Love posts that don’t drone on and on? This Triple Eight Saver Series Pads Review is it! You’ll find photos taken by me showing how these kneesavers, elbowsaver pads, and wristsaver pads look and fit. Most importantly, I’ll tell you how they performed when I put them to the test inline skating on the not-so-goods around my hometown.
Related: Best skateboard helmets
Are these the best wrist guards for skating? I bought and tested the T8 pad set to find out. If you click the blue link above, you’ll find a bunch of startling wrist injury statistics. And you’ll stop debating if you need wrist guards.
Review Update: October 11, 2023
I woke up at 6 a.m. EAT and went out rollerblading. All was going well until it suddenly wasn’t. A small pebble tripped me up, and I kissed the not-so-smooth sidewalk with my right hand.
I naturally lift my fingers a bit during a tumble, but today just wasn’t a lucky day for the bottom of my pinky finger. I saw a little red stuff oozing out of the cut area (a very small area indeed), and while it wasn’t too painful, it wasn’t pleasant either. No breakage, fortunately. My T8 wrist savers stepped up to the plate again for me.
Another observation: the fake leather on the pads got some damage. My prediction that these pads aren’t built to last eons still stands. Still, they’re $36 pads, and you’re getting an entire pad set. If they stay useful for at least 6 months, I’ll definitely buy them again.
Breathability: I said earlier that these pads breathe quite well due to the lightweight, porous fabric used to make them. But when I took off my knee pads this morning after riding for an hour and a half, my pants were a tad damp around the knees and elbows.
Also, my wrists had some sweat on them. All this must have happened during previous adventures, but I just never noticed.
How We Tested the Triple 8 Saver Series Pads
We at skatingmagic.com regularly buy and test skate gear so our readers can know what the product is like before buying. I, Peter, an intermediate-level inline skater, have tested this Triple 8 pad set for two months now. I’ll reveal everything I’ve learned about these limb savers in this brief write-up for the benefit of all skaters who are pro-protective gear.
Before buying these T8 3-in-1 pads, I read e-commerce website reviews, Amazon customer reviews, and Reddit comments on relevant subs. People said good things about them, so I decided to order them on Amazon. I’m thousands of miles away, and it took them about two whole months to reach me!
I have been rollerblading 1-2 times each week for the past two months with these pads to test their real-life performance. The roads where I’m at aren’t great, plus I’m not the greatest skater in the world. Not surprisingly, I’ve fallen over a few times. And I’ll tell you about my little adventures.
A Video Review of the Triple Eight Saver Series Pad Set
I went further and created a video review for you. In case you didn’t already know, Triple Eight is a New York-based skate gear company and one of the better-known brands.
Watch the “performance test results “on the YouTube video below. And if you’d like to follow us on YouTube, here’s our YouTube channel.
Pad Design and Construction Quality Assessment
These pads have the so-called butterfly design or open-back design. I can wear the knee pads before or after wearing my skates. It’s nothing special, but it’s still a convenient feature to have on knee pads and elbow pads.
The main material is synthetic. And the straps have a mesh fabric designed to wick away moisture.
The lace-like material keeps my hands comfortable during skating, but it is of questionable longevity. More on this below.
Straps: They have adjustable nylon Velcro straps. Both the upper and lower straps are long enough.
I’ve seen pads whose straps were so short that the owner needed to do some cutting and sewing work to address the issue.
Plastic slide plates: The knee pads have small-ish plastic slide plates that cover my knees. They are also permanently riveted to the main fabric.
The fabric on the back of the knee pads is pretty breathable. Also, it has an opening that’d let me remove the relatively thick foam pads and put in new ones.
But I’m not sure if they sell the foam padding separately. It looks like I’m stuck with buying an entire pad set once the knee pads wear down. Fortunately, the pad set isn’t expensive.
Wristsaver Pads: These ones are made of three materials: mesh fabric on two Velcro straps, nylon on the middle strap, and faux leather covering most of the palm-side flexible plastic splint.
These ones fit me relatively well (the circumference around my knuckles is 21.5 cm/8.46 inches). However, the outer straps could be lengthened a little.
My fingers are free and vulnerable, and I can use my hands to grip my smartphone. However, it’s not a perfect grip, so I prefer carrying it in my pocket or even leaving it at home. The splints that provide support for the hand braces are somewhat flexible, but I do notice a certain amount of stiffness at the same time.
Elbowsaver Pads: the plastic parts on the elbow savers are smaller than those on the knee caps, just as I’d expected. BTW, can you use these elbow pads as knee pads? No, because when I tried them on my 43.4cm circumference kneecaps, the coverage was glaringly inadequate.
Besides, the straps were too short. I couldn’t fasten the Velcro straps at all. And that rendered the pads useless as knee cap protectors.
How Does the Triple 8 Saver Series Pad Set Fit?
I strongly suggest that you measure the circumference around your knuckles as advised by the manufacturer. Here’s the Triple Eight Saver Series size chart.
The size guide says to measure your palm circumference by running a tape measure around the knuckles. I measured mine at 21.5cm or 8.46″ inches, which placed me in medium size territory.
Triple Eight’s pad set size chart doesn’t require measuring the knee and elbow circumference. But I still went ahead and measured my knee circumference, calf circumference (at 4 inches below the knee cap), thigh circumference (at 4 inches above the knee), and elbow circumference.
I did this in the hopes that it might help you order the right size Triple 8 knee pads, elbow pads, and wrist pads.
My calves measured at 43.5cm/17.26 inches while my knee circumference was 43.4 cm. For my thighs, the number was 54 cm/21.26 inches.
I’m happy with the size I ordered because the knee pads fit me beautifully. They fit me even better than my XL ProTec knee pads. And the same goes for the elbow pads and wrist guards.
However, the wrist guards are a little tighter than I’d expected. Still, they’re comfortable thanks to the moisture-wicking fabric they’re made from.
Fit advice: If you have big hands or are on the larger side of a size band, size up. Size Large should work for most adults.
Test Results: What Falls Feel Like
I’ve taken quite a few moderately hard falls with my Triple 8 Saver Series pads. Their performance in protecting both limbs and skin was impressive. I got up each time and skated on as if nothing had happened.
However, the uncovered part of my fingers lightly scraped against the asphalt. I instinctively lift up my fingers the moment palm-side plastic guards touch the ground. My fingers have stayed intact so far, knock on wood.
What Wasn’t Great About the T8 Saver Series Pads
The padding on the knee pads and elbow pads could be a tad thicker. At least the padding isn’t as thick as that on my Protec knee pads. Also, the material sheathing the sturdy plastic splints is fake leather, which I doubt will last long.
And the Velcro strap fabric could be more durable. All that said, my T8 pad set has reliably been there for me every time I fall over.
What Other Reviewers Have Said
Some have said that the foam gets pretty thin after a while. I can’t concur with or deny this claim until I’ve skated with these pads for at least 6 months. Then, I’ll come back here and update this review to reflect my experience over an extended test period.
Triple 8 Saver Series vs. Protec Knee Pads
I sometimes wear my ProTec street knee pads (view them in the picture below). They’re comfy and highly protective. But they’re also super bulky and look ridiculously big on my rather short frame (5’3’’ tall).
Both knee pads are available at the same price point of $36–$37. And for me, the Triple Eight Saver Series Pad Set offers way more value. It’s a multi-pad deal, specifically a 3-pack pad deal, so you won’t have to buy elbow guards and wrist pads. Now that’s a big positive for me!
Besides, the T8 pads are lightweight. I almost forget I have them on and often forget to take off the elbow guards. And they look like the perfect size pads for my small frame; it’s like they were made just for me.
Do you now see why these protective pads have become my favorite pad set? Still, I must restrain myself from saying they’re the best pad set for the money.
Pros and Cons
What’s Good
- Fit true to size
- Have a small footprint and are lightweight
- Looks nice and is available in a broad color spectrum
- You get 3 different pieces of gear instead of just one
- Pretty flexible: offer a good range of movement
What’s Not So Good
- Affordable but not the cheapest in the world
- Straps fabric could be sturdier/stronger
- Questionable durability
- Faul leather instead of genuine leather
Triple 8 Saver Series Pad Set Review: Final Word
If you’re hunting around for a well-made pad set for your knees, elbows, and wrists, the $36 Triple 8 saver series pad set got you covered.
They fit true to size and have held up to regular abuse from my 5’3’’ frame…so far. But I don’t expect the straps on the wrist guards to last long.
I’ll update this review once I have more real-world performance testing data to share with you. Until then, grab this pad, and let’s hit the park, friends!
