Sealskinz

il_principe

I've got no experience of this brand other than what i read on here and elsewhere, but I'm starting to get the impresion that Sealskinz = Fail. Socks that fill up with water, and gloves that keep you neither warm nor dry. Fair impression?

jonginge

That's my experience too. They were too thick for comfort as well.

I tried, I gave up #nin

rolf_f

Depends on what you buy, expect.

The socks will fill with water assuming the water conforms to the laws of gravity. This issue can be minimised if you protect the top of the socks with the bottoms of your leg warmers/tights etc. The socks are easily wrecked by heat (don't put them on the radiator) but mine (merino lined sort) have been used daily for much of the year and, whilst they could be warmer, they are still clearly waterproof.

The gloves depend on which ones you buy. My winter gloves seem pretty good for my cold susceptible fingers though I doubt they'll keep them toasty without liners once the snow comes. There is a very similar looking pair of gloves made by Seal Skins called All Weather. This sounds like a fair alternative to the WInter Gloves but they are apparently terrible! Basically, they are supposed to breathe such that you can use them in, literally, all weathers. ie good for both warmer and colder conditions. Unfortunately, according to reviews, during warm weather they are too warm due to the breathability but in cold conditions not warm enough. So they are crap whatever the weather. The WInter Gloves get much better reviews but this is not always apparent in forum discussions.

lastant

Yep, agree with both of you.

My feet always end up wet with the socks, and the pair of gloves I had always ended up leaking water in at the points where I was putting pressure on them (the handlebars...kinda crucial contact point on a bike!).

Got myself a pair of Pro X-Pert WP from Condor for this year and they worked a treat this morning. They're basically wetsuit material, but have a waterproof lining inside. Just noticed they're on offer at Parker International at the moment too.

rolf_f

lastant wrote:

They're basically wetsuit material, but have a waterproof lining inside.

Not sure what the point of that would be! The lining surely defeats the function of the neoprene??

jonny_trousers

Now you tell me! A few weeks back I was reading how amazing Sealskinz socks were here and so I swapped my online order from thermal Gore socks to Sealskinz!

I have the waterproof, woollen gloves and I like their slim fit, but I'm not convinced they will be warm enough for the real winter and the fingers are little tight, which can cause them to numb a little over time.

asprilla

The cycling socks fill up with water, but you stay warm (the walking boot socks I've got are great).

Tried my very warm / waterproof sealskinz gloves today. Appear to be excellent.

lost_in_thought

I found the very thinnest ones quite good once, but they were helped by being worn under waterproof boots with water-resistant tights over the boots...

lastant

Rolf F wrote:

lastant wrote:

They're basically wetsuit material, but have a waterproof lining inside.

Not sure what the point of that would be! The lining surely defeats the function of the neoprene??

Waterproof was probably the wrong word, I blame the fact I was thinking of SealSkinz! Anyway, there's a [url=-http://www.roadcyclinguk.com/gear-news/pro-x-pert-wp-winter-gloves/4734.html]review of them on road.cc[/url] which mentions a 'breathable and water-resistant Hipora liner' and a blogger (Dropbars) which loves them.

I was certainly happy with them this morning. My commute at half an hour is long enough for the wet and lower temperatures to get to me...I think these will stop that problem, but the test will be as the winter really sets in.

SamWise72

I've got the merino liners to wear under my Aldi gloves. The Aldi gloves were amazingly impressive last year, but in the proper freezing cold, I could have done with a little more still. I suspect the liners will do me fine.

SimonAH

MTFU the lot of you. Are you battle scarred commuters or shaven legged roadies?

Carry some waterproof overtrousers and overshoes in your bag.

When it's dry don't wear 'em, when it's wet put 'em on.

Job done.

(Oh yeah, and your shoes aren't soaked either).

hatbeard

SamWise72 wrote:

I've got the merino liners to wear under my Aldi gloves. The Aldi gloves were amazingly impressive last year, but in the proper freezing cold, I could have done with a little more still. I suspect the liners will do me fine.

I have a pair en route at the moment. saw them for £8 delivered on ebay which compared to the £20 for merino liners in evans seemed pretty good.

Clever Pun

I've got a waterproof set of gloves that are very good down to a certain temperature which in fairness is pretty cold.

Kept my hands dry and toasty this morning

I don't like the socks

lost_in_thought

SimonAH wrote:

MTFU the lot of you. Are you battle scarred commuters or shaven legged roadies?

Carry some waterproof overtrousers and overshoes in your bag.

When it's dry don't wear 'em, when it's wet put 'em on.

Job done.

(Oh yeah, and your shoes aren't soaked either).

Ewwwww waterproof trousers are what you would ahve to wear in hell... perhaps with a pac-a-mac too. God they're awful.

I tend to just get wet. Turns out my skin is waterproof, lucky hey?

If I'm not in a soggy mood, Rainlegs are a great compromise.

rolf_f

SimonAH wrote:

MTFU the lot of you. Are you battle scarred commuters or shaven legged roadies?

Carry some waterproof overtrousers and overshoes in your bag.

You are telling us to wear waterproof overtrousers and MTFU at the same time???!!!!!!!

MTFU!!!

Besides, today I wore shorts, merino base layer, tights plus the waterproof socks, gloves and crappy Aldi overshoes. Despite the rain, my gear is either damp or dry rather than wet, despite no boil in bag goodies and my feet were dry. Cold though. But not as cold as my fingers (Aldi gloves with silk liners).

Cafewanda

My waterproof Sealskinz gloves keep the water out, but that's about it. If I'd had to ride more than 30 mins, my fingers would have complained rather loudly about the cold.

In defence of my Endura waterproof trousers, they did the job this morning and kept the wind off last night, albeit I was a tad warm .

il_principe

Rolf F wrote:

SimonAH wrote:

MTFU the lot of you. Are you battle scarred commuters or shaven legged roadies?

Carry some waterproof overtrousers and overshoes in your bag.

You are telling us to wear waterproof overtrousers and MTFU at the same time???!!!!!!!

MTFU!!!
.

+1

Waterproof trousers are for ramblers and kagoul enthusiasts.

Clever Pun

I use these gloves(well, an earlier version)... they handle the temp pretty well
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/sealskinz-extra-cold-weather-cycling-glove/

asprilla

Clever Pun wrote:

I use these gloves(well, an earlier version)... they handle the temp pretty well
http://www.wiggle.co.uk/sealskinz-extra-cold-weather-cycling-glove/

Those are the ones I just bought. They seem to be great so far.

MonkeyMonster

I've got the waterproof gloves which in the dry are warm enough for me a with long sleeved top. In the wet with water proof jacket keeps hands dry. They are so warm not needed them yet.

The socks when wet do fill up in torrential rain to some degree. With just flicked up stuff they are fine and dry inside. Wet and cold can be nasty but then I don't own a pair of long trousers for cycling in so haven't sealed them as such. I only own a single pair of thermal tights I used once last year.

stuaff

I've got a pair of the mid-thermal Merino socks, not worn them yet. In combination with the Shimano boots, hopeful they will actually keep my feet dry on long wet rides. I agree that overtrousers can be a bit boil-in-the-bag, but if you commute in civvies or a uniform, much better than nothing. And if you're going to be out for several hours in a torrential downpour, you want all the waterproofing you can.

UndercoverElephant

Wore my SealSkinz lobster thermador gloves for the first time last night, to a fireworks display. It was dry, so I can't attest to the waterproofness, but I was warm at the end. I was the only one who was.

Edit: But I didn't much like the socks...

georgee

The waterproof socks, though let down by a gaping hole in the top (but how else do you get your foot in) do keep the wind out on very cold days so do acts as a bit less faffy alternative to over shoes. I always go for the less is more in real rain, i'd rather be in damp shorts than damp leggings.

If anyone has a method to help remove the chance of leakage in the top (other than gaffa tape) please post it here!

shouldbeinbed

gloves were great for all but the coldes weather, so good in fact some beggar nicked them off me. socks, mine are 3+ years old and they still work, I don't use them with shorts so cant comment on filling with water - never happened to me with leggings/trousers over them, they aren't particularly comfy to wear with the thick waterproof membrane tho.

hatbeard

georgee wrote:

If anyone has a method to help remove the chance of leakage in the top (other than gaffa tape) please post it here!

trying to think a little laterally I just rolled up one of my buffs then twisted it in a figure of 8 and folder the two loops on top of each other and tried wrapping it around the top of my sealskins (which I've had on since I left home ) and there's enough fabric that I can imagine it would take a fair amount of soaking before the water began to seep down to your socks.



not worth specifically buying two buffs for but if you have a couple of the cycling+ freebies lying around might be worth giving it a try.

I'll not bother going into the looking ridiculous aspect of it as let's face it we all wear lycra, neon and big plastic helmets covered in flashing lights anyways

vorsprung

I have the sealskinz "caving" gloves that are unpadded and have grippy dots on them
These aren't very breatheable but are curiously comfortable in wet weather provided the temperature is above zero

I have a couple of pairs of the socks. Alas, after a few years use they aren't as water proof as they used to be. They are great if you have to put on a pair of wet cycling shoes

paulus69

the seal skins gloves are brilliant, I've been in sennybridge in the freeing cold (snow) and still been able to maintain a fair amount of dexterity in my hands, which for me is a win.

dhope

paulus69 wrote:

the seal skins gloves are brilliant, I've been in sennybridge in the freeing cold (snow) and still been able to maintain a fair amount of dexterity in my hands, which for me is a win.

Just bought some gloves as my mitts didn't stand up too well to the rain this morning.

SimonAH

Il Principe wrote:

Rolf F wrote:

SimonAH wrote:

MTFU the lot of you. Are you battle scarred commuters or shaven legged roadies?

Carry some waterproof overtrousers and overshoes in your bag.

You are telling us to wear waterproof overtrousers and MTFU at the same time???!!!!!!!

MTFU!!!
.

+1

Waterproof trousers are for ramblers and kagoul enthusiasts.

He casts and the bites come on thick and fast! 'tis fun!

asprilla

SimonAH wrote:

Il Principe wrote:

Rolf F wrote:

SimonAH wrote:

MTFU the lot of you. Are you battle scarred commuters or shaven legged roadies?

Carry some waterproof overtrousers and overshoes in your bag.

You are telling us to wear waterproof overtrousers and MTFU at the same time???!!!!!!!

MTFU!!!
.

+1

Waterproof trousers are for ramblers and kagoul enthusiasts.

He casts and the bites come on thick and fast! 'tis fun!

I wore waterproof trousers today; I don't mind getting home in wet kit, but I really hate putting on wet kit to ride home.

unixnerd

I have one of their hats and it's wonderful. Superb bit of kit.