The Clanstone leather motorcycle gloves from Merlin fall in to their Heritage collection that likes to take modern protection features and mix it with classic styling and design. Quite honestly I will start off by saying this is one of the best looking, especially in a more cruiser/vintage/cafe racer style gloves that Merlin makes. I especially like the diamond pattern stitching featured in multiple places on the gloves, and the color options are really all quite nice, but I will give a special shoutout to the sand color as it looks really good and is quite unique. Another nice note about this glove is that though it has plenty of airflow from perforated leather, it is not a short cuff glove, but rather it comes in at more of a mid cuff or almost a high mid cuff.
Overall construction of the Clanstone gloves comes form goat leather that is primarily featured on the upper side of the gloves, with perforated goat leather panels featured all over the other parts of the gloves with additional overlays on the palm to add more comfort and protection. Speaking of protection these gloves are CE Level 1 KP rated and do feature D3O® Knuckle Impact Protectors. Additional features include a hook and loop wrist enclosure, touch screen compatibility on both the index finger and thumb (performing well in our testing with both Android and iPhone devices) as well as pre-curved construction and accordion stretch panels on all four fingers to add additional comfort. Another nice and classic touch is the subtle branding including the embossed Merlin logo on the cuff strap.
Here is the deal, as I mentioned earlier this is one of the best fitting and looking Merlin gloves that I have tried on so far and it really has a great minimal and classic look. There is plenty of leather as well as the D3O® Knuckle Impact Protectors so you are getting a fair bit of protection for the under $90 price point. Personally my usual gripes still apply as I would love to see some hard parts and additional protection at the palm, but overall these are definitely not all show and no protection gloves as they do offer a fair share, especially in the price point. Additionally I will note that these gloves feature external stitching, elevating some of the pain point that I had an issue with when trying one other models of Merlin gloves. Overall I would say if you are looking for a classic and full of style motorcycle gloves feel free to check these out for yourself as they might be just what you are looking for. :: Damir 6/13/24
