Ever Ride In The Rain?

My actual home is in the Pacific Northwest and if you want to ride, you will eventually ride in the rain.  Here in the South East the rain will come as a down pour and if you are lucky you will be close enough to cover you can out wait it in an hour or so.  I have conservatively compared four riding jackets that I have found work very well in either part of the country.

 Tourmaster Saber Series 3 Motorcycle Jacket

This jacket is an excellent choice for all types of weather.  It has an insert for warm weather and zippered sleeve, shoulder, and rear vents that will give you flow through ventilation in hot weather.  The jacket has a 600 denier Carbolex three-quarter length shell combining   
with Rain-guard waterproofing and breathable barrier.  Velcro closures for the microfibre neck and wrist closures, and a velcro closure anchor for the collar, so it does not flap in the wind.  With lots of pockets this is a complete jacket for long trips and short ones to the local box store.  You can click on the picture for a more complete description of the jacket and more reviews.

Joe Rocket Atomic 4.0 Motorcycle Jacket

You can’t beat this jacket for the price, with that being said.  It vents well and it keeps water out relatively well even in a downpour.  The protective inserts in the elbows and shoulders aren’t as rugged as I would like, you may not want to depend on them for much protection.  This is an exceptionally versatile jacket combining a state of the art Variable Flow/Cross-Linked ventilation system with 100% waterproof treated Rock Tex 600 shell.  The ventilation does work but whether or not it works better than the Tourmaster needs more riding.  Perhaps one of you out their can give us all a heads up on this as it an important part of riding and touring in comfort.  I do feel that the Tourmaster jacket is better at rejecting water.  As above you can click on the picture for more reviews.

Firstgear Kilimanjaro Jacket

This jacket is the most expensive and one would think it would work the best, not necessarily the case.  Riding in the rain, light and drizzely, with the liner in and vents closed your arms will get somewhat wet.  Maybe not soaked but at the price this should not be a problem.  The collar is uncomfortable and rubs excessively against my helmet.  After removing the liner I found that their was some velcro that was exposed to rubbing on inner clothing and tended to pull against my sweatshirt, may or may not be a problem with softer material.  All in all this jacket for the price does not perform well.  For reviews please punch the picture.

Frog Togg Road Toad Rain Jacket

The Frog Togg jacket is only a rain jacket but it breaths and is my first choice when here in Mississippi.  It breathes very well and keeps me dry long enough to get through the pouring rain.  Frog Togg now has a riding jacket and it is better than the one I have which is an older one and fewer features suitable for riding, it works though and that is what counts.  The newer one which is the Road Toad has better zippers and better fly over the zipper which helps to keep the rain on the outside.   The jacket does not have any armer which is a problem but is easy to carry as it rolls up very small and is also robust enough that it does not whip around in the wind.  I like to use layers when riding in the cold and this jacket works well, just remember to carry an extra layers for real cold.  Their are no vents but I do not find it a problem in hot weather with this jacket it is waterproof and breathable.  Also be aware that this jacket is a considered a shell.  It will roll up into a very light and small roll for storage on or in your bikes storage, I keep mine along with the pants on the bike, as here in Mississippi it can and does rain (pours), sometimes with out any warning.  And as before you can punch the picture and find more reviews and information.

At This Point Final Comments Are Appropriate

All of these jackets have matching pants available.  Frog Toggs are the only one without a zipper for the pants, but they are light and have a robust elastic waist band.  Frog Toggs are also the only pants without any kind of armer.  I would not hesitate using any of these although if I was to purchase a new jacket I would lean away from the FirstGear due to the extra cost of the jackets.  There are other jackets available and when I have time and access I will try to come up with some comments on them.  I would however appreciate any responses from you that would point as all toward useful jackets that actually work the way the manufacturer tells us they do.  If you have any experience with the jackets I have mentioned please say a few words below in the comment/reply section, I would love to hear from you.    Thanks   ken