Rapha Grand Tour Gloves

Biljasp

I know they're overpriced, i know they're flash but i really want some. anyone got any and can offer an opinion?

Cheers :roll:

mrushton

Biljasp wrote:

I know they're overpriced, i know they're flash but i really want some. anyone got any and can offer an opinion?

Cheers :roll:

You've said it yourself. They are white so will get dirty. I saw them when they first came out but they do nothing that a cheaper pair of gloves will do. If you want white look at the Assos or the new Giro range

DaSy

Take no notice of the cheaper gloves are just as good line....

I have a pair of Rapha crochet mitts, I liked them so much that I also bought a pair of Gran Tour mitts and got a pair of the special edition olive green ones off ebay too!

They are so nice, they are hard wearing, so comfortable and look great. I actually get value from them due to the fact I enjoy wearing them, something you won't often hear from the Aldi glove wearers...

The white Grand Tour gloves were the ones that David Millar wore at the TdF and Tom Boonen saw them and apparently sought out a pair himself..

Cheshire_Cat

Hi,

I had a pair a couple of years ago, excellent fit but they do get grubby if worn regularly (but clean up easily). Unfortunately mine ended up on eBay after my wife found out their true cost :oops: - but even then, they still sold for silly money !

DaSy

Cheshire_Cat wrote:

Hi,

I had a pair a couple of years ago, excellent fit but they do get grubby if worn regularly (but clean up easily). Unfortunately mine ended up on eBay after my wife found out their true cost :oops: - but even then, they still sold for silly money !

Cheshire Cat - that is a very sad tale, I'd really have to think which one of the two elements in your equation I would sell to keep the other happy...

Monty Dog

IME leather gloves are useless in really hot weather - the perspiration means they become very slippery, particularly if you like riding on the hoods - that's why a lot of the top-end gloves use synthetic materials. I remember riding up the Tourmalet and the Peyresourde in 30 degree heat - my hands were slipping all over the place

Biljasp

Excellent, i'll order some, just wanted to know i wasn't alone!

Must be mad

leguape

Monty Dog wrote:

IME leather gloves are useless in really hot weather - the perspiration means they become very slippery, particularly if you like riding on the hoods - that's why a lot of the top-end gloves use synthetic materials. I remember riding up the Tourmalet and the Peyresourde in 30 degree heat - my hands were slipping all over the place

My criterium ones didn't become slippery on the Etape 2006 in 35+ degree heat and i sweat like a leaky tap. I thought lots of the top end gloves used rough leather palms to avoid slipping or chamois-type leather. I much prefer the feel of a good leather mitt to the synthetic ones. Quite tempted to get a pair of the knog ones.

DaSy

Leguape - I wouldn't bother with the Knog ones. I wanted a pair of fullfinger leather gloves for the winter, and the Rapha Town gloves hadn't been released, so got a pair of the Knog Ride Hard full finger leather gloves off ebay cheap.

They are not great, the leather is stiff, and started to split at the knuckles if I clenched my fist tight in them. The dye runs when they get sweaty and the seams are placed badly at the end of the fingers to the point that it really rubs just under your finger nails.

I now use them as gardening gloves, they are okay for that, but even then the velcro doesn't stay closed very well!

A pair of Rapha Town gloves is my next extravagant purchase.

akkers

Have you tried the Gore Retro mitts? They look similar and are a fraction of the price.

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/gor ... gn=froogle

cougie

DaSy wrote:

They are so nice, they are hard wearing, so comfortable and look great. I actually get value from them due to the fact I enjoy wearing them, something you won't often hear from the Aldi glove wearers...

My Aldi mitts are very comfy. Better than the Spesh ones that were 4x the price, and these have better features like reflective strips on.

I also wear Rapha kit, but never paid the full price for it.

softlad

£100 for a pair of track mitts.....nuff said.

schlepcycling

I loved mine until my wife threw one of them away which she said was an accident, I'm saving up to replace them.

andrewc3142

I have a black pair I bought 3 years ago. Worn on my 30m commute plus any other rides whenever it's warm enough not to need gloves. No signs of wear and if anything more comfortable than when I bought them. Brilliant gloves, IMHO even in really hot weather.

Before I got them I had a series of £20 ish synthetic mitts that were never really comfortable and lasted a few months before falling apart, therefore costing considerably more for a worse product.

BigG67

akkers wrote:

Have you tried the Gore Retro mitts? They look similar and are a fraction of the price.

http://www.evanscycles.com/products/gor ... gn=froogle

+1

Anonymous

I have a pair of the Gore retro mitts in white and I bloody love 'em. Go perfectly with the rest of my Rapha/Assos kit too...

daviesee

Hi,

Yes, they seem over priced but....

They are extremely comfortable, way more than my previous Assos. They wash up nicely and easilly, in fact they fit better after a wash. They do not get hot in the sun. They do not get sweaty and therefore do not slip. They absorb vibrations that I know are there as my whole bike is buzzing but my hands are fine.

I decided to treat myself to a bit of luxury and as they are a contact point with the bike it seems a good idea to go for the best you can afford. Jerseys are way less important but it is still nice to have a good one

It is obvious from visible wear that they will last a whole lot longer than my expensive Assos bibs.

Do I think they are over priced? Not if they last more than 4 seasons. In fact, given the comfort they will appear to be a bargain by then :P

If you decide to get a pair and are between sizes, go for the smaller ones as they break in to a nice fit.

akkers

NapoleonD wrote:

I have a pair of the Gore retro mitts in white and I bloody love 'em. Go perfectly with the rest of my Rapha/Assos kit too...

hmmm, my Gore mitts just pitched up.....looking at teh care instructions....no washing, no ironing, no dry clean, no tumbl dry

are you not meant to clean em :roll:

Anonymous

I tend not to iron my gloves anyway

Didn't know about that, they seemed to go through on a 30 degree was ok.

That's bobbins though, imagine the build up of snot :shock:

mrushton

Theres a review of various gloves incl. the Rapha on

http://www.velodramatic.com/

I like the Knog 8-Ball gloves

softlad

daviesee wrote:

Do I think they are over priced? Not if they last more than 4 seasons. In fact, given the comfort they will appear to be a bargain by then :P

come on, get real. We are talking £100 for a pair of track mitts, FFS. That is absolutely ridiculous by any stretch of the imagination. You would expect to pay around a ton for a set of full carbon-reinforced leather motorcycle gloves, so paying that for a pair of thin, fingerless track mitts is just pure bollox.

I have a few pairs of mitts, but one of the pairs I still use regularly is a pair of Trek gel mitts which must be over 10 years old now and still going strong. You can't use words like 'Rapha' and 'value' in the same sentence....

PeteinSQ

mrushton wrote:

Theres a review of various gloves incl. the Rapha on

http://www.velodramatic.com/

Blimey that chap has spent some serious money on his cycling habit...

APIII

I wouldn't mind a pair, but I've got loads of different mitts and always seem to end up going back to a pair of cheapo Polaris mitts that I originally bought for my wife. I'd be gutted to spend all that cash only to find out I still preferred the old favourites.
For anyone who does buy them though, please do not justify them as good value. Normal mitts will last years too, so it really is a luxury (nothing wrong in that though)

giant_man

softlad wrote:

daviesee wrote:

Do I think they are over priced? Not if they last more than 4 seasons. In fact, given the comfort they will appear to be a bargain by then :P

come on, get real. We are talking £100 for a pair of track mitts, FFS. That is absolutely ridiculous by any stretch of the imagination. You would expect to pay around a ton for a set of full carbon-reinforced leather motorcycle gloves, so paying that for a pair of thin, fingerless track mitts is just pure bollox.

I have a few pairs of mitts, but one of the pairs I still use regularly is a pair of Trek gel mitts which must be over 10 years old now and still going strong. You can't use words like 'Rapha' and 'value' in the same sentence....

Brilliant

daviesee

"I have a few pairs of mitts, but one of the pairs I still use regularly is a pair of Trek gel mitts which must be over 10 years old now and still going strong. You can't use words like 'Rapha' and 'value' in the same sentence...."

Thanks for the tip should my Raphas go :shock:

The Treks must be brilliant. I have never had a pair last more than one season.
4 pairs of Assos in 4 years is my justification. Works for me anyway :oops:

cougie

Assos arent great value either !

I've a pair of specialized that have lasted a good three years so far - no signs of wear at all.
And try Aldi mitts too - about £4 !