Kilimanjaro or hold out for Olympia AST 2 or Moab?

[crispiegee1]

Guys,

Several shops are clearancing the Firstgear Kilimanjaro for $199. I've wanted a four-season, well vented jacket in hi-viz yellow for a while... what do you think?

Or, should I hold out and see if the Olympia Moab or AST 2 go on sale over the winter? The Olympia stuff seems really feature packed, and the Moab actually looks cooler for summer. My need is to take an earlier spring or late fall trip from the cool north to the hot south. I'm more easily chilled than I am overheated, but I think the Kilimanjaro and even the AST 2 might be a bit to warm for the south, though I worry weather the Moab is too cool for up north.

Thoughts?

[TonyKZ1]

I've also been thinking about buying the Kilimanjaro. I've currently got the Kilimanjaro Air (3/4 mesh jacket). It seems to work pretty good so I'd imagine the normal 3 season Kilimanjaro would be as good or most likely even better. There's quite a few comparisons/reviews of this jacket and others here and over on advrider so I'll probably go ahead and pick one up before they're all sold out.
Tony

[CosmicCowboy]

I love my Kilimanjaro. I would not use it in the summer in the South.

[Bowtie76]

I use my AST (1) all year hear in Central Virginia.  It's a little warm at stops when it gets into the 90's but cools off once I'm riding.

That said I think Olympia, being a small company, maintains their prices across the board.  I looked all over for a sale and never saw one, of course that could just be lazyness on my part.

[crispiegee1]

I use my AST (1) all year hear in Central Virginia.  It's a little warm at stops when it gets into the 90's but cools off once I'm riding.

That said I think Olympia, being a small company, maintains their prices across the board.  I looked all over for a sale and never saw one, of course that could just be lazyness on my part.

No, you're right Bowtie, I've never seen one on sale and I've checked all over. That said, to have a do-it-all jacket like the AST or the X-Tour would be worth a little extra cash to me.

[Cablebandit]

You really have to keep an eye out for sales.  MrsCB and I both got pants and jackets on sale at Bob's BMW last year.  Funny thing is I love the AST for cold weather and hate the Airglide.  The sleeves on it are just too short for some reason.

[crispiegee1]

Oh trust me, CableBandit, I will keep checking for sales, particularly in the winter!

But in a rush to get a deal, I won't make the mistake of my Fieldsheer jacket, which was just $99 at Brockton cycle. It's a comfy jacket in a very narrow temperature range (60-75 degrees)... any hotter and you're sweating to death because the vents don't do diddly; any colder and the natural airflow through the fabric has you shivering.

I still like the jacket, but the collar strangles my (admittedly wide) neck, too, so it's got a bunch of strikes against it. That said, I think Fieldsheer makes decent "value priced" stuff, but I need something a hell of a lot better. I'm willing to wait for a sale on Olympia.

[Cablebandit]

I know what you mean about the collar.  I've yet to find a jacket with a decent collar if you don't have a pencil neck.

[ConPilot1]

Of the several motojacket's I've owned over the years, the AST was the absolute WORST thing I've ever experienced. I had it for two weeks, got wet, got sick of the velcro wadding up all over the place, etc. etc.
It sucked, big time if you ask me. My Roadcrafter is 100x that thing was. I know some people liked them but in my books it was a total abomination and FAIL by Olympia.

[Cablebandit]

I've heard that from others as well.  Mine has never had an issue leaking.

[ConPilot1]

Even some of the nicer Olympia jackets I've had like the Bushwacker, upon close examination the stitching is really chintzy. A lot of thin, single needle stictching and loose thread ends.
That's the kind of shit you expect from a $10 dollar Walmart cotton shirt, not a $300 riding jacket.

Personally, I'd like to see North Face or Arcterex jump on the motocamp wagon get an armored decidated Goretex riding jacket + pants on the drawing boards.
You'd really have something there.  

[expatbrit]

Used my Kili on our trip to Yellowstone this June. Everything from 95 degrees and blazing sun, hammering winds to  snow and freezing rain. Jacket did sterling service; waterproof as I could ask for.

WARM at 95 degrees in Grand Junction, even with the vents open. But sorta doable.

[chosemerveilleux]

Used my Kili on our trip to Yellowstone this June. Everything from 95 degrees and blazing sun, hammering winds to  snow and freezing rain. Jacket did sterling service; waterproof as I could ask for.

WARM at 95 degrees in Grand Junction, even with the vents open. But sorta doable.

A Kili at 95 degrees being warm is the biggest understatement I've seen in quite some time.

It is an excellent jacket, especially on sale ( I paid $140 from New Enough a couple of years ago) but I've always had an issue with water coming in the top of the back part of the collar during a downpour.  It also not being windproof really sucks in the cold;  Having to wear a windstopper layer on top of my Gerbings liner under the Kili makes things a bit crowded.

I'm just picking, mind you.  Its an incredible jacket, especially when you factor in price, even at full retail.  I'm steeling myself for the financial hit I'm going to take when I pick up a Klim Latitude Jacket and pants when they become available this fall.  The only time I don't ride is when there's snow or ice on the ground, and riding in the stupid cold last year completely convinced me that my cool/cold weather gear must be windproof.  Gore-Tex is, Hydratex definitely is not.

As long as you have a warm weather jacket and not being windproof isn't a deal breaker (I don't think the AST2 is either FWIW) I would definitely tell you to go with the Kili.  Its an awesome jacket, and even when its out of its element its better than most.

[crispiegee1]

One of the things that bugs me about my Fieldsheer is that it's not windproof. When the temp drops into the 50's, it gets really frigid in that jacket!

[chosemerveilleux]

One of the things that bugs me about my Fieldsheer is that it's not windproof. When the temp drops into the 50's, it gets really frigid in that jacket!

Yeah, I'm going to be using the bike more to commute to work and I'm going to be adding additional lighting, both to be seen and to see better at night.  I've already switched all of my bulbs on the bike to LED (and recovered a bit over 30 watts of power) but I don't want to tax the system unnecessarily.  When its in the 30's and you're slabbing at 70, 75mph its amazing how much you have to crank the heat just to make up for windchill.  A windproof outer layer will let me lower the output on my heated gear yet probably be more comfortable than I was before.

[ANZAC]

Another Kilimanjaro owner here from the Pacific Northwest.  I wear mine every day rain or shine.  If it's too hot - take the liner out and crack open the vents.  Raining - no problems.  The water rolls off like a duck.

I must get one comment a day on the High Viz color and how much they can SEE me.  

If these are still on sale and in your size - pull the trigger  

[Justin]

I have an AST (original, not the new one), and the Venting is excellent. That comes at the cost of it not being as watertight as some other jackets like the kili. It's a trade off, it flows tons of air through it's huge vents, but you also get wet spots where the zippers are when it rains. Where I live it is typically not rainy, so I can live with that. And if it's cold, the Gerbings will dry the damp spots  

[expatbrit]

A Kili at 95 degrees being warm is the biggest understatement I've seen in quite some time.

Sure. I'm English. We understate. It was warm, but with the vents open I wasn't dying as long as I was moving. When it was 35 degrees
and snowing leaving Mammoth 2 days later, I was happy.

It is an excellent jacket, especially on sale ( I paid $140 from New Enough a couple of years ago) but I've always had an issue with water coming in the top of the back part of the collar during a downpour.  It also not being windproof really sucks in the cold;  Having to wear a windstopper layer on top of my Gerbings liner under the Kili makes things a bit crowded.

I've had the collar issue; I am apparently a pencil neck with a 17" neck.  I've not ever had to wear a windstopper if I have the Kili liner in, however.

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[MK96xj]

I would go with the Kili.

I have a gen 1 AST and Ranger pants. On paper their gear looks good but I really do not like either piece of gear. Too many pinch points and poor stiching / layout.

[crispiegee1]

Seems like everyone is out of hi-viz yellow in the Kilimanjaro (in large), so my decision has been made for me.

Oh well, there will be others.