Does anyone have warm hands??

[timwilky]

I have heated gloves, best investment I have ever made. OK they do not look pretty and you would only use them whilst also wearing rest of cold weather gear, but they do work. You then notice another part of you is cold.

I had heated grips on my SV, but not on either of my current bikes. There is a brand new pair of grips sitting in the cupboard in the garage which I have never needed to fit.

I buy Schoeller Keprotec winter gloves every time I'm at a bike show and chuck them in the cupboard for when the ones I'm wearing are knackered. On the SV I wore a pair until they were 20,000 miles old, then they started to leak water. I think the fact they were old and the thickness had all gone out of them, was the only reason I needed the heated grips. Since I changed them for a new pair I haven't felt the need to switch the heated grips on, on the SV before I sold it, nor the need to fit a pair of heated grips to either of my current bikes.

Originally Posted by dirtydog

Poll added for you

WELL DONE THAT MAN! See, it's infectious

Originally Posted by dizzyblonde

Eat more cake.....solves everything

This advice may not be as daft as it seems. Not that eating cake will help, but your body burning calories in it's usual way will, if you give it half a chance.

Think of your body as a central heating boiler, your veins as the pipes and your hands as the radiators. So long as you keep the boiler in good nick, you'll get nice hot water flowing through the radiators. If there is something wrong with the boiler, the radiators get cold first (fingers, toes, nose, ears, then the whole hand, whole foot, whole face, all the extremities, any of this ring a bell?). Wrap up your torso properly and your body will find it easier to keep your hands warm. In the winter I wear a T shirt and a fleece under a textile jacket with it's winter lining in. This will prompt cries of "Your jacket must be crap, I only need a T shirt with my winter lining in", well I don't NEED any more than my winter lining either, but with the added fleece, my torso and arms are toasty, and that makes a difference to your hands and feet.

Ralph's right. You need to properly maintain your core temperature, rather than just concentrating on keeping your fingers from freezing off. Layers - lots of them - are the key here.

I've got heated grips and handguards on the Tigger. The warmest combination is probably heated grips and muffs, but I find that muffs can get in the way a bit and look damn silly too.

[dizzyblonde]

Originally Posted by -Ralph-

I Think of your body as a central heating boiler, your veins as the pipes and your hands as the radiators. So long as you keep the boiler in good nick, you'll get nice hot water flowing through the radiators. If there is something wrong with the boiler, the radiators get cold first (fingers, toes, nose, ears, then the whole hand, whole foot, whole face, all the extremities, any of this ring a bell?). Wrap up your torso properly and your body will find it easier to keep your hands warm. In the winter I wear a T shirt and a fleece under a textile jacket with it's winter lining in. This will prompt cries of "Your jacket must be crap, I only need a T shirt with my winter lining in", well I don't NEED any more than my winter lining either, but with the added fleece, my torso and arms are toasty, and that makes a difference to your hands and feet.

Exactly, but I couldn't be ar$ed to explain it like that.

YC, yep driven to Hull and back several times in the dead of Winter, at night on the motorway...feckin cold, but I don't need heated grips! My fingers might feel like they will snap off but I do what Ralph does....and my jacket ain't crap either Suppose its all down to how thick your skin is and how much you can train yer brain to ignore the fact you can't feel your hands anymore because they've moulded to the handle bars

A nice hikers base layer helps.....oooooh I love those long johns

[yorkie_chris]

So if your hands were numb how can you be in full control?
Hows about a challenge, both ride 100 miles on motorway and then have a see who can stop in shortest distance?

I've had it before where I've ridden up from Wales in sub zero temps and had to filter the entire length of M6 from where you go off M56 right to the M62. No way that could have been safe without pretty much bang on control of the brakes for d*cks changing lanes. Especially considering how much salt was piled up on the white lines, like marbles!

[dizzyblonde]

Mind over matter. Does your brain freeze? Do you think hard core mountaineers just stop, because their feet are cold?
Theres a great trick of moving your fingers about, keeps the blood flowing. As for the challenge...I doubt I'd stop, I'm more likely to stop for a pee, which is a far greater probability!

I use hein gericke pathan gloves, they are the warmest ive tried, but last night i had to pull over shove them inside the frame to warm them up, whilst warming my hands on the radiator.

I found inner gloves were loseless and made it more painful. Id like heated gloves, but im not paying £50 for a few bits of wire attached to cheap inner gloves.

Originally Posted by dizzyblonde

Mind over matter. Does your brain freeze? Do you think hard core mountaineers just stop, because their feet are cold?
Theres a great trick of moving your fingers about, keeps the blood flowing. As for the challenge...I doubt I'd stop, I'm more likely to stop for a pee, which is a far greater probability!

They wear huge mitts, very warm i have some, way too fat to use on the bike though.

We are all different, your circulation and pain threshold may be different. It feels like needles being driven into your finger tips at times for me, there is no blocking that out lol.

[dizzyblonde]

oh indeedy Beabert, I'd say my pain threshold is damn good, my circulation is crap. I've had veins whipped out in my legs and circulation has been particulary dire since my teens. Yes I know that feeling of needles being driven into your hands, but being pigheaded I can mostly push through.....thats the same pighead that was back on a bike 8 weeks after the caesarean last year, on a bike I'd only ever ridden three times round the block whilst pregnant, for a 200 mile round trip.....either that....or sttooopid

I have Cold Killers inner gloves under my normal gloves. They reduce the movement of your hands a bit but generally if it's that cold I'm taking it easy anyway. They work pretty well, too.