Winter recommendations for hands and neck?

Temperatures are now in the 30's, 40's and 50's in the Pacific Northwest (Washington state). I've been riding every day there's no chance of rain (I'll deal with the cold, not the rain). While I'm enjoying the riding, I'm not staying as warm as I'd like when it's in the 30's and 40's. I'm able to bundle up pretty well (boots, overpants, nice jacket, some neck protection, good helmet, gloves). My hands and neck are what get the coldest.

So, I have a few questions...

1. When it comes to keeping hands warmer, what's the biggest benefit for the price -- high-quality winter gloves, hand guards, heated gloves or heated grips? If you were to prioritize those, what would you get first, second, third and fourth? Price IS and issue for me, so I can't just buy everything. I'm willing to spend a little more if there's a clear benefit, but I have to be mindful of the cost.

2. Do you have any specific recommendations for winter or heated gloves?

3. When it comes to keeping necks warmer, what do you recommend? I currently wear a homemade neck and chest protector my wife made me. It's the neck and upper chest part of a turtleneck shirt sewn to a piece of windproof nylon fabric -- I get neck and upper chest coverage. I then add a lightweight neck gaiter after I put my jacket on to fill the gap under my helmet. They block most of the air/wind and are way better than nothing. Yet, I still feel cold air work it's way around those things and make my neck get cold and my upper chest feel a bit cold. I'm open to suggestions!

So, the bottom line is that I'd like to know good recommendations for keeping my hands and neck warm in cold weather, being mindful of price -- solutions that are a good value.

Thanks in advance.

I will deal with just one aspect of your query. I have one of these as per link below. It is probably one of the most effective neck warmers/protectors that I have ever worn and I use it in the coldest weather. Once it is zipped up, nothing gets past it.

KTM KTM NECK WARMER

I wear electric clothing. I have found that the base layer electric clothing works better than the jackets, because it is thin and is next to your skin. You do not fill like the doughboy this way. However, if you have too you can still layer with more clothing. I like electric gloves because they are waterproof in the rain. However, electric grips can give a real nice warmth. All of the brands I would say work about the same.

Your likely to get quite a few different opinions here. This is what I do to combat your two questions.

1. Hands - Mobile Warming Heated gloves - Mobile Warming LTD Max Heated Gloves - RevZilla
They are expensive but were worth it to me. I ride year rounds and use these for temps under 40F. They work good down to 20F but I have hand guards. I have a 30 minute commute one-way so I end up charging them every three days. I plug them in at night before bed and they are ready for my ride the next morning. I like them because I am wire free.

The cheap route may be to buy some of the disposable hand warmers and throw one in each glove prior to riding and add some hand guards to reduce the winds impact on the hands.

2. Cold Neck - As I stated I ride year round. My cutoff is about 16F. That is when I throw in the towel and drive a car. That doesn't happen much in Arkansas thank God so for those 20F mornings I wear a light balaclava. I have found it does not require some thick heavy garment under the helmet to keep the wind off the neck. Most winter jackets tuck up under the helmet part way so your only having to protect about an inch of skin. Just be sure to put the balaclava on before putting your jacket on so it is tucked inside.

The hands question comes up every year or so. There are other threads, this being one of them: http://nc700-forum.com/forum/nc700-general-discussion/4924-heated-gloves-handguards.html. There are more previous discussion you can find searching.

There isn't one perfect solution. Everyone has their preferences. I use hand guards and heated grips because they're always there, ready to be used without bring a specific item along or wiring something up. Hands get cold? Push button for heat. Oxford heated grips can be had for $40 at Revzilla, although the installation is a bit tedious. Handguards can be had as cheap as $25 at Cycle Gear.

As for the neck, what windshield do you have? Is it directing all the air at your neck? What you have for neck gear might/should already do the trick if the windshield were changed or you added a deflector.

SergeantChuck said:

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The cheap route may be to buy some of the disposable hand warmers and throw one in each glove prior to riding and add some hand guards to reduce the winds impact on the hands.

Click to expand...

If you want to be even cheaper with the disposable hand warmers you can put them into a zip lock bag and re-use them on the way home. The hand warmers need oxygen to work and once the O2 is gone in the sealed bag they stop heating. Once the bag is opened and exposure to O2 is restarted they will last long enough for the ride home and then some.

For the hands, heated gloves are the most effective, hands-down (see what I did there?). I think every heated glove out there is waterproof as well (I'm a Gerbing user). If you could only have one and ride in very cold temps, I think gloves are the way to go.

That said, I use heated gloves, grips, and hand guards all in conjunction, depending on conditions. 90% of the time just the grips and guards are enough, and like Greg said, they're always there which is a huge plus. But, if I'm going on a long ride and the temps are 40°F or below, I'll grab my gloves every time. With the guards knocking the wind off the front of my hands, the grips warming my palms, and the gloves warming the outsides.... my hands are roasty toasty down into the teens for long distances. Did I mention I hate having numb hands??

Because you say budget is important, you might look into Hippo Hands.



I've never used them, but at <$75 they seem like they'd be very effective for the money and a lot of the Pac NorthWet guys like them. Keep your hands out of the wind and wet, with a good pair of insulated gloves I bet they're great.

For your neck, a bigger windscreen will definitely help. Even with a gaitor/neck guard if you've got 25°F wind blowing directly on you at 70mph, eventually it's going to get coooold. I've got an old wool knit neck thing that I think is probably meant for skiing that I mostly use. I've got one of the 'Freeze-Out' neck things from Cycle Gear that seems to work OK as well.

Back to budget for a minute. The heated stuff isn't cheap. Not only do you have to buy the actual garment, but then you've got to get your hands on a controller, and then wire it up. BUT, once you've got that stuff, it's yours -- forever. You'll never have to invest in it again (unless you break it, but I think Gerbing has a lifetime warranty on the wiring). It's a big investment up front, but if you're a year-round rider the cost benefit is completely worth it. The first time I rode with heated stuff I couldn't believe I had waited so long.

You might search around other sites as well since this isn't a particularly NC specific topic -- every biker out there has the same issues. ADV and UK forums where riders use their bikes as real transportation in all weather conditions usually gets me good info for dealing with inclement conditions.

Good luck!

trey

21° Here This Morning & I Was Warm

After getting the ski bibs and lined boots the only areas that were still cold for me were my hands and neck. This morning I wore my balaclava under my helmet and my neck stayed warm. I haven't bought winter motorcycle gloves because I have a good pair of 20 year old ski gloves that do a good job except for the 70 mph winds. I installed Barkbusters which kept my hands warmer but not warm enough so I added snowmobile handlebar muffs and now my hands stay warm. They look goofy but I am now warm, in fact this morning at 21° and 70 mph I was actually a bit too warm. No electric here as I have not justified spending the money, just remember that if the electrics quit you freeze.

Stay warm,
Charles

Balaclava:
FREEZE-OUT - Balaclava - Head/Neck - Base Layers - Street - Cycle Gear


Muffs:

2nd vote for the freeze out balaclava. Keeps my face from stinging in the cold.

I have [THESE] gloves

and the $25 hand guards from CycleGear [HERE].




Recently, I experimented with a seat warmer $20 [HERE] meant to be used in the car.
I have car power port wired into the inside of the frunk (powers my USB tomtom and smart phone), so I thought I could connect the seat warmer and just trail the cable out of the frunk when it's closed and sit on the seat warmer as I ride. This worked VERY well.

The customized windshield (with winter add ons that come off in summer)
also help to keep the cold wind off my mid section.
I would say (short of heated gear) keeping the wind OFF reduces cold most of all.

Gordon Gerbing Welcomes You!



Amazon.com: Schampa WarmSkin Balaclava (Black, One Size): Automotive


I have several balaclavas and when the temp hit the single digits, they are worth their weight in gold.
I'm on my second heated liner from Gerbings. The first one failed on a very cold ride home.
For heated gloves. I had a pair of Gerbings T5 gloves that preformed good until the temps got below 10 degrees F, but one glove got a open circuit and Gerbings LLC wouldn't reply to my emails or they would just put me on hold when I called.
They have lost my business.

I replaced the T5 Gerbings with Warm and Safe classic rider gloves, but I'm not that impressed with the heating compared with the T5's. Both work ok until the temps go below 20 degrees.
I will probably buy a Gordons heated gloves next. He is the original Gerbings and as far as I know, is the only one that has a lifetime warranty on the electrics. Gerbings LLC dropped the lifetime warranty after the buyout.
I have been looking for non-elecectric gear lately, because I don't want to freeze if something fails.
My commute is around 54 miles.

For Christmas, my wife got me firstear wired heated gloveliners with dual heat troller. Not sure of price, but I wired them up 3 days ago, and on my 26 degree commute today, I had to back off heat because hands were burning. She also bought me the Superbike Handlebar Muffs, or Mitts, similar to discontinued Hippo Hands. But they only cost $18 on Amazon. I had to remove trackside handguards to get them on though. I think the mitts made huge difference knocking down the wind. They take getting used to, but I was able to take my hands out at 70mph and get them back in (one at a time!). I also have the $9.95 freeze out balaclava, works great.

I've used the AeroStich triangle in standard size, 24"x16", for 20+ years and love it. I've now ordered the piece in XL, 26" x 16" and will use it for the next 20+ years. Easy on and off, very good product.

Aerostich Fleece Wind Triangle - Scarves and Masks - Clothing - Clothing :: Aerostich/RiderWearHouse Motorcycle Jackets, Suits, Clothing, & Gear

For the hands, excluding heated gloves, the biggest size mittens work well. They function like Hippo Hands. I bought a pair of Iditarod Gloves in XXL, from Caballas, for $20 on sale years ago and wear a standard pair of gloves inside the mittens.
Loose fitting w air/space acts as an insulator. Tight fitting garments are cold, loose is warm. Knees get cold(er) on a bike because the leg garment is tight in that spot.

I have been working on this as well. I have some good winter riding gloves as well, but added the following:
FREEZE-OUT - Inner Glove Liners - Gloves - Base Layers - Street - Cycle Gear

My gloves are these: http://www.cyclegear.com/STREET-AND-STEEL-Nitro-LeatherTextile-Motorcycle-Gloves

I am thinking about, if I really want to be able to commute most of the year, getting some of the muffs like wa5vhu listed on the first page. My hands were the only things that got really cold while riding.

I have the same as he does for the face/neck protection, and let me say this - I had a slight issue with fogging at lights and while going slow, but it offered enough protection that while going slow, I just opened the face shield an inch. Was still warm enough in 22 def f temps.
FREEZE-OUT - Balaclava - Head/Neck - Base Layers - Street - Cycle Gear

If your helmet has a nice inside, and the top of your head doesnt get cold, you may want to look at this instead of the full balaclava. Only covers the face and neck.
FREEZE-OUT - Face Mask - Head/Neck - Base Layers - Street - Cycle Gear

The other part to all of this is, no matter how good your boots are, if you dont have good socks your feet will suffer. I wear some "high-tech" wool hiking socks I got from both the military and Cabellas. I just treat going out on the bike just like I would if I were going hiking in the winter, and having spent a few years doing this in Colorado (based out of Colorado Springs), I have a decent number of socks built up.

I dont have any other cold weather gear (heated anything) but did well enough with what I had I feel I would be fine in my 30 minute commute. I am holding off getting too much gear right off, but I feel I am ok for most weather situations I will come across when I will be riding. Now, what I need to do is start looking for some summer gloves and 6" boots for when the warmer weather gets here (which will be way too soon.)

I bought this neck gaiter for less than $10. Warm and makes my helmet quieter because less air gets up in there. One of the reviews says it's so thick it feels like a cat is wrapped around your neck; true and funny.

Still the best bang for the buck for me was used electric gear off eBay. Heated Widder vest + arm chaps + old style dial controller for ~$60. Later ebayed Widder electric gloves for ~$50. The gloves are nice but the vest is transformative. A little chilly? Bump it up from zero. Cold? Crank it up, yo. I did have to research and snipe to get those prices.

Keep in mind I am in Texas so you'll have to grade on a curve. I generally don't ride in the 30s because I am afeared of ice.

here in sunny warm Scotland ,three snoods and a balaclava ,heated grips,vest and gloves and hand guards...good to minus 8 deg c except feet in extra large wellies and four pairs socks will still get cold.
But nothing will save you from black ice .
Mittens work well too on my little bike.