Armoured Motorcycle Gear Sizing Guide: How to Get the Fit Right

Fit isn't just about comfort.

With armoured riding gear, fit is a safety issue.

Armor that sits in the wrong position — shifted up, rotated out, or riding too low — doesn't protect the zone it was designed for. A shoulder pad that's migrated toward your bicep won't absorb an impact to your shoulder. A knee pad that sits mid-shin won't protect your knee in a slide.

Getting the size right the first time matters. Here's how to do it.

Designed for the Street. Engineered for the Ride.

Two Wheel Appeal protective streetwear is built around a principle most riding gear brands ignore: your gear needs to work in both worlds.

Off the bike — at a café, an event, walking around — our garments sit with a relaxed, premium streetwear fit. The armour sits slightly looser and you often forget you're wearing protective gear at all. That's intentional. You're not riding. You're living in it.

When you mount the bike and move into riding position, everything changes. The garment lifts and shifts with your body. The armour migrates into its designed protective position — over the shoulder joint, over the elbow, over the knee and shin. Strategically placed panelling and internal liners work to ensure the fit becomes form-fitting. The protection activates. 

Gear that is designed to move and work with you whether you're on or off the bike.

This is the design. Not a compromise — a feature.

Our shirts and hoodies have adjustable elbow and forearm armour to accommodate different arm lengths, so you can dial in exactly where the protection sits in your riding position. Our pants have adjustable leg armour locations for different inseam lengths — because knee protection that sits at mid-shin on a tall rider isn't knee protection at all.

When sizing, think about how the garment fits when you're on the bike — not when you're standing in front of a mirror. A garment that feels slightly longer and more relaxed standing is sitting exactly where it needs to be for when it matters.

How to Take Your Measurements

Before you look at a size chart, you need four measurements. Use a soft tape measure and wear the base layer you'd typically ride in.

  • Chest: Measure around the fullest part of your chest, keeping the tape horizontal
  • Waist: Measure around your natural waist
  • Hips: Measure around the fullest part of your hips and seat
  • Inseam: Measure from your crotch to the floor along the inside of your leg
  • Hand circumference: For gloves, measure around the widest part of your palm, excluding the thumb

When sizing a 2WA™ Garment waist size should be determined and matched to size chart first. If you're waist size sits between sizes, size up.

Why Armour Pocket Placement Changes Everything

Armoured garments are built with armour pockets at specific anatomical positions. Those positions are calibrated for a particular size range.

When you size up intentionally to get more room in the chest, the shoulder armour pocket may move further from your shoulder joint. When you size down for a slimmer fit, the elbow pocket may sit above your elbow rather than over it.

The rule: size for armour placement with waist size and leg arm length first, fit second.

If you're between sizes, size up.

Reading a Size Chart for Armoured Garments

Standard clothing size charts are built around chest and waist. Armoured gear size charts should be read the same way — but with one additional check: inseam for pants, and sleeve length for jackets and shirts.

If your chest and waist fall in different size ranges, prioritise the measurement closest to your waist size:

  • Shirts and jackets: prioritise waist size then arm length — shoulder and elbow armour placement and fit depends on it
  • Pants: prioritise waist and inseam — hip and knee armour placement depends on both
  • Gloves: use hand circumference only — length is standardised within each size

What to Do If You're Between Sizes

Go up, not down.

A slightly looser garment gives you room to adjust armour placement to your body — when sitting in riding position the garment will tighten and feel more form fitting.

A garment that's too small restricts movement on the bike and pulls armour out of position — a garment that is too tight standing will not fit right in riding position. 

If you're genuinely on the boundary, contact us before ordering. We'd rather help you get the right size than process a return.

A Note on Layering

If you plan to wear your armoured jacket over a thermal or mid-layer in winter, size with that layer in mind. Trying gear on over a t-shirt when you'll actually wear it over a fleece will result in a size that's too tight when it matters most.

The Bottom Line

Our protective streetwear is designed to look and feel like premium streetwear off the bike — and shift into a form-fitting, fully protective riding garment the moment you're on it. Size for your riding position. Use the adjustable armour to dial in placement for your body. And when in doubt, size up.

Protection-grade quality. Street-ready fit. Built for both.

— Two Wheel Appeal

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