Cold Hands!!
I've enjoyed the warmer days we've had this week, and the opportunity I've had to ride to work the past two days. The rides home in the afternoons have been wonderful. However, the early mornings riding into work have been downright cold!! I added a glove layer (thinner glove under my riding glove), but this seems to only delay the initial freezing of the fingers when I first start out. I started looking to what my possibilities are to deal with this, and it looks like I have two options: Hand guards, or electric gloves. Surprisingly, the hand guards are cheaper, and it would be hard for me to justify paying over $100 for a pair of gloves, but those electric ones sure feel nice and toasty. I've ready that hand guards can really help keep down the effects of the wind, and I can tell my hands appreciate each time I have to stop for a red light or stop sign. Has anyone else had experience with either of these two options?
You could achieve the same
You could achieve the same effect as hand guards by using Gore-Tex gloves specifically made for motorcycling. I actually use Gore-Tex ski gloves, and while this is not the smartest idea (as they have no armor/impact protection), they have kept my hands warm in temperatures down to 30 deg F.
I have a pair of Gor-Tex and
I have a pair of Gor-Tex and even though they delay the cold it's not by much. I tend to ride most of the year even into the 20 degree mark. My gloves are the Gore-tex that Alpinestars has and they really aren't up to the task much either. When it gets really cold and I want to ride I just go to Lowe's or Home Depot and grab some of their hand warmers. You know the little packets that look like the "therapeutic warmers" for your back and stuff. Does the job well enough.
The hand guards will work well to as the wind getting through the glove material gets them frosty. However do a mental check while riding about the toastiness of the rest of your body. Remember the outer extremities are sacrificed first when needing to keep the core warm. Meaning you can have all the hand protection in the world, if your body is having the notion that heat needs to be redirected, no glove or warmer is going to stop those fingers from going cold.
****We know yesterday existed because we remember it, the future we can not predict as it has yet to happen, and the moment you say now it becomes the memorable past...so WHEN in time do we exist?****
I forgot about those things
Hey, I forgot about those hand-warming packet things. I even have some already that I forgot about. I'm gonna give those a try. I'm hoping for a riding day to work on Tuesday next week. I work from home on Mondays.
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2004 Suzuki GS500F
Latex/nytrile gloves.
Wear a pair of latex/nytrile glove inside of your winter gloves can prevent the inside of the winter glove getting wet from sweat. If you wear the latex/nytrile gloves inside out that would allow the winter gloves to go on easier.
Hippo Hands
I have also used Hippo Hands
http://www.hippohands.com/
In the very cold weather and long rides, they do better than just handguards, but the ability to remove your hands from the handlebars and open your helmet visor is reduced.
Fieldsheer Scarab
Fieldsheer Scarab gloves
They're the industry standard for cold weather riding gloves.
I had never heard of these so
I had never heard of these so I went looking online. They look similar to my BMG Thermosport gloves and are a similar price. Folks are claiming they keep you warmer longer than the BMGs did for me but maybe they have a higher tolerance for cold than I do. Multiple people are claiming they are not waterproof however, a deal breaker I would think. I hate to consider having wet hands in freezing temperatures. Not nice.
My winter gloves only delay
My winter gloves only delay the cold and adding latex gloves beneath them didn't help much last year. I've now got a set of Hippo Hand like protectors coming (different brand). I figure keeping my gloved hands out of the wind and elements is a much better plan.
Hand guards and heated grips
With these two, I'm good well into the low 30's and even high 20's for fairly short trips (using ski gloves). I have the Cycra Stealth guards, which are pretty inexpensive, and just clamp onto the handlebar. The heated grips I have are the Oxford Heaterz (lockitt.com), and replace your existing grips and wire directly to the battery (with a controller so it doesn't drain the battery should you forget and leave them on).
Heated Grips AND Heated Gloves
I've tried various "Winter Gloves", but they're not much good in winter temperatures; even here in NorCal.
In the coldest days of Winter, I use a combination of inexpensive (~$50 on eBay) Oxford Hot Hands heated grips plus Firstgear Carbon heated gloves. The grips heat the insides of my hand (that the gloves don't) and the gloves heat the backs of my hands (which the grips don't).
The "Hot Hands" just wrap-around your existing grips and secure with Velcro. Very easy to install, waterproof, and can very easily be taken off in the Summer. They do add a little bulk to the grips, but I can live with it.
http://www.webbikeworld.com/r3/heated-motorcycle-grips
The heated gloves are a bit of a pain as you have wires coming from the battery which plug into a "heat-troller" (an extra but necessary expense) in your pocket and from there, the wires run down your sleeves where you plug them into the gloves.
Warm hands in cold weather make your ride much more enjoyable.
Necessary combo
I find that the combination of heated grips and heated gloves definitely complement each other. Here in northern Mass, it helps me push the riding season into late November. Anyway, the grips provide heat to your palms and the gloves accommodate the back of your hands. Installing the wind guards doesn't hurt either. I discovered a great site, http://www.heatedgrips.org , that contrasts all the most popular heated grips on the market.
hand warmers
It's been in the high 40's the past few nights, and I've tried out the hand warmers on my bike. In combination with perf-leather gloves (not optimum I realize) the hand warmers keep things nice and toasty.
Philadelphia, PA
2009 BMW G650GS
Bumping this thread
Last night I broke down and bought myself these: http://stores.sportbiketrackgear.com/Detail.bok?no=2855
And rode home in 40 degree weather. My hands were nice and toasty. Combined with my new Scorpion All-In Leather jacket and Firstgear overpants over a pair of black khakis, I was feeling nice and warm. I tried on 3 different pairs of gloves they had in stock, one of them was by a brand called Pokerun. The Pokerun gloves ran a size small so I had to go up a size to get a good fit. They seemed . . .okay, but were way too thick. There was no "feel" through them, like wrapping your hand in a 1" thick layer of padding.
Also tried on a pair of gloves by Tourmaster. They impressed me. But then he pulled out the Alpinestars. I was sold. They were thinner than the other two yet somehow offered the same degree of warmth/insulation. Felt nice and comfy and didn't eliminate feel like the Pokerun gloves did. Also, they ran true to size.
They're being redesigned for the 2010 model year and the only difference really is a molded knuckle protector on the newer ones.
Wear a pair of latex glove
Wear a pair of latex glove inside of your winter gloves can prevent the inside of the winter glove getting wet from sweat. If you wear the latex gloves inside out that would allow the winter gloves to go on easier.
Liam Planket
keeping hands warm
For me, heated grips are the best solution to keeping hands warmalong with some decent motorcycle thermal clothing to keep core temperature up.