warm winter gloves (and socks) - recommendations please

mellisr1

Hi all

I'm don't feel the cold to badly, except in my hands and feet. This mornings commute in was a little chilly and it's only going to get worse with a half 6 start and 15 miles or so - this got me thinking about getting better gloves. I'm looking for recommendations on warm and waterproof gloves.

I've got some endura waterproof ones which are about 3 years old now. they are fleece inside but no longer really waterproof and in real cold weather my hands tend to freeze on long rides.

There are lots of winter gloves advertised out there. But then so were my endura ones and they are not really that warm!

What do people consider are the best for warmth as personal recommendations will give me some confidence? They need to be waterproof too. I was wondering if there are any that are more like mittens as I looked at a few skiing gloves but they have no palm padding or protection as I expect it's the wind chill that really gets the fingers!

Also, last winter, even under my endura neoprene overshoes, my feet frooze so anyone know a good thermal sock which works but is thin enough to fit under pretty close fitting cycle shoes!

Cheers
Matt

Bikerbaboon

for the gloves try a liner over a larger glove as the layers will keep you warm.

http://www.tauntonleisure.com/products/ ... ts_froogle.


For the feet again you could try a liner sock..

the problem is that if you go for much thicker than normal for socks then you may need a new shoe.

http://www.patra.com/productlist.asp?Ca ... 4wod1AkElg

giant_man

You are going to find that so called waterproof gloves won't be, and that manufacturers' claims are not always always what they profess. Some like the Assos system for 100 quid and some don't, but to me you can spend much less of course and still get good gloves. Check out Chiba, Altura or even Aldi which are very cheap but pretty good. Decathlon also do a good range which are quite also cheap.

Socks wise, I like Woolie Boolies have to say. They are brilliant and imo better than Sealskinz mid thermals.

nferrar

Key to warm feet is good wool socks + neoprene overshoes to negate the wind chill, trouble is if your shoes are tight fitting with normal socks then wool ones might be too bulky which will restrict blood flow which will make your feet cold anyway. I'm currently experimenting with a few different makes of wool socks but not found a miracle thin + warm pair yet (although my winter shoes have enough room for thick socks anyway).

Gloves, still not found a perfect pair, I definitely think 2 layers is the way to go though - the trouble is that means bulk which means a loss of feeling/control. Currently I use Sealskinz tech mtb gloves when it's wet but not cold and switch to Spesh sub-zeros when it's really cold (or wet & cold). The Sealskinz don't really restrict me at all but I find the ends of my fingers start to freeze after a while if it's its cold. the Spesh sub-zeros are a 2-part glove but are right on the limit of being too bulky to be usable. I think maybe a merino (or even silk) liner glove + Sealskinz shell outer is the way to go but would need to check the bulk. The other bonus of 2-part gloves is if you have a mechanical or something you can usually keep the inner glove on and keep your hands warmer, I find once my hands do get cold then even putting them back into gloves that were warm they just never recover and feel cold the rest of the ride.

bobtbuilder

Woolie Boolie socks are great for keeping your feet warm when partnered with a good neoprene overshoe.

Hoever, make sure that your shoes aren't done up too tightly as nferrar said. Otherwise your feet will always be cold.

gbs

I will try tomorrow neoprene 3mm socks; sufficiently thin as to be wearable with existing shoes. Probably not sweet smelling.

Anyone else tried this solution? :?:

Jon8a

I use some socks I have for kayaking by Nookie (.co.uk). They are silver lined and as thin as a thick set of woolies. They are amazingly warm. I use them on my mountain bike without overshoes all year round.

Gloves wise, I don't know, I have yet to find anything warm enough. One piece of advice is to keep your arms warm especially aorund your wrist. IF the blood is being chilled down your arms your hands are always going to get cold.

Also put a buff on under your helmet as the extra heat generated helps keep your feet and hands warm.

Scrumple

Gore Xenons get top marks from me,

Only "but" is that your fingers naturally sink to the end of the glove, as you lean on the bars. This nips the end of your finger as you press up on the material.
The impact reduces blood flow, causing the ends of my fingers to freeze.

Can't see how this can be avoided without daft long fingers!

Nuggs

The best gloves I have found for warmth are Pearl Izumi Amfibs. However, the trade-off is that they are quite clumsy to use.

STEFANOS4784

gbs wrote:

I will try tomorrow neoprene 3mm socks; sufficiently thin as to be wearable with existing shoes. Probably not sweet smelling.

Anyone else tried this solution? :?:

Do you mean 3mm neoprene socks inside the shoes :shock:

I'm probably misunderstanding again.........

bobtbuilder

Do you mean 3mm neoprene socks inside the shoes

That was my first thought!

I seriously hope not!!

Ands

Scrumple wrote:

Gore Xenons get top marks from me,

Only "but" is that your fingers naturally sink to the end of the glove, as you lean on the bars. This nips the end of your finger as you press up on the material.
The impact reduces blood flow, causing the ends of my fingers to freeze.

Can't see how this can be avoided without daft long fingers!

I just bought some Gore Phantom and they are toasty. I purposely sized up from what I thought I needed because when I leant on the hoods of a bike while in the shop, my fingers were squashed up the end of the glove. So I bought a bigger size. I figured that since I would spend most of my riding time in that position it didn't matter if the fingers were too long when I was just standing around.

jthef

Woolie bullies +
But just ordered some winter cycling shoes so hopefully a bit better after Father Christmas has been
Glove I use the Altura night vision down to about 0 deg and I have another pair which just a bit warmer. I too could do with warmer ones for the commute.

gbs

bobtbuilder wrote:

Do you mean 3mm neoprene socks inside the shoes

That was my first thought!

I seriously hope not!!

Yes, that is what I tried. I can report the experiment was not a great success. Conditions were benign: ambient temp about 5C with little wind. After about two hours in occasional light rain shoes were wet, feet were dry but not warm or ponky. I bought two pairs; I guess I will have to keep one pair and return the second.


Presumably you feel this was an ill advised experiment doomed to failure - pl explain why.

fjellrunner

I use some black diamond winter gloves, made for climbing so very dextrous and warm http://www.wildtrak.com/product.asp?ID=3046

And Endura neoprene overshoes.

They both work a treat all winter!

mellisr1

thanks guys

am torn between the specialized sub zero gloves and and the black dimond winter gloves but might go for the spesh ones as the inner/outer glove might be a bit more flexible.

might just have to live with the cold feet though as I've tried some thicker socks on and my cycle shoes just aren't going to take it!

cheers again, as always great advice
Matt

dgstewart

I have been suffering from very cold toes over the last few weeks. Worst case was 3 weeks ago when it was barely above freezing when we headed out for our Sunday run. We meet outside the town hall, which is next to the war memorial, so being Remembrance Sunday we kind of got stuck in the middle of the procession and wreath laying business and couldn't easily head off to start our ride until they had at least laid the wreath. My feet where therefore very cold to start and never fully recovered all ride.

I had on two pairs of socks (one thin, one thick thermal) my normal shoes (which are quite roomy anyway) and neoprene overshoes. I figured I couldn't really do much more and was starting to think along the lines of heated boots, etc.

The shopping in Costco I found they sell "Little Hotties" adhesive toe warmers. Basically you open that packet and get two little pads that you stick onto the outside of your socks and they heat up on contact with air. I tried them this weekend, and although I never felt the "toastie toes" I was hoping for, my feet were not really that cold so they must have been doing something, as it was a cold morning again. Costco sell them for £12 or so for 30 pairs, which is much cheaper than any form of expensive heated shoes or Goretex overshoes, etc.

Worth a try I would say.

Garry H

fjellrunner wrote:

I use some black diamond winter gloves, made for climbing so very dextrous and warm http://www.wildtrak.com/product.asp?ID=3046

And Endura neoprene overshoes.

They both work a treat all winter!

I use Black Diamond Punisher gloves. Bought for winter climbing, but work very well for cycling. Waterproof, warm and very hard-wearing, not too clumsy either. Will still leak if absolutely saturated though, as will all gloves.

For feet I use the Shimano Gore Tex shoes (RW80) with a good pair of Smartwool socks.

MattC59

Merino socks with overshoes when I'm on my road bike, Sealskinz socks when I'm on the mtb. Sealskinz socks are fantastic, but be wary of their claimed waterproof gloves. they just don't work, al all !!!

I'm still yet to find a reasonably priced, decent pair of waterproof gloves, so let us know if you find something.

Matt

Gussio

Sealskinz waterproof sticky gloves have worked well for me. When it gets colder I add a thin inner glove and generally stay toasty.

Planet X neoprene overshoes work wonders and were very cheap.

Skull cap under the helmet contributes to overall warmness.

STEFANOS4784

gbs wrote:

bobtbuilder wrote:

Do you mean 3mm neoprene socks inside the shoes

That was my first thought!

I seriously hope not!!

Yes, that is what I tried. I can report the experiment was not a great success. Conditions were benign: ambient temp about 5C with little wind. After about two hours in occasional light rain shoes were wet, feet were dry but not warm or ponky. I bought two pairs; I guess I will have to keep one pair and return the second.


Presumably you feel this was an ill advised experiment doomed to failure - pl explain why.

Is anyone else even reading the posts?

Mate you need neoprene over shoes. These will keep feet dry and the wind off them. Then some good socks underneath to keep them warm


aka; http://www.google.co.uk/products?hl=en& ... CBgQrQQwAA


You don't want to end up with trench foot :shock:

mellisr1

Thanks again guys

I will invest in some merino wool socks, but proably have to go for slightly thinner just because of shoes. I think Wollie Boolies have varying thickness so I'll choose accordingly.

I plumped for the spesh sub zero in the end http://www.rutlandcycling.com/13017/Spe ... n=pid13017 which the cheapest I could find were 34.99 from Rutland with free standard delivery.

I liked the fact that when dry and not too cold (say 5-10 degrees C) you could just wear the inner glove and the outer being a shell pack down so can go in a jersey pocket or saddle bag and come out when it buckets down. As I ride every day and a longer ride most weekends, I'll soon know if they really work and will post a recommendation (or not)

cheers
Matt