Please help me pick a cold weather touring jacket

[regder]

Weather is getting very chilly here in great white north so I'm on the hunt for a touring jacket. Problem is there is so much choice of good options my head is spinning. I've literally drained a full battery on my Macbook trying to figure out what to buy.

My requirements are minimal:

- WARM! I'm a pussy when it gets cold and would really like to get some late season/early season tours in, on the opposite end I'd like it to work well in the summer (is there such a thing as a four season jacket?), warmth is more important than cool though
- waterproof
- 3/4 length or slightly shorter
- decent pockets
- budget is around $200 give or take $50

The jackets that I've found that seem to be a good buy are the Teknic Freeway, Firstgear Kilimanjaro, Scorpion XDR (Master/Commander???), I'm sure I'm forgetting a ton of others though. The Freeway has the advantage that I've actually tried it on and fits me well, liner looks like it can cook an egg too, downside is the reviews say it stays hot when the weather warms up. I can get the Freeway for $240 locally without tax which is always a plus. The other jackets I haven't seen locally.

Please help, my head is spinning.

 

[ChevyFazer]

Weather is getting very chilly here in great white north so I'm on the hunt for a touring jacket. Problem is there is so much choice of good options my head is spinning. I've literally drained a full battery on my Macbook trying to figure out what to buy.

My requirements are minimal:

- WARM! I'm a pussy when it gets cold and would really like to get some late season/early season tours in, on the opposite end I'd like it to work well in the summer (is there such a thing as a four season jacket?), warmth is more important than cool though
- waterproof
- 3/4 length or slightly shorter
- decent pockets
- budget is around $200 give or take $50

The jackets that I've found that seem to be a good buy are the Teknic Freeway, Firstgear Kilimanjaro, Scorpion XDR (Master/Commander???), I'm sure I'm forgetting a ton of others though. The Freeway has the advantage that I've actually tried it on and fits me well, liner looks like it can cook an egg too, downside is the reviews say it stays hot when the weather warms up. I can get the Freeway for $240 locally without tax which is always a plus. The other jackets I haven't seen locally.

Please help, my head is spinning.

The kilimanjaro is a great jacket it comes with a thermal liner and is 100% water proof, add a gerbins thermal liner and then your really cookin, but that jacket has lots of pockets, you can get it in saftey yellow or black. I thought they were around $400 though almost double your budget.

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[RJ2112]

Weather is getting very chilly here in great white north so I'm on the hunt for a touring jacket. Problem is there is so much choice of good options my head is spinning. I've literally drained a full battery on my Macbook trying to figure out what to buy.

My requirements are minimal:

- WARM! I'm a pussy when it gets cold and would really like to get some late season/early season tours in, on the opposite end I'd like it to work well in the summer (is there such a thing as a four season jacket?), warmth is more important than cool though
- waterproof
- 3/4 length or slightly shorter
- decent pockets
- budget is around $200 give or take $50

The jackets that I've found that seem to be a good buy are the Teknic Freeway, Firstgear Kilimanjaro, Scorpion XDR (Master/Commander???), I'm sure I'm forgetting a ton of others though. The Freeway has the advantage that I've actually tried it on and fits me well, liner looks like it can cook an egg too, downside is the reviews say it stays hot when the weather warms up. I can get the Freeway for $240 locally without tax which is always a plus. The other jackets I haven't seen locally.

Please help, my head is spinning.

Whatever jacket you buy, if you want to truly stay warm you need to start thinking about going electric.... either a vest or a jacket liner. Gerbing seems to be the front runner in this.

 

[ChevyFazer]

I just looked and saw prics for the kilimanjaro ranging from $150 all the way to $500 what the difference is between all of them.....I haven't a clue

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[regder]

I just looked and saw prics for the kilimanjaro ranging from $150 all the way to $500 what the difference is between all of them.....I haven't a clue

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I'm a bit lost here as well, I think the pricing difference is because they seem to update it almost every year.

I'm trying to stay away from electric due to cost as well as alternator supply. Mainly cost though as I'm trying to minimize my expenses right now as I need new tires, my gps broke yesterday, the aforementioned touring jacket and also pants (that's another discussion though), among everything else going on in life. Realistically I need this to go down to say around 5C (40F if you're on the wrong system ). That Teknic Freeway seems to be getting great cold weather reviews, with some riders going down to the twenties and staying warm. They might not be as cold blooded as me though.

I've survived touring near the freezing point, layering myself like a michelin man and just my leather sport bike jacket for gear. Cold, but not absolutely miserable. Trying to improve that situation this year.

 

[RJ2112]

Insulated riding pants would be my next addition, if I were you. Ski mobile pants would be ideal.

 

[Dave in Houston]

Motorcylegear.com has Kilimanjaro 5.0 on sale for $189. There's free shipping to the US on orders over $89, and they claim to offer comparable shipping discounts (though not free) on shipments to Canada.

I just bought the Joe Rocket Nova 2.0 jacket they have on sale, and it came quickly. It's nice quality and should be more than warm enough for year-round wear in Texas.

 

[regder]

Insulated riding pants would be my next addition, if I were you. Ski mobile pants would be ideal.

Agreed, I'm probably going to go with these; TEKNIC Sprint II Knox WaterProof Riding Pants Black 30 | eBay

 

[brucey]

Hey buddy, I bought a "Tour Master - Transition Series 2". This is not a cool brand like Alpine stars, but I think it is a great jacket. Lots of zipper vents for hot weather, and a removable liner for cold weather. It claims to be water proof, but I don't know that first hand - I don't ride much in the rain. I have never used the removable liner, I prefer to wear a wool sweater underneath. Regular price is 299.00, but I got it on sale from GW Cycle in Calgary for $250.00.
P.S. This jacket has good built in armour!

 

[GTPAddict]

I have a Joe Rocket Atomic 4.0 that seems like it's going to be pretty warm (JoeRocket.com[waterproof]). It was about 50 here one morning last week and I was plenty warm, almost too warm. In the winter I'm expecting it to be warm enough but I'll have to wait and see. It has a removable liner and really flows some air when the vents are all open

I also have a Scorpion Hat Trick mesh jacket that has 2 liners (one waterproof and one quilted). I rode with one of the liners weekend before last and it was pretty warm, but the temps were in the low 50's then. Here a link to this one, it's on closeout now for $99. I really like the jacket either way, so it might be worth getting and putting up for next summer (plenty cool in the high Georgia heat)(Scorpion Hat Trick Jacket - $99.99 closeout special! In stock NOW! :: MSRP: $229.99)

 

[Norbert]

heated jacket is the way to go.

there are cheaper heated jackets out there than gerbings. the jacket is $200 or so, which is in your budget, but then you need a controller, so that's more money.

if you're doing touring, like 6-8 hours of riding a day, you will want a heated jacket and gloves. there's really no way around it.....

 

[Shamus McFeeley]

I rode all winter last year, OMG_WTF is right, once the temp drops below 30 there really is nothing to do other than get heated gear. I used a tourmaster transition jacket last year that worked well, but without heated gloves I wouldn't have hands anymore.

 

[callmegandhi]

Once the temp drops below 30 I'd recommend a Buick!


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I am here: http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=43.779339,-91.205885

 

[ChevyFazer]

Once the temp drops below 30 I'd recommend a Buick!


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I am here: http://maps.google.com/maps?ll=43.779339,-91.205885

You never fail to make me laugh.....

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[fb40dash5]

I have a Joe Rocket Atomic 4.0 that seems like it's going to be pretty warm (JoeRocket.com[waterproof]). It was about 50 here one morning last week and I was plenty warm, almost too warm. In the winter I'm expecting it to be warm enough but I'll have to wait and see. It has a removable liner and really flows some air when the vents are all open

This is my 'warm' jacket as well. It's pretty warm with the full-arm quilted liner in and the vents all zipped. I usually tossed on a fleece or something if it's below 50ish, especially if the sun wasn't out. I wouldn't call it waterproof, more like 'really, really water resistant', but it did well enough. Good "I went out for a ride, and now it's raining" jacket, not so good for a "it's raining, but I'm going for a ride" jacket, if you get what I'm saying.

I wouldn't say the vents were so effective though. When I moved from the OR coast to MD, I was riding with the inner flap unzipped and all the vents open, and it's still pretty hot above about 80, especially if there's much of any stopping. I'm thinking about getting rid of it and my mesh jacket and getting an Alter Ego 3 after trying one on last week, it wasn't nearly as bulky as I guessed it would be. Only hitch for cold weather is that it only has a vest line, and I forgot to check whether the liner zipper is the same setup as my Atomic to use the full-sleeve liner instead.

 

[Botch]

When I had to replace my Kilimanjaro I got... another Kilimanjaro; love the coat.
However, I agree with what others have said, if you're touring electric would be the way to go (and with a tight budget I'd go for heated gloves before a heated coat...).

 

[OKstate311]

I have the Scorpion Commander, love it! Waterproofing works great, fit is great as well. Has a multitude of pockets, 2 different liners.

Works great in the winter, not so much in the dead of summer, though. 85 is probably the warmest I'd ever wear this jacket in.

 

[regder]

Thanks for all the responses, I'm not looking to ride all winter though. Just wish to be able to ride and maybe get a few tours in right until it snows, which is normally around late November. 5C or 40F is realistically the coldest weather I intend on riding in for extended periods.

 

[regder]

I have the Scorpion Commander, love it! Waterproofing works great, fit is great as well. Has a multitude of pockets, 2 different liners.

Works great in the winter, not so much in the dead of summer, though. 85 is probably the warmest I'd ever wear this jacket in.

You're not helping things :spank: Looks like there really isn't a bad option here

 

[GTPAddict]

I've had my Scorpion Hat Trick since May and have worn it every day through the summer. This high temps are usually in the mid to high 90's but it does get in the 100's here (Atlanta Georgia area). I would rather not ride with a jacket in those temps, but I like my skin too much not to

Got a lot of good ideas form this thread, thanks! Looking forward to the pants thread as well (I don;t have a pair of cold weather pants)