First attempt to buy a jacket, not going so well

[Bernoodle]

Hello.

In another thread, I heard some recommendations re: the Joe Rocket Atomic 4 jacket.  I definitely liked the looks of it and ordered it but am not sure I'm going to keep it.  I bought a medium and a large to try out and figured I would just send one back if one fit better.  However, they both have fitment issues.

The medium fits well, relatively snug on the torso, looks good when standing up but here are my issues.  It seems too tight around the waste in a seated, riding position.  There's not much room for more warm clothing underneath though I'm not sure how much would be needed since it seems pretty warm with the included liner and any riding deep into the winter is unlikely for me in my area.  When standing, the restriction on movement in the arms due to a tight fit in the chest/body prevent me from moving my elbows back far enough to even put my hands in my pockets though this isn't a concern when riding and then, when off the bike, the inner zipper can be undone in the front.

The large resolves most of the issues mentioned above.  However, as noted by some reviewers of the jacket, the extra material in the torso area results in the jacket kind of ballooning out in front and back when in the seated, riding position.  Also, this extra material seems to make the jacket push the collar up into my neck.

I'm thinking maybe I should return both if it's just not fitting right.  But, I'm wondering if perhaps they would "break-in" a bit and get more pliable/comfortable.  It's just tough because the local shops have such small selections and are pretty expensive too.  It's kind of a crap-shoot to order online and I can't keep paying for return shipping. 

Any thoughts?

Thanks

[ariwhiteboy]

Go to a shop and find a jacket you like/fits well. Find that jacket online at www.motorcyclegear.com and if it's cheaper but it, if not go back to the shop and pick it up there.

[Baileyman]

I definitely need to go try jackets / pants / helmets / gloves on before buying them.  They all fit a little differently.  Just to toss another thought out there...

I have a Hit-Air jacket, that I purchased from www.safermoto.com (there are other retailers, but I think they're all online).  It's an airbag jacket.  I love it!  It was about $500, a lot I know, but not any more expensive than some other top brand riding gear, and even if it's an extra 2 or 3 hundred dollars than some jackets, my life is totally worth it.

When I bought mine, they just so happened to be based locally to me and the owner came to my house with a trunk full of jackets for me to try on.  I think he has since sold the business to some folks in Nevada.

I usually wear a large, but got an XL so that I could wear a sweater underneath.

[marriedman]

I have an Atomic 4 as well; however I love this jacket. I am a very budget concience person, bodering on being a tight@ss. It was worth every penny I spent on it. I have only been wearing it about 3 weeks and with the straps to adjust the fit, it is now perfect for me. If it is too loose in the belly area, there are straps on the side that give you a lot of control over that area. Same with arms.

The vents on the chest and arms also allow for air to get in an puff upthe jacket just a little bit to keep me from getting too warm in the thing. I really can't say enough good things about my Atomic 4.

[hppants]

As MM has pointed out, try adjusting the waist velcro and the arm snaps.  IMO, that is a better compromise than a balloning torso that might move your armour out of position in a crash.

However, if the fit isn't right, return both of them, and as others have said, go local shopping to find your right fit.

Joe Rocket makes good stuff.  Unfortunately, I've crashed twice in my J/R jacket.  And it is still fit for service. 

[Hawks_Nest]

It is tough to come up with good fit with a jacket unless you wear one all different riding conditions: weather, short or long rides, etc. That's why I ended up with 5 different jackets :)  This is a result of trial and errror. Now I know which one to pick before a ride.  All jackets need time to break-in though. When I got my Tourmaster textile jacket it was too stiff so I was almost returning it. After few seasons, now it fits me perfect. If you ride with low or no fairing, leather jackets are more comfortable. Textile jackets have too much wind drag so it gets very tired after a long ride.

Here is a list of my favorites and reasons.

- Joe Rocket Mesh: cool in summer days and very light. Absolultely no rain protection.

- Tourmaster Transition II (bright yellow): All around jacket with good protection and visibility. You can adjust waist and arm areas to fit you better. It is waterproof so it is my pick for a long trip. Too hot in summer days even all vents were open.

- ICON Daytona (Yellow): heavy but very soft leather. It is relaxed side fit so you can wear it in winter with heated liner underneath.

- ICON TiMax II leather: Another all around jacket. Good quality. Even though it has good ventilation in the back, it lacks perforated leather in arms so it becomes very hot in summer days.

- Alpinestars Spinner: nice fit and little snug in waist and arms. Very good ventilation near shoulders and entire back side and ample perforated leather parts in arms and sides of the jacket. So it is still very cool even in hot summer days.

All these jackets were the results of ever changing weather conditions in northern NJ. During my trip to the Adirondacks last weekend, I began the trip with the Tourmaster jacket without liner (upper 60's) and ended up with adding Gerbing's heated jacket liner in Lake Placid area. It was 40deg by the time arrive there with heavy downpours.

[Bernoodle]

I ended up keeping the medium size of the Atomic 4.0 jacket.  I just really liked how it looks (got it in black/red) and it goes with my general them of black and red that just sort of happened.  I actually sat on the bike with it, attached the belt loops and fine tuned the waist adjustments so it all feels pretty good now.  Took it out last night here in NJ (first legal night ride now that I have my license instead of just my permit) and the temp was probably in the low 50's.  I was toasty warm and figure it will probably keep me warm into November.  Thanks for all advice.

[marriedman]

That's good to hear. I rode with mine in 50 degree weather and 30mph gusts going at least 55 to 70mph and didn't need the liner yet. But I did have two layers of shirts on. I can't tell you how much I love this jacket.

[Adam Roby]

I had a similarily poor experience shopping for a jacket online without first trying one on.  The fit was terrible... but the cost of shipping the jacket back and paying for new one to be shipped back to me was more that the cost of the jacket.  After arguing with the tech support staff for close to a month I just gave up and threw the jacket in a closet - never to be seen again.  That was a complete waste of $120 instead of being a 50% savings like the promotion had me think.  (Shipping to Canada from the States gets expensive)

Moral of the story, only order online if you know for sure it fits perfectly and if the savings is worth the hassle.  A local shop is much more accomodating that the online stores I have used.

[fortyhourdays]

I had a similarily poor experience shopping for a jacket online without first trying one on.  The fit was terrible... but the cost of shipping the jacket back and paying for new one to be shipped back to me was more that the cost of the jacket.  After arguing with the tech support staff for close to a month I just gave up and threw the jacket in a closet - never to be seen again.  That was a complete waste of $120 instead of being a 50% savings like the promotion had me think.  (Shipping to Canada from the States gets expensive)

Moral of the story, only order online if you know for sure it fits perfectly and if the savings is worth the hassle.  A local shop is much more accomodating that the online stores I have used.

I'll give another nod to motorcyclegear.com.  If you order from them you can return it for a full refund if you pay the shipping back, or if you want a store credit, they'll pay the return shipping.