Frank Thomas Raptor Jeans

[Yellergixer]

I got these after a brief search at other makes and I think I went for these mainly as they were Goretex so should be pretty waterproof, which indeed they are, pity in a way cos I could have sent them back.

First time I wore them in mid January (bearing in mind its been a pretty chilly winter this year I thought the lining had got caught when I'd put them on, cos my knees were freezing when I got to work, worse still they were still as cold when I got home that night as well, so I decided to take a look at the lining. It stops just below the knees when you stand up and rides above them when you sit on the bike

I decided to contact F.T. about this cos I was pretty p*ssed off about it, they got back to me after a week or so, I quote
" Ive checked all our trousers and all the liners are all like that, its so you can get your boots on as you wont be able to tuck a liner in your boots. If you get cold knees get some cold killers.
She obviously didnt know beforehand as she had to check, and as for the cold killers_

Ive been on bikes for nearly 30 years and have never found any knee length boots for blokes on bikes (I'm a prude I know)

Thats it really if you want some Waterproof trousers then these are okay but if you want to keep warm, really, no really DONT BOTHER

[Gedge]

I disagree totally..I have the same jeans and with the liner in they are incredibly warm.The liner goes well past my knee so you must have a very long upper leg ( especially as the liners are held in place by popper strapsu above the ankles....)
My first pair were faulty and leaked but were replaced under warranty ...the second pair have been perfect..

[BFG]

I aslo have these, bought them at the NEC. Maybe different sizes have different liners, mine definitely have winter liners than only come down to thigh length like shorts. I don't find them cold at all.

The problem with mine is the other way around. Since I took the liners out at the beginning of Mar, they are completely clammy and I've got damp legs and arse after anything more than 30 mins on the bike. They're clearly not breathing properly.

I also spoke to Frank Thomas

Thank you for your email and i am sorry to hear that you have experienced a problem with your Frank Thomas Raptor Trousers.

These trousers are designed to be breatheable so i am surprised you have experienced a problem with this. I would advise that if you have not tried already, that you try to wear a thin man made fibre underneath the trousers, as sometimes people sweat excessively when the material of the trousers rubs against your bare skin. If you find after this you are still experiencing problems i would advise you go back to the retailer you purchased the trousers from. If you purchased these at the NEC you will need to speak to the retailers running the stand which would have been Rivetts. Their contact number is 01604 637772.


I am sorry for any inconvenience that this has caused you and please be assured of our best interests at all times.

Kind Regards,

Usually I hardly sweat at all, so unless I'm getting some reaction to the materials used they aren't breathing.

Cold killers, breathable liners? So it seems these trousers can't be used on their own after all, unlike the blurb on the tags. Shame. I like them otherwise.

[Zanx]

Neoprene waders are the future.

[Yellergixer]

I disagree totally..I have the same jeans and with the liner in they are incredibly warm.The liner goes well past my knee so you must have a very long upper leg ( especially as the liners are held in place by popper strapsu above the ankles....)
My first pair were faulty and leaked but were replaced under warranty ...the second pair have been perfect..

Yes mate the liner is held in place by popper straps just above the ankles you are correct,

However theyre made of 2 parts one being warm fleece the rest is some sort of net material The fleece part only just covers my knees when I stand up and rides above them when I sit on my bike, which, IMO is pretty shite really cos I'm not really that tall