7 years with Poc Joint VPD 2.0 DH Long, Elbow DH, Shin pads

Knee pads:

Since July 12, 2017, I have spent more time with these knee pads, and I took more pictures. I have improved the text and rest of the review.

I had two pairs of the knee pads, and used one when the other was wet from cleaning. So the wear is about the same on both.

The first pair I got.

I have used these pads for a really long time now, the whole year, and I put them trough some hard crashes, and they protected me every time.

I was so satisfied with these, that I bought second pair as spare,So I always have clean protection, or if I damage one the other can be repaired.

When the rear fabric has worn or got damaged so are resulting in similar effect to stretching, make sure you fix it, get it back to the correct measurements again so the pads fit as intended,which is important so they don’t slide around,So they give you maximum protection, but these this product is easy to repair, and the fabric does not stretch out of shape.

You have to use the right technique to put them on:

if the pad slides up its because you did not use the right technique to put them on,You should hold the top part with 2 hands and pull them up so all the fabric slides upwards keeping the pad low, and have to top part with the adjustment strap as high as possible, this way they say in place, I have the typical muscle legs and thighs, And I use size Medium and have worked perfectly, as long as I did put them on right. I also noticed that they will make noises as the pads are against each other, as for the discomfort,you should have the upper part as far up as you can,if it’s right under the knee it will not be comfy.

The stitching should be close to the end of the pad, thigh pad and leg pad should be overlapping, slightly. The strap should NOT be way on the top,the rubberised material on the in side of the pad should be on the end  near the end,there should be about 0,5cm  space between the Velcro and the end of the pad, but as you use it it move little bit,as seen in this picture,few millimetres of change will happen as you have the knee in a different position.

Some pads have removable pads, but these protectors don’t have that. the pads secure inside the sleeve.

Pros:

• durable long lasting, both pairs held up well, with some wear the later years, but with about 7 years of use, that’s great.
• easy to repair if seams, back of the leg material get damaged.
• robust sleeve covering the pads, even after years of use it still held up well.
• comfortable(if worn & put on correctly)
• 1cm thick VPD2.0 pad kept me protected, I could not even feel the impact at the impact area, no pain whatsoever, even when falling off a 1m concrete wall or a 1m rock roller.
• good fit, the upper is made like a joint, so the upper part stays n palace while the rest moves with your leg and knee. this work very well.
• The pad it self does not slide down, only slides a bit if very sweaty, but they still stay secure, it’s only the thigh section that sides down a bit if very sweaty.
• Great protection on the side of the knee
• Robust Velcro straps
• no movement restrictions

The wear you see between the plastic plate and the Velcro strap is caused by friction from bending your knees, which causes friction.

How to wear them correctly:

Thigh pad and leg pad should be overlapping, slightly.The strap should NOT be way on the top, the rubberised material on the in side of the pad should be on the end near the end,there should be about 0,5cm space between the Velcro and the end of the pad, but as you use it it move little bit,as seen in this picture,few millimetres of change will happen as you have the knee in a different position.

The stitching should be close to the end of the pad

With 2015 Poc Trail shorts

• size matches the size guide, not like 2015 products from Bliss

Cons:

• The pads are quite heavy.
• Too warm, sweaty for summer use, the last few years I had rashes after almost every time I wore the knee pads, the rashes were often runny, and and very itchy and sometimes even had a bit of blood. I did not get this issue with the elbow nor shin pads. I could not continue like this. So I had to get different pads.

Wear

A close look and look at the wear June 15, 2022

It was no surprise when I saw torn grip strip, it was used for years. The first pads were used since 2015, the other I got later, but both have similar wear.

Some holes in first layer of the 2 layer sleeve, due to pedal strikes during crashes, which have been sewn shut to prevent further damage.

Triangle shaped gap to assist bending.

Some of the wear on the plastic pad is due to working on the bike on asphalt and concrete, gravel but a lot is due to crashes.

Example of how you can have the elbow, shin pads if you can’t fit them in a backpack, but want to put them on for the gnarly riding and not have them on for the road riding.

All of the pads together 2X of each.

Shin pads

pic taken Taken on May 15, 2016 of the first pair, they got some signs of wear, but this is unavoidable,the way its made, but the way its made gives you good protection, and the wear you see here developed slowly.

This is the first pair, one of the pads got wear on the stitching for the Velcro, but The Velcro was still good.

Shin pad album: https://flic.kr/s/aHsmMMBnmU

Elbow pads:

I have only ne pair of the DH version of the elbow pads, but I do have a non DH version too it has no sliding pad, and is bit smaller, but still good protection. I got what I could get at the time from where I could.

Elbow pads album

Here you can see the wear after long years of use, pictures were taken at June 15, 2022 .

The first pad I I got from Bike 24, had faulty Velcro, the top Velcro failed after few rides it, it would not stay put, it opened many times during the ride, so I contacted them, they sent me a new one, and did not have to send back the faulty unit, and I used the replacement pad, which you see pictures of here, as you see it held up quite well.

This is the grippy strip that keeps the pads from sliding, they might a tiny bit if very sweaty, but it works quite well.

Velcro was still not worn out.

After years of use, some wear is expected, I think these pads did well.

Sickline.com video in the Poc stand at Interbike 2014: No point in my making the same video, so watch their video:

Price :1.249,- NOK

read the view of POC Joint VPD Air Elbow pads here: https://wp.me/p60aTF-96

Verdict:

Well thought out pads for maximum protection and coverage, but I think these pads are one of the best on the market right now for downhill and extreme riding, but not suitable for long sweaty rides. These pads are approved for motorcycle use.