motorcycle light_Sand Pants Review

REV'IT! Sand Pants Review

Background
Like the Rev'it Sand jacket, the new Sand pants are an evolution of the Dakar pants we reviewed a couple of years ago that matched the Off-Track jacket.  The complete Sand outfit is just slightly less feature-rich than the top-of-the-line Rev'it Cayenne Pro system and surely it will crib sales from same -- although the Sand outfit may attract new customers too.

The new Sand jacket and pants should be even more of a hit with Adventure Touring and Touring riders than the Off-Track design. 

motorcycle light news,The pants are definitely styled with the Adventure Touring rider in mind but, like the Sand jacket, there's a lot more than just style here, with ride-tested details that have been developed with owner feedback.

Rev'it Sand Pants - Styling and Exterior Details
The Sand pants in the silver, gray and black colors shown here literally scream "Adventure Touring"; a perfect match for the Sand jacket.  In fact, the pants probably have more of an off-road appearance than the jacket -- at least in the lighter colors.  The Sand pants are also available in black, which mutes the look somewhat and may be preferred by some riders.  It's all up to you...

I picked the lighter color because I think it will work very nicely once the warm weather gets here -- if it ever does!  The comfortable fit and the tailoring of the Sand pants and the jacket make for an excellent all-season pairing.

One of the first things noticed about the silver-colored pants (I'd call it "stone" color) is the black material that contrasts with the light.

The black accordion pleat at the knee is made from the same protective Cordura used in the rest of the pants, which is unusual.  It isn't easy to form an accordion pleat from heavy material like this.  A special type of fabric also lines the inside of the legs, and this area is designed to provide more comfort when sitting or standing on those off-road excursions that require standing up while riding your GS.

The crotch has an extra section of material sewn in to create extra room and this does seem to make a noticeable difference.  The lower legs use the low-effort YKK Vislon zippers and are covered by a large flap that secures with hook-and-loop to the outer pant leg. 

The lower part of the legs feel slightly wider than normal and this is probably to accommodate a big set of off-road boots like the Sidi Crossfire boots (review) or the less extreme Sidi Discovery boots (review).  But there are four sections of hook-and-loop attached to the pant leg, each different lengths from short to long at the cuff.  This allows a huge range of adjustment for the pant leg width.

The combination of the low-effort YKK zipper and wide opening with the large range of adjustment makes the pants easy to put on over boots.

Pockets
Each leg of the Sand pants carries a large cargo pocket and the pockets are easily accessed by a large fold-over flap designed to keep out moisture while providing easy one-handed access.  The pockets also feature dual reflective strips that are bonded to the material without stitches.

The cargo pockets have a secondary pocket underneath with the YKK Vislon zippers placed towards the inside of the rider's leg.  These zippers have long pull tabs and the low-effort Vislon zippers provide easy access to the storage space within.

The pants also have hand pockets on either side, closed with the YKK Vislon low-effort zippers.  The hand pockets are lined with what appears to be water-resistant material.

Armor
The Sand pants Prolife CE armor in the knees, perforated EVA foam in the hips and double material in the seat.  The knee armor is located lower than I'd like, but that's normal for me, so I removed it and use the Bohn Cool-Air Bodyguard armored underpants (review) underneath, as I do with most of my motorcycle riding pants.

Zippers and Snaps
All of the zippers used on the external shell of the Sand pants are the YKK Vislon type, discussed in the Sand jacket review.  These zippers were designed for one-handed ease of use and to work in rough conditions.

Both liners in the Sand pants use YKK Vislon zippers also, in a smaller size than the large, beefy zippers used in the pants shell.  Each liner has a full-length waist zipper and a full-length zipper at the pants cuff; the latter is very unusual and found on high-end pants.  Zippers used in this fashion ensure that the liners will absolutely stay put when the pants are put on or removed, and this is an excellent feature.

One feature that I do think is missing from the Sand pants is a metal hook and loop catch for the waist.  We think all motorcycle pants should have a hook in addition to a snap or other type of closure, because a hook system provides more confidence that the pants will stay on in a crash.

Compare the single snap used on the Sand pants in the upper photo to the hook and snap used on the Firstgear Escape pants in the lower photo.  My suggestion to Rev'it is to be sure to include a hook on every pair of motorcycle pants as an added safety feature.

Water- and Wind-Resistant Liners
Like the Sand jacket, the Sand pants are "4-in-1".  The two liners can be used simultaneously or individually.  So the pants can be worn with no liners; with the water-resistant Hydratex liner only; with the thermal liner only; or with both.

Again, both liners are fitted with their own individual waist and cuff zippers, which is an unusual and highly recommended feature.

The thermal liner does seem thicker than thermal liners used in some previous Rev'it clothing; whether this is really the case or not is open to measurement.  But the dual liners do pose a slight downside, because they take up about a one size difference in bulk, which we think is the cause of the sizing issue discussed below.

Waist and Fit
Once I got the sizing issue resolved and found a size that fit, I was a happy camper.  The waist uses a type of adjustment system very similar to what is found on the Sand jacket.  I do wish that Rev'it used a stretch material in the waist however and I think all motorcycle pants should have stretch material built right into the pants itself.

At least once I found a pair that fit, the waist is slightly oversized, so I can utilize the side adjusters to adjust the fit to my size.  The pants do feel very slightly tight in the hips, about 8" below the belt line, and there could be a touch more vertical room from the belt to the crotch, but otherwise they do fit more comfortably than any other Rev'it pants I've tried and I'll probably say these are about the most perfect fit I'll find off the rack -- notwithstanding the sizing puzzle I'll describe next.

The jacket weighs 2.5 kg (5.5 lbs.) and the pants weigh 1.8 kg (4.0 lbs.) with all liners installed, which makes for a nice lightweight combination.