In simplest terms, it is the nature of each material used in each garment that dictates how well it will perform on the abrasions tests for CE certification. The Woodsman IR materials are inherently more robust. They are thicker, heavier and perform better due to the larger volume of material available when it hits the dirt (or more accurately, the pavement). With this strong advantage at the foundation of the design, the Woodsman IR gained a higher rating.
When it comes to the Basilisk, the story is a little deeper. We see the addition of armor to the Basilisk kit as an evolution of a well tested and trusted design. Our goal was to add integrated and removable armor to this flagship kit while staying true to it's roots as a nimble offroad-centric ADV kit. With the IR version we celebrate the removable aspect of IR (integrated/removable) armor, ensuring that it remain just as packable when used with standalone armor. While the Basilisk does boast Superfabric panels that exceed AA abrasion standards in Zone 1 (shoulders/elbows) the main body material (zone 2) could only qualify for A certification. With 5 years of experience in this material, (including 1000s of miles and customer crash reports on and off-road) we deemed this material more than up for the job. We elected to take the lower rating rather than change the material, increase the weight, packed size and completely change the garment. Certified as CE A rated garment the Basilisk is a "dirt first" ADV kit that stays true to its roots as a light nimble all season enduro-touring kit for trips through primarily off-road terrain.