Like others, I overheat pretty easily. I have two jackets for winter, a Pearl Izumi Gavia jacket (not made any more) and Novaro Express Rain Jacket. I use the rain jacket if its raining or snowing.

I've found both of these to be warm enough with a single base layer down to -10F. Of course, I need to wear the right hat, gloves, tights etc. or I get cold.

Paul

I'm probably the wrong person to ask. The 3 shells I've used for winter commuting have come from the Salvation Army store.

One was the outer layer from what was once a multi-part Columbia jacket. I accidentally left that somewhere on a day that had warmed enough that I didn't need it.

The two I have now are a running jacket from "The Running Room" and a warm-up jacket from a high school track team. The warm-up jacket I tend not to wear because it has the name "Campell" embroidered on the sleeve. I get tired of people either assuming my name is Campbell or asking me whose jacket it really is.

They all worked fine though I should probably qualify that by saying that my torso is a part of my body that I have little difficulty keeping warm. All of the jackets had a flap under the zipper to keep the wind from blowing through and all have a drawstring at the bottom. That's pretty much all I require in a shell. Under that I have a "base layer" and a "warmth layer". It's worked well for me. If I wanted to get by with only two layers I'd need a better jacket.

So has been getting quite chilly late at night. And today was chilly and rainy with serious wind. Stopped off at REI before work and picked up a jacket. Ended up getting this one..

https://marmot.com/products/leadville...t?p=216,222,72

On the sale rack from $150 marked down to $74 so I grabbed it.

Wore it right out the store and rode to work. Felt no wind, but felt heat building up inside of me fast. I think it was because of the hoodie I was wearing under it. I need to get some better under layers now.

Nice grab! More than adequate. Love Marmot. The windshirt especially.

I was looking at those too. Pretty sure it was those, they are like a super soft and fluffy coat, almost like a thin down. Really comfortable, but wasn't sure since the material was so different than all the jackets I was reading about.

Another question - What about gloves? Was looking at gloves there. Various lobster type ones, another one that claimed to be a "wind blocker glove", and then another really cool lobster glove that has a tuck away cover that turns into a mitten. They are all like $40 to $70 range. Are they worth it?

Would never consider spending that much on gloves until now. My whole life I have been using the $2 stretch gloves from gas stations.

Like this, the reviews seem good. Not cheap, and would be scared to loose them. But keeping your hands warm is pretty important it seems.

https://www.rei.com/product/788067

These are much cheaper, but probably not that good.

https://www.rei.com/product/803637

Thanks.

Are gloves like that worth it? Very much so if that's what it takes to keep your fingers from turning blue and maybe even falling off from frostbike if you bike in weather that cold.

The only real way to know how your hands will react to the cold is to buy some gloves, and if they're not warm enough, buy something warmer.

FWIW, "something warmer" can be something like these:

https://www.sierratradingpost.com/p/,...nd-Women-.html

One or two pair of those under lighter-weight gloves can work wonders. FWIW, I was wearing two pair of those liners under a pair of Lous Garneau lobster gloves when cycling in very windy 12F weather last winter.

One doesn't need a hood but a baclava or watch cap is sufficient for the head on cold, windy days to prevent heat loss from the face/head.

A light pair of gloves in cold weather to keep the hands from going numb.

A liner jacket or windshirt is good enough down to the 30s. Below that, a softshell can be thrown on for added warmth.

A hardshell is only when it rains or snows hard.

The key is layering and knowing when to add and remove pieces of winter clothing.

For gloves, I wear:
Crochet backed, leather palmed gloves from HOT down to about 35*F
Light fleece gloves down to about 20*F (< $10 at Kohls and wherever)
Windproof/weatherproof medium weight gloves down to about 5*F ($10 at Kohls)
Blaze orange thinsulate hunting gloves from 5*F down to COLD (-25*F is the coldest so far).

The blaze orange are on sale at local megamarts for $10 right now (deer hunting season). They're essentially cheap-a$$ ski gloves. They're toasty warm down to real cold.

YMMV though. Some people have different levels of circulation to their fingers particularly in the cold, and I've noticed that I'm comfortable in lighter gloves than some others. Heck, I have friends who wear full gloves and flannel lined jeans at 50*F.

My 1st Winter I started off with a cheapy pair of full fingered cycling gloves I bought at Target. I still have those and they work great down to the low 40's. Once it gets colder than that I need a "real" set of gloves. Once it got colder I started to wear an old pair of Kombi Goretex Ski gloves that I've had for a long time. It kept my hands warm, but the problem is that I'd get very sweaty/clammy hands. On longer rides I'd be fine till I stopped and then had to start up again a few hours later... then I'd have very moist gloves... yuck.

The solution was to get a set of "Poggies." Specifically I got a set of Climmit from SideTrak, sadly I can't find them on the web right now, I guess they may have closed shop. Too bad as they were excellent quality construction and very reasonably prices. The nice thing is that they keep your hand warm AND dry. In most winter weather all I need is the cheapy full fingered golves. Since there is room around your hands, you don't get the sweaty hand issues. For riding on those Fall and Spring days when I don't need the Poggies yet, I have a pair of PI Cyclones. These are claimed to be full Winter Gloves. They work find right to around Freezing, but in all fairness, once the temperature drops in the the 20's your hands will be frozen. One thing I do love about the Cyclones is that they are reasonably water resistant, but still breath well. Therefore these are excellent for those cold rainy Fall days, the gloves do eventually soack through, but it takes quire some time. My normal gloves turn my hands into wet cold lumps in a matter of minutes.

For head gear I have a breathable Beanie type cap that keeps the wind off my forehead and ears, but lets sweat pass through it. I found it in a local Ski shop for wearing under a ski helmet. Cost around $20. I use that almost the entire winter. For truly cold weather (below 15F) I'll put on a balacava to give greater protection of my neck, and sides of my face. That only happens a a few days here or there. The had gets me through most of the Winter.

Happy riding,
André

+1 for no hood, waterproof shell. my hood rolls up into the collar so i can put it on if forced to walk in the rest of the way.

layers underneath, no cotton!

I'm not as concerned about ventilation, because the extra sweating helps burn more calories

Here's my 2 cents as a year round Chicago commuter. When it's cold I wear a smartwool tshirt and an old Marmot windstopper fleece. You don't need anything more until it gets below 15 degrees because your core will warm up (I'm often venting my fleece when its 20 degrees!). When it gets below 10-15 degrees I will add a wool sweater I bought for $2 at Salvation Army. (I note here that I wear that sweater with my wool t-shirt when the weather is between 30-40 and skip the fleece altogether).

I think the key is keeping the extremities warm. I wear midweight Pearl Izumi gloves until it gets below 35, but then I switch to the lobster-style gloves. I wear a balaclava and ski helmet when it goes below freezing. I wear one pair of socks, one pair of cycling tights, and a pair of knickers almost exclusively from mid-November to March; regulating the lower half of the body is pretty easy and I don't ever find my legs freezing or overheating.

Bottom line - I bet that old fleece in your closet and a wool t-shirt will carry you through most of a Chicago winter. When it gets REALLY cold just add a wool sweater. Spend the money on good gloves.