Halvarsson BC Jackpot
Originally £369.00
(AmV62, June/July 2013)
Having spent most of my adult riding life looking for the one jacket that would do everything – look cool, be warm, be comfortable, be fully waterproof – and having found it in the Halvarssons Discovery, I was blown away by how much I loved this simple, regular leather jacket.
It is still a staple of my riding wardrobe, not least because it has neutral branding, but mainly because it a comfortable and robust riding jacket – more so than their Seventy, which is designed as much for off the bike as on and used different materials to achieve that.
I would say that there’s nothing clever about it, but that’s not technically true. It is a typical Halvarssons no-nonsense, high tech jacket and beautifully put together, but it doesn’t feel like that to wear. Just a nicely made summer jacket, its weight and suppleness belying the strength of relatively lightweight full grain cowhide backed by the company’s breathable Hi-Art (Hi Abrasion-Resistant Textile) in all the right places.
It doesn’t make it feel any thinner – there’s still some decent bulk to it, especially with the supplied armour in their pockets at elbows and shoulders – but it’s a lot lighter than it looks like it should be. And, of course, it comes with a zip – as do all Jofama group jackets – that will attach to a pair of leather pants from companies in the group (and jeans with their accessory waist zip, that threads onto a belt) to add another level of confidence.
It makes no claims regarding waterproofing, and I can confirm that having been caught in some god-awful 
weather crossing Wyoming on the Indian relaunch, but even having been totally soaked through, it showed no ill effects afterwards – no stiffening or tightening of the leather despite being left untreated – and the only sign of its age is a tear in the distinctive red and blacked chequered lining cotton lining, the only weak point in material terms, where I got overzealous with the stud that holds one of the three inside pockets closed.
An excellent, uncomplicated classic leather jacket, now superseded by a number of new jackets that are starting to incorporate more design features as this market evolves. //Andy