Joined
·
13,018 Posts
I read an evaluation of this vest on WebBikeWorld.com. The best feature I liked about the vest was that it is powered by a 14.8 volt 3300mAh lithium polymer battery pack and does not require a hookup to the battery on the bike or to an external battery if you are not riding. The vest also has three heat settings. Low is 104 degrees F., medium is 120 degrees F., and high is 140 degrees F. Based on the very favorable review, I decided to order one.
Jett is located in Mitcham, Victoria, Australia, and advertises delivery of 4 to 6 working days via Express Post. I placed the order online during the evening of Jan 15th (already Jan 16th in Australia) and I received the vest the morning of Jan 22nd. Cost was $275 AUD which is $215.82 and shipping was $45 AUD which is $35.32. I also received a free spare battery pack worth $82.50 AUD which is $64.75 for mentioning I read about the vest on WebBikeWorld.com.
The vest is made in China, is black in color, v-necked, made of an outer and inner shell of 100% nylon, has an inner right side pocket with a velcro closure for the battery pack and two pockets on the outside. There are two elastic drawstrings. one at the bottom, one midlevel, and the vest is closed with a zipper in the front. The battery pack is 6 3/4" L X 2 3/8" W X 7/16" thick. It has a single connector which connects to the controller. The switching power supply battery charger charges a fully discharged battery in 4 hours. The controller has two connections, one to the battery, and one to the vest.
The controller has two buttons, an "On" and a dual function "Off" switch which cycles through the three heat settings and turns the vest off. Hold the On" button down for 3 seconds to turn the vest on, and a green LED illuminates. Press the "Off" button for two seconds to switch between the heat settings. Medium setting is indicated by the LED changing from green to orange color. The LED changes from orange to red on the high heat setting. Holding the "Off" button down until the LED turns off completely shuts off the vest. Once turned on, the controller can be tucked into the inner pocket, or it can be adjusted to extend beyond the bottom of the vest so it is easy to reach while riding.
Build quality of the vest, wiring, batteries, and connectors is very high. There were no loose "threads" in the seams or the stitching. The vest can be washed. Just remove the controller and battery pack from the inner pocket.
The heating elements are in the upper and lower back only, however, they put out an incredible amount of heat. When turned on, the heat is nearly instantaneous. So far I have used the vest twice with outside temps down to 10 degrees F, and the low setting was more than adequate. The medium setting was quite warm, and the high setting was too hot. Perhaps when the temp drops down to well below zero, the high setting would be appropriate. However, 140 degrees F is still very hot, even through a tee shirt. Jett advertises the batteries being able to power the vest on high for 4 hours, medium for 5-6 hours, and 8 hours. I have not tried the medium and high settings for battery life, but so far on the low setting I got 7.5 hrs out of the battery pack.
So far, I am very pleased with the vest, and it will be nice to use it while ice fishing and snowmobiling if we get any snow this winter. It will also be great for riding the bike in the early spring and late fall. Best feature is not having to worry about running a wiring harness to the bike's battery and unplugging yourself when you get off the bike. No worry any more about ripping the wiring loose if you forget to unplug yourself. Overall opinion for the time being, the Jett vests beats the Widder and the Gerbing.
Murf
Jett is located in Mitcham, Victoria, Australia, and advertises delivery of 4 to 6 working days via Express Post. I placed the order online during the evening of Jan 15th (already Jan 16th in Australia) and I received the vest the morning of Jan 22nd. Cost was $275 AUD which is $215.82 and shipping was $45 AUD which is $35.32. I also received a free spare battery pack worth $82.50 AUD which is $64.75 for mentioning I read about the vest on WebBikeWorld.com.
The vest is made in China, is black in color, v-necked, made of an outer and inner shell of 100% nylon, has an inner right side pocket with a velcro closure for the battery pack and two pockets on the outside. There are two elastic drawstrings. one at the bottom, one midlevel, and the vest is closed with a zipper in the front. The battery pack is 6 3/4" L X 2 3/8" W X 7/16" thick. It has a single connector which connects to the controller. The switching power supply battery charger charges a fully discharged battery in 4 hours. The controller has two connections, one to the battery, and one to the vest.
The controller has two buttons, an "On" and a dual function "Off" switch which cycles through the three heat settings and turns the vest off. Hold the On" button down for 3 seconds to turn the vest on, and a green LED illuminates. Press the "Off" button for two seconds to switch between the heat settings. Medium setting is indicated by the LED changing from green to orange color. The LED changes from orange to red on the high heat setting. Holding the "Off" button down until the LED turns off completely shuts off the vest. Once turned on, the controller can be tucked into the inner pocket, or it can be adjusted to extend beyond the bottom of the vest so it is easy to reach while riding.
Build quality of the vest, wiring, batteries, and connectors is very high. There were no loose "threads" in the seams or the stitching. The vest can be washed. Just remove the controller and battery pack from the inner pocket.
The heating elements are in the upper and lower back only, however, they put out an incredible amount of heat. When turned on, the heat is nearly instantaneous. So far I have used the vest twice with outside temps down to 10 degrees F, and the low setting was more than adequate. The medium setting was quite warm, and the high setting was too hot. Perhaps when the temp drops down to well below zero, the high setting would be appropriate. However, 140 degrees F is still very hot, even through a tee shirt. Jett advertises the batteries being able to power the vest on high for 4 hours, medium for 5-6 hours, and 8 hours. I have not tried the medium and high settings for battery life, but so far on the low setting I got 7.5 hrs out of the battery pack.
So far, I am very pleased with the vest, and it will be nice to use it while ice fishing and snowmobiling if we get any snow this winter. It will also be great for riding the bike in the early spring and late fall. Best feature is not having to worry about running a wiring harness to the bike's battery and unplugging yourself when you get off the bike. No worry any more about ripping the wiring loose if you forget to unplug yourself. Overall opinion for the time being, the Jett vests beats the Widder and the Gerbing.
Murf
