Strengths: Great fitting waterproof with enourmous vents (kinda needed as it's a very warm jacket). Reflective piping along almost every seam makes it very visible at night. Whole jacket is lined with mesh, so you don't get that sticky sweaty feeling.
Weaknesses: I've had lots of problems with zips jamming, and now one of them has fallen apart - however, I do use it pretty most days riding to work! The fabric isn't really as breathable as Race Face tend to imply (no shocks there then!)
Overall: I would actually buy another one, is spite of the zips!
'GOOD LIGHTING SYSTEM BUT NO GO IF YOU USE WIRELESS KIT'
Strengths: Compact system with a good spread of light, in-the-box helmet mount and handlebar mount. Battery is nice and small, but still gives reasonable run time.
Weaknesses: Quite a lot of dosh. Completely screws up any wireless kit (cordless computers, heart rate monitors etc).
Overall: I'm happy with it - it works well and lets you know how you're going on the battery life. It's bright, easy to use and modular. The interference for heart rate monitors and the like is a pain as I wanted to use it out on training rides in the winter.
Strengths: Amazingly stiff frame (for steel) which rides lighter than the weight implies. Good uphill, great down. Would probably have been described as a freeride bike a couple of years back. The welding is immaculate.
Weaknesses: Rear disc brake mount is very tetchy, the shop ended up getting extra parts from Hope to make it fit. It's a lot of money for steel. The supplied fork came with soft springs (which I'm way too heavy for!)
Overall: Trademark DeKerf seatstay arrangement of three tubes which pierce each other (allegedly so precise it will hold together without welding).
I've not ridden many different bikes and I've only had this a month, so I can't comment too much. It's built on Chris King (hubs), Race Face (most other things), and some Shimano kit with a Judy 100 front fork and Hope XC4 discs - which actually weighs about the same as my 10 year old Trek 8000 which I use for commuting. The handling is spot on (without that floppy feeling you sometimes get with long travel geometries bit not twitchy either), it squirts uphill happily enough and I've never had so much fun going downhill. I don't know if it's the steel aspect, but I also feel it would be comfortable for a long haul. I'm looking forward to getting away from the smoke to try it out on some proper ground. Will write more then. (BTW - I didn't mean to go so overboard on the components, it just sort of escalated away...)
