Schneiderman
08-06-2008, 08:08 PM
I just bought a Teknic Lightning jacket, size 38. It was an impulse buy from ebay, the jacket was $89 buy-it-now and came with a free pair of kevlar jeans (which is what I was looking to buy in the first place). After shipping the total cost was $104 and in two days I had my jacket and jeans.
My first impression upon opening the box was good. The jacket is mostly of high quality construction, the leather is thick and sturdy, the armor is held in place well and feels substantial. The backpad is much better than the one in my Power-Trip Supercharger. The jacket is a size 38 which is a bit snug for me, I would be better off with a size 40, which I would have ordered but size 38 was all they had. For reference, I am 6', 150lbs, usually wear a size medium shirt (but can easily wear a small) and my jacket size is 40, so I'd say the size is true.
The jacket is not especially comfortable- not like my other jackets, which are the Power-Trip Supercharger (leather) and the Olympia Recon (mesh). However, it does feel very protective, so I suppose it's a compromise- protection over comfort. It is definitely race-inspired. It features both a short rear zipper and a full-circumference zipper for attaching it to pants. The black material you see under the arms is not leather, but stretchy cordura- very flexible but still somewhat abrasion resistant. It does help make the jacket more mobile. The jacket has two zippered front pockets and one velcro'd inside chest pocket; you could fit some cash or papers in the front pockets and a cellphone in the chest pocket but not much else.
I would rate this jacket for medium/spring and fall temperatures. It does have a removable liner, the liner isn't that great. I personally would be happy to wear it in weather up to 100 degrees, and maybe down to 50. I think most people would find it comfortable from 60-90, provided you're getting lots of airflow (like on a sportbike with a small fairing). The arm vents worked very well for me on a Ninja 500.
I do have one big gripe against the jacket: it has a high collar and it scratches my neck. The neck flap closure, which I find to be unnecessary, is too tall and too wide (who wears a size 38 who has a neck that big?) and the velcro that is supposed to secure it (but doesn't) doesn't overlap all the way, leaving it to irritate the neck. I am going to seek a remedy for this problem.
Upon looking around the internet it seems that I have an older version of the jacket, pictures of the latest models show that the neck flap is much shorter and shouldn't cause this irritation.
Overall I am satisfied with this jacket for the price I paid. I do think it would be very protective in a crash. However, I know that I will be wearing my other jackets much more often, especially if I can't fix the neck irritation. I do like the look of it, but I prefer the comfort of my Supercharger.
Construction: 7/10, loses an extra point because of the neck issue.
Fit: 7/10, would be an 8/10 if I had the right size.
Protection: 8/10, very protective for a street jacket, it could do some trackdays when attached to race pants with the full-circumference zipper.
Value: 9/10 for what I paid ($104 including kevlar jeans), 7/10 at store cost ($170), 4/10 at MSRP ($300!)
http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/dd185/schneiderman07/100_0196.jpg
http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/dd185/schneiderman07/100_0197.jpg
http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/dd185/schneiderman07/100_0204.jpg
http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/dd185/schneiderman07/100_0206.jpg
My first impression upon opening the box was good. The jacket is mostly of high quality construction, the leather is thick and sturdy, the armor is held in place well and feels substantial. The backpad is much better than the one in my Power-Trip Supercharger. The jacket is a size 38 which is a bit snug for me, I would be better off with a size 40, which I would have ordered but size 38 was all they had. For reference, I am 6', 150lbs, usually wear a size medium shirt (but can easily wear a small) and my jacket size is 40, so I'd say the size is true.
The jacket is not especially comfortable- not like my other jackets, which are the Power-Trip Supercharger (leather) and the Olympia Recon (mesh). However, it does feel very protective, so I suppose it's a compromise- protection over comfort. It is definitely race-inspired. It features both a short rear zipper and a full-circumference zipper for attaching it to pants. The black material you see under the arms is not leather, but stretchy cordura- very flexible but still somewhat abrasion resistant. It does help make the jacket more mobile. The jacket has two zippered front pockets and one velcro'd inside chest pocket; you could fit some cash or papers in the front pockets and a cellphone in the chest pocket but not much else.
I would rate this jacket for medium/spring and fall temperatures. It does have a removable liner, the liner isn't that great. I personally would be happy to wear it in weather up to 100 degrees, and maybe down to 50. I think most people would find it comfortable from 60-90, provided you're getting lots of airflow (like on a sportbike with a small fairing). The arm vents worked very well for me on a Ninja 500.
I do have one big gripe against the jacket: it has a high collar and it scratches my neck. The neck flap closure, which I find to be unnecessary, is too tall and too wide (who wears a size 38 who has a neck that big?) and the velcro that is supposed to secure it (but doesn't) doesn't overlap all the way, leaving it to irritate the neck. I am going to seek a remedy for this problem.
Upon looking around the internet it seems that I have an older version of the jacket, pictures of the latest models show that the neck flap is much shorter and shouldn't cause this irritation.
Overall I am satisfied with this jacket for the price I paid. I do think it would be very protective in a crash. However, I know that I will be wearing my other jackets much more often, especially if I can't fix the neck irritation. I do like the look of it, but I prefer the comfort of my Supercharger.
Construction: 7/10, loses an extra point because of the neck issue.
Fit: 7/10, would be an 8/10 if I had the right size.
Protection: 8/10, very protective for a street jacket, it could do some trackdays when attached to race pants with the full-circumference zipper.
Value: 9/10 for what I paid ($104 including kevlar jeans), 7/10 at store cost ($170), 4/10 at MSRP ($300!)
http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/dd185/schneiderman07/100_0196.jpg
http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/dd185/schneiderman07/100_0197.jpg
http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/dd185/schneiderman07/100_0204.jpg
http://i222.photobucket.com/albums/dd185/schneiderman07/100_0206.jpg