Tocsik wrote on 02/02/24 at 17:25:20:So, now I need a new jacket. What are y'all using? They can be expensive!
I have bought bargain grade jackets in the past - RevIt, Icon, Fly, Tourmaster...that kind of stuff. They have worked well for a few seasons. My RevIt started having the plastic snaps that hold the liner in fail. My Icon textile jacket started having the red fabric turn "Salmon" color wherever the sun hit the fabric. So far I like the Fly products for my mesh summer jacket - and the Tourmaster is my heavy winter riding jacket. I no longer do the 3 season jackets with a rain liner and insulated liner - as they are baggy with the liner out and a bit too snug for adding layers in the winter......and having the waterproof inner liner inside allows your jacket to get soaked on the outside when it rains, and that really doesn't allow you to stay warm.
Last year I saw a used Klim "Blade" jacket in my size for sale on the local Craigslist for $100. It was black and has Goretex insulation. It was likely a $500 jacket when bought new. It is amazing how much nicer this is than my other jackets. It is good down to about 60 degrees with a long sleeve cotton shirt underneath......you need to add a sweat shirt to ride down into colder weather. It is waterproof - no need for a rain gear jacket anymore. I have ridden into the 80's with it and it is fine while you are still moving - once stopped it gets hot inside pretty quickly. It really is twice the jacket that my other jackets are - both in the sale price and the quality!
So I have a very light Fly mesh jacket for summer, my Klim jacket for weather between 50-80, and a heavy Tourmaster jacket for winter.
If you can afford Klim - it really is a much better product than the others.......I have always been too cheap to buy a new one.