Friday I picked up a
FirstGear Kilimanjaro 4.0 Jacket in lookatme red. I also bought a pair of
Tour Master Polar-Tex gloves.
My first impression of the jacket was, "Wow, that's bulky". It is quite heavy as well. I kind of look like the Michelin Man when I've got it on. All that bulk and weight does make it quite warm, I was comfortable this morning at 48*F.
I do take issue with the sizing of the jacket, I needed a large for the length in the sleeves, but it was cut for someone 20 pounds heavier than I. That leaves some room at the waist for cold air to sneak into, even with the belts cinched tight as they will go. I'm a skinny SOB, so your mileage may vary.
The jacket has a ton of pockets, I've found seven so far. They seem to seal well, so water leakage shouldn't be much of an issue. Accessibility is not great with gloves on, the pockets mostly have zippers with rather small pulls. There are a couple that are secured with velcro alone, those aren't bad to get at.
The jacket liner is cheap compared to the rest of the jacket. It's a zip-up jacket made of fleece, with a few loops to attach it to the jacket. It was very baggy on me, I'm almost inclined to replace it with something that is a bit more functional. The one nice thing I noticed about it was that the sleeves are lined with nylon, making it easier to get into and out of.
The jacket did well when I rode through 20-30 minutes of light rain on the freeway, nothing leaked and the shell repels water rather than absorbing it.
Aside from the cheap liner and limited sizing options this is a nice jacket. It's much warmer than my Fieldsheer jacket, and will serve far better in inclement weather. It has broadened my comfort zone by 5-10*, I anticipate being able to ride comfortably at 40*F now. I paid $270 for it, $100 cheaper than the Darien jacket. I think it's a decent deal for the money.
As for the gloves:
The gloves are fairly warm, they are also quite thick. The padding in the palms is thick enough to make me feel "disconnected" from the bike, I can't feel the controls as well as I like. It's tolerable on the highway, less so in heavy traffic or through town. They are waterproof, apparently due to a plastic liner. These gloves do not breath well. The insides are lined with a micro fleece that sticks quite nicely to damp fingers, making it a chore to get these gloves back on after taking them off for a couple minutes. I don't foresee myself keeping these gloves for more than one season, I'll most likely get nicer ones next year.
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Plus, when I read them I can pretend as though I have a motorcycle too!