I own a yellow Firstgear Contour Mesh jacket that I have worn for two summers. If you live in a warm climate and intend to wear full gear when riding a mesh jacket is essential. A mesh jacket allows more airflow and breeze than a textile jacket while still holding armor over the crucial places and provides some abrasion resistance.
Quality
I found the Firstgear Contour Mesh jacket to be of higher quality than other mesh jackets I have worn. I have had other mesh jackets that were really a mesh material and felt like they would tear in an accident. The Firstgear Contour Mesh seems more like a regular textile jacket with hundreds of little air holes in the material. I feel much more confident wearing this style of mesh jacket.
Armor
This jacket comes with your standard CE armor over the elbows and shoulders. It is good quality armor and I feel it would stand up well in a crash. The weak point of this jacket is the back armor. Like most Firstgear jackets the back is simply a think piece of foam. I do not think this is sufficient protection.
As you can see the jacket is a snug fit and sits at the waist.
Fit
This jacket fits on the smaller side. It is especially small in the length. I am average height and believe I have an average sized torso for my height. The bottom of the jacket sits above my hips. I prefer a jacket which comes to my hips, especially if I am wearing lower rise pants. If you were to wear low rise pants with this jacket you would expose skin in the back.
Rain
The jacket does come with a rain liner. It is your typical plastic feeling rain liner that does not breathe. I find if it is hot enough for a mesh jacket you will just sweat to death in the liner.
Conclusion
This is a good quality summer mesh jacket. The material is high quality and will withstand some abrasions. The weak point is the back armor, which can be switched out for a true CE back armor insert. When shopping for a mesh jacket you should be realistic that this for the hottest days of the year and not intended to be a versatile rain or multi-season jacket.
