantly with Kyle Straits tbh, I ended up grabbing a couple of extra pairs when they discontinued them. All-day comfy.

I’m trying to decide between G-Form and RaceFace Charge – can anyone comment on how hot/sweaty they get? Does either cope with heat and sweat better? I don’t wear my Kyle Straits much because they’re pretty hot for all day.

I like my Kyle Straights but they are a bit warm. I found some old (late 90’s) K2 skate pads up my parent’s loft at the weekend, and thought I’d give them a spin on Saturday night, nice and airy, I’ll wear them again for the summer. Might be worth keeping an eye our for something similar.

Hmm, pic didn’t work.

Well anyway, they were quite good. I’d like to try to some of the g-form or race face charge ones too though. Nearly bought some of the charge elbow pads for a trip to Kirroughtree at the, but I wan’t to see them first.

Scott grenade pro ii for me

Use GForm for when its an all dayer with a lot of peddling, MT500’s for a few hours of more serious hucking about although I tend now to use the Gform elbow pads all the time.

anyone tried the Endura MT500 ones ?

I’ve just bought a pair.

You are welcome to borrow them for a lap or two of Cathkin to see if you get on with them.

I like them, much less bulky than the Race Face Rally shin / knee pads I have. Pretty good protection too judging from my knee after a nonsense crash at Mabie on Saturday