Waterproofs are one of those things that many manufacturers (and riders) seem to get wrong. They either leak, are hard to get on, are too bulky, hard to pack away, look hideous or a combination of all five. Occasionally, usually after years of wasted cash and disappointment, you’ll find a set that keeps you dry and may tick a few of the other boxes as well if you’re lucky.
To try and help you make a better choice we teamed up with ScooterNova Magazine to put 14 sets of waterproofs, from budget to designer label, through their paces. Before we start, can I just let you know that this test was done on a freezing cold early January day, it was lashing down with rain and trying to snow for most of it, although the photos and video don’t really do the conditions justice.
Beneath the waterproofs
The photo above showed the riding kit we were wearing underneath our waterproofs, worn for authenticity and consistency when fitting waterproofs over riding kit and boots.
On the left, I’m wearing an Arai RX-7V, Tucano Urbano Newmatico jacket, ordinary jeans and TCX Hero boots. On the right Andy is wearing a Shoei X-Spirit, Spada Seeker jacket, Hood armoured jeans and Spada Icon boots.
The test
It’s not easy to do a group waterproof test in actual riding conditions unless by luck you’ve got 14 mates and torrential rain on the day you want to carry out the test. Instead, we volunteered ourselves to sit on a scooter whilst our other halves hosed us down for a full timed five minutes whilst wearing each set of waterproofs. To try and avoid the ladies getting too gung-ho with the hose we decided to let them test the final two suits out themselves at the end.
Our assistants were told to concentrate on the vulnerable areas, crotch/pockets/seams and to try and keep away from the neck and gloves as much as possible. The freezing cold hose was set to full blast and they could get as close to us as they liked. From a logistics point of view just having 14 sets of waterproofs to change into, dry out and put away was a job and a half in itself.
To make sure we’d both had chance to put all the waterproofs on (to try them all for fit) we took dry photos in one set but changed over for the wet testing.
The contenders
BikeTex 2-piece: Jacket £33.99, trousers £29.99
Sizes: M-2XL
Colours: Black
Contact: Bike It
Features
- Fleece lining and velcro fastening collar
- Diagonal jumbo zip front with velcro storm flap
- Reflective piping for extra safety and visibility
- External chest and waist pockets with storm flaps
The BikeTex waterproofs come in one and two-piece. From a styling point of view they’re not going to improve your chance of pulling, they’re simply plain and functional.
Biketek Deluxe Waterproof 1 Piece: £44.99
Sizes: M-2XL
Colours: Black
Contact: Bike It
Features
- Fleece lining and velcro fastening collar
- Diagonal jumbo zip front with velcro storm flap
- Reflective piping for extra safety and visibility
- External chest and waist pockets with storm flaps
Both the BikeTex sets were a bit tricky to get on wearing boots, in fact, Andy ripped the crotch on this set by catching his boot on them. Neither set is breathable either so made us both a bit sweaty.
Alpinestars Hurricane: Jacket £56, trousers £53
Sizes: S-3XL
Colours: Black/yellow, black/silver
Contact: Alpinestars
Features
- 100% waterproof poly-nylon fabric
- All seams are tape-sealed for guaranteed waterproofing performance
- Light poly-mesh lining improved internal air circulation and comfort
- Reflective detailing improves visibility
- Velcro adjustments on the arms and waist and shock cord adjuster
- Elasticated collar and cuff help form a hermetic seal to avoid wind and water penetration
- Waterproof compartment on inside chest
These are Ann’s favourites, she’d been wearing them for a few months before the test and reported that they’ve kept her completely dry. She’s a certified midget and according to the photo has also lost her gear changing hand, so for somebody of normal-size (and fully-limbed), these would fit well.
Richa Rain Typhoon Overall: £42.99
Sizes: XS-5XL
Colours: Black/fluro
Contact: Richa
Features
- 100% Waterproof
- Windproof
- Nylon outer shell
- Elasticated waist
- Zip and Velcro leg closure, extra long zip
- Reflective areas
- Half lined
- Adjustable ankles/cuffs
- Water resistant seams
I thought this one looked quite stylish but Linsey said it’s a bit too big up top and wasn’t as long as she likes in the legs. She’s 5’5″ and a size 10 and not blessed with humungous lady lumps so a lady of average size and proportions would probably fill the top out a bit more. The Richa comes with reflective detailing and an internal storage bag. I now sport a black eye…
Oxford Rainseal: Jacket £31.49, trousers £22.49
Sizes: S-6XL
Colours: Black/Fluro
Contact: Oxford Products
Features
- Reflective areas
- Half lined
- Adjustable ankles
- Elasticated waist
- Water resistant seams
- Folds into waistpack
These aren’t exactly flattering and have minimal reflective areas to help you be seen on the murky days you’re likely to be wearing them. They come in quite bulky zipped bags but will screw up fairly small to pack away on a scooter.
Oxford Stormseal: Jacket £59.99, trousers £59.99
Sizes: S-6XL
Colours: Black
Contact: Oxford Products
Features
- Waterproof
- Fully mesh lined
- Foldaway hood
- Arm and wrist adjusters
- Water- resistant taper seams
- High visibility detailing
These feel much more substantial than the cheaper Rainseal set, although the sizing was a little on the large size for our ScooterNova hobbit. His trousers were reminiscent of an MC Hammer video, circa 1990. If you’re an oversized rider looking for as much material as you can get for your money these might be perfect for you.
RST waterproof 1-piece: £49.99
Sizes: S-3XL
Colours: Black/gun grey, black/fluro
Contact: RST Moto
Features
- Outer shell 100% Polyester with PVC backing
- Fixed mesh lining
- Outer pockets
- Reflective details
- Elasticated waist/cuffs/hem
- Soft fabric inner collar
- Front zip fastening
Spada 408 1-piece: £64.99
Sizes: M-3XL
Colours: Black/fluro, black/anthracite
Contact: Spada Clothing
Features
- Reflective elements
- Soft feel collar and elasticated cuffs
- Zip and velcro leg closure
- Storm flap and rain channel
- Waterproof and Windproof PU coated nylon
- Double stitched
- 2-year warranty
The Spada one piece went on easily enough, although we both found we had to be careful not to catch the lining with the zip when fastening it up. Crucial extra seconds could be used faffing about at the side of the road in the rain if you do. Aside from that, the Spada has a neat bag that folds into the belt.
Furygan Neptune: Jacket £37.99, trousers £27.99
Sizes: S-4XL
Colours: Black/fluro
Contact: Furygan
Features
- Waterproof
- Coated polyester material
- Fluorescent inserts
- Two pockets
- Reflective detailing
- Detachable hood
Again these look good on and fit well, although sizing is conservative so go a size up if you’re unsure (it’s always worth going up a size on waterproofs anyway). These come in separate compact bags, are bright enough to be seen, go on easily over boots and also have a detachable hood.
Givi Ridertech: Jacket & trousers £55.99
Sizes: S-3XL
Colours: black/silver
Contact: Givi
Features
- Waterproof to a water column of 3000 mm
- Reflective inserts
- Zipper opening with a double waterproof flap
- Ventilation on the back, internal net lining
- Fitting adjustments with hook and loop fastening at the forearm, neck, wrist and ankle
- Internal waterproof pocket
The two-piece set from Givi is mesh lined, breathable and feels fairly substantial when worn. It also comes in its own storage bag and fits well.
Tucano Urbano Tuta Nano Plus one-piece: £79.99
Sizes: XS-3XL
Colours: Black/yellow
Contact: SLUK
Features
- HYDROSCUD®, breathable, windproof
- Rain tower tested – EN 14360:2004
- Polyamide outer shell with high waterproof rating
- Taped seams
- Storm flap on central zip (including collar)
- Reflective inserts
- Contrasting inserts on arms, in yellow fluorescent fabric, compliant with EN 20471:2013
- Adjustable Velcro strap and accordion opening at ankles
- Side zip fastener on trousers -opens right up to the calf
- Accordion opening at ankles
Nano by name, nano by nature, these are great if you’re short on space but need to take a decent set of waterproofs with you. They’re small but don’t underestimate them.
Tucano Urbano Diluvio Rex: Jacket and trousers £99
Sizes: 2XS-4XL
Colours: Black/fluro
Contact: SLUK Diluvio
Features
- Hydroscud – Breathable, windproof and waterproof lightweight Polyester outer shell
- Rain tower tested, taped seams, storm flap with waterproof pocket on central zip
- Polyester mesh jacket lining
- Contrasting inserts on arms and leg ends in fluorescent yellow fabric compliant with EN 20471:2013 standard
- Reflective inserts on back, sleeves and sides of jacket
- Jacket has adjustable velcro waist, wrists and adjustable hem
- Trousers have adjustable waistband and velcro straps at ankles
- Side zip fastener on trousers opens right up to calf
- Various outer pockets and inner pocket, storage sack
Here’s a suit that my other half has been using for the last year and she loves it, it fits well, looks good and has kept her dry on some terrible rides. It comes in two separate bags that Velcro together. Heavier duty than the Nano and suitable for regular use.
Macna Hydra one-piece suit: £93.99
Sizes: S-4XL
Colours: Black/silver, black/orange, black/yellow
Contact: XL Moto
Features
- All weather
- Nylon PU coated, waterproof
- Taffeta lining
- Heatshield on legs
- Pockets on upper leg
- Reflectors/fluro
The one-piece Macna suit fits well and looks good on, it’s got a long off-centre zip with Velcro fastener down the front, decent leg zips and the colours work well.
Spada Aqua Brite: Jacket £39.99, trousers £24.99
Sizes: S-4XL (trousers XS-4xl)
Colours: Black/fluro
Contact: Spada
Features
- Ripstop nylon construction, waterproof and windproof
- Removable hood with drawstring adjustment
- Full-length zip, elasticated cuffs, soft feel collar
- Double stitched
- 3 outer pockets
- Reflective piping/fluro
This two-piece Spada set looks good on, plenty of reflective and high-viz detailing and isn’t overly expensive either.
Coming up in part 2
That’s the contenders all listed, you can read part two here, so if you want to know what works, what doesn’t and what we think of each set of waterproofs keep your eyes open for our conclusion and the test itself. You can also read about it in issue 6 of ScooterNova, available now.
Words, Iggy, photos, Iggy & Andy, Video edit, Charles Rabréaud
Sadistic helpers, Linsey and Ann
New products always in development…
