Warm Weather Riding Jacket

[Xdot]

Just wondering what you guys are wearing this summer. I finally found an Olympia jacket I like that I used through the winter and spring. When I ordered it the listing said gray, and it looked to be about a 50% gray. Alas, when I got it, it was a charcoal gray. Basically black. Worked great when it was cold but I will bake in the sun. So I've been wearing the light colored mesh Cortech I bought last summer the last few weeks. It's cooler than the Olympia but it is a complete P.O.S. Fit, feel, finish, look, you name it. Crap. Anyone know of a light colored mesh jacket that is of high quality that is working well for you?

Thanks as always,
John

[angellr]

Motoport Mesh jacket - not cheap, but worth every penny.

[Xdot]

At those prices they should be made of something other than Kevlar. I'm thinking maybe, mithril.

[Keppelj]

I bought an AirFlow 2 jacket on eBay last summer. Bluish. They turn up pretty regularly there and prices are good. Mine was an auction buy, $112. I like it. Very light, very cool.

[angellr]

At those prices they should be made of something other than Kevlar. I'm thinking maybe, mithril.

Currently, Kevlar has many applications, ranging from bicycle tires and racing sails to body armor because of its high tensile strength-to-weight ratio; by this measure it is 5 times stronger than steel on an equal weight basis. When Kevlar is spun, the resulting fiber has a tensile strength of about 3,620 MPa. Kevlar is used to manufacture gloves, sleeves, jackets, chaps and other articles of clothing and designed to protect users from cuts, abrasions and heat. Kevlar based protective gear is often considerably lighter and thinner than equivalent gear made of more traditional materials.

My jacket is completely MESH and is really comfortable in very hot weather. Having spent ALOT of time in the ER, I really don't like anyone having to debride material out of my wounds if things go sideways. BTW, have other jackets, but this is the one I wear most of the time.

[Xdot]

[Kevlar has many applications, ranging from bicycle tires and racing sails to body armor because of its high tensile strength-to-weight ratio; by this measure it is 5 times stronger than steel on an equal weight basis. When Kevlar is spun, the resulting fiber has a tensile strength of about 3,620 MPa.

Sounds like it is made of mithril!

[omg1010]

I got myself a Rukka Airpower jacket. Great stuff. Has a removable goretex inlay which can be inflated for bad weather. Works great.

Brgds
Oliver

[angellr]

I got myself a Rukka Airpower jacket. Great stuff. Has a removable goretex inlay which can be inflated for bad weather. Works great.

Brgds
Oliver

Rukka is excellent gear as well. You will spend some $$ on good/solid gear.

[twinpatrick]

Good timing, Was just shopping for a warm weather jacket. Saw a jacket on Motorcycle-Superstore.com called Firstgear Rush. Waterproof and removable liner for about $170. Anyone know anything about the jacket?

[sjbmw]

I have a FirstGear Kilomanjaro Air, and a FirstGear Meshtex.

Both are 7+ years old, and still working fine.

Mid priced, lots of summer air flow.

[car7x]

Hi All - I'm a newly re-activated rider, first time BMW owner (flawless 02 blk) and in fact first road bike. So lots of new gear was in order. I got some fantastic deals. To this question, I got a First Gear mesh tex for 29 from motorcyclegear.com. Seems very good, been cool here in MN so I've left the liner in for now. I'm sure there are more upscale jackets, but this is well made, and I actually prefer the smaller armor for this application. It is very breathable without the liner. 149 msrp makes for a 80% discount. You'll find them in the 'Last Chance' section under cloesouts at http://www.motorcyclegear.com.

I got a BMG / Belstaff Air blast jacket, which is more substantial, but will serve as a good three season rig, for 49 (300 msrp) from a good ebay seller, 'roseburg c.c.' It is very well built, has intelligent venting, and looks to be substantial enough that I may sell the heavier BMG Adventure jacket I got for the fall and early spring! I'd search for seller, or Airblast BMG, etc.

Both sellers appear to have good inventory left, and my experience with them and BMG gear has been positive.

[Xdot]

In a mixed economy capitalism invariably gets blamed for the failures of socialism-Ayn Rand

[R1150Rclean]

Tour Master coaster air series 2, perforated black leather and really cool even on 90oF days, got it on sale from my local Cycle Gear for ~$200, sharp looking jacket in flat black . Did take out the back pad for better venting on really hot days. A big plus is it is easy to clean bugs off of, versus mesh jackets that I would have to wash to get all the bug parts out I got the liner too, but had a seamstress sew on an outer shell of siliconized nylon (supper thin) to keep the wind from blowing right through the liner and cooling me off at night in the summer-works great.

[Xdot]

I can't imagine wearing anything other than a very light color in the summer sun. Black. Why does everyone wear black?

[omg1010]

Just a little remark from my side. A couple of years back our German Automobile Club (ADAC) did a comparative testing between textile protection and leather stuff. They compared the abrasive resistance of 3 different sets: leather and textile set upto 300 Euros, same upto 900 Euros and same again over 900 Euros.

They used a dummy and simulated and accident where the dummy was sliding and tumbling over tarmac. Result: with all the textile stuff (even with the most expensive Rukka Armas) the rider would have suffered severe skin bruises. Even the cheapest leather suit did withstand and the rider would not have suffered any bruises.

Any airmesh stuff was not tested but I would suppose that if even the Rukka Armas stuff got a lot of holes during the exercise any airmesh stuff would rip to pieces even faster.

Hence presumably it would be better to sweat and suffer ... However whatever protective stuff would be better than the italian warm-weather-protection-cloth (shorts, muscleshirt and beach slippers).

Brgds
Oliver

[Xdot]

Hmm. Wonder how the full-Kevlar Motoport Stuff would perform in such a test? Kevlar is much more abrasion resistant than leather.

[angellr]

Hmm. Wonder how the full-Kevlar Motoport Stuff would perform in such a test? Kevlar is much more abrasion resistant than leather.

Was also *my* question as well. Kevlar, as I stated above, has tensile strength of over 3200 MPa (Force per Unit Area) while Leather's is roughly between 2,000 and 6,000 pounds per square inch. The problem with leather is that is DOES NOT breathe in really hot weather, while my Motorport does. Seams also seem to be a weak-link regarding leather. Alot of discussion/banter here: http://www.ashonbikes.com/forum/rukka-kit

Bottom line, I see full leather, Rukka and Motoport suits on the racing circuit - they all must be doing something right.

[Xdot]

I suppose an expensive Motoport jacket is still a lot cheaper than skin grafts.

[iowabeakster]

My light colored "hot weather" jacket is a Rev'it Air jacket. I'm sure it does not provide the maximum protection, but it is COMFORTABLE in the heat. It flows a ton of air. It is far from the cheapest "mesh" jacket. It does not come with any liner, so it's not the most versatile either. But, I am really liking it a lot... probably the most comfortable motorcycle jacket I've ever worn.

http://www.motorcycle-superstore.com/1/ ... zmap=21075

[omg1010]

Hmm. Wonder how the full-Kevlar Motoport Stuff would perform in such a test? Kevlar is much more abrasion resistant than leather.

Was also *my* question as well. Kevlar, as I stated above, has tensile strength of over 3200 MPa (Force per Unit Area) while Leather's is roughly between 2,000 and 6,000 pounds per square inch. The problem with leather is that is DOES NOT breathe in really hot weather, while my Motorport does. Seams also seem to be a weak-link regarding leather. Alot of discussion/banter here: http://www.ashonbikes.com/forum/rukka-kit

Bottom line, I see full leather, Rukka and Motoport suits on the racing circuit - they all must be doing something right.

It may well be that the tensile strength of the fiber itself is higher than anything else. So maybe the Armacor fiber which contains Aramid. However this may not apply to the finished fabric. Moreover the seams are usually the weak points. Nothing beats leather when it comes to abrasion resistance.

And some guys wearing Rukka on the race track does not prove the durability of this stuff because I believe none of these riders have ever tested their gear by sliding a few 100 meters over rough tarmac ...

Brgds
Oliver