MegaSack DRAW - This year's winner is user - rgwb
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Hi I would like to know what winter riding gear gets your vote without having to spend a bomb.
[url= http://www.sigmasport.co.uk/p/18908/zero-extreme-windstopper-baselayer/?OptionID=1883 ]Craft Zero Extreme Baselayers[/url]. They have a Windstopper panel on the front. Bloody genius.
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Aldi winter gloves of course. £5, a bit sweaty, but warm as you like and a fraction of usual suspects.
[url= http://www.merlincycles.com/bike-shop/apparel/clothing/clothing-mens/cycling-pants-and-tights/altura-winter-cruiser.html ]Altura Winter Cruisers [/url]
Everything else is a mix of Aldi stuff and [url= http://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/4-x-PAIRS-MENS-or-WOMENS-MERINO-WOOL-HIKING-WALKING-CLIMBING-SOCKS-MED-or-LARGE-/271042598229?pt=UK_Sporting_Goods_Sports_Clothing_LE&var=&hash=item3f1b65d555 ]merino wool socks.[/url]
[url= http://www.bike-discount.de/shop/a13334/phantom-ii-windstopper-jacket-black.html?lg=en&cr=GBP&gclid=CMqE_pr8sbICFUfKtAodgWUAjw ]Gore Phantom[/url]. It's a brilliant windstopper and keeps you dry in the odd shower too. A bargain at that price too, think I paid aout £140 and still considered that good value.
+1 for Craft baselayers although I don't use the windproof front ones on cold days as wear a windproof softshell and I find it's easier to regulate your temp with a non-windproof baselayer.
Buff
Decent softshell jacket (can be pricey though, something like a gore phantom for versatility)
Warm gloves
Merino socks
If riding when it's seriously cold it's worth investing in winter boots IMO, overshoes generally don't provide enough warmth when it's sub-zero IME
De Feet Woolie Boolie merino socks. An absolute godsend!!!
Endura Baa Baa long sleeve merino base layer. Love it!
Arcteryx Phase crew tops are the best cold weather riding tops I've had. Ideal for when my icebreaker won't quite cut it.
Mavic inferno jacket. Great fit, Great quality, toasty warm deep into -figures.
Craft and Sugoi make some great stuff too.
ebay goretex "bibbed" overtrousers cut off at the knee for dry-arse nirvana
+1 for gore phantom jacket
merino t-shirts
a good warm l/sleeve base layer is essential. I have this one from HH, which is ace
http://www.amazon.co.uk/Helly-Hansen-Freeze-Thermal-Baselayer/dp/B0088B2FUQ
Endura Stealth longs (they now do a de tuned version)
Arcteryx merino
Mountain Hardwear windbloc top
Crux Event smock with helmet hood
None of these are cheap, in fact they are all expensive. IME if you venture out high in foul weather you want the best gear you can possibly afford.
Cheapo base layer stuff is fine and I've used both Aldi and Lidl - great value. Wouldn't buy any of the mtb specific winter gloves with the possible exception of Gore. Will be trying Montane this year. Not found a decent winter boot yet - problem in the UK is that cold weather is often accompanied by driving rain. Once water starts pouring down your legs even Goretex socks cant keep it out. Some form of rubberised gaiter that completely envelopes the upper boot / lower leg is screaming out to be invented 😉
On One merino base layers. The heavier weight ones keep you absolutely toasty in't depths of winter.
Both Sealskinz socks and gloves. Essential for all semi-aquatic inhabitants of Northern England
A decent softshell - I've got two different weights, depending on how sub-zero it gets
Paramo Velez smock, best winter riding jacket bar none.
Velez too hot for me riding, paramo known to be hot shells
I am impressed that people ride with merino top. From my experience, they are rubbish for biking. They don't wick close enough to proper man-made fabric to keep you warm. Toastier top I have used is the patagonia expeweight capilene.
no voodoo chili you just dont ride in cold enough .....
my buffalo active smock is the best thing since sliced bread when it comes to exceedingly wet windy cold days OR -28 and driving snow ! but for 50% of the year its too warm :d
Im yet to find a winter boot for riding the fat bike in the propper chill with the 28 nth look good but at 300 quid or so a pair i cant justify it.
I wear flats and leather hiking boots or a pair of old school (before they were banned) northsea sheepskin linned rigger boots with 2 pairs of thick socks
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i raise your rubber gator seal with - the man who invents a fully breathable under exercise dry suit will be a rich man !
ebay goretex "bibbed" overtrousers cut off at the knee for dry-arse nirvana
I did...nothing came up in active or completed listings 😐
I think they mean something like [url= http://www.ebay.co.uk/sch/i.html?_nkw=army+goretex+trousers&_sacat=0&_odkw=army+goretex&_osacat=0 ]these Army DPM Trousers[/url].
best thing i ever bought, not this one but theres a fleece type one from endura bit of a faff to get on and off but when you out in the howling wind it protects your lower back.
I'm thinking MW81 boots, seal skinz socks and edura stealth tights have got to form a pretty waterproof barrier all in? That's my winter shopping list anyway so I bloody hope so!
However, Helly Hansen 3/4 zip stripe top is properly good at keeping warm and wicking away moister. It can feel a little odd with a wet back on the outside and yet completely dry inside, but that's due to the sweat not soaking into the fabric. Shame they seem to be discontinued!
The other thing is tights, winter tights. Baggies in the mud are horrible for extended periods. I'll stick to the lycra in the winter thanks!
Trail rat ....too much of my own insulation!
+1 Endura Baa Baa long sleeve merino base layer plus windproof smock.
Paramo fuera smock for the colder weather.
Glove liners: turn your summer gloves into winter gloves.
>I'm thinking MW81 boots, seal skinz socks and edura stealth tights have got to form a pretty waterproof barrier all in? That's my winter shopping list anyway so I bloody hope so!<
Sealskinz are cr*p ime. You can import calf length goretex socks from the US and Canada. Not tried them myself.
Trailrat - you mean 45North boots?
That Vibram sole they use appears on one of the Lake shoes I've used and it's rubbish (at least it is on the Lakes - perhaps I got a duff pair) Also the zip and the sealing don't look up to much rain-wise. At the price they are charging there's no way I'd take a punt on them.
stealths are good but constrictive if you have big thighs
sealskinz are crap
mw81s work best with a neoprene overshoe over the top as although waterproof they are not teribly well insulated.
but stealth light bottoms , stealth jacket , baabaa top and mw81s , ski socks and neoprene overshoes kept me right through a very cold 24 hours of puffer.
didnt have to change at all !
Endura MT500 overshoes.
in what way is it rubbish ?
mr sparkle - id agree that they are good but that mother ****ing zip they use.
velcro wins - i use altura neoprene covers
A merino wool buff definitely gets my winter vote. Also like the endura winter socks and (for road) the overshoes.
Sorry, was using ebay as noun not verb - yeh, mine are like the ones in jamie's link, with braces and a bit of a raised bibby bit at the back. Mine were said to be German army FWIWI did...nothing came up in active or completed listings
Seem to have gone up in price a bit, though still good value I'd say
+1 for glove liners. Dead cheap and versatile.
I have been though a variety of winter kit over the years and whittled the key items down to this, from bottom up :
Spesh Defrosters over merino sealskins, good to minus 10 for me, but don't suit all.
DHB or similar roubaix bib longs,with either regular shorts or waterproof ones on top if worried about being seen !
merino base layer (I have Howies NBL and various Icebreakers)
Endura Stealth, or if it's really foul, a helly or similar mid weight jersey layer between the merino base and then a decent Shell, such as Altura Attack.
Buff under helmet and decent gloves - current really cold weather ones are Gore Alp somethings
polar buff
Lake MX302 boots were great for me last winter
nookie Ti Neoprene socks. £15 a pair keep my feet warm even when immersed in icy puddles.
A few people have already mentioned the Gore Phantom, picked one up from Wiggle earlier this week for just over £70, cant go wrong at that price.
[url= http://www.wiggle.co.uk/gore-bike-wear-phantom-soft-shell-convertible-jacket-2012/ ]Gore Phantom[/url]
Sign up for the Wiggle newsletter, and you get a £5 off £50 voucher, making it £65.
overshoes are a must aswell!
Rubbish in that the vibram sole started delaminating from the rest of the shoe. Could just be Lakes manufacturing or perhaps they just aint up to carting your bike through boulder fields 😉
Overshoes are another waste of space if you need to push / carry - particularly in snow.
S Defrosters - singularly unimpressed. They do a very good job of keeping the water in though 😉
Anybody know if Aldis will be selling any winter softshells?I could do with one.
It's not often I end up wearing really warm kit, tbh... My standard setup is altura attack waterproof shorts, sealskinz mid thermals, knee pads (which double as warmers!) and then generally up top just a standard t-shirt riding top, with a thermal base under it or a cheap fleece on top. If it's windy, maybe a light waterproof on top of that, or my heavier duty waterproof instead of hte thermal/fleece
On the road, a wee bit more wind protection- fleecy ear warmer, buff with a hole cut in it for the mouth, so I can wear it right over my face, all Rubberbandit. And of course the Aldi softshell, king of garments- too hot for mountain biking frankly but good for the road at the cold end of things.
And lastly, the mighty Fox Antifreeze gloves. I've got fairly poor hand circulation, and there's only 2 gloves I've used that'll keep my fingers operational- these, and my winter motorbike gloves. Every other winter riding glove I've tried has been **** frankly. But i have not tried 'em all.
People slag Sealskinz, I think if you get a set that works and look after them then they're fine personally. A little water gets in sometimes but they still keep me warm. And once it actually gets cold, there's hardly any water anyway!
This lot keeps me riding for as long as it's really possible to ride a regular bike... Once there's a couple of feet of snow I give up 😉
Thanks for all the comments its been educational for sure. Thanks again.