A description is given, together with preferred applications, of a transparent polyamide elastomer of the general structure (I), where R1 is a polyamide segment formed from (a) 10 - 100 mol% of alkyl-substituted bis(aminocyclohexyl)methane and/or bis(aminocyclohexyl)propane and 0 - 90 mol% of other cycloaliphatic C6-C36 diamines and/or aliphatic C2-C36 diamines and/or aromatic C6-C36 diamines, the concentration figures being based on the total amount of diamine in the polyamide segment, and (b) aliphatic C4-C36 dicarboxylic acids and/or cycloaliphatic C8-C36 dicarboxylic acids and/or aromatic C8-C36 dicarboxylic acids, and (c) optionally lactams and/or aminocarboxylic acids C6-C12, R2 being selected from the group of the divalent radicals: linear or branched C2-C5 polyoxyalkylene, polyolefin, polysiloxane with a number-average molar mass in the range of 200 - 3000 g/mol, linear or branched, substituted or unsubstituted C2-C36 alkylene, C6-C36 cycloalkylene, C6-C20 aryl, polycaprolactone, polyesters based on aliphatic or cycloaliphatic dicarboxylic acids and diols, aliphatic polycarbonate, and also copolymers of or mixtures of these elements, and X1 and X2 independently of one another being amide (CONH) or ester (COO) bonds.