Hand protection for winter riding?

[mattsz]

Has anybody used either handlebar "mits" that gloved hands slip into? Or maybe hand protection shields, like on dirt bikes or duo-sports, that would act as a wind deflector?

I bought Tourmaster winter gloves, which feel good, but don't do a damn thing for keeping my fingers warm - and I hasn't been that cold yet.  I'm trying to stay away from anything electrically heated for the moment.

I have bar-end mirrors, which might preclude the mit concept - and anyway I think I would worry about having my hands "stuck" inside something...

[motomataya]

Scooter logic has some that work great for under $20.

[Jack Leis]

Mattsz, Singhg5 had some on his bike . Shoot him a PM and maybe he can tell you all about them.

[barenekd]

Get some scrambler hand guards than hook to the clutch and brake lever pivot bolts.
Bare

[Ducati Scotty]

+1, or these that are more street looking:
http://www.nationalcycle.com/catalogue/CoolWeather.shtml

If you just get the wind off your hands they'll be much warmer.  You won't even need heated grips.

Scott

[motorat]

be careful of hippo hands.
if you don't have some kind of bark buster hand guard they tend to blow back and put pressure on the front brake, destroying the pads and warping the rotor.

if you want to go cheap i have heard of people using a 2 lite plastic jug or milk jug and zip ties.

[mattsz]

+1, or these that are more street looking:
http://www.nationalcycle.com/catalogue/CoolWeather.shtml

These look awesome, but oh my - $90!  Still, it's less than I paid for the basically useless TM gloves I now have.  Seller won't refund since they've been worn; I've got an email to TM but I'm not hopeful...

[GA-DK]

I got a pair of mittens from Harley Davidson in the mid 60's and still use them if I am going any distance in  cold weather, but now I rarely have need of anything much more than good gloves.  When these were new, I drove a new Honda-450 in temperatures as low as 5F for distances of up to 200 miles and my hands were the only thing that did not feel like it would drop off.  Then are a long gauntlet type mitt of black leather with a short lambskin mitt inside.  The inner mitt has fleece on the inside and the cuff is folded over to form a good seal at the wrist.  With all fingers together there is much less heat loss.  I had no problem finding or using the controlls or switches on the bike.  At one time I had a long lace I could run across my shoulders and down my jacket sleeves and clip to the mittens.  That way If I wished, I could slip off a mitt and not drop it.  At that time, the bike was my only transportation and I was putting about 1500 miles per month on it.  Now I have other options, rarely use the bike after dark, and my bike mileage has dropped by a factor of 10.  GA-DK

[Ducati Scotty]

Mittens beat gloves for warmth every time!  If the seller won't refund just put them on eBay for $10 less and get most of your money back.

Scott

[singhg5]

I have tried different types of gloves including electric gloves but nothing was as protective as the Quadboss handlebar mitts - that cost about $30 a pair. I wear Olympia winter gloves which fit inside the large handlebar mitts without problem. I love them for saving my fingers in the cold. Absolutely wonderful in cold weather like these days. I would not ride without them in winter. 

http://www.motorcycle-superstore.com/4/22/263/20508/ITEM/QuadBoss-Extra-Thick-Hand-Mitts.aspx

[mattsz]

Thanks Singhg5!  I've thought that I might like to try something like those.  I'd have to figure out how to work them around my bar-end mirrors, though.  What a surprise - having to figure out how to make something work on the Enfield!

be careful of hippo hands.
if you don't have some kind of bark buster hand guard they tend to blow back and put pressure on the front brake, destroying the pads and warping the rotor.

I read Hippo Hands' warning on their site - I wonder why this "blowback" is a problem with their product only?  Or, are others just not talking?  Singhg5, have you had any trouble with wind pushing your mitts back into the levers hard enough to engage them?

[Ducati Scotty]

Most mitts are meant for ATVs where they don't go 60mph. 

Scott

[mattsz]

Most mitts are meant for ATVs where they don't go 60mph.

Scott - you obviously haven't had any experience with our special species of Northern Redneck here in Maine, have you?  They shrink the gene pool on their ATV's every year.

But seriously, I suppose that makes sense.  I haven't done a whole lot of looking, but now that I think about it, I've only noticed mitts on two bikes - one is Singhg5's in his videos, and the other was a local Ural powered sidecar rig a local guy rode all winter, with studded snow tires.

[LarsBloodbeard]

Which Tourmaster gloves do you have?  I bought some super high end ones and they work well enough.  They also have a rain fly that pulls out of the cuff.  Took a lot of convincing myself to spend $125 for gloves, but I was tired of having frozen fingers.

There are some military split mitts made for motorcycle riding (I think for the Swiss military).  Split between the middle & ring finger so you can put 2 fingers on the controls. You can get from surplus stores online.  Haven't seen any lately, but those are great.

Of course the best way to keep your hands warm is heated gloves.

[mattsz]

LarsBloodbeard-

I have Tourmaster Winter Elite II Gloves:

http://www.tourmaster.com/product/Gloves/Winter_Elite_Glove/109/9

I paid right around $125 for mine, too, from Motosport.com.  I see now that TM is selling them direct for $109, "limited quantities" available, which tells me that they're discontinuing them.

My hand measurement fell between the Large and X-large sizes, so I ordered both.  The XL was backordered, so the large came first, and they were too small.  I sent them back, and soon the XL arrived, and they felt perfect - until I got them on the bike.

The thumb and 1st and 2nd fingers are a bit too short for me, so when I'm holding the grips, my fingertips are jammed uncomfortably right up inside the ends of the glove fingers.  Maybe this is causing the insulation to compress and be less effective.  All I know is that my fingers are too cold in them, even with the extra layer of nylon wind and rain blocking pulls-out-of-the-cuff fly, which TM laughingly calls a "polar cover", which makes no difference in how my fingers feel.  In temps well above freezing, way before I feel the need for a wind-blocking, sealable gauntlet, my fingers get cold fast.  Just as fast, in fact, as when I wear my uninsulated summer-weight gloves.  And I know, because I tried them both on the same 40 degree day.

Motosport won't take them back because they're "used", so I've sent an email directly to TM.  I've read in other forums that they don't respond well to customer inquiry; we'll see, I guess.  I will do what I can to get a refund.

They probably would be fine if I had them out of the wind (except for the discomfort of the finger jamming), but with wind-blocking I wouldn't need such expensive gloves.  Maybe I'll end up trying to sell them on Ebay as per Scott's suggestion, but if they're available new for just over $100, I'll probably take a hefty loss.  I guess that's the risks of internet shopping...