Rain gloves
 

Is there such a thing as a waterproof cycling glove for winter riding? I have bought a number gloves that are advertised as waterproof, but none of them are.

In my experience, if they're sealed well enough to keep water out, your hands will fill them up (with sweat) from the inside. Unless it's really cold. It's tough to balance.

I agree that even gloves advertised as waterproof aren't necessarily good. bought a pair of waterproof gloves cpl years ago. sure they are waterproof but my hands get so wet from the inside that if I remove them, the inside is sticky & I can't get them back in, or it's difficult. last yr was really happy w Pearl Izumi lobster gloves (really happy) & another BF member showed his PI fingered gloves so I got a pair (can't wait to try them). looking forward to using them. but last yr (before getting the lobster gloves) I started using bar mitts for straight bar & even drop bar bikes after talking to a young lady at a red light who loved hers. they sure so help with drizzle & rain! kinda big a gooky looking, but if you don't mind how they look, it's like riding with an air BnB for your hands! happy hands & dry gloves! sometimes no gloves! or just glove liners. I way way too many options now, but what I don't have is cold wet hands

I think the choices are actually better for you over there in Mass-- where I am, "cold" is usually ~40º. PI Lobster gloves are good pretty much below freezing, So I'd be a sweat machine, raining or not. The same really goes for any rain garment here-- in SoCal, in the rare event that it does rain, we have two choices: be wet from the rain, or be wet from sweat. I've left the driveway on a misty and cloudy morning at around 45º, and pulled back into that driveway 3 hours later and it's over 70º. I would need to tow a wardrobe to try to keep up with the temperature/humidity changes.

I have those PI fingered gloves from a year or two back, great in sub-40, but don't get 'em wet. The Seirus 1425 was my go-to last winter, I don't know how well they would fare for places where it gets properly cold, but they do well enough here. Not perfect (for me) as their largest size isn't quite large enough for my hands, and an insulated glove needs a big of space inside to insulate really well. Full-fingered glove season isn't even 10 weeks long here, but that doesn't stop me for hunting for a new pair of gloves every "winter." I have like... six pair?

As mentioned above, your hands will get wet, no matter what. So you need good insulation. Maybe most important will be the ability to get your gloves off and onto your wet hands when the gloves themselves are soaking wet. The best gloves I've found so far are the Giro 100 Proof gloves. Some people do fine with ragg wool gloves and some sort of windproof cover, usually leather, but could be anything that allows you to operate the bike.

While I love those PI lobster claws, I absolutely hated the fingered gloves. Used them couple of times and got rid of them. They do nothing but block the wind. Fingers cold, hands cold from sweat.

I often make the mistake of chiming in when I shouldn't for you CA guys, sorry. but sounds like you have the same glove addiction as me. these Giro DND Gloves may not be rain gloves but someone on BF recommended them so I put them on my wish list. not that I need more gloves :innocent:

OK, thanks for the warning. I'll throw them into the rotation with discretion. it's not uncommon for me to wear a pair of gloves then let them dry for a cpl days before using them again. the MCTi gloves I mentioned above were the absolute worst in terms of how long they took to dry. (didn't use for cycling just shoveling & roof raking) I still have them, ugh. I'm not good at losing gloves unfortunately ...

Warm and wet is OK. Cold and dry is not OK.

Staying warm is more important than keeping dry.

Chemical hand warmers will keep your hands and feet warm even when wet.


-Tim-

My fingers get cold easily. So I have lots of different gloves.

I have an older pair of Marmot goretex shell gloves. It appears that Marmot doesn't make waterproof/windproof shells any more.
REI now carries a different goretex shell: Mountain Hardware.

Shell glove advantages:
I have a few sets of liner gloves, lightweight and medium weight. These are very breathable, so my fingers don't get soggy.

I can wear just the shells if the day warms up, or even just the liners.

The gloves are oversized, so it's easy to pull them on over the liners, and the insulation doesn't get compressed.

It's easy to air out the shells when I get home, and wash the liners, which dry quickly.

The goretext is waterproof, along with being windproof. I've washed the shell outsides, while wearing them, under the kitchen faucet and the insides stay dry.

The long wrist coverage works great for keeping drafts out of my sleeves.

Downsides:
They look slightly goofy to be wearing giant gloves when it's only moderately cold. But my fingers don't care.
They aren't as breathable as windblocking fleece gloves -- I switch to those if it's warm enough.

The Showers Pass gloves are good quality, keep water out and breath well. So they work well withing the limits of the possible. 30sF and rainy 12 mile commutes they are quite good. 3 hour ride in the same with the gloves coming off to get to food and tools, not to well. For the latter, I wear deerskin "chopper mitts" and liner mittens. Those work far better once everything is wet. (Look for XXL you want huge to get your normal hand positions if you are riding dropped HBs.)

Ben

I have had puddled cold water in my fingertips using O'neill neoprene windsurfing gloves.

having a shell glove and a removable liner worked OK* because I could dry the liner separately.
*until I lost one out of a jacket pocket, I had better stowage wearing an anorak.


At Sea those 'deadliest catch' guys use a couple layers of dipped neoprene gloves
that are not at all breathable, handing those crab pots, while on the Bering straits.
but crabbing season is short.

What I use now is a waterproof rain cape, which is draped over my hands, on the bars..
then the gloves don't have to be doing waterproofness. just keeping the hands warm.

Realistically, sewing makes holes , and gloves have a lot of sewing..

...

I don't ride much in cold wet weather, but I found nitrile gloves worn inside some Harbor Freight work gloves worked down to a certain temperature. The extra layer, though thin, helped a bunch over wet gloves alone

Later, I got a pair of insulated gloves "ski" or hiking gloves from Walmart and sprayed them with a silicone shoe waterproofing product. I haven't been in a situation to try those, yet. I will still carry a few pairs of nitrile gloves, just in case.

+1 on shell gloves.
I've been using Man***** shell gloves for the past several winters, with military surplus wool liners, and they work great!
The wool is stiff enough that once inside the shell, I can leave it in, and take-off / put-on the glove+liner like it was a one-piece glove.

I once tried the more expensive merino wool liners, and that proved to be a mistake.
They were much softer than the military surplus, making it more difficult to get the shell over it, and it was impossible to put on / take off the glove+liner together.

Bar Mitts , they work well for me, nothing else has .

A Cyclist's Rain cape draping over the bars is what works for me ..
then the gloves on their own, are not required to hold the liquid water out
and let vapor moisture escape..

I know the OP is in a warmer climate but for anyone else perusing the forums just want to give another plug for barmitts. getting ready for a ride in the rain late yesterday there was no question how I wanted to ride. so, in steady rain, I got under the bike tarp, removed the bar ends again & put the mitts back on. hands are basically hidden from all downpours & all I needed were some thin glove liners. temps were in the high 40s I think with strong gusty winds

https://cimg3.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...3371e5e416.jpg

getting some use out of this new (Basecamp) helmet with magnet mounted visor. altho some rain sneaks between the visor & helmet dripping onto my face. it's OK just felt like a little sweat. the visor has good airflow so doesn't fog. when stopped a cpl times a little fog tried to start but riding again, quickly evaporated it. I'd try to rig a little brim over the visor top but I rarely ride in the rain. despite the strong winds my eyes were very comfortable

https://cimg7.ibsrv.net/gimg/bikefor...05d947766a.jpg

+1 more for shell gloves, or in my case mitts. I have a pair of REI over mitts that I use with mittens and glove liners, and they are great for all kinds of cold weather riding and work. Rainproof and windproof. Persiration from the hand passes through the polypro liners so my hands never feel wet.

These Marmot mitts look like what I use:
[img]https://s7d2.scene7.com/is/image/marmot/17160_001_f?$dw-product$=

Non-"breathable" truly waterproof gloves will protect your hands from rain but soak your hands in your own sweat anyways.

"breathable" waterproof gloves will keep your hands dry when it's raining and cold but will get overwhelmed with your own sweat when it's warm.
I've used an expensive goretex pair of gloves around 45 degrees in a pouring rain and they worked very well.
My experience was that if you're cycling at max intensity "breathable" materials get overwhelmed around 60f. If you sweat more than I do it would be sooner. You can extend their range by cycling less intensely. I could probably wear a rain jacket at 75 degrees cycling at 8mph.

Of course when it's warmer there's also less need to keep your hands from getting wet. 85 degrees is fine.

I'm surprised nobody's suggested the good old fashioned leather glove.

Under My cyclists rain cape they're fine..
they don't have to be waterproof, the cape is..