Gear Review: Shima VRS-1 Gloves

Shima VRS-1 Gloves

Used for: 3 months

Price: 

Rs 12,283 (excluding shipping and taxes, shima.pl)

Rs 9,500 (kombustion.in)

Options:

REV'IT Spitfire gloves: Rs 15,500 (excluding shipping and taxes, revzilla.com)

Dainese Four Stroke Long gloves: Rs 16,600 (excluding shipping and taxes, dainese.com)

Ixon RS Pro HP: Rs 15,000 (www.performanceracing.in)

Note: These gloves have a narrow wrist opening so wearing and taking them off is a laborious affair.

The VRS-1 are top of the range racing gloves from Shima, a relatively nascent motorcycle gear manufacturer from Poland. The VRS-1 comes with a lot of interesting features for both protection and ergonomics. 

Made primarily of leather with SuperFabric and Poron XRD reinforcement panels in key areas, the glove focusses on the most vulnerable areas like the outer fingers, palms and wrists. 

The VRS-1 comes with a lot of interesting features for both protection and ergonomics. 

The closure system gets two clasps. One in a V-type arrangement that will stay put in the event of a crash and the other is a hard wrist clasp. 

Then there are hard Knox protection panels on the palm, scaphoid and wrist areas that should take care of your hands as you slide on abrasive gravel.

Now the gloves here are a pain in the derrière to wear and take off owing to the narrow wrist opening but once in, it offers a snug fit. The gloves are properly pre-curved and offer optimum comfort on those hot track days. The interior also has a softer lining with the stitching on the finger areas done outward so there is nothing on the inside that will cause discomfort.

I have been using these gloves for three months now and that includes three track jaunts. Bless my stars, I haven't had the opportunity to test their crash-worthiness but these gloves feel like they are built to survive the apocalypse.

At Rs 9,500, they are a fantastic deal considering most high-end gloves from other known brands cost Rs 15,000 and above. 

Positives:

High-end protection at a low-spec price.

Premium quality of materials used.

Impressive fit.

Fantastic comfort.

Negatives:

Narrow wrist opening makes it a pain to wear and take off.

Only available in Black or White.