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firstgear is first rate!

G

gsadennis2015

New member
all the complaints about klim and other high-priced gear companies i've seen on the forum for not honoring their warranties prompts this messge: buy firstgear! this is a first rate company with xlnt products, xlnt value and incredible warranty.

i had a very minor issue with my remarkable kilimanjaro jacket which i wrote to them about. i did not mention warranty or ask for anything. they told me i had a 5 year warranty and requested pictures. two days later i received a brand new, 2017 model, $400 jacket. all in just 5 days.

3 years ago (when i made all my initial firstgear purchases) i had a more serious problem with overpants while on the trans-labrador highway. no questions asked, they sent me new pants to a place i would be at and saved me from the northern weather.

when i started riding 3 years ago i was stunned at the prices of almost everything related to our motorcycles. thousand dollar jackets, eight hundred dollar pants seemed crazy then and even crazier now. those products are probably pretty good, but not good enough if at those stratospheric prices they fail to faithfully honor their warrany or worse, fail to live up to your expectations. no such problems with firstgear.
 
I've had three Kilimanjaro jackets, all within 90 days ... after about four weeks of use the top storm-flap snap failed all three times (it tore out of the fabric), due to what appeared to be a manufacturing process problem (the snap rivet was crushed off center).

They honored their warranty all three times, but I gave up on the brand after the third round. That was three years ago.
 
gsadennis2015 said:
all the complaints about klim and other high-priced gear companies i've seen on the forum for not honoring their warranties prompts this messge: buy firstgear! this is a first rate company with xlnt products, xlnt value and incredible warranty.

i had a very minor issue with my remarkable kilimanjaro jacket which i wrote to them about. i did not mention warranty or ask for anything. they told me i had a 5 year warranty and requested pictures. two days later i received a brand new, 2017 model, $400 jacket. all in just 5 days.

3 years ago (when i made all my initial firstgear purchases) i had a more serious problem with overpants while on the trans-labrador highway. no questions asked, they sent me new pants to a place i would be at and saved me from the northern weather.

when i started riding 3 years ago i was stunned at the prices of almost everything related to our motorcycles. thousand dollar jackets, eight hundred dollar pants seemed crazy then and even crazier now. those products are probably pretty good, but not good enough if at those stratospheric prices they fail to faithfully honor their warrany or worse, fail to live up to your expectations. no such problems with firstgear.
Click to expand...

I've had extensive experience with FirstGear, Olympia and TourMaster. PM coming your way. :thumb
 
My wife and I have used a lot of Firstgear apparel and found it to be very good quality.
Good bang for the buck.

I have not noticed any complaints about the Klim warranty.
 
I ended up going the Olympia direction for riding gear. The quality and innovation in what they are making seem top notch. Firstgear was the other choice I was looking at. It just so happened that when I needed a jacket, I found a deal on the Olympia jacket that wasn't available on the Firstgear jacket, so went with that company at the time.

Besides the gear getting filthy...a reality for anyone who rides in the rain...the only other problems I've had were with the zipper pulls breaking after who knows how many hundreds or thousands of times of use. I also had a snap come off...but that was my fault for trying to stuff the jacket into a place it didn't fit, and the snap caught on the edge and sheared off. My fault, not Olympia's.

I've been surprised each time I've written Olympia's Customer Service. I don't get some anonymous staff person, but the owner of the company. And always, the zipper pull or snap kit is mailed out quickly to me at no charge.

I didn't plan to become an Olympia customer for life, but their designs and quality are really good, and the customer service has never been anything less than super.

Chris
 
The rain/wind liner on the Olympia jacket is more important to me. It's nice in that it can be a stand alone jacket, and the new ones are sized such that you can wear it over the riding jacket, or under it. You'd think there'd be a lot of extra material, but it doesn't seem so. They did a nice job on it.

As for that quilted liner, I hardly ever use mine. You might want to look into a heated jacket liner (not vest). It is far more flexible for the temperature range you can use it with. Of course, if the electric jacket liner fails...that sucks. The quilted one might be too hot, or too cold...but it'll keep working, no matter what.

Back to the OP's point...there are more options out there than Klim and Aerostitch that work extremely well. And with gear like the Firstgear or Olympia brands, you can find some excellent gear at about a third of the Klim price, even on sale.

Chris
 
daboo said:
The rain/wind liner on the Olympia jacket is more important to me. It's nice in that it can be a stand alone jacket, and the new ones are sized such that you can wear it over the riding jacket, or under it. You'd think there'd be a lot of extra material, but it doesn't seem so. They did a nice job on it.

As for that quilted liner, I hardly ever use mine. You might want to look into a heated jacket liner (not vest). It is far more flexible for the temperature range you can use it with. Of course, if the electric jacket liner fails...that sucks. The quilted one might be too hot, or too cold...but it'll keep working, no matter what.

Back to the OP's point...there are more options out there than Klim and Aerostitch that work extremely well. And with gear like the Firstgear or Olympia brands, you can find some excellent gear at about a third of the Klim price, even on sale.

Chris
Click to expand...

I've had two Kiliminjaro jackets. The first one had a very minor issue with some threads at the cuff, opening up. I called and they sent a completely new jacket. Was I impressed!

That new jacket (silver) started developing black streaks and I called once again. They sent me some special shampoo and asked me to wash it, but the streaks remained. A few days later I have another brand new Kiliminjaro.

The jacket is my favorite so far. It doesn't contain a liner because of some new 37.5 technology that keeps you cooler in the summer, warmer in the winter. I ride 120 miles/day and have a BMW Airflow jacket for the hottest Michigan weather, but last year I didn't wear it once.

They truly stand behind their products. I'm a big fan, obviously.

The 37.5® Kilimanjaro jacket is named after the 37.5® waterproof and breathable barrier. This 37.5® laminate significantly improves the comfort and performance of this technical outerwear by using micro particles to accelerate the capture and release of moisture vapor which helps keep you cooler when it is warm, warmer when it is cool, and above all, dry.
 
First Gear all the way!!

I had a pair of waterproof boots leak and they replaced with no questions asked. Sent photos and they sent new boots. Fantastic service and dedication to product.
 
Katmandu

I've worn the Katmandu for 4+ years. Durable and waterproof until recently. Lots of miles and rain storms and always stayed dry. It's not Goretex so no lifetime warranty but for the money it has served me well. I like the jacket to be waterproof and not have to carry a liner or rainproof shell. May get another one unless I find another brand as durable or I quit being cheap and get a Goretex jacket....we'll see.
 
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