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Gore soft shell thermal gloves are fantastically breathable for the warmth, I almost never get the ‘sweaty gloves cooling down’ problem. They don’t like the rain though, get them wet and they stop being warm. The gore tex versions sacrifice a little breathability for waterproofing. The downside is they’re big, so you more or less have to pick one set- the flexibility from the dissents is about the only thing tempting me away from replacing like with like now my gore softshells are wearing out.
(I’m prepared to spend the money on gloves that work for me- I long ago found that the one thing that really makes me stop enjoying riding in bad conditions is cold and wet hands. Ride for hours without being able to feel my feet but cold fingers and I get bad tempered fast).
Too good for mtb but the Galibier Elysee leather gloves are a thing of loveliness and an aboutsolute bargain at £38
Their Grip VTT gloves were a real disappointment though. Complete mesh back which catches on every bit of velcro and really isn't up to crasing through undergrowth on a mtb. More than that the fingers on mine seem twisted. They were only £14 so can't complain too much but I'd not buy another pair.
These flashed up at me the other day and have lots of interesting features but I can't work out how warm they'd be, if they're in any way waterproof (that's the point of their overshoes) - and they're pricy. But the long cuffs, lobster when you need it etc all look smart.
https://www.spatzwear.com/products/spatz-glovz-race-gloves-with-hidden-wind-blocking-layer-glovz
I thought about doing something like those Spatz gloves with current Pearl Izumi winter gloves (which are really comfy, but I get cold fingers when it's *very* cold) and the 'claws' from my P-X lobster gloves (which I never thought were very comfortable and are just sitting in the cupboard)
Spesh Element 2.0
Semi lobster.
They don’t like the rain though, get them wet and they stop being warm. The gore tex versions sacrifice a little breathability for waterproofing.
My experience of mountain bike Gore-Tex gloves is that the way the construction works - outer shell / floating Gore-Tex liner / insulation plus inner, is that there's enough movement within the glove to make them really disconcerting when you're gripping the bars - like a motorcycle throttle with movement between the layers of the glove. I have an old, virtually unused pair of Gore Bikewear gloves that fit and feel great until you actually try riding with them.
There is a technology used in some Gore-Tex ski gloves which bonds the Gore-Tex liner to the other layers of the glove, but I've not seen it used for bike gloves. OutDry-lined gloves, if you can find them, work better ime.
waiting on a pair of fox fire defend to come from CRC.. see how they are at the wekeend, although was confused by sizing so might be a no go
Summer mitts when it’s chilly, pogies when it’s bitter.
Can’t understand the attraction of winter/waterproof/full-finger gloves over pogies tbh.
I made a mental PITA list from each option (after two years of trying both) and go with the option that has the shortest list 🤣
Gloves:
PITA to get off and back on if wet, or hot, or tight etc
PITA finding places to put in dark when taking off to do stuff
PITA when want to touch things, operate things, retrieve money, tools, etc etc etc.
PITA get sweaty and stinky need washing and drying
PITA make bar-grips effectively much wider and then get numbness
Pogies:
PITA very occasionally when too hot on long climb and have to take hands out and on top of pogies which is harder to do on a technical climb.
PITA checking for spiders before using 😬
Pogies win, and some. I like the Cyglove one because it has (accidental?) vents which are handy as I tend to run warm
If it gets too biting out (rare) I can either double up with thin summer race mitts or sew velcro closure strips on. Better IMO than having no vents
Not so much a recommendation,more an observation. I have a set of assos early winter gloves. Gabba and arm warmers good to about 6degrees. With the Mille Gt jacket they are ok to about 2 degrees.
Dissent 133 glove pack. Spot on.
I personally find any glove with a w/p membrane causes dampness inside if working hard which goes cold during any stops leading to a chilly ride afterwards . The best gloves solution if your hands do sweat is a warm windproof glove with fleece lining which dries rapidly ala buffalo stuff. I carry a pair of army goretex? mitten shells which go on top during rain and are still fine to shift with. I've often thought that if you have a big ride ahead in very cold conditions you could treat your hands the night before ( and feet?) with Odaban or similar which stops sweating very effectively. In that way you could use the w/p glove without the damp chill issue.
If anyone is interested in what looks to be suitable glove without the boil in a bag problem the Extremities Super Windy glove by Terra Nova is currently on sale on their website ..down to £12 from £45. I've also heard good reports on the Montane Extreme but that's nearly £50.
If it is really cold I use aldi/lidl padded insulated gloves. Most of the winter time even when it is cold I use normal dakine gloves.
BadlyWiredDog, I can’t say that’s something I’ve noticed being much of a problem with mine. There’s some movement, but once you’re holding onto the bars you don’t notice.
100% brisker are great until you get them wet, go for hydromatic brisker.
Re the Aldi gloves..I think the design is different between different years.I have one pair that feel awful as BWD says ...the inner slides about independent of the outer creating a horrible feeling.I also didn't find them particularly warm .On a bitter day in the blackdown hills hands were soon uncomfortable.I saw another pair recently with "biking" on the back and they seemed to have a better construction with no slippy/slidey feel.
I've got some of the Aldi gloves and they are superb. They are a few years old though so as above, perhaps the design has been mucked about with or they frequently change supplier to get them as cheap as possible.
Mine have the fleece liner stitched in so it doesn't come out when you take your hand out. I had some Endura ones before that didn't have the liners stitched in and it's bloody annoying trying to get your hand back in afterwards. Anyway mine were £5 and have been my go-to gloves for anything around freezing or below. Much above that and they soon get very sweaty.
Pogies on the fatbike, they're ace, and thematically appropriate.
I love my Glacier Perfect Curves though. 100% waterpoof, and warmer than any other bike glove I've ever used. I have slightly poor circulation- been a diabetic for 34 years, it's probably that- and even the gloves that everyone else says are super warm, barely keep me functional. But these almost always keep my fingers not just working but comfortable and dextrous.
They do get sweaty, and they make your hands smell like they've been inside something really awful, which they possibly have. And the fat neoprene feels odd on the grips- I get used to it, I'm sure some people would hate it though.
I've got some Sports direct karrimor liners. They are about £4. Add them to any glove to add a layer of warmth.
Yeah, I wear some Polaris liners under Aldi winter gloves when it's below zero. Total cost about £13 and they actually feel OK for techy riding.
I too suffer from cold hands, and anything below 10C and I'll be using my 3/4 season gloves whilst others are still on summer gloves. For below 5C I use work safety gloves. Currently on these, although bought at end of last winter, so not really had much opportunity to test:
https://www.safetygloves.co.uk/ejendals-tegera-295-waterproof-thermal-work-gloves.html
Only a tenner, so worth a punt.
I find my fingers suffer worst ont he first climb. Once I hit the downhills, and more tech bits, my hands will warm enough. I can imagine me using lobster gloves or mitts if I did road riding.
Just bought some of these to try on...
https://www.wiggle.co.uk/castelli-estremo-winter-cycling-gloves/
Pretty thick insulation, can see these being pretty warm...
I have a range of Aldi and Lidl winter gloves. They vary over the years. Galibier is a similar warmth but better quality
Also have some Aldi neoprene ones, not a fan. Anyone want to try them?
Lobster ones without inner fingers work really well, thoug( inlos5 9ne and my current ones have the inner fingers
Pogies on the MTB are ace. Don’t have any on my drop bar commuter, wouldn’t work well with my bar end shifter.
My full selection is as follows:
Coldest (I.e. sub zero) - Specialized lobsters. These came with a separate liner glove but I've never yet had to use it.
Cold (freezing to about 5 degrees) - Galibiers
Bit milder - some Gore windstopper gloves, also just picked up some Pactimo Alpine gloves in their Black Friday sale.
Just too cold for mitts - some non windproof Pactimo gloves that are a Powerstretch type fabric.
Wet - neoprene.
I have a pair of those Castelli Estremo. They aren't bad, and look nice, but TBH I prefer the Aldi ones on the MTB.
As another Reynaud's sufferer, I use Little Hotties handwarmers too. (Careful how you Google it)
I don't understand the construction of most winter gloves, why have the waterproofing BENEATH the insulation?
Net result is waterlogged, cold insulation on top of a thin membrane.
I'd love to see something like those Spatz gloves but with a waterproof cover.
I think there are plenty of mountaineering products that do a similar job, Tough Bagz or something...
Who made the "glove system" a couple of years back?
IIRC you wore some combination of a couple of different layers depending on the weather. They were using (rebranded?) Defeet Duratouch gloves as the insulating layer?
One problem with gloves in general is that if you get sweaty then that’s going to impact the feel of the glove and will also cool your hands down.
I haven't tried this myself, but this can be remedied by using rubber gloves as the first layer. This keeps the gloves dry and your hands warm (although they will be wrinkly and sweaty).
Who made the “glove system” a couple of years back?
That'll be the Dissent 133 ones mentioned earlier. I got some earlier this year after years of the problems everyone lists with sweaty waterproof gloves and so far so good. Very nice being able to pull off the outers when too hot, add the silk liners if necessary and so on.
The Outdry (now 'HDry') outer does seem to be one of the best materials around for breathable waterproofing and it means you don't get the issue of a wetted-out outer that others get. However ultimately they are still gloves not mitts so can only keep you so warm.
In hindsight, I'd have just bought the outers as i have plenty of other lighter weight gloves i could have used for inners from fleecy to woolly numbers.
I'm with Malvern Rider on this , summer short finger gloves year round . After about 5 minutes of riding my circulation kicks in and my hands keep themselves warm . Also with short finger gloves you can do a lot more things without having the faff of taking them off and putting them back on again . I suspect that in wet weather long finger gloves just hold water next to your skin which chills your hands and fully waterproof are so bulky that you can hardly feel the controls on your bike . I do own 1 pair of long finger gloves but they are seldom worn and when they are it's to protect against gorse and brambles rather than cold weather . I realise that this might not work for everybody .
I suspect that in wet weather long finger gloves just hold water next to your skin which chills your hands and fully waterproof are so bulky that you can hardly feel the controls on your bike
No and no, basically.
Summer long-fingered gloves might do that, but I use softshell ones when it's wet.
And as in previous comments, if you select wisely there are good winter gloves for preserving bar feel.
**** riding in track mitts when it's actually freezing out.
13thfloormonk
Member
I don’t understand the construction of most winter gloves, why have the waterproofing BENEATH the insulation?
Yup, this. I had some Fox Antifreezes which were very good, but were a windproof softshell outer glove with a separate waterproof liner. That just makes no sense.
Both look good, think I'd get the Dissent 133 glove first, maybe get the mitts next year when I'm back on the singlespeed!
I find 100% Briskers are fine for most of my riding. I only go thicker if its below zero and windy and high up.
Buy mine in the classifieds!
https://singletrackworld.com/classifieds/advert/dhb-winter-gloves/
£16 DHB ones
They're surplus to requirements (received as a gift) as I already have some Aldi ones and some 661 winter ones both of which are good.
The P/X ones seem excellent. I think they'll be proper proper toasty !!!!
Re the Aldi gloves..I think the design is different between different years.I have one pair that feel awful as BWD says …the inner slides about independent of the outer creating a horrible feeling.I also didn’t find them particularly warm .On a bitter day in the blackdown hills hands were soon uncomfortable.I saw another pair recently with “biking” on the back and they seemed to have a better construction with no slippy/slidey feel
I think you're right, two of the Aldi Pairs I have are the older "Biking" type ones and they are well put together, the oldest pair do seem to have lost some of their insulation value over time as the thinsulate stuff (or whatever is inside) has probably compacted/shifted with use and time.
Those 'Spatz' gloves looked sort of interesting, not the actual gloves but I like their idea of a pull over "shell" (assuming it's water/wind proof) that you only use when the weather dictates, especially as it doesn't add layers/bulk to the palm. Does anyone know if you can buy something like that on it's own?
Those dissent 133 things look interesting, certainly good value, full set is same price as the Castelli Estremo gloves....
Did anyone tried electric heated gloves?
I've searched the web and found both bad and good accidents about these gloves.
Some sources even stated they can treat Raynaud's disease https://www.the-rheumatologist.org/article/heated-gloves-may-improve-hand-function-diffuse-systemic-sclerosis/
I personally got no problem with my fingers and knuckles, I only want to be sure if they are 100% safe.
My Seal Skin gloves are about to come apart, so I'm considering to purchase some Snow Deer or Savior heated gloves.
In case someone needs more info on heated gloves https://wildproofgear.com/best-heated-gloves/
I’ve got some Madison avalanche gloves which I bought for this winter. They are very warm, I have found that above 0 degrees they are too warm when working hard.
EIGO Claw Gloves from SportPursuit. £15. Great fit, not too bulky and so comfy. Recently feel the cold more, so glad I found these.
Neoprene gloves work well for me in autumn conditions, but in full cold and wet conditions it is silk liner gloves and a thick pair of Madison commuter gloves I've had three years and the model number has worn off. The silk liner gloves make all the difference.
https://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/winter-mtb-gloves-recommendation/
https://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/best-winter-gloves-5/
https://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/warmest-gloves/
https://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/winter-gloves-what-are-you-wearing/
https://singletrackworld.com/forum/topic/winter-gloves-recommend-me-some/
I personally got no problem with my fingers and knuckles, I only want to be sure if they are 100% safe.
What do you mean by 100% safe?
Has anyone got the Galibier Ardennes gloves?
I have the barrier gloves for very cold rides but would like some thinner ones for more normal cold temps
@k1100t - are they any good for those windy days with digit temps that feel much colder? What's the padding like?