I need some knee and elbow pads for a rifle class. I've never used either regularly so I have no idea what to buy. I don't want any that require some proprietary pants, just something that straps on or slips over sleeves and pants. Primarily, I want them to be comfortable and not shift around.

In past classes I used regular contractor type knee pads from Lowes as they were all that was available locally on short notice. They sucked so the next time I used soft knee pads than slip inside the knee on pants but those sucked as well.

Any suggestions would be appreciated.

Arcteryx Knee caps.

If you aren't going to invest in crye combats, this is the next best thing.

Big box lumberyards are full of them. Some Army surplus stores, too.

The ones with big straps tend to bunch up extra fabric at the knee and that pinches. The ones with narrow straps take more pressure to stay up in place and that pinches. The ones with heavy caps slip down a lot. The lighter foam molded ones are too universal and slip down a lot.

Best I could ever accomplish was to open up the fabric in the knees of BDU's and slip in pieces of sleeping pad cut to shape.

The ones I use currently came from Lowe's in neoprene and the velcro ate the stitching in a pair of Wranglers zipping open the inside seam of the jeans. The edge of the velcro isn't welded down and is scratchy, plus I've grabbed it and nearly ripped it off instead of separating the layers.

Nobody makes cheap knee pads that work, and the expensive ones that do are hard to find. For what little I need them I find having a half segment of puzzle pad works better. There's nothing like counting on them to be there and discovering you just dropped onto bone because they slipped over. Been using them on inventory crew for the last two months - better than nothing, nothing is perfect.

Alta ones work fine too.

If you don't plan on attending many training courses, the Alta pads (or Hatch) will suffice.

However, if you do plan on doing a lot of training, do as the above have suggested and get the Arcteryx Kneecaps and be done with it.

I have used all three of the above brands (and some cheapo Home Depot pads) and the Knee Caps
are all I use now (even at home when working on home improvement projects).

I like the looks of those Arcteryx knee pads. What about elbow pads?

Personally I've never found that the benefits of elbow pads are remotely close to outweighing the drawbacks. I find them uncomfortable and restrictive to the point that I only ever used them when tasked as a machine gunner. I would think long and hard about whether you actually need them. Kneepads on the other hand are definitely a good thing to have.

I just did a rifle class with Alta knee pads that I got for around $25 maybe on amazon.  I was satisfied with their performance.  I maybe felt the need to pull them up only a couple times in an 8 hr period.  Running around, squatting, all sorts of movement.   They did great.

Arcteryx Knee caps.



This

Agreed. Crye elbow pads are a good option, but again...cost and investment in a combat shirt.

They expect you to wear knee and elbow pads?

I'd just buy some cheap shit, abuse it through the course and then toss it.

Dead on. Knee pads are critical, but less so for elbow pads,

Get some Arc'teryx knee pads. They will be $60 MSRP. You pay for quality and discounts on Arc are not particularly common. Mine came from Tactical Distributors with classic customer service.

I’ve used 6-7 different versions of kneepads in the last 20 years – foamies, volleyball, Army issue, etc.  I use Arc now, because they suck the least. They still slip down (on a five-mile hike) but allow natural movement. They also balance protection against restricting motion/ventilation – they offer the fewest compromises with the best performance for me.

I went the Arc direction in large part because I wanted kneepads that would work inside firefighter turnout pants for repeated training evolutions. They work better than anything else for that.

Lots of folks who seemed turned on repeatedly said “Arcteryx or Black Diamond” as above. I’ve since used them for several weapons training classes, including classes where other guys had paid half as much for their kneepads and had their kneepads anywhere but the knee when they needed them – usually banging around the ankles.

I have a pair of DeWalt branded knee pads that I use for work that I have been really happy with.

I'm a diesel mechanic so some climbing kneeling tight spaces etc.

Had to do something different because I be getting old and the wear and tear taking a toll.

Anyway for the price I'm happy though your results my be different

Down range I use Arcteryx knee caps or my crye inserts. Like them both