I was fed up of commuting to work and having to change out of leathers (and often waterproofs) and into a suit. Keeping the work clothes looking decent was tough and I felt like I lost any time that I saved getting changed - both into the leathers and then back out again at the other end.
So I went looking at various options that would fit over my shirt and tie. My criteria was that it needed to be quick and easy to get on and off. It had to be waterproof and warm. Ideally it should have removable layers for the summer and it needed to be warm enough to get me through the 9-10 months of the year that I use the bike.
I looked at quite a few options but the majority of the gear was (to my mind) ridiculously expensive. I even looked at the Aerostich suit from the states but that was over £500 despite the good exchange rate at the time.
I was beginning to despair when I found the Teknic Stinger jacket. It was brand new in to my local shop (Infinity) and sadly I knew as much about it as the sales assistant. Thankfully I used to work in a bike shop and had some idea of what to look for.
So, first things first - protection. The jacket comes with Knox armour at the elbows and back whilst the trousers have armour at the knees and hips. I have my doubts about how effective it would be but if I was going all out for safety then I'd be wearing full leathers. It's an acceptable compromise.
Flexibility - The linings are removable. The jacket one even has it's own little bum bag that you can fold it in to - a great idea. It's waterproof, though not goretex thankfully as once those types of breathable waterproofing get a real soaking they can take a long time to dry. There are vents to let some air in along with an unusual double zip at the front. The zip is an interesting way of getting over the usual velcro longevity issues. One zip pulls the jacket together and then a piece of material poppers over the front of the zip before another far chunkier zip pulls together over the top. It works like a charm.
The vents do work but at the height of summer nothing (that I've used over the last 20 years) keeps you completely cool. Around town even without the lining it was too hot over about 25 degrees but once you were on the move the vents did a pretty good job - it's helpful that they're positioned along the upper arm so the air goes where you really need it.
It has pockets for Africa and they all appear to keep the water out which is very unusual in my experience. I still only trust the inner ones with important stuff but that's more from habit than because I've found any leaks.
The neck seal is velcro and the collar is high enough to stop water going down your back but not big enough to get in the way of your helmet. The cuffs are large enough to go over my Furygan gauntlets and seal comfortably (velcro again). You can also tighten the jacket at the waist and at the base of the jacket. There is also a zip to allow you to attach the trousers to help ensure that there is no gap. I'm not sure that you need it as the overlap is enough but perhaps if you decided not to use the removable braces then it would come in to play more.
Otherwise the trousers work very nicely - there is a zip and velcro fastening at the waist and the same at the bottom of the leg. The lining covers down to below the knee but not far below that. That's ideal for me as if the lining was longer then it would almost certainly get wet. As it is the boots (Alt-berg -
www.altberg.co.uk and subject of a future review) cover most of the area below the knee.
I ride an old CBR1000F so I have a reasonable amount of protection but it's by no means a full screen tourer. As a result the kit has been subject to a fairly rigorous year to eighteen months of testing (about 8-10,000 miles) so far and I'm very pleased with it. Styling is fairly basic but most of these things look much the same to me.
Fundamentally it does the job - it keeps the water out. It's fairly warm though I'd say that it's 3 seasons rather than 4 so if you ride in the depths of winter then you might need something warmer. I don't ride when it's icy anyway so it works fine for me. I haven't had to test the armour thankfully and the kit looks pretty much new despite being used daily for the last 12-18 months. It's been a very good buy. It cost just under £300 all in and the money that I saved on some of the more expensive brands has meant that I can buy some decent boots and gloves.
All in all I'd happily recommend them.