Kona Primo 2 in 1 jacket review

I needed to buy a jacket 12 months ago as I'd pretty much worn out my Altura Attitude. Being inherently frugal, despite substantial staff discounts, I was looking at spending no more than £100. I wanted a lightweight, water proofish qualities, breathable and fairly hard wearing (I fall off quite a bit) cycle jacket. I had no real brand preferences. When shopping I found the Kona Primo ticked all those boxes and more but for far less - just £54.99 SRP. At first I honestly thought it's either a price error or the thing will last two months. Not at all.

I've used it for over a year now and washed it plenty of times so let's see what's good and bad about my jacket. Bad first because there isn't much:

- the neck is quite narrow. Whilst this stops a draft hitting your chest it can be too restrictive even for a skinny guy like me;
- if the neck is open a couple of inches the top is a bit rough and will need adjusting from time to time;
- it's lightweightedness (oops, no such word) means I often underestimate my layering and go overboard with a fleece (obviously my flaw, not the jacket's).

What's great:

- the arms come off. This means I use it with long sleeved base layer and go running in it in winter;
- the sleeves have thumb loops which give extra draft protection (good if not wearing gloves);
- lightweight. Not roll up into the size of an apple but definitely fit into my Camelbak Mule;
- there's enough pocket storage for on and off bike stuff;
- it's extremely cheap with loads of bang for buck;
- it's not too cycling specific (loads of drop back) to be geeky. I've worn it to the rugby a few times.

I also want to try and see the difference with a more expensive jacket, perhaps the Gore ALP-X but don't have the cash at the mo (hint hint boss - long term test/blag). But all-in-all the Kona Primo could well be the best value jacket on the market and it will certainly last me another winter in Afan.