Xelement... opinions?

Howdy again. I know I've been sort of a nuisance, posting so much in the last few days... Sorry ahead of time. And here we go...

I'm looking to buy gear for riding with removeable armor. I'm partial to black, because I don't like loud colors and/or patterns. I did some searching (okay, a lot of searching) and found a jacket and pair of pants that I really like. Plus they're on sale for under 70 bucks a pop.

Is Xelement a good brand? I haven't seen a lot of it (that I recall) until these specific searches, and now they're everywhere.

I already have leather, but I really need something for long rides. Thoughts?

 

I have a couple pieces of Xelement gear. Heavy cold/wet whether coat and pants and a pair of summer weight armored pants. The armor quality seems decent but I really don't have much to compare it to. The cold whether coat has a seam in the arm that tore out. I fixed it and it's Ok now. All in all I guess the quality is good for the price paid. There is certainly much better gear out there but these seem to be "Good enough".

Leatherup.com is a decent source for budget gear. I also have an armored leather jacket that I bought there. It is a fantastic value and very good quality. Albeit made in china!

$.02

 

Thank you. Personal experiences are always the best to hear about.

 

Another excellent place to keep in mind for gear is NewEnough dot Com

Check out the clearance and "bargain basement" sections for the really good deals on brand name gear.

 

I have an xelement leather jacket I bought last spring. It has held up very well. Front and rear vents, removable liner with built in neck/face warmer. For the 70 bucks I gave for it I've been very satisfied. I believe I got it from motodirect.com.

 

X 2 on newenough.com. great to do business with. never had a problem. My touring jacket was 240 elsewhere, picked it up there for 120. Half price is a bargain in my book.
I have no experience with xelemental. If that all you can afford, it better than going with no gear at all. You can upgrade as you are able.
GB

 

Thanks GB. Good to know.

 

I have an Xelement mesh armored jacket from Leatherup.co that I am very happy with.

With the liner removed, in 90 degree temps, it's not uncomfortable except when stopped at a light.

 

I was going to order some stuff... Then it magically went out of stock come time to order /qq

So I bought a clearance Moto Morph Jacket - FieldSheer for a few bucks more on another site.

I love it. I took out the inner liner and outer textile part. So for the summer its a mesh jacket with armor. And it matches my helmet/tank/saddle bags - Black and white jacket

 

I wear Olympia Mesh with liners for winter/rain riding gear these days but I do have an XELEMENT leather jacket that I bought years ago. I've never had a minutes problem with it. It is comfortable, fits well and the price was excellent. I think I paid around $70 for it. I now use it for my passenger if they don't want to wear my wife's Olympia gear. I also bought a pair of their harness boots on a closeout. I paid a shoe dude to add heavy brass YKK zippers to the inside portion of the shaft, cost about $25, and now they are easy on/easy off. They aren't lined and I had to add a pair of Dr Scholls insoles but for about $80 total they are a great pair of boots. I use them all 4 seasons and they keep my hooves dry in the liquid sunshine of the Pacific Northwet.

Another place to check in with is www.jafrum.com Excellent prices and EXCELLENT customer service. There are reports on the web from years past about how lousy their customer service is. They took the criticism to heart and my experiences with them is that their CS is as good as any company out there. I placed an order in the middle of the night while at work and realized a few hours later that I had made a mistake. Called their CS line and the young lady I spoke with changed my order with a thank you and they shipped the changed order on the same day.

Either company is a good bet.

Loren