Bibio
06-08-12, 11:32 PM
I noticed embee was selling these in the for sale section. I have wanted a pair of these gloves for ages but just could not justify the RRP in case they were just like all the other brands of gloves that say they are waterproof so when they came up for sale at the price I jumped at the chance. They arrived well packaged from embee and were as described e.g. brand new.
Fitting, like all modern gloves they seem to be way off the mark for sizing. These gloves are sized as 11’s but I would put them as 9.5’s and in old money I would say a medium bordering on large in fact they are about the same as my Exo2 heated gloves which are a medium but the Apollo’s have long fingers which is perfect for me so try before you buy. A small word on glove fitting, to tight a glove can cause numbness and pins’n’needles if the tips of your fingers have got constant pressure on them.
Feel & Construction, I would say the feel is between a summer and winter glove and I think they would get a bit sweaty in really hot days. The lining is stitched in and doesn’t come out when you take your hands out which is nice. With having the Rukka label on them you would expect them to be of high quality and construction, well I’m pleased to say that they are fantastic with no loose threads or miss-stitching anywhere. The leather is soft and supple but thick due to it being a bonded leather and Goretex construction and should last. There are knuckle protectors which have been bonded underneath the leather along with small pads on the fingers except for the index finger which has a rubber ‘plate’ stitched on the top the smaller pads are bonded under the leather all of which have been covered with padding inside the glove there is also a scaphoid carbon pad that is in the correct place and does not interfere with the grip on the bars. The wrist strap is plenty long enough and in the correct place which is not above the thumb but on the wrist. The cuff is nice and long, not to bulky with a good opening that can be adjusted using the leather covered Velcro flap and should satisfy both over and under jacket brigade.
Detailing, there are reflective bars on all the fingers (excluding the thumb) this also includes the rubber Rukka logo on the index fingers along with a stripe along the opening on the top of the glove above the knuckle guard, this opening is a pocket that has expanding material which is leather at the top and fabric (I assume Goretex) on the inside which goes all the way to just above the fingers. I personally don’t like these pockets as they are a potential water trap and would instead like to have seen expanders at the tops of the fingers and above the knuckle guards. There is a visor wipe on the left thumb and is about as much use as a chocolate fire poker so again I would like to see Rukka remove this and instead put one all the way along the index finger or leave it off altogether or make it a decent size to be of use.
Waterproofing, after a 300 mile ride in mixed weather ranging from warm sunny to monsoon type rain I can confirm that for once the advertising is true. These gloves are indeed waterproof. While out on the maiden voyage ride of these gloves I got caught in some horrendous downpours that lasted around 30-40 minuets each but the gloves stayed dry as a bone and the only time they got damp was when I put wet hands back in them after stopping.
Now that I own a pair would I have paid the full £169.99 RRP for these? At the moment I can say hand on heart that I would and as long as they stay waterproof and in one piece for a few seasons then I would say they are worth every penny. I’ll update this review after a few thousand miles to see just how they cope with our British weather.
embee sent me a PM saying that he got a larger pair from HERE (http://biker-land.de/Motorcycle-Clothing/Rukka/Rukka-Gloves/Rukka-APOLLO-Gore-Tex-X-Trafit-gloves.html) for the princely sum of £106 delivered at the current exchange rate.
http://www.rukka.com/mxl-fashion/rukkawww.nsf/pages/en_mc_products.html?OpenDocument&Cat=2_1
Lance
Fitting, like all modern gloves they seem to be way off the mark for sizing. These gloves are sized as 11’s but I would put them as 9.5’s and in old money I would say a medium bordering on large in fact they are about the same as my Exo2 heated gloves which are a medium but the Apollo’s have long fingers which is perfect for me so try before you buy. A small word on glove fitting, to tight a glove can cause numbness and pins’n’needles if the tips of your fingers have got constant pressure on them.
Feel & Construction, I would say the feel is between a summer and winter glove and I think they would get a bit sweaty in really hot days. The lining is stitched in and doesn’t come out when you take your hands out which is nice. With having the Rukka label on them you would expect them to be of high quality and construction, well I’m pleased to say that they are fantastic with no loose threads or miss-stitching anywhere. The leather is soft and supple but thick due to it being a bonded leather and Goretex construction and should last. There are knuckle protectors which have been bonded underneath the leather along with small pads on the fingers except for the index finger which has a rubber ‘plate’ stitched on the top the smaller pads are bonded under the leather all of which have been covered with padding inside the glove there is also a scaphoid carbon pad that is in the correct place and does not interfere with the grip on the bars. The wrist strap is plenty long enough and in the correct place which is not above the thumb but on the wrist. The cuff is nice and long, not to bulky with a good opening that can be adjusted using the leather covered Velcro flap and should satisfy both over and under jacket brigade.
Detailing, there are reflective bars on all the fingers (excluding the thumb) this also includes the rubber Rukka logo on the index fingers along with a stripe along the opening on the top of the glove above the knuckle guard, this opening is a pocket that has expanding material which is leather at the top and fabric (I assume Goretex) on the inside which goes all the way to just above the fingers. I personally don’t like these pockets as they are a potential water trap and would instead like to have seen expanders at the tops of the fingers and above the knuckle guards. There is a visor wipe on the left thumb and is about as much use as a chocolate fire poker so again I would like to see Rukka remove this and instead put one all the way along the index finger or leave it off altogether or make it a decent size to be of use.
Waterproofing, after a 300 mile ride in mixed weather ranging from warm sunny to monsoon type rain I can confirm that for once the advertising is true. These gloves are indeed waterproof. While out on the maiden voyage ride of these gloves I got caught in some horrendous downpours that lasted around 30-40 minuets each but the gloves stayed dry as a bone and the only time they got damp was when I put wet hands back in them after stopping.
Now that I own a pair would I have paid the full £169.99 RRP for these? At the moment I can say hand on heart that I would and as long as they stay waterproof and in one piece for a few seasons then I would say they are worth every penny. I’ll update this review after a few thousand miles to see just how they cope with our British weather.
embee sent me a PM saying that he got a larger pair from HERE (http://biker-land.de/Motorcycle-Clothing/Rukka/Rukka-Gloves/Rukka-APOLLO-Gore-Tex-X-Trafit-gloves.html) for the princely sum of £106 delivered at the current exchange rate.
http://www.rukka.com/mxl-fashion/rukkawww.nsf/pages/en_mc_products.html?OpenDocument&Cat=2_1
Lance