Motorcycling culture has seen a mild shift, with more and more riders venturing off the beaten path. While there are more affordable made-in-India options for dual-sport gloves, the IXON DIRT AIR gloves aren’t the most expensive ones out there when compared with some offerings from REV’IT, KLIM and Leatt.
The sizing of these IXON gloves is quite precise. They fit a lot better than my Rynox Gravel dual-sport gloves, which are the same size. Initially, the IXON pair felt rather stiff around the hand, but after two weeks of breaking in, they fit with near-surgical precision.
They are constructed from materials such as stretchable NySpan, 3D mesh, leather, and suede-like Amara, which are used strategically in such gloves. Additionally, these gloves conform to CE Level 1, and IXON has equipped them with invisible knuckle shells. There is some foam padding along the palm, but it is not at the same level as you’ll find in proper hard sliders on more road-oriented gloves.
IXON has designed these gloves primarily for summer riding conditions and focused on breathability. Throughout the summer heat, the gloves did a fantastic job with ventilation, surpassing my expectations. However, the flip side of all that ventilation is that your hands will be wet within seconds in rain.
That said, I am happy to report that these DIRT AIR gloves always feel comfortable and tactile. During my off-road adventures, I appreciated the added grip points on the palm, aiding my ability to muscle a heavy ADV up an incline. IXON has also made the index fingers’ tips touchscreen-friendly, which works well as long as your gloves are clean and dry.
The invisible knuckle protection is hidden quite well but can poke your knuckles on the inside. However, this issue has subsided over time, and I don’t find the knuckle protection nearly as annoying anymore. A feature I dearly miss (as it is present in my Rynox Gravel gloves) is the pull loops, which make ingress and egress a lot easier. I often find the top of the cuff folding in and awkwardly attempt to pull it back out each time I put on the glove. Another gripe is the lack of colours; while there are four options, three of them are essentially combinations of black and grey.
At around Rs 6,000, these gloves cost nearly double the money that you would spend on some alternatives from Indian companies, but the quality feels significantly higher. I would recommend these gloves to anyone in the adventure riding scene and in need of something premium, but not excessively expensive.
Where: reisemoto.com
Price: Rs 6,299
