Alan57
Senior Member
I bought this jacket in Feb 2010 and managed to get it at a decent price of £67 from a bike shop, when they were selling for around £80+ . So i`ve had it 2.5 years now and am looking to replace it , it is the evo jacket in red.
The good things about this jacket , it`s comfortable and doesn`t make any noise , not like some jackets that squeak and rustle, the cut is reasonably good. It is waterproof , although for me it has been a little "boil in the bag" sometimes especially on the arms. I have been caught in some heavy rain in this and it has preformed well. The main reflective strips are very bright and tough , still no dulling or lifting off of the jacket and they react to any light source, when hung in my hallway in the dark with just a little light coming from the living room the jacket is very visable. It`s reasonably light when worn and doesn`t affect my movement. In the winter I wear this and a micro fleece underneath and find that I am usually ok warmth wise , although I do tend to be warm anyway. The core venting zips on the side are adequate. The waterproofing is still good , I check this by going for a walk in the rain to see if it still holding up as when on the bike there can be a build up of internal sweat. I also line a dish with the jacket then poor water in the dish to see if the jacket "wets" out or leaks. The lining can also be checked for signs of wear and leaking.The red one is a very nice bright colour.
The bad points , since i`ve had the jacket i`ve had to repair the neck drawstring and the hem drawstrings as they have all detached from the jacket. I am hot heavy handed with it , they just pull out as they are not well sewn into the jacket. I have washed the jacket about 5 times as the roads near me are farm used and throw up lots of crap , mud etc. It is always washed at 40 degrees and with nik wash or soap flakes ,use nikwax tx to reproof then hung indoors to dry. The first wash the reflective tape around the left pocket became loose and I stuck it back , this has been a recurring problem. After about 3 weeks of owning it I went out in it with my phone in the upper chest pocket , when I got home the seal inside the pocket had failed and my phone , luckily ,had fallen into the lining. The zip has now jammed on this pocket , and the zips in general are very flimsy. The access holes where the drawcords on the hem enter the jacket are ripped because they are not reinforced and the constant rubbing of the cord rips the material. I don`t understand this as the neck one has a metal o ring to stop this happening , why not on the hem ? The core zips are ok but I think pit zips would have been better positoned for venting . The velcroe on the wrist straps is not well placed so when wearing fingerless gloves the jacket does not give a tight fit around the wrist , it`s ok with full gloves as they go under the cuff and then it`s not so loose. Althought the cut is ok , it would have been better with a slightly longer back as it doesn`t cover your bum when on the bike and this is an xl when really a large would have been fine for me. The sizing is generous, I have a 45 chest so went for the xl which is quite baggy in the front so a large would have suited me better.
It`s been a reasonable jacket but I think it could have been much better if the venting, zips and overall fixtures were better (drawcords etc) . I don`t think I will buy another because of the problems i`ve had with this one but I am going to keep using this one on my mouintain bike and buy a new jacket for the road. Am looking at the Madison Stellar 11 or Foska Dry 5 may be the Endura Flyte but the cost is a bit high on that one.
The good things about this jacket , it`s comfortable and doesn`t make any noise , not like some jackets that squeak and rustle, the cut is reasonably good. It is waterproof , although for me it has been a little "boil in the bag" sometimes especially on the arms. I have been caught in some heavy rain in this and it has preformed well. The main reflective strips are very bright and tough , still no dulling or lifting off of the jacket and they react to any light source, when hung in my hallway in the dark with just a little light coming from the living room the jacket is very visable. It`s reasonably light when worn and doesn`t affect my movement. In the winter I wear this and a micro fleece underneath and find that I am usually ok warmth wise , although I do tend to be warm anyway. The core venting zips on the side are adequate. The waterproofing is still good , I check this by going for a walk in the rain to see if it still holding up as when on the bike there can be a build up of internal sweat. I also line a dish with the jacket then poor water in the dish to see if the jacket "wets" out or leaks. The lining can also be checked for signs of wear and leaking.The red one is a very nice bright colour.
The bad points , since i`ve had the jacket i`ve had to repair the neck drawstring and the hem drawstrings as they have all detached from the jacket. I am hot heavy handed with it , they just pull out as they are not well sewn into the jacket. I have washed the jacket about 5 times as the roads near me are farm used and throw up lots of crap , mud etc. It is always washed at 40 degrees and with nik wash or soap flakes ,use nikwax tx to reproof then hung indoors to dry. The first wash the reflective tape around the left pocket became loose and I stuck it back , this has been a recurring problem. After about 3 weeks of owning it I went out in it with my phone in the upper chest pocket , when I got home the seal inside the pocket had failed and my phone , luckily ,had fallen into the lining. The zip has now jammed on this pocket , and the zips in general are very flimsy. The access holes where the drawcords on the hem enter the jacket are ripped because they are not reinforced and the constant rubbing of the cord rips the material. I don`t understand this as the neck one has a metal o ring to stop this happening , why not on the hem ? The core zips are ok but I think pit zips would have been better positoned for venting . The velcroe on the wrist straps is not well placed so when wearing fingerless gloves the jacket does not give a tight fit around the wrist , it`s ok with full gloves as they go under the cuff and then it`s not so loose. Althought the cut is ok , it would have been better with a slightly longer back as it doesn`t cover your bum when on the bike and this is an xl when really a large would have been fine for me. The sizing is generous, I have a 45 chest so went for the xl which is quite baggy in the front so a large would have suited me better.
It`s been a reasonable jacket but I think it could have been much better if the venting, zips and overall fixtures were better (drawcords etc) . I don`t think I will buy another because of the problems i`ve had with this one but I am going to keep using this one on my mouintain bike and buy a new jacket for the road. Am looking at the Madison Stellar 11 or Foska Dry 5 may be the Endura Flyte but the cost is a bit high on that one.
