Hello! I’m RyanF9 and these are my favourite street jackets.
When I talk about “street” jackets, I’m using a general term for general-purpose gear. This if for your city commuter, your retro-custom guy, your standard motorcyclist.
I always choose something casual when I ride street. You don’t need skin-tight leathers or Rambo’s adventure kit to cruise around Montreal, so might as well go with something that looks and feels like regular clothing. A riding shirt, a riding hoodie, a canvas coat, a windbreaker… all of this stuff looks correct and protects.
First up – lumberjack attack. This is a Scorpion Covert Flannel Shirt and it’s just a standard cotton-poly button-down like the ones you buy at the Gap. Right?
Well it’s not really a button-down. These snaps conceal a full zipper, which keeps the wind from billowing my shirt. Then on the inside I have a napoleon pocket, which you won’t find at the Gap. And a full lining of DuPont Kevlar, which you definitely won’t find at the Gap.
So this is a flannel shirt with hidden slide protection. Even the seams conceal interior, reinforcement stitches, so they won’t come apart when your ass hits asphalt.
Despite the safety stuff, my Covert feels comfy. It’s light and airy – perfect between 20 and 30 degrees Celsius and downright chilly anywhere below that. I’m 6’3 with a 39-inch chest, wearing a size medium and it fits great. However, I am wearing the Covert without armour so if I bought the SAS-Tec pads that Scorpion recommends, I’d probably size up.
Now , maybe I like the idea of the casual Covert, but I’m too cheap to buy armour separately. Then what?
I’d buy the Joe Rocket Hardcore Armored Hoody instead. Much like that flannel shirt, it’s a smidge over 150 bucks and it really blends in. But this time I get a full suite of Vault CE-approved armour – elbows, shoulders and back.
I have a love-hate relationship with Vault. On the one hand, these are about the most protective CE-Level 1 pads on the market… they’re rock-solid.
And on the other hand… they’re rock solid.
Weird thing is, the vault pads aren’t that uncomfortable in this hoody. I think because it fits so loose and baggy, I barely feel the armour. Speaking of which, I’m still 6’3 with a 39” chest, but this time the size medium is huge on me. I’m not gangster enough to pull off the baggy style, so I’d take a small next time.
Let me diss this gangsta hoodie before we move on. Its abrasion resistance is shite … yes there are belt loops to keep it in place during a slide, but why bother when the material itself is a weak cotton-poly blend? Also, I think these silicon logos are lame… they remind me of the early 2000s for some reason.
And finally, the Hardcore Hoody has all the waterproof and windproof abilities of a normal hoodie. Which is to say, you’ll get soggy in the rain and chilly in the wind. Of course it is nice and breezy in summer, so long as you keep moving. Next up – this is the Steel City , also from Joe Rocket. It has that similar casual-chameleon concept, but with a different style. A better style, in my opinion.
We have the same Vault CE-Level 1 armour throughout this jacket. We have the same belt loops to keep it from riding up. We have the same button-down trompe l’oeil that we saw with the Covert Flannel shirt… concealing a zipper that does a better job of blocking the wind. And this time we have a waxed canvas outer shell, which will stay water resistant so long as you keep waxing it.
My wife tells me that layers are cool, so the Steel City must be cool. It has this thermal liner underneath that is made to look like a separate hoodie. Probably because it is a separate hoodie that can be worn on its own. Not that you’d want to – the hoody itself is super thin and devoid of any character. But it does sit comfortably inside the jacket and that looks cool. Allegedly.
Also note that the collar snaps down, which is a nice moto touch. Same with the reflective pipe across the back. If I had to pose a complaint, it’d be that the Steel City has no ventilation whatsoever. Also it fits short at the waist.
But you’re probably still thinking, hey, this is a whole lot more jacket than the previous two items. At least I hope you’re thinking that … because the Steel City costs 270 dollars. Now , normally Icon would never make this list. Street jackets are about being subtle so they look good on and off the bike. Whereas Icon has all the subtlety of a big-breasted alien... Which I’m pretty sure is one of their helmet graphics…
But Icon turned a new leaf when they turned out the Merc Stealth . It’s not bright, it’s not flashy. I mean look at this tiny badge – I didn’t know Icon could make logos that small.
The rest of the Merc is equally chill. It’s a flexible softshell chassis – looks and feels like an athletic jacket. Only the shoulders are done in ballistic nylon, but you’d hardly notice. In fact I wish Icon put more on the elbows and lower back, because those are common sliding zones. I’m wearing a size medium and it fits like a rubber band. Elastic thumb loops to keep the sleeves down, elastic shock cords cinch the waist, elastic adjusters tighten the hood… you get the idea.
The Merc’s armour is elastic too. Or viscoelastic anyway… it’s D3O stuff that is soft and pliable against the body, but turns CE-Level 1 rigid in a crash. Very comfortable and indeed this Merc is tied for the most comfortable armoured jacket I’ve worn. For what it’s worth, the jacket it ties with is my Icon 1000 Basehawk, which was essentially the same thing with leather accents and an extra 130 dollars on the pricetag.
So Icon ripped off their own Basehawk to make the Merc. But annoyingly they didn’t fix the major flaw I found in the basehawk… no exhaust vents. This jacket is needlessly stuffy, which is sad because the armpit vents are really great.
However , Icon did make an improvement on the hood. The Basehawk was notorious for slapping your helmet at speed, but this Merc has a Velcro tab for rolling the hood away. Nice.
Now , I’m going to close with some weather options.
For hot days I like the Alpinestars Runner Air . It’s a mesh jacket styled like a windbreaker.
Ventilation is superb. Everything but the shoulders are done in mesh. Even the cargo pockets and the armour pouches are mesh.
Speaking of armour, I get CE level 1 pads in the shoulders and elbows. The shoulders I like, the elbow pads are overly chunky and not very comfortable, and the back pad is a flimsy foamie that you’ll need to upgrade. Also abrasion resistance is surprisingly good – the mesh is double layered and cross-hatched for sliding protection.
Mainly I like the Runner Air because it’s so casual . Ride into town, hop off the bike, and even Anthony from RevZilla won’t be able to tell you’re a motorcyclist. But that doesn’t mean A-stars skimped on the moto setup. I have a waterproof napoleon pocket with a pass-through port, the hood can be strapped down for riding, and there’s reflectivity front and back plus a bright zipper. I want to mention that the zipper goes all the way up, but I’m not sure how that’s useful…
The size is a medium and the price is 250 bucks – a tad high… but the Runner Air does come with a complimentary RideOut collection carabiner… how do you like the value now?
Of course if you want value , my pick for wet weather is better. This is the Scott Sport DP Waterproof Jacket .
It has everything . The membrane is DRYOsphere – waterproof and breathable like Gore-Tex, only unlike Gore-Tex it won’t last forever. Then I have a removable full sleeve thermal liner, a zipper attachment for pants, the normal smattering of pockets plus little niceties like spring-loaded zippers and a magnetic collar.
Protection punches above its price tag too. The shell is high-denier polyamide, which slides well. The shoulders and elbows are CE-Level 1 SAS-Tec, which is just like D3O only slightly less comfortable. The back protector pocket is empty but I do get loads of reflectivity – here, here, here, here, here … perfect for dull rainy days.
So the Sport DP is a 350 dollar rain jacket that only costs 250. And it’s not bad in warm weather either – Scott utilized lightweight Taffeta so with the liner out and bicep vents open, this jacket is decently breathable. I’m 6’3 with a 39” chest, very comfortably wearing a medium. Yes, this is the most motorcycle-ish street jacket on my list. But it’s still slim and stylish and not totally lame off the bike.
And that’s it for my favourite street jackets! Thanks for watching.