Heated grips or better gloves?

[trcooke]

It's winter time and my hands are friggin freezing, so much so that the thumb and forefinger of my throttle hand go numb which is less than ideal. In your experience which is the more effective remedy, better gloves or heated grips?

Cheers, Tim

[Beansie]

I have heated grips on both my bikes and I can only imagine that heated gloves would do a better job, heating the full hand rather than the section that you grip with.

[trcooke]

Heated gloves? Such things exist? I never knew that.

[Gerontious]

Heated gloves usually need an electric supply from the bike.. So that will mean a fused socket connected to the battery and the socket somewhere convenient that you can plug the gloves into. In summer you can use the socket for something else, like charging a phone.

Heated grips are fairly easy to fit. Look at those from Oxford in particular. The best way to improve matters is, for the depths of winter, fit hand muffs so your hands are enclosed and out of the wind blast, this usually means that with heated grips you can get away with thinner gloves. Then once the temperatures are above 10c or so, take the muffs off until next winter.

[trcooke]

Dang! Heated gloves are expensive, in addition to whatever it'd cost to have a power supply hooked up on the bike. Perhaps I'll start with the cheapest option and get better gloves, then splash out on some heated grips if I still have problems.

[Bender]

Knox just brought out new winter glove

https://www.planet-knox.com/product/zero3-winter-gloves/

That should make the zero 2 cheap.

[Chrissb6]

For convenience grips, just be sure you wire them correctly so that they switch off when you stop the bike. Gloves might work but generally there bulky and a bit of a faff to connect and disconnect on and off the bike.

[mikestrivens]

Heated grips should be standard fit in UK.

[Wynne G Oldman]

A pair of waterproof overmitts over your gloves keeps your hands nice and warm, and they're not expensive. I recommend the Spada ones. They can feel a little bit clumsy though.

[MikeHorton]

Heated grips should be standard fit in UK.

 

I agree just had some I ford's fitted to my RE Himalayan once warmed up 30% is usually enough to keep me warm with the handlebar protectors too. They really should be standard fit, it's really distracting if your hands are cold and must make reactions slower.

[anth_85]

that was one of the first jobs I did to mine when I got it. Though it does have the issue of being too hot on the palm of your hand, and leaves your fingers cold. I have just ordered an over mitt from here

https://www.amazon.co.uk/Spada-0362079-Overmitts-Black/dp/B0062NIBYG/ref=sr_1_15?rps=1&ie=UTF8&qid=1549034201&sr=8-15&keywords=motorbike+hand+muffs&refinements=p_76%3A419158031

which should keep the wind off my normal gloves and keep them much warmer. I looked a the full handlebar muff but they look crap so I couldn't bring myself to get them.

[RAYK47]

Oxford heated grips paired with Halvassons advanced laminated gloves. Cold hands are a thing of the past.

[Gerontious]

Heated grips should be standard fit in UK.

 

No.. they shouldn't. because the vast majority of owners do not even dream about riding during the winter in their worst nightmare.

what they should be is offered as an option on all new bikes and easily retro fitted. with, at the very least, **an electrical connection point close by and easily accessible.

If I was buying a bike just to ride in the 'season' why on earth should i be paying for, or even want heated grips that are of absolutely no use to me?

** This is what should be standard out of the factory. My new bike came with two (switched). One in the front fairing and another under the seat. So, its easy as pie for me to add extra lights or heated grips without having to route a cable back to the battery and splice it into a feed. same goes for anything added at the rear.

The only exception, where heated grips should be standard are for bikes that are specifically marketed at commuters.

[mikestrivens]

^^^^

That’s a fair compromise

[trcooke]

Oxford HotGrips have been fitted and riding home from Belfast today my hands were nice and toasty. Still a little nippy on the fingertips but much much better than before and none of the loss of feeling I was experiencing before.

[RAYK47]

Nice one. They make a big difference. Tbh I don't use my heated grips often but it's nice to know the are there if I need them

[bonio]

IMO heated grips win over better (but unheated) gloves. Mine go on even in summer, so I can keep riding with summer gloves even on cold, rainy days. They go on in autumn, so I can still keep riding in summer gloves, as I like them. And the stay on winter, but now I'm winter goretex gloves.