"I’m rarely so conflicted about a product as I am about the Richa Camden jacket"

7

The Richa Camden is a cool, retro-styled leather jacket with a classic cut that looks as good at the bar as it does riding to it. It’s fairly thin and has two chest vents so it’s ideal for warmer weather but will need an additional mid-layer or a thick jumper to get you through colder spring or autumn days. 

I’m rarely so conflicted about a product as I am about the Richa Camden jacket. On the face of it, it’s a solid piece of kit that captures the aesthetic of the North Circular café scene. The build quality is excellent, too, with chunky zips, reassuringly stiff snap fasteners and not a stitch out of place. 

The trouble is, I wouldn’t spend £350 on a leather jacket with a AA CE certification these days, no matter how pretty it is. There are simply too many AAA options out there available for around, or even below this price for the purchase to make sense. That said, if you like the look of the Camden and you’re not so safety-conscious, or you rarely leave the confines of the city, then you certainly won’t be disappointed with the look, feel and quality of it. 

How comfortable is the Richa Camden?

It’s not just the Camden’s aesthetic that makes it look appropriate on so many different types of bike. The cut is roomy enough to reach the bars comfortably in all but the most extreme riding positions and there’s a short zip connector at the back to save you any blushes from exposing your ‘lower back’ on a sportsbike (you’ll need something to zip it to, of course).

Riding anything with extreme clip-ons will start to restrict blood flow, though, as it doesn’t have the arms-forward cut of a sportier jacket causing restriction at the shoulders. 

The cotton lining is much nicer against your skin than the polyester mesh you so often get in leather jackets, which is a good thing because I’m more likely to wear the Camden over a T-shirt in the summer than a base layer. 

I like the way the D3O armour supplied moulds around your joints and stays put as you move around, and it’s one of those jackets that allows you to forget about the armour altogether once you’ve bedded it in (which happens after a few long rides). 

Is the Richa Camden a practical jacket?

A thin leather jacket will rarely score well on the practicality front, but the Camden has two outer and two inner pockets (one of the inner ones is specifically phone-shaped, too). 

The two vents on the chest are also a welcome addition in peak summer, this is a feature I wouldn’t necessarily expect on a jacket of this type. I like that they use the same chunky zips as the pockets to keep the aesthetic going. 

There’s no waterproofing or resistance, which is pretty standard for this type of jacket, but there’s also no option for any kind of zip-in thermal liner – which you do get with some competitors. 

Is it a good looking jacket?

There’s a lot to like about the Camden but the looks are front and centre. That double-breasted zip arrangement, ribbed shoulder stitching and wrap-around collar absolutely nail the retro brief but without feeling over-egged or try-hard. This jacket would be equally at home on a modern naked, a retro or a genuine classic – it puts me in mind of the jacket my dad wore on his Honda CB400 Four. 

I don’t think it would look out of place on a tarmac-based adventure bike or a fairly relaxed sportsbike, either, because the looks are subtle and timeless enough to get away with it. A proper superbike or supersport might be a challenge but that’s because of the cut, rather than the looks. 

What’s the quality of the Richa Camden like?

The Camden feels well-constructed and sturdy and, aside from the bug splats, it still looks new after a couple of thousand miles. I’ve knocked a star off because the leather isn’t as plush as on other jackets I’ve tested, but that has no bearing on the functionality or overall look. 

The zips are all big and bold with a smooth action that feels like it won’t go wrong for many, many miles and years of use. Maybe it’s the similarity to my own hand-me-down leather jacket I started with (from the back of my dad’s wardrobe) but I can imagine the Camden being kept long after a bike is sold and then dusted off and handed to the next generation. 

Does the Richa Camden offer good protection?

The standard D3O shoulder and elbow armour (level 1) is very comfortable, not too bulky and stays in place well as you move around. There’s a back protector pocket but no item included (another gripe of mine) so I popped an Oxford level 2 one in, and it fits perfectly. Additional Velcro strips inside the pocket mean it’ll also hold a narrower protector in place if that’s what you have/choose, which is a nice touch. 

The pocket is designed to take Richa’s own Viper protector (£44.99 Level 1, £49.99 Level 2) or their central D3O option (Level 1, £39.99) using the velcro adjusters. It’s a fairly standard protector shape, though, and so you may find you can swap something in from another jacket like I did. 

Ultimately, the level of protection is the Camden’s biggest stumbling block for me. I do the vast majority of my riding in national speed limits and so I prefer to wear kit with the highest level of CE certification possible. I’m more than willing to compromise in some circumstances – textile adventure kit designed for impact protection and coolness over abrasion or short boots/gloves in the summer – but I can’t see why a leather jacket wouldn’t be certified to AAA. Or, if not, why it costs as much as a garment that does. Which brings me onto… 

Is it good value for money?

At £350, we’re not talking about an eye-watering price tag, but the Camden still costs more than I’d want to pay for a AA certified jacket. Yes, it looks good and feels nicely made, but it doesn’t feel luxurious enough to demand a premium. 

That said, Rev’It charge £419.99 for their own AA Restless jacket, so the Richa certainly isn’t the most expensive option out there. But there are cheaper AA, retro, leather jackets on the market from the likes of Merlin, Oxford, RST, DXR, Rebelhorn… 

If you’re willing to pay a premium for the brand name, then you won’t be disappointed with the quality of the Richa, and it’s actually cheaper than AA options from the likes of Spidi, Held and Furygan. 

My biggest problem is that, worn back-to-back with the AAA certified Gold Top 619 jacket I reviewed a few weeks ago, there is a gulf in luxuriousness that far exceeds the mere £70 in price difference. In that comparison, the Richa begins to look very expensive indeed. 

So what’s the final verdict?

Like I said at the start, I’m in two minds about the Richa Camden. It’s a fabulous bit of kit in almost every way, let down by a CE certification that doesn’t live up to the price for me – even when you account for the retro kit premium and a strong brand name. 

For wafting to the pub or across town on a sunny day or pootling along on a small-capacity classic or retro bike, the Richa would be an ideal option and, despite being expensive for what you get, it’s not going to break the bank. 

If, like me, you do most of your riding on faster roads and you want the added security of a AAA certification then you should look elsewhere. 

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