Originally Posted by
banerjek
My hands seem considerably more sensitive than most people to cold, and I need to figure out how to keep my hands warmer. Currently, somewhere around the mid 30's, my fingers freeze even though I'm wearing windstopper gloves with polypropylene liners. Once the temp drops below 30, I switch to lobster mitts, but my fingers start freezing again somewhere around the mid 20's. Most of the temps I ride in the 30's are in rain.
A couple times a year, I'll throw chemical warmers in my gloves/mitts -- that really works nicely, but I'd really prefer to just have my gloves do the job.
I'm looking for something that will be as toasty as possible when wet that allow me to operate my brifters effectively. I'm willing to spend what it takes to do the job, but only if the gloves will actually keep my hands warmer. Cost aside, what are the best gloves out there, and how much better (if any) are they than the cheaper options?
there are gloves that offer better insulation than others. look for gloves with primaloft insulation which is the highest end synthetic fill you can find. gloves from marmot, black diamond, mountain hardware (avoid north face) will give you better construction for a price premium.
I literally have about 30 pairs of different types of high end gloves and ski gloves (kind of an obsession), but in the end for commuting I use the $10 cheapo goretex ski gloves with a thick fleece/poly liner. It's less susceptible to compression, so while it's heavier and bulkier, your holding the handlebars doesn't tend to compress the insulation and make your hands colder. Man***** makes many like this.
Personally, I'm not a fan of glove liners in standard glove systems. They don't size the gloves for this so you end up compressing the insulation, reducing efficiency. Also a base layer's primary job is to move moisture and I doubt your hands are putting much out during winter cycling.