I swear, everywhere you look in adventure-motorcycle-media…this jacket is being brought up. Must be good, huh? What is it about the Rev’ It Sand 3 that’s so appealing?
Rev’ It dubs their Sand 3 Jacket the “Swiss Army Knife” of Adventure motorcycle jackets. That Swiss Army Knife does come with quite a lot of tools, though some of its modular functionality is about expandability. What seems to draw people to the jacket is a sense of well-roundedness: It’s one of the more durable textile jackets, comes with fantastic armor, a waterproof liner, a thermal liner, flows lots of air, and has abundant amounts of storage.
The Rev it Sand comes in around that $500 price point. Mid-Level for an adventure jacket. The jacket is available in 4 colors: Silver Anthracite, Sand and Black, Black, and Dark Blue and Black. On paper, the jacket is impressive …let’s dig in and see what’s under the hood.
Construction
The main shell is constructed out of Polyester Ripstop. This Polyester Ripstop is in a lot of places on motorcycle jackets these days. We reached out to Rev’ It for specifics on the weight of this fabric and were informed it’s a 600 denier. To the touch, the Ripstop fabric is durable and adequate for the shell. The cargo pockets up front and rabbit pocket around the back are constructed of this fabric as well.
In the high abrasion zones, Rev’ it has used their proprietary version of Cordura fabric known as PWR. In this instance, it’s a 500D weight. The fabric extends 4 inches down from the collar line and over the shoulders. They’ve also used PWR 500 at the elbows and forearms. PWR500D is abrasion resistant, but it’s a light-duty abrasion material, falling below their PWR750D material, Cordura 1000D, and Superfabric, to name a few.
There are two patches of Standard Polyester 500 weight fabric at the low abrasion zones under each arm, allowing for stretch and comfort.
As for reflectivity, Rev’ it opts for small splashes across the chest and back and the logos on the Shoulders. Not a highly visible nighttime piece.
The inside of the jacket features that standard Rev It soft-touch perforated liner.
The neck features a soft fleece lining.
Storage
Rev’ it was looking out for the adventure rider here; the guy or gal, who’s going to leave the city in the rearview for an extended period and needs some gear on their person. Two sizeable gusseted cargo pockets on the front for your Cliff Bars, two handwarmer pockets located behind those cargo pockets. The front sides of the handwarmer pockets are fleece-lined. On the lower back of the jacket, there is a rabbit pouch to carry your waterproof and thermal liners or an optional small loaf of bread. On the inside of the jacket, there are two velcro drop pockets, one on each side. The liner and thermal liner each have a drop pocket of their own.
The liner and that thermal thingy…
The waterproof liner in the Sand 3 is what Rev It calls Hydratex 3L. Hydratex 3L is Rev’ It’s proprietary three-layer design that utilizes a protective layer of TRICOT laminated to each side of the waterproof membrane. Tricot is just a generic term for “weaved fabric.” There are many variants, but this looks like it’s a nylon weave. The Tricot is simply used to improve the durability of the membrane. The liner is not a destination piece unless you’re heading to a MUFON cocktail party. The thermal layer zips into the Hydratex Membrane and is not meant to be worn alone. I mean… anything is possible. I guess Rev’ it figures if you’re cold, the two layers are better than one. The thermal layer is also not a destination piece unless you’re going to a cocktail party at the Blue Oyster bar.
Adjustability
There is plenty of adjustability here. Firstly, long and short connection zippers to zip the pants to the jacket and liner to the jacket. The Flexisnap adjuster at the neck allows you to accommodate a wind collar or Balaclava in the colder months. There’s also a collar back bungie to keep the collar open on the warmer months. Adjustment straps are placed at the biceps and forearms to secure the jackets’ armor pads while on the ride of your life. At the wrists, there are big old YKK zips to help with airflow in the hotter months and get your gauntlet gloves under the jacket during the colder and wetter times of the year. There are also velcro wrist straps to cinch it all down more if you’d like. There are adjustment cords at the bottom of the jacket to help keep the weather and dirt out…and lastly, variable height adjustment straps at the midsection. These are on fabric guide pipe rails and help keep the jacket nice and snug against your body.
Breathability
As far as vent-able jackets are concerned, the Sand 3 hangs with the best of them. There are two giant zippered vents on the front that extend from the top of the cargo pockets to the top of the chest. Two more giant zippered vents that almost run the length of the entire arms. We already mentioned the zippered wrist adjustments. On the back, two large exhaust vents that are fabric reinforced to prevent tearing.
Armor
It’s quality, not quantity here. Rev’ It won a Red Dot award for design with their Seeflex CE Level 2 Armor in 2015. To summarize: “Thanks to its unique molecular structure, SEEFLEX2925 has the ability to transform kinetic energy from an impact into thermal energy. As a result, the material offers excellent impact absorption regardless of the circumstances you are riding in.” Well, OK then. You get the SEEFLEX armor at the shoulders and elbows and forearms. Sadly you do not get the back protector in the Sand. The jacket has a pocket for the back protector, but you must buy it separately. Well shucks.
Expandability
Part of the attraction to the Sand 3 is it’s sewn in expandability options. It has been designed with zipper and anchor points for a variety of add ons. Sadly, some have been discontinued.
Prepared for the Moveo Neck Brace (no longer made)
Prepared for the Challenger Cooling Vest Insert (no longer made)
Prepared for Vest Connector Neon, still available
Prepared for Seesoft CE Level 2 Back Protector Insert Type RV, still available.
You can always add a third party neck brace like the ones from Leatt, but you’ll just have to deal with the zippers for the Challenger cooling vest flopping around for no reason at all.
Conclusion
This jacket is undoubtedly a contender for the “Most Well Rounded Adventure Jacket” award. In the mid-level realm, it does represent a decent value. The jacket’s functionality extends into many seasons and many weather conditions. It can keep you dry (albeit with a waterproof liner), it can keep you warm (albeit with a thermal liner), it can save your skin in a fall, and the bones in your arms from impact injuries. It’s a CE AA rated garment, one step down from the top level in abrasion resistance. The Sand 3 is a mid-aggression level suit; agro, but not too agro. There is, of course, a level of subjectivity in the cut vs. other products on the market. The cut is a European style through and through. That may or may not be your thing. But, as far as advertised functionality, the jacket delivers on its promises. Sizing is a thing…size UP if you are from the U.S. We eat more apparently.
Honestly, it’s hard to dislike the Sand 3, but there are a few areas it could improve. Sure it’s AA rated, but the abrasion zone reinforcement at 500D seems a little chintzy at this price-point. Adventure jackets need to remember their road-bias ratios. They may be kicking and screaming on their way out the door, but we can’t wait to see waterproof inner-liners go. Rev’it went through the process of laminating Tricot to both sides of their Hydratex liner; why not just laminate it to the jacket? If it’s waterproof and breathable, how is this going to hurt the breathability of the jacket? Let’s not forget; if I get caught in the rain, now I have to STOP and put the liner on and zip it in. Pain in the butt! Companies like Richa are coming out with laminated products priced similarly. The Klim Carlsbad has a laminated Goretex membrane and includes a back-pad for a slight price bump. Oh yeah, last gripe: the back-pad. Could we not have gotten the back-pad at this price? I would gladly forego the waterproof liner for the back protection. I’d instead opt for over the suit rain protection and choosing my thermal layer over what Rev’ it gives me with the Sand 3.
We liked
- High-grade materials
- Placement of zippered vents
- Multi-season functionality
We didn’t like
- No back pad protector included
- Abrasion zone fabrics could be better
- Liners are bulky and impractical
