Noonievut

This past winter I did more riding, in harsher climates, than the previous 5 winters combined. I was able to solve most of my 'cold' problems with better gear, and the rest was solved with the right attitude. The only gap in my clothing was my gloves. I have used lobster gloves with/without a liner glove, and gortex snowboarding gloves with a liner glove and once the temp is -15c or colder, my digits get cold. I know bar mitts are probably the warmest, but I ride a drop-bar bike and like changing hand positions frequently. I believe I need either very warm lobster gloves, where some fingers are together, or mitts so all fingers are together. So I'm in the market for buying new gloves and want to know what are the warmest ones out there? I do have to change gears time-to-time with my brifters, but I would rather struggle to do this with warm mitts or gloves, than have it easy but be cold. I'll spend around a $100, though this may invovle finding a $150-200 pair on sale.

Thanks!

erig007

After years of search and use, the warmest i've got vs dexterity are homemade based on those choko mitts (not the best leather quality outthere). Those are kind of weak just like that so it requires some modifications to get something crazy warm
Welcome to Choko Design ? Snowmobile - ATV Garments ? Accessories
modified i find them better than marmot expedition mitts, OR alti mitts, black diamond mercury mitts, vapor altitude mitts from RBH...
mainly because my big hands didn't allow to add layers inside those mitts so those bigger mitts from choko are warmer for me after doing some modifications.


Also i have some very warm DIY gloves but i get way better dexterity and can reach way lower temps with mitts than with gloves for bike purpose since warm gloves require big fingers which reduce dexterity which defeat the purpose of having gloves over mitts. It is also way easier to remove mitts and do stuff with liners than do things with bulky finger gloves.

If you have smaller hands then the easier thing to do is to go for marmot, OR, RBH, black diamond, rab or hestra

etw

I am considering these for next winter

Heated Gloves - The Hottest Heated and Best Fitting Heated Glove Liners

erig007

There are a few on the market but those seems interesting. Something to look at.
What i would check:
-does it works?
-reliability? (only one finger that doesn't heat anymore for this to become useless, at this price it should better last a little)
-how the heat spread especially at the fingertips?
-is the run time really what they say it is?
-how long to recharge the battery?
-do they fit my hands? (gloves are probably the most specific thing to wear in the whole body)
-comfort?
-how it handles sweat, snow, water?
-washable?
-durability? how long before they start to have holes?
-how the warranty is when you actually need it?
-looks? design?
-actual cost per use

The good news is that heated gloves will become better and better as this technology reach maturity

Northwestrider

Gloves have been the weak area for me as well. It doesn't get as cold here in my area as it does in yours, but the combination of fairly cold weather and rain turn my hands to ice. My wife found some rubber gloves that are supposedly used by fishermen that I will insert a wool liner, for the next season.

Noonievut

I do have small hands (were a size medium cycling glove) so I will look at the warmest gloves from those companies, though I may still size up so I can fit a liner in there.

I'm not very handy so DIY isn't that appealing...though I haven't ruled this out.

Not sure on something with a battery...though that can something to research in the future if I feel nothing else is working (to start I just want the 'warmest' gloves available, with at least some dexterity, and I'm guessing those will be fine).

erig007

Actually, on a theoretical standpoint from studies i read for boots that should apply to hands as well, the warmest are those made of fur then come those made for arctic expedition (they may be made of fur as well)
If you don't mind wearing animal stuff:
Expedition :: Bilodeau Inc.
Here is max or jack or theodore the beaver

Probably that the natural beaver one is too much (noticeable) for urban use. I tried the long black seal mittens at the shop which is very nice looking and a good compromise in terms of fashion to warmth ratio. Not for wide hands though. Should be ok for medium hands.

If you mind wearing animal stuff then there is artificial fur mitts
The one from RBH is what i would look at then (i got those and they fall short to my homemade one but are still incredibly warm) (just noticed they don't have the artificial fur version anymore on their website )
VaprThrm vapor barrier handwear to keep your hands toasty
there is also those from northernoutfitters than claim they are the best in terms of weight to warmth ratio in the world (haven't tried them)
Arctic Mittens

Here is their system

Usually, it is the limitation of expedition stuff. They design things in way they are as light as possible or dry as fast as possible for expedition purpose. Wool is warmer (according to an old U.S army study posted here on this forum) but also heavier and gather moisture which makes it not a very good solution for expedition. (waking up with 1 pound of frozen sweat for instance) When riding a bike the weight of what you're wearing isn't as vital as when in Antarctica. And the fact that you will reach home at night allowing them to dry, garments that gather moisture like wool are not so much a trouble. Because of that i would swap those liners with wool/(nylon, acrylic, leather) blend liners. Blend for the next to skin gloves (compromise between warm and durability) and 100% wool for the mitt liners, the outer shell would be found among all those brands above. Whatever brand fit you the best.
Also your mitts are as warm as your weakest point, the weakest link in mitts may be thumbs (can also be the wind going through your mitts) as the thumb will be the first to feel the cold as it doesn't have the advantage of being with other fingers. Be sure you have enough room there taking into account the other layers.

Noonievut

erig007 - thanks so much for the info. I'm thinking the earlier list you provided in terms of the Marmot, OR and BD options might work. They all list temps colder than I'll be riding. Not sure if I would size up to use a liner glove, or get the right size and trust.

I would love to use on their gloves instead, for the dexterity when shifting, but just not sure they would be warm enough (already been down that route).

erig007

Manufacturers tend to exaggerate what their mitts/gloves can handle. I wouldn't bet on it. Also, everybody is different in terms of how one can handle cold. It also may varies in time due to people that adapt to cold and gloves/mitts that lose their ability as time goes by especially lofty one like those made of primaloft.... So temp rating allow to compare gloves/mitts inside one brand more than anything else like between brands and the absolute temp rating. More like a relative value rather than an absolute one.

I'm pretty sure you will need to have liners. There is always something that can happen that requires to do stuff outside. Big gloves or mitts are of no use in this case. And reparing something with naked hands outside when it is freezing cold is no fun without some protection.
My advice would be to go for the combo (thin liner gloves - thick outer mitts) at least thin liners first then once you have it then go at the shop and look for the outershell mitts that fit from marmot, OR and BD
Maybe some high dexterity gloves from mechanix to have a minimum of cold and water protection with lots of dexterity
https://www.mechanix.com/the-original-05mm-covert
https://www.mechanix.com/the-original-insulated

I have some BD gloves that i love though they don't offer the best dexterity and are a little bulky but they last and give lots of warmth. Those could be good liners i'm not sure they could fit inside marmot, OR and BD outershell mitts though.
Those "ultimate winter" mitts from marmot, OR and BD were already too tight for my hands so i couldn't fit these BD gloves inside but maybe you could
WoolWeight Glove - Black Diamond Gear

Another combo that is great as liners under mitts is ibex shak liners combined with 40g thinsulate-leather motorcycle gloves.



Pretty much what i currently use and can reach -1C/30F sometimes lower.
Thin motorcycle gloves can handle light rain and snow and allow me to work on my bike when it is -10C/19F or get my keys in my pocket or unzip my jacket or buy my groceries without having to remove my gloves.
When i add the modified leather shell (without the mitt liners that come with it) above this combo I can reach -30C/-21F and get great comfort since i don't need to add the lofty mitt liners since it isn't yet cold enough to requires it.
In fact to put that in perspective i reach more or less the same temp -30C/-21F with this combo as when i use the RBH altitude mitts (remember at this time i haven't added any mitt liners in the modified mitts yet) so i can reach way below temp with the DIY system than with just the RBH mitts that are available on the market.

vol

That is one very cute and warm-looking glove! (Poor animal, though)

erig007

It's not a glove...it's a black russian terrier
Here it is with the mouth open

Al Criner

Try using some tennis wrist bands along with your gloves/mitts. If the pulse points in your wrists are warm your hands stay warmer. This is surprisingly effective IME, although we don't get extreme winter weather where I live.

CharlieFree

My hands have always been my weak point. Tried dozens of different things. I finally broke down and bought these and used them all last winter. Very happy and good customer service. I use them in combination with Bar Mitts so I could run them on low and not have to charge them very often.

See my experience below.

linnefaulk

I haven't had to ride with gloves in years. But I wore mittens. I can't do that anymore with my gears changes.

Oh wait, I live in Florida. I should be OK.

erig007

That's good news. It seems it is now a good alternative to bulky gloves for commute.
The only thing that worries me a little is the fact that if those gloves fail in some way during your commute you end up doing the remaining part of your commute with gloves that are not warm enough. Something to be ready for.

CharlieFree

I have a relatively short commute and I wear these under a shell glove. I have forgotten to charge them at times and managed to get where I'm going. in that case it's just like a regular glove.

NormanF

I've found reflective liner gloves work well - underneath a shell. The best gloves don't work because they don't insulate well and you get cold hands in no time. In very cold weather - liners first then gloves to provide a shell.

Barrettscv 

Military trigger finger sniper mittens are ideal for very cold winter weather. The trigger finger allows the index finger to shift brifters.

New Black Extreme Cold Weather Mutant Mitt Gloves with Liner Trigger Finger XL | eBay

https://www.sportsmansguide.com/produ...itts?a=1744049

mox

I have a pair of these

and a cheap (under $20) set of pogies. I ride until it gets down below -15ºC and my hands don't get cold.

Jim from Boston

My coldest temperatures are rarely down to 0°F for my 14 mile one-way commute, when I wear the combination pictured below with cheapo fleece mittens. I generally wear single windproof fingered ski gloves though, sometimes with a thin inner knit pair. However, whenever wearing hand wear at any temperature, I also wear a pair of “wrist gaiters” made from athletic socks, to seal the wrists from any gaps between gloves and jacket.

I note that the skin of my covered forearms perspires from the additional warmth. I speculate that these wrist gaiters may further warm the blood flowing to my hands. Since wearing them, I haven’t had any hand problems, FWIW. Feet are another matter, my weakest link for winter riding.



Addendum: See also this preceding similar opinion:

The wrist gaiters are longer than tennis wrist bands and thus cover a longer segment of the forearm blood flow to futher warm it up, as I suggest.

Jim from Boston

I agree that riding in rain down below about 45°F is a tougher challenge than much colder, but dry temps. I just now thought that when the occasion arises, I may try riding with plastic grocery bags over my gloves to keep off the rain and wind, sealed at my wrist with Velcro ankle bands. Right now, it’s just a thought experiment.

erig007

Yeah thermal inertia can do for short commute. Bringing some extra hand warmers for when electric gloves fail could be a good idea in case of longer commutes. Though some have experienced hand warmers not working well sometimes. If it was me i would bring some mitts, plastic bags, aluminum foils or extra socks in case. Not great for dexterity but since it is for the few times those electric gloves fail.

vol

I don't understand the use of fingerless gloves in cold winter. It does make the hand more flexible in performing tasks under fair weather, but in very cold weather, it's the fingertips that are affected the most and could develop frostbites, and should be kept warm more than the palm/back of the hands.

Bike Gremlin

When the rest of the hand and body is kept warm, blood keeps flowing into fingertips and they remain warm. When the rest of the hand (or body core especially) get cold - body contracts blood vessels and blood stops flowing into your limbs - it flows, but with much smaller amount, so they get cold (while body core remains it's warmth, keeping you alive, brain and lungs warmer). Hat is also very important, almost as much as boots and jacket - since a lot of heat is lost at that part if not covered.

I ride fingerless up to freezing temps. Not always start a ride in those, but after 2-3 kms I take the thicker gloves off.


As far as good gloves - any cheap skiing gloves do the job. Our winters are warmer than -10c most of the time. Though cheap skiing ones I've tested up to -20 and hands were warm. 20 euros or something they cost.
Something like these:
https://www.amazon.co.uk/etirel-17410...=etirel+gloves