Jett Battery Heated Vest Review

Eric Bass
by Eric Bass

Heated vests are nothing new. In fact, battery-tethered vests, socks, gloves, etc. have been a cool-weather staple of wussified girlyman motorcycle riders for years. Oh sure they keep you warm and comfortable, and enhance both your enjoyment of the riding experience, and your safety due to improved concentration. But in doing so, they rob you of the seminal character building experience of forging ahead through miles of Mother Nature’s fiercest wrath while chattering teeth grit hard against the elements. Until a man has spat into the wind and had it come back at his face as a snowball, until he’s heard the angelic wind chime-like timpani of icicles rattling in his armpit hair, until he’s tasted the salty slimy suffering of un-reachable boogers dripping down into his mouth, can he truly call himself a man.

Fair reader, I think not!

So at this point you’re probably saying to yourself, “Well then tell me, Mr. More-Hardcore-Than-Thou Survivor-man, why am I reading, what I assumed until now, was your test and review of a Jett heated vest?!” Amigo, that is a 100 percent valid question, and of course, I have a 100 percent dumb-ass answer for you. Ever since I was a kid I was always obsessed by those completely-off-the“cool-o-meter” rocket powered “jet vests” that military flyboys would use to magically float down onto the 50-yard line of the Super Bowl.

Motorcycle.com doesn’t typically employ felons, but, hey, times are tight! This criminal-looking character is wearing the Jett Battery Heated Vest, a quality product not associated with criminals.
The primary heating element is located in the back of the vest. EBass sez it works wonderfully.

You can imagine my stunned disappointment at tearing into the suspiciously under-sized package that arrived at my doorstep, to find that the “jet vest” that I thought I had ordered, turned out to be a lowly heated vest made by a company called “Jett.” Now I have to confess, I found that this self-contained space heater dealio is a heckuva well thought-out piece of kit. That is, for any folks out there who are, into that sort of thing. The heating element itself runs along your spine and shoots far infrared (FIR) energy into your back meat. Jett’s website claims that this not only feels good (which I’ll vouch for), but that it’s good for you as well (which I won’t). Turning on the vest feels almost as nice as wiping your face with one of those hot moist towelettes they give you at fancy sushi bars to help you mellow out before you chow down , except it isn’t moist, and it’s on your back, and nobody shows up to bring you food afterwards. Pity.

The Jett vest comes with a three-step thermostat controller that pokes out from beneath your jacket to let you customize your confines to temps of 104, 122, or 140 degrees. Now, after years of cultivating a carefully sculpted insulating layer of adipose tissue, I found that my well-marbled physique never required more than the 122 degree setting, but individual results may vary. Rest assured though, you can forget all about the conventional wisdom that says Lithium batteries don’t generate enough heat relative to tethered systems. I’m here to tell ya’ that 140 degrees worth of FIR is more than enough to defrost the knobby bones of even the most blubber-impaired rider.

The Jett vest’s battery stores all the power you’re likely to need, generating a total output of 14.8 volts (30 Watts) and holding a charge that lasts 4-8 hours depending on the heat setting. The power pack is somewhat bulky and tips the scale at just over half a pound, so it ain’t like stuffing a couple AA’s in your pocket. It fits snugly into a Velcro pouch near the hip, which necessitates a bit of shuffling to settle ergonomically in a tuck position, but not a big deal. According to Jett, the batteries are made of soft poly materials, and allegedly won’t overheat or explode, even when impacted or submerged. In fact, the entire vest is waterproof and even washable with the battery removed.

Since the Jett vest doesn’t require a harness to your motorcycle battery, you’re free to use it anywhere you go, making it a more versatile and useful investment of your hard earned dinero. It also eliminates the need for uncomfortable bulky garments while riding. A long-sleeve winter thermal shirt and the Jett heated vest are really all you’ll need for most riding conditions.

So there you go - while it may not aid in your character development, or goose you onto the 50-yard line of the Super Bowl, the Jett Battery Heated Vest will at least obviate the need to plug into an electrical IV drip every time you saddle up like some drooling geezer on life support. And until I can get my hands on one of those high flyin’ hydrogen peroxide fueled Buck Rogers jobs, that’s just gonna have to be good enough for now.

The Jett Battery Heated Vest retails for $220.00 and is available in sizes XS to 4XL.

For more information on the Jett heated vest, visit the official site.

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Eric Bass
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