Review: Royal Enfield x Alpinestar riding gloves

The Royal Enfield riding gear juggernaut appears to be unstoppable.

BHPian neil.jericho recently shared this with other enthusiasts.

I find it quite surprising that Royal Enfield's marketing machine has failed to capitalize on the launch of their co-branded Alpinestars products. It is a rare miss from the company's side.

Yesterday, I dropped into the friendly Royal Enfield company store to check out the RE x Alpinestar gloves.

RE x Alpinestar SMX1 V2 Air Summer Gloves

When I try out different gloves, it usually takes me less than 5 seconds, to know whether I like them or not. As soon as I tried this on, I knew that I liked it. This pair fits me perfectly! The fit and finish are good. The gloves are CE level 1 certified. If you ride a non-Royal Enfield motorcycle and cant be seen wearing something with their branding, get yourself the full black pair, as the RE logo is barely visible.

Best of all, the gloves cost only Rs 5,200. Considering the iffy quality of many of the Indian riding gear brands, I think this is going to be one of the top choices for gloves in the Rs 5K price range.

I am a full gauntlets glove guy. That's the only reason that I didn't buy this pair of gloves for myself. Nonetheless, the RE A* SMX1 V2 Air summer gloves get my seal of approval. If you're buying yourself a pair of good gloves, you have to try this option before you make a final decision and swipe your card.

RE x Alpinestar Syncro Drystar Gloves

I am on the lookout for a pair of good waterproof full gauntlet gloves. I was excited to try this out. An affordable Alpinestar waterproof glove sounded like it was exactly what I wanted. Unfortunately, it was too good to be true. The length of each finger was too long. The palm area folded easily when I scrunched up my hand. It felt like a baggy fit pair of jeans. Fit and finish can vary from person to person, so your mileage may vary. I was left disappointed by these Syncro Drystar gloves.

Later, while browsing through the Royal Enfield website, I found two (new?) options for waterproof gloves, that seem to be even more promising than these Syncro Drystar gloves:

• Blizzard gloves
• Heated gloves

I am genuinely surprised to see an Indian company offering heated gloves. That too at an affordable price. It will probably sell better outside India than it will over here. At the end of the day, the company is offering an unbeatable variety of choices to Indian customers. For all of us, that is a big win.

The Royal Enfield riding gear juggernaut appears to be unstoppable.

Here's what BHPian thebengalee had to say on the matter:

Boy, you're not exaggerating. Tried out the Synchro Drystar in the back room of the showroom; while it was snug at the palm, the middle finger of the glove had room for an additional knuckle! This glove must be designed for pianists or surgeons, not us regular joes. Protection also was a bit lacking IMHO. My disappointment was immeasurable and my day was ruined.

Here's what BHPian Urban_Nomad had to say on the matter:

It's the same with SMX Air. It's a rather expensive glove that's not half as protective as the Viaterra short gloves that actually come with Knox palm sliders too. 5k plus for even the SMX gloves is too much for a basic leather mesh hybrid glove.

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