Leatt's Jacket MTB Trail 3.0 jacket is an excellent cold-weather option. It's well-insulated to keep you warm when the temperature plummets while remaining reasonably breathable. It fends off rain impressively well and suits casual wear, making it a worthy consideration in the best MTB jacket category.
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Leatt Jacket MTB Trail 3.0 - Technical details
The Jacket MTB Trail 3.0 is a new addition to Leatt’s jacket range, filling the gap for a cold-weather specific garment. It gets a front panel that’s quilted and insulated to keep you warm as you pedal towards the cold. The rest of the jacket is completely uninsulated for a number of reasons but mainly to encourage good thermoregulation so things don’t get too hot or moist under the collar.
> Buy now: Leatt MTB Trail 3.0 insulated jacket from Wiggle for £159.99
Then to keep the jacket from completely overheating, it’s built with a ClimbVent, which is a rather fancy way of saying ‘strap and popper’. It keeps the front together, even when the zip is completely open allowing air to make its way into the jacket but stopping the front panels from flapping about.
Each panel is rated to 5000/5000 waterproofing to breathability, which is great to see on a cold weather jacket such as this one. While it’s not the highest waterproof rating, it’s more than enough to keep the water out during those sudden rainy spells, or brushes against damp foliage.
Like many of the brand’s jackets, the MTB Trail 3.0 benefits from Leatt’s Ride Adaptive Hood system, which adds even more weather protection. The hood can fit over a helmet and can be secured by making use of the array of magnets built into the hood, in tandem with an additional magnet that sticks to your helmet.
This hood can be set up in four configurations to help tailor its weather protection. It can be left completely open, offering a bit of airflow to the chest but then its front ‘wings’ (for lack of a better term) can be closed up thanks to a couple of poppers. This keeps the felt front of the collar dry and the wings out of the way. The collar can then be zipped up to cover up to the chin to increase weather protection along with the hood.
Elsewhere, there are two hand warmer pockets, a chest pocket as well as adjustments hidden inside of the jacket and a non-slip lower hem. The rear of the jacket is dropped, too.
Leatt Jacket MTB Trail 3.0 - Fit
It’s really tough to find fault with the MTB Jacket 3.0’s fit. I usually wear a medium jacket and Leatt’s right on the money with this one. The arms are long enough for off-the-back-of-the-bike shenanigans and the rear panel is lengthy enough to keep spray and other nastiness from flinging its way up your back.
An area where many jackets fall flat is the hood and Leatt’s experience in designing a good hood certainly shows here. Having worn it over the Troy Lee Designs A3, Leatt AllMtn 1.0 and POC Kortal helmets, I’ve never found an issue. In fact, the hood’s been so secure that I’ve not needed to install the stick-on magnet either. It’s adaptable and comfortable no matter how you wear it and the best bit - thanks to a collection of magnets - is that it stays put when not in use.
Leatt Jacket MTB Trail 3.0 - Performance
Performance-wise, the MTB Trail 3.0 jacket is mighty impressive. I’ve worn it in negative temperatures up to around 8°C and because the jacket is so adaptable thanks to some thoughtful layering on my part, it’s stayed perfectly comfortable. It can accumulate some moisture inside but that’s expected and never really feels horrifically damp. That’s thanks to the mesh interior and well-considered insulation placement.
There has been a climb or two where I’ve had to employ the ClimbVent and, while simple, it’s a surprisingly useful addition. It creates a big ol’ vent at the front of the jacket that lets a modest amount of air through but without dumping all of the warm insulated air. So where I’ve got a little toasty and opened it up on some properly cold days, with ClimbVent I’ve never got too cold.
With full waterproof jackets boasting 30,000mm water resistance ratings this jacket’s 5,000 looks comparatively meagre on paper. Out on the trail, however, it’s more than enough, unless you’re looking at pedalling through storms. I’ve ridden through light to mid-level downpours and I’ve kept dry, and warm. Though, it would be great to see some kind of storm cuff, as seen on Leatt’s DBX 5.0 (now called MTB AllMtn 5.0) jacket. This will make space for winter gloves that typically come with longer cuffs to slip under the collar for better weather protection.
The jacket’s low-key styling is to be applauded as I’ve been able to use it comfortably as a casual coat while benefitting from the useful insulation and waterproofing. Though on colder days I have had to layer with a hoody.
Because the MTB Trail 3.0 jacket is insulated, it’s best suited for temperatures below eight degrees. So if you’re night riding in the UK, or hell-bent on riding through the odd cold snap it’s an excellent winter warmer.
Leatt Jacket MTB Trail 3.0 - Verdict
The Leatt MTB Trail 3.0’s £160 price tag puts it at a very competitive price point as it’s thrust right into competition with the Endura MT500 Freezing Point jacket. However, Endura’s offering isn’t marketed as waterproof and only gets a DWR coating, so it’s likely that it won’t perform in the rain as well as the MTB Trail 3.0.
There’s also Fox’s Ranger Windblock Fire jacket priced at £220. This one doesn’t get a hood or any ventilation but does get fancy Polartech and Windbloc tech.
There's also the Albion Zoa insulated jacket that Matt tested. Though he had niggles with the fit and the uninsulated hand pockets. That one will set you back £185, £25 more than Leatt's offering.
If you’re after a flexible and adaptable winter warmer, you won't go wrong with the Leatt Jacket MTB 3.0. It’s comfortable, thoughtfully insulated and waterproof enough for any ride where the temperature drops. The only minor gripe I’ve stumbled across is the lack of storm cuffs.
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