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BMW Airshell Jacket Opinions Please

kantuckid

New member
I'm looking @ a used Airshell jacket-Unknown which version(as in #3 ,#4,etc.) but is high viz & comes with liner. Tell me if this is a good choice? Currently I have only a Revit 3-season jacket with vents,arms & front, but like many is very hot lately! Seem to find more Airflow comments here than for the Airshell. Help.
 
BMW Airshell Jacket

Motorcycle Consumer News had an excellent review on this jacket a few years ago, by a rider named Moshe Levy, who posts on the MOA Forum from time to time.

I have worn the BMW Airshell Jacket for the past two summers. The first test was riding to, around and from the Bloomsburg, PA Rally. The high temperature while riding there was 106 degrees F. My riding mileage was 1,800 miles.

This year's test was riding to the Sedalia, MO Rally. I rode in 107 degree F temperature there. My riding mileage was 3,400 miles.

The Airshell jacket is far superior to the First Gear jacket that I had prior to buying the Airshell. The armor is much more protective and the jacket has a much higher quality look to it. The venting is excellent, especially if you wear a microfiber t-shirt under the jacket.

I ride with it on daily rides in NC, where we have temperatures in excess of 100 degrees and humidity in excess of 95%.

You can't make a better choice than the BMW Airshell Jacket. I wear a pair of Venting Machine Pants (discontinued and replaced by the Airflow series). Sometimes you can find them on e-bay, which is where I located mine.

Bill
 
I have the hi vis version, lots of fade in the hi vis portion
Main zipper is junk. Way to small and not heavy duty enough
Armor is super, jacket comfortable in all temps, cold add liner or heated vest
Only real grip is zipper
 
As to fit?:

The jacket I'm looking at buying is XXL. I am 215#,5'9",40waist/47chest-barrel chested & real short arms. Pretty much anything I get has too long arms & legs. As long as there's velcro to play with I can make the arms work on most. My current jacket is a Rev-it,3 season, size XYL & fits very decent.
"Thinking outloud"- Whatever I buy has to be cooler than the Rev-it w/o the liner or I'm wasting money because the Rev-it is as good as they get quality wise. I have Gerbers jacket & could sell the Rev-it if the Airshell becomes a 4 season affair via use of the gerbers more often. The zipper scares me a bit as I have a great jacket now that is rugged. It has reflective but no hi-viz as the Airshell. This summer has just about turned me into a no jacket rider!
 
Same here in Texas, the heat is so bad it is hard to ride with a jacket of any kind. I have been looking at these jackets as well and found a xxxl on advrider. Went out to the BMW dealer to try one on and found the zipper to be on the left side instead of the right and it easily gets cross threaded so to speak. So being a big guy with big hands I am sure I would screw it up over time. I hear that the zipper is the weak point on the Air Flow jacket as well and that guys go out and have the zipper replaced immediately. But who wants to buy a 600/400 dollar jacket and have to shell out more money just to get it it workable. I am 6 foot' 250 pounds and wear a 52 suit jacket. The xxl was tight on me and they did not have a xxxl for me to try on. Good luck with your decision. I have decided to wait and see if I can find a better summer jacket.
 
I like mine. Nice armor. Too few pockets for my preference but I can live with it. I spray mine with a fabric treatment that makes the hi-viz color more resistant to fading.
 
I went with a Revit air jacket from ADVrider partly based on $100 delivered vs. $250 delivered($449 web price new) for the BMW I asked about & also due to zipper concerns on the BMW . Bad zippers can be a PIA. I'll just put a hiviz vest over the Revit. I may even take my rain liner from my 3 season Revit on a longer trip as the Revit air has none. Bob's has the new Revit on clearance via ebay for $120+ $10. I called & the parts guy & said he wore the same for a long time & a great jacket. Thanks for the comments.
 
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I've had mine for a year and really like it. No complaints at all. I'm 6'2 and weighed 250 when I purchased my XXL. I'm down to 215 (200 is my goal) now so might sell it and get a XL or Large depending on fit.
 
I'm about to get one of the airshell that I've seen at dealership. Looks great and should provide good protection. Let's hear some more from the owners of this jacket, is it worth the $$$ or look for something else. BTW, I'm looking for a warm temp. jacket.
 
Just to ad info to this discussion I'll say that my Revit Air jacket (just received)is a tighter fit at the arm pits than my same size Revit 3 season jacket.
 
Went down wearing one. Relatively slow- around 40. Did break my collarbone, but not a scratch. Jacket held up perfectly, with literally only some dirt on the points of contact. It's my new best friend...
 
BMW Airshell

Had mine for over a year, I have noticed that if the zipper is not fully seated in the receiving tab, then you can pull the jacket apart from the bottom, even when zipped. When I make sure I have fully seated or inserted the open end into the receiver, it works fine and will not separate. There's a velcro tab that holds it in place. Mine came with a liner and a BMW back pad, which they said was going to be optional. In the Fla heat it's ok, but then I ride a faired bike and don't get a lot of wind or air flow any way. It's held up well in the Fla sun, and even through a couple washings...
 
I got an Air Shell High Vis jacket that was purchased last October. The Jacket vents quite well and has a sturdy feel while being very flexible.

The one issue I noticed is the fading of the High Vis fabric in a very short time. It was in perfect condition before riding to Sedalia in July. That was a 4 week ride covering 8000 miles. As we all know it was a very hot ride and by the second week I saw noticeable fading on the fabric exposed to the sun. Now that I am home the jacket is two distinct shades of High Vis which is rather unsightly. This doesn't seem to affect the function, but it isn't very attractive. I expected fading over time, but four weeks of summer riding seems to be a faster color loss than I would have expected. I wish I would have purchased the non high Vis color.
 
Now, over a month removed from my original questions about airshells I'm quite happy with my $100 /pstg paid, Revit mesh jacket. Hasn't faded,lightweight,ventilates,excellent fasteners & good fit, all for less than the airshell. :thumb
 
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