Winter riding in milder winters.

[Deleted member 706]

In this part of the world, it's cold enough to make arthritic old bones uncomfortable. Three years ago I bought some heated gloves so I could extend the commuting time further into the winter, I loved them but quit work soon after. I decided that retirement wasn't all it was cracked up to be and have retrained to do something less physically demanding and more satisfying for the soul. I'm doing casual work and commuting to a few sites from 30 to 70 K's away (20ish to 40 Miles) the heated gloves really help my hands.
My gloves are powered Lithium ion Polymer batteries, I recently lost one and got a replacement one. The new battery seems to have greater heat output and hold the charge longer. Someone found the lost battery and I'm using it again, this morning I was using the two old batteries and the one in my right hand kept cutting out. I noticed from the get go that one battery was better than the other and marked them to see which was which, it's definitely time to get a second new battery and well the price.
Obviously not using the batteries much over the last three years isn't ideal so I'd like to know who's able to elaborate about these batteries and how best to care for them.
I did a quick search just now and haven't followed it up yet but in the meantime I'm asking you.

Lithium polymer battery - Wikipedia

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li-polymer battery life at DuckDuckGo

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[kiwi dave]

Is this instead of heated grips, or are you embracing both?

 

[Deleted member 706]

@kiwi dave
That's instead of heated grips, I now have 2 new batteries and used them this morning, they're great. My legs were getting cold so that's a measure of the gloves working.
Our winters are pretty mild but arthritic hands need a bit of pampering.

 

[kiwi dave]

Yeah, when I tried the heated gloves, I didn't carry a battery, I plugged them into the motorcycle battery.

I soon learnt that I was tethered to the bike, which was easy overlooked, until my setup reminded me when dismounting!

The other issue I experienced was feeding the cables on the inside of my jacket down to each glove. It wasn't easy, and they would sometimes release and go back up the sleeve!

If I was to use them again, I would go with a battery in each jacket pocket. I would like to hear other rider's experiences how practical this would be.

 

[Deleted member 706]

@kiwi dave
These are made by Five they're a bit over 3 years old,. The battery is held in by velcro, new ones have a zip.
The heating is on the top of the hand so they would go well with heated grips in a colder climate. A mate of mine in the south island said that heated grips only warmed his palms.

 

[FTR London]

If it's of any help, I work at a UK university and we have an agile working policy which requires me to be on campus three days a week unless teaching commitments demand otherwise. My commute is 28 miles (in one direction), and I leave quite early in the morning - typically 6.30am. In the summer this can still occasionally be a chilly ride, but at worse low teens,13°C. In the spring and late Autumn we are talking ambient air temperatures near freezing - then add in the windchill factor at 80mph. When I bought the bike from a dealership it only had 500 miles on it. The previous owner didn't get on with it (I believe it was a present from her partner). One of the things that had been added (and I'm more into taking away), were heated grips. Mindful of the autumn commute, I kept them on and have to say, that in those single figure temperatures approaching freezing, they have been incredible. So much so, I was able to continue using my summer gloves.

 

[kiwi dave]

@kiwi dave
These are made by Five they're a bit over 3 years old,. The battery is held in by velcro, new ones have a zip.
The heating is on the top of the hand so they would go well with heated grips in a colder climate. A mate of mine in the south island said that heated grips only warmed his palms.
View attachment 6524

Seems like they are no longer available, along with similar brands.

I wonder if they have a longevity issue?

 

[Deleted member 706]

@kiwi dave
They still have them at Helmet House here the new ones have a zip instead of velcro for the battery pouch.

 

[kiwi dave]

@kiwi dave
They still have them at Helmet House here the new ones have a zip instead of velcro for the battery pouch.

After a search around the motorcycle accessory stores, I purchased a pair of RST motorcycle gloves. They appear to be identical to the ones pictured above, and they have the zipper instead of the earlier velcro version. I note that the batteries are spec'ed at 7.4v each, identical to the ones shown above. I'm convinced they are the same.

There's plenty of time to assess whether I like them, but I'm already biased as I paid a ransom for them.

One question. The batteries are charged using a wall wart, both gloves can be charged at once. But what happens when I have no 230v mains outlet, and want to charge them from the motorcycle's battery. I'm sure I can bash up regulated voltage device that can provide the 7.4 volts plus a margin to charge the two batteries, I just don't want to over cook them.

Any thoughts?

 

[Deleted member 706]

@kiwi dave
I don't know of anyone alternative to mains powered charging. From memory I paid $AUD 300 3 years ago. I have just replaced both batteries at 60 bucks each so comfort comes at a price. Being a bit older and having arthritis in both hands this makes the difference between riding and not riding. I have commuted the last few days at temperatures below 10C.

 

[kiwi dave]

@fuknKIWI
I've just been for a test ride wearing the gloves. The lowest setting was fine for me, but I can imagine on a winter's morning I'll be trying for more heat. The gloves themselves are not very comfortable, but I imagine they will improve, like shoes do.

 

[Deleted member 706]

@kiwi dave
It definitely helps to use the lower setting if you want to make the battery last. These days I'm mostly using full power because I'm on a fairly short commute. Even without batteries my gloves are only used in the winter.
The winters here are pretty easy compared to NZ in Canterbury...

 

[wallycycle]

Years ago I tried heated gloves. Worked well but too bulky for me. Don't like the "reduction" in feel with the bars and brake lever. With heated grips and handguards, I can ride comfortably with summer weight gloves into the 40s.