I'm looking for some suggestions on a motorcycle jacket. I would like something that doesn't look out of place off my bike, something that isn't as bulky as a traditional sportbike jacket but still offers a good amount of protection. I was looking at the Alpinestars NYC jacket, but it's quite bulky. I'm looking at a jacket for 60-80 deg weather. Also, I'm looking at lower speeds, very little highway speeds for this jacket. Not sure how much that changes things

Currently I have a Teknic Chicane and it's pretty awkward to walk in. I'll probably still my go to when I need to cover a lot of highway.

 

Any leather jacket that is going to have any chance at saving your *** when you go down is going to be a bit on the bulky/heavy side compared to a casual leather jacket.

That being said, Vanson is obviously a good choice, so long as you have the coin to spend on it. personally though I would recommend the River Road Hoodlum jacket. Runs about $200.00 and is actually pretty damn comfortable. It's made of medium weight leather so it has a nice fit to it and isn't incredibly heavy when standing around like a full race jacket, but is still thick enough that it's going to provide a decent amount of protection, and it looks really sharp too.

 

Thanks for the suggestions, I'll look into it. I am looking for a lighter weight jacket for city riding where I'm going to be going scooter speeds, getting off, walking for a few blocks, getting back on, etc.

If max speeds are going to be ~30, would you still recommend against a textile?

 

Not at all, my daily summer riding jacket is a textile/leather mix and I trust it to get the job done at road speeds. I can't really point to a really sharp looking casual textile though, since IMO they all look a bit out of place when you're not riding on your bike due to the "Rain jacket" look of the material, but I like Joe Rockets Alter Ego jacket, incredibly versatile, light and not bulky, plus I have the AE pants and they are fantastic.

 

I've got the Joe Rocket Alter-Ego water proof jacket and pants with insulated liners, but found the jacket to be a bit too hot me me.

I went and got a JR Phoenix 5.0 all mesh jacket with a zip in water proof liner. It's quite comfy in the summer without the liner, but actually has armor to provide decent protection.

It actually breathes well enough that it can get cold when it's only in the 70s outside if you ride highway speeds in it. I just carry the liner with me and zip it in when it gets cool outside.