Motocross and cycling news, reviews and opinions

Troy Lee Designs Body Guard 2 Review

November 15th, 2008 • Review

A lot of riders prefer not to not wear hard plastic chest protectors because they are bulkier than foam under-protectors. However, I believe that the added roost and crash protection provided by the hard plastic shell of a traditional chest protector is worth its added bulkiness. For 2008, I choose to wear a Troy Lee Designs Body Guard 2.

Build Quality

The build quality on the TLD Body Guard 2 (BG2) is absolutely stellar. Like a lot of the TLD products I have owned, the fit and finish of the BG2 was excellent. Almost every aspect of the BG2 has been refined to near perfection. For example, the shoulder cups are removable, but even the flexible pieces underneath the hard plastic shoulder cups are refined and finished with a carbon fiber esque look to them. In addition, all of the foam pads are removable resulting in very easy cleaning. Another really nice touch is that the side buckles are large and always easy to remove. As opposed to my old Fox Airframe, the large buckles are much easier to undo and almost never get clogged with mud. Overall, everything about the BG2 is very high quality, the brace feels very solid both on your body and in your hand.

Comfort

When worn alone, the BG2 is one of the most comfortable chest protectors I have owned. When riding, you rarely want to be able to feel your protective gear, and when riding with the BG2, I often forget about it completely. However, what is truly amazing is the comfort that I can get out of the BG2 even when paired with a Leatt Brace. Once you remove the hard plastic shoulder cups, the Leatt brace is very comfortable with the BG2, and they make a great protective pair. I was not able to get comfortable wearing the Leatt with the hard plastic shoulder cups, but they are very easy to remove. Overall, the BG2 is very comfortable and even when paired with a Leatt Brace, never hindered my riding and was almost entirely unnoticeable to me when riding.

Fit

Overall the BG2 fit like a glove. It has a really nice contour which makes it fit a lot of body types quite nicely. I am relatively small at about 5′3″, and about 128lbs, but I still opted to go with the medium BG2. While it was definitely usable, I think I could have fit into a small easily and had a little less slack in the fit. However, even with the slightly larger size, it was still very comfortable on and off the bike. A nice feature of the BG2 is the large amount of adjustability available in the sizing. You can make the BG2 longer or shorter through the adjustment where the shoulder pieces connect to the front and back. There are multiple levels of adjustment which allow the BG2 to fit a wide range of body types.

Conclussion

Overall, I believe that the Troy Lee Designs Body Guard 2 is one of the best chest protectors on the market. The fit is spot on, it is very comfortable, and fits decently with a Leatt Brace. Furthermore, the BG2 looks good and is very durable. The removable pads make it a snap to clean. Everything about the BG2 has a very high quality fit and finish to it. The price is rather high at $135, but if you are looking for a high quality chest protector, definitely consider the Troy Lee Designs Body Guard 2.