Summer Mesh Coat

[StratTuner]

disclaimer: I do not benefit financially at all from the following...

Mesh coat recommendation: I've used the same mesh coat for the hot summer months for a long time now, and thought I should share that with my friends. Here goes...

It's much cooler to ride in, has CE armour, and it's fairly durable. It's not as well made as TourMaster, but it's still a decent quality and 1/2 the price.

Caution: I usually wear an XL in a coat, but I wear a 2XL for this coat. It runs small.

X-Element CF380

 

[670cc]

I’m sure it’s nice but the only color is black? Black equals baking oven heat in the sun, and it’s the ultimate lo-viz, not hi-viz. No thanks.

 

[StratTuner]

Tourmaster and other more expensive companies do, indeed, offer Hi-Vis.

 

[superdedooperman]

I have the Joe Rocket Atomic 5.0 jacket in red (required to color coordinate with the bike, right??). It has some nice reflective spots on the back and shoulders. Feels great anywhere up to 90, but after that it gets pretty toasty. The fabric is pretty thick. It's alright if you have wind on your chest because it has huge chest vents...has vents on the arms and exhaust vents on the back. Very comfy jacket though. It has CE armor in the shoulders and elbows and I added a CE back protector, too. Comes with a removable fleece liner that is good to wear in the 40's and maybe for short rides in the 30's. I'm wanting to get a mesh jacket with CE armor just to have for the hottest of hot parts of the summer. Yesterday was a heat index of 105F and brutal on my ride home. 4 stop lights that seem like torture when you're sitting there!

 

[StratTuner]

I post about mesh just because it took me a long time to figure out just how useful it is!

Hi-Vis Yellow would be my first choice, but I have actually cut up a Hi-Vis vest from Home Depot and cut it to fit the non-mesh back panels on this very jacket. I sew them on, and voila, Hi-Vis.

Of course this Home-made approach is mostly for people
who have more thread/needles than dollars/sense . (mis-spelling intentional)

 

[superdedooperman]

Before getting my jacket, I would wear a class 3 state highway department shirt/vest in blaze orange with a ton of reflective panels. I say shirt because it had short sleeves too, but zipped up like a vest. I called it my "visibility cloak!" I believe that's the way to go if you don't have hi-viz gear. Those hi-viz, reflective vests are very affordable, too for those who are budget conscience.

 

[StratTuner]

Before getting my jacket, I would wear a class 3 state highway department shirt/vest in blaze orange with a ton of reflective panels. I say shirt because it had short sleeves too, but zipped up like a vest. I called it my "visibility cloak!" I believe that's the way to go if you don't have hi-viz gear. Those hi-viz, reflective vests are very affordable, too for those who are budget conscience.

...and the vests even come in MESH fabric. Costs a little more, but it's a great low-cost solution as you pointed out.

 

[davidc83]

X-Element jackets come in HiViz...I have one, which is beginning to fall apart after 4 years, T-boned by a deer, and thousands of miles on the bikes. The CF6019....

 

[StratTuner]

X-Element jackets come in HiViz...I have one, which is beginning to fall apart after 4 years, T-boned by a deer, and thousands of miles on the bikes. The CF6019....

thanks. book marked that one for next time.

 

[davidc83]

amazon has the Xelement cf6019 for less than $100
Amazon.com: Xelement CF6019 Invasion Mens Neon Green Mesh Armored Motorcycle Jacket - X-Large: Automotive

I would buy one to replace my old one but my buddy gave me his Olympia mesh jacket (he doesn't ride anymore) which was basically new (reflective silver)...

 

[lue42]

I have an Alpinestars Cape Town Air Drystar. Got it for a great clearance price (~$160 CAD). It has a Drystar (same as Gore Tex) layer and a fleece warm layer. It's a great jacket, especially for the price I got it. It fits small, so order a size up.

This one is discontinued. There is a pretty good sale on some like it at Fortnine, for those in Canada here and RevZilla has some here too

 

[670cc]

I find mesh works well in the summer when you pour water down the neck hole to soak your shirt, then go riding.

Anyway, here’s mine: First Gear Mesh Tex Hi-Viz.

 

[StratTuner]

Next time...definitely Hi-Viz... I like the look of it.

 

[Mainsail]

I picked up the Tourmaster Draft Air 3 a month ago, hoping the liner from my winter Tourmaster jacket would snap in but it doesn't.

Overall I'm very happy with the jacket. It doesn't restrict movement and with the rain liner in I can ride to work on the cool mornings and take it out for the ride home. In the mornings I wear an Icon reflective vest primarily because it has two pockets- the sticky clear one for my CAC gets me through the main gate, and the zipper one holds my area badge w/lanyard around my neck for the second set of gates. It speeds up the process.

 

[Hank]

I just bought that same first gear high viz.

 

[SilverRocket]

I had a First Gear mesh jacket and used it as soon as it got too warm for my jacket with just those zipper openings. Zipper openings won't cut it in the heat.
I liked the wrist closures a lot.

My new Cortech VRX mesh jacket has velcro closures that I have to loosen and tighten every time I put it on/ take it off. But it does have a much better Hi-Viz yellow pattern.

Cortech VRX Air Jacket | 20% ($34.00) Off! - RevZilla

With most affordable mesh (and textile) jackets you should buy a compatible back protector. They don't always make it easy to find out which one will fit each jacket but I've pulled out some stock back protectors out of new jackets that were flimsy at best.

 

[Hank]

After I get a jacket I measure the back armor pocket and then buy a Forcefield or something similar that fits. You can find charts that give the dimensions of the armor.

 

[Jarrett]

I got a Klim Induction jacket when I bought my first bike in April. Last year's model, they had it on clearance:

It has worked great thus far. I did just get a Tourmaster Intake Series 2 jacket when I purchased my NC700X over the weekend, but it doesn't seem to be quite on the same level of quality as the Klim:

 

[GregC]

I have a first gear mesh Tex (I upgraded the armor to D3o) and got a Klim induction from Santa this winter. The Klim is clearly better at 2x the price of the Mesh Tex, but both are good mesh jackets with good abrasion resistant fabric.

The worry I have about really inexpensive mesh is whether it will withstand the slide - that’s why we’re wearing it instead of a t-shirt to begin with.


Sent from my iPhone using Tapatalk

 

[Hank]

Abrasion resistance, to me, is not all or nothing. A jacket might protect you in a slide on smooth pavement at 50 and not a rough ground at 80. You have to decide for every piece of gear how much risk you are willing to assume. (Lawyer talk there.)
I have a heavy pair of Alpinestars corozals that are not full enduro but are pretty close. If risk was the only consideration, I would wear them all the time. I don’t.