Aerostich Kanetsu Vest

Aerostich Kanetsu Vest

CW EVALUATION

More than a lot of hot air

LET’S GET ONE THING STRAIGHT RIGHT up front: If you’re a serious rider, you need an electric vest. That much is non-negotiable. No single piece of riding gear is as useful to the three- or four-season, all-weather motorcyclist.

The principal is simple—keep your body core nice and toasty, and blood circulation to the extremities is increased so fingers and toes stay warmer, too. Most electric garments are not unlike the gear pioneered for B-17 waist gunners in WWII, but our favorite gadget guru, Andy Goldfine of Aerostich Riderwear fame, has found a way to hot-rod the venerable e-vest.

His new Kanestsu (Japanese for “adding heat”) model uses an interior matrix of AirVantage inflatable bladders for a tighter fit and better heat transfer.

Works a treat, too. Unzip the plastic inflator tube, give it a couple of puffs and the vest snuggles against your body for maximum warmth. Unless your jacket is super skin-tight, the inflated vest’s slight extra girth goes unnoticed. As ambient temperature warms throughout the day, let some air out to regulate heat transfer. As a final bit of thermal tuning, the vest can be reversed so the heating elements are farther from skin. With all these choices, the optional $57 Heat-Troller adjustable thermostat hardly seems necessary.

An electric vest should be required wear, though, and right now the Aerostich Kanetsu is our favorite. □

DETAILS

Aerostich Riderwear

8 South 18th Ave. W. Duluth, MN 55806 800/222-1994 www.aerostich.com

Price...$237

Ups

A Windstop fleece outer shell A Your choice of connectors, no extra charge

A Doubles as a flotation device?

Downs

▼ Addictive as opium

▼ 45-watt draw can tax older bikes' charging systems

▼ Green not your color? Sorry.