MO Tested: REV'IT! Lamina GTX Ladies Jacket and Pants Review

There’s no getting away with half-assed reviews here, so when the Lamina GTX was announced and the kit arrived at my sunny Southern California door, I knew the waterproof Gore-Tex lined adventure suit and I were bound for more than just my local backroads and favorite in-state moto camping destinations. My editor stressed that I really needed to put it through its paces, and what better way to test the REV'IT! Lamina GTX Ladies set than a late-spring multi-stage ride to Anchorage, Alaska and back.

I’m no stranger to REV'IT!’s adventure touring line – the range of sizes, varying options of vents, mesh panels, pockets and rain layers seemingly have every weather pattern covered, if only you make the right choice before leaving the garage. I was a little hesitant to commit to a set that's main focus was the waterproof Gore-Tex shell, with no additional interior liner for either the jacket or the pants. The Lamina GTX Ladies is touted as a four-season adventure jacket though, so I ordered a set of REV'IT! Thermic base layers to go underneath, included a Juno neck buff, added a Core 2 Jacket as a mid layer, and was thrilled when everything fit together seamlessly once it arrived.

The Lamina jacket fits true to size, and like most motorcycle jackets, you want a close but not too snug fit to ensure the armor is situated in the right place. The jacket comes with Seeflex CE-Level 2 armor at the shoulders and elbows, and is able to be adjusted internally at the elbow pocket to accommodate those of us with longer or shorter wingspans. The CE-Level 2 Seeflex Air back protector is included and fits snugly in the dedicated interior mesh pocket of the jacket. If you prefer to double up on your layers, I would suggest sizing up or at least trying the jacket on with your intended layering articles, to make sure you’ve still got a comfortable range of motion. I found that with the REV'IT! base layer on, and the Core 2 Jacket, I had just enough room to zip the Lamina up snugly. I initially ordered a size 38 to match the pants, but found that it was comfortable, but too big when wearing alone. I sized down to a 36, and found that it was perfect for layering or solo, typically I am between a size small and medium in normal fashion jackets.

There are four adjustment points on this jacket, two at the waist, and one on each interior forearm. I found that unlike previous REV'IT! Jackets, I could not adjust these while the jacket was on, the material used is just tough enough to not budge unless you use both hands. This would be a bonus for anyone who has had these adjustment points loosen up in the past, as they surely aren’t going anywhere without some hefty force now. The hem of the sleeve also has a combination of zipper and Velcro closure, which can be utilized in a various number of ways to let in airflow, accommodate bulky waterproof gloves, or be loosened to pull a bunched up mid layer sleeve down into place. The collar has an interesting adjustment, one I haven’t seen on any REV’IT! jacket previously. Each interior side of the collar has a hidden toggle and a thin bungee cord, and when pulled, it cinches the collar tighter, presumably to block a bit more wind. I can imagine the intentions behind this were nothing but good, but in practice, it just seems to point the stiffest part of the collar into the rider’s throat, and for a short-torso’d rider like myself, makes for a very uncomfortable fit. This is my personal preference, but I much preferred the collar closure that can be folded and snapped out of the way, like the one my other REV'IT! jackets are fitted with.

I had the absolute pleasure of testing the limits of this jacket and pants in some of the most adverse weather conditions, and happily spent a few weeks living in this set on my motorcycle traversing three famous western North America roads: the Cassiar Highway, the Al-Can Highway, and the 5 Freeway. I can without question tell you that one of these three was severely lacking in scenery and roadside attractions, and I’ll leave that up to you to decide which that might be. An early morning start going through the mountain passes outside of LA set the tone for lowest temperature, a light snowfall and 28 degrees on the bike’s display was a preview for what turned out to be a very cold and wet ride north. I was aware at that moment that the weak link in the gear was the entry point for wind – even with the velcro wrapped tight, my gloves and boots were the first to give up a little too much heat, and eventually the rest of the outfit followed suit. If riding for any prolonged time below 40 degrees, or in wet weather, I would highly suggest a heated layer to make up for the heat lost by wind alone.

I was met with some rain on my second day headed north, and with adequate time to prepare, I breezed through the intermittent Oregon storms without a hitch. The Tizip front zipper is reinforced to keep water from seeping in, and I was pleased to see that the pockets at the hips were lined with the same Gore-Tex as the outer – no chance to wick in water with a non-waterproof lining like previous jacket models had struggled with in the past. However, there’s one caveat: if the pocket zipper is even slightly cracked, and it happens to rain for 8-9 hours straight, the water will inevitably find its way inside and pool up. I would suggest keeping anything important inside the jacket in either of the two interior mesh pockets instead.

I was very pleased with how quickly the jacket would dry out when hung up overnight. There wasn’t a single morning following wet weather that required me to put on a damp jacket or pants, which makes a difference on an early morning during a long trip. The right layers really made a difference here too, the wool blend thermal base layer kept me cozy and dry without being bulky, and the Core jacket was light enough to keep on anywhere from 65 degrees and down without overheating or wanting more, right up until 40 degrees, where I was desperately hoping for sunshine and a hot cup of coffee.

The Lamina GTX pants are offered in both a regular and long length, and are equipped with adjustments at the waist to ensure a custom fit. Vents on the thighs provide some airflow in higher temps, and can be sealed up completely against water or wind. The included knee armor can be adjusted up and down slightly, though for my 27-inch inseam, even when adjusted up, they were situated a little too low for me. When seated on the bike, the armor seemed to fit into place better, but while standing and riding or walking off the bike, they felt cumbersome and uncomfortable. Wearing taller ADV boots in addition to the pants helped the situation, as I was able to tuck the bottom of the knee armor into the top of the boot, and the zip and Velcro at the hem allowed more than enough room to accommodate my Tech 7’s and seal them away from water. The only piece of this set I struggled with was the pants: the zip and waistband were not quite wide enough to get over my hips without jumping comically, yet when zipped, there was extra room and bulk at the hips and the waist. While I’m pretty much your average sized, if short, woman, I did feel that there was something lost in translation with the pattern sizing, and a wider zipper yoke and a clever interior stretch panel would be a happy solution to this common problem. For reference, I am a size 28-waist in Levi’s, a 29-waist in Rev’It! Riding jeans, and for the Rev’It! Lamina GTX Pants, I best fit a size 38.

My trip included rain, hail, and snow on the way north, none of which made it past the waterproof, laminated Gore-Tex outer shell, however the forecast headed south was the complete opposite. Sunny and mid-high 70’s through British Columbia was a breeze with the ventilation on the upper arms and at the back of the shoulders, creating a cool flow of air that wrapped around and kept me from getting sweaty in the hottest part of the day. The neatest feature mentioned briefly above is the internal mesh front zipper, which can be zipped independently of the waterproof Tizip front zipper, allowing an unobstructed blast of air through the front of the jacket. Truly a game changer when it came to the final day headed down the 5 Freeway in California, where the temps inched their way close to 100 degrees. I did find a few instances where the Tizip zipper slowly became very difficult to zip, one was right in the middle of our coldest and wettest days in the Yukon, the other on the dustiest day during a training class on trails. I would love to see a larger size of teeth on this zipper, both for ease of starting the zip, which is moderately difficult in gloves or wearing bulky underlayers, and also to avoid a struggle if there is some water or dust involved.

The REV'IT! website calls this out specifically “the TIZIP zipper maintains its smooth functionality even in extreme weather, allowing for effortless opening and closing with gloves on.” I would have to disagree. Maybe if the jacket is brand new, but I found after about 7-8k miles (or 6 months) into active use, it was starting to get difficult to start and hard to pull.

I’ve found myself reaching for this jacket even when riding locally, as the material has broken in wonderfully and has grown even more comfortable the more I wear it. I’ve scrubbed dead bugs, mud and road grime off of it more times than I can count, and it still looks brand new. While I’ll reserve use of the pants for any anticipated rainstorms, I am happy to make the Lamina GTX Ladies Jacket the new standard in my gear closet.

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