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Opinions - electric heated grips or electric heated gloves

3K views 18 replies 15 participants last post by  Satyr 
#1 ·
Never having used electric heated grips or electric heated gloves, I am asking for opinions from those that have. I would appreciate any advise or pros and cons of each.
 
#2 ·
I have heated gloves. The reason I chose gloves over grips is because the grips only warm the inside of your hand, which is not the part that really needs it. The gloves heat the back of your hand and each finger. However, the gloves are definately more expensive and you'll have to run a wiring harness through your jacket if you get gloves only (if you get a jacket, the gloves plug into the sleeves of the jacket). I have both the gloves and the jacket liner from Gerbing and have been extremely happy with them. I do recommend that you get an adjustable controller, as they get hot and the controller allows you to dial-a-warmth.

All that said, I know several people who have heated grips and they are happy with the grips, so I think it comes down to personal preference.
 
#3 ·
I hear (though have no direct experience) that heated gloves are more comfortable warmth wise. As the Hotchick said, they warm you where you need it. On the downside, you now have two or three (more) cables to connect when you suit up. So it can be a bit cumbersome. And if you misjudged the weather and left them at home . . . well then they are less comfortable than grip heaters.

Heated grips, while not providing as much comfortable heat (warming just the parts of the hand that contact the grip) offer convenience. They are always there for you when you need it (winter or summer) and nothing extra to deal with when you suit up.

Sparc
 
#4 ·
Heat

I went for heated grips and hand guards.

Heated grips alone are not good enough in cold weather cause back of hand freezes (knucles), So I added the hand guards, now back of hand do not freeze and heat from handle is more difuse and stays around hand due to hand guards. I am stisfied with this set-up

heated grips goes from 35$ to 300$, hand guards are 100$ a pair. Heated gloves goes from 170$ to 300$
 
#5 ·
I have the Honda heated grips. I wanted something that would serve in case I was caught out and temperature dropped. You may not have those gloves with you--but the grips can always be turned on. The grips are also very super nice when it's between 40-55 and you just want to knock that chill off. My husband rode my bike home yesterday with me on the back-- first time he'd tried the heated grips and he was shocked at how nice they made the ride.

I ride with fleece undergloves, lined leather gauntlet gloves over-top and am comfortable with the heated grips unless the temp drops below 20 or below 25 with lots of wind. Most of us do not ride below those temps anyway.

The tips of my fingers still get cold when it's below freezing, however the grips do a good job of keeping most of my hands pretty comfortable. The ideal situation as we've read on here before, is to use both, but if you can't do both-- then you have to pick what's best for you.
 
#6 ·
I have to agree with Sparcs Hotchick about the heated grip/gloves idea, however - I haven't had any problems with the back of my hands getting cold with my heated grips. I can now wear lighter gloves instead of those gaunlet style I used to wear.
And I figure with a lightbar and heated grips, adding heatd clothing would be pushing my charging system a bit too far. I guess to me it's better for me to have warm hands instead of just warming my body. If my hands are warm, the rest of me seems to be warm too. >PD<
 
#7 ·
I've got Widder heated gloves; messing with the wiring can be a pain at times (when hurrying to get on the road) but they're well worth it. Since I tend to be too warm, I've often worn them without hooking up the wires and they did just fine for me down to about 35 degrees; with the wires I've used them to below 20 degrees and they worked just fine for me. (If I've got it right, Widders don't get nearly as warm as the Gerbings do -- why I would prefer the Widders.)

No experience with heated grips so I can't give a comparison.
 
#8 ·
I have heated grips on all three of my bikes and they really work well for me. I found that a good pair of leather ski gloves that have a small amount of lining on the palms and a thick lining on the backs works really well. The thin lining on the palms lets the heat from the grips through and the thick lining on the back keeps it in. I also waterproof the backs of my gloves and that helps to keep the wind out of the gloves.

I can see where heated gloves would work really well too but it sure is nice to be able to reach down and dial up the heat if some cooler weather takes me by surprise no matter what gloves I'm wearing.

sanoke
 
#10 ·
Ditto sanoke. Heated grips do, in fact warm the whole of your fingers - it just takes a little while for the warmth to transfer to the backside of your hand from a cold startup. With decent windproof gloves, heated grips keep me comfy down into the high teens at freeway speeds. My toes are usually my limiting factor of my comfort level in cold weather.
 
#13 ·
I wanted to experiment instead of buying heated grips. I went to Mills Fleet and bought a pair of grip heaters, made for snomobiles. They go under the grips (stick to the handlebars) They came with all the wiring and switch for $24. They work great all the way down to freezing and get plenty hot. I have them on both bikes now! >PD<
 
#14 ·
I have both. The grips are great for keeping your palms warm and the gloves are great for the backs of your hands.
 
#16 ·
Bigguy2x said:
sanoke

Those were the ones I have been looking at, other than the heat how comfortable are they on the hands. Do your hands get tired or tingling?
On long rides, my right hand gets a little tingly. I added a throttle lock and that lets me shake it out when I need to. I don't think it's related to the grips but they are hard rubber with little give. I find them comfortable but maybe I'm just used to them.
 
#18 ·
Electric Heated Grips or Electric Heated Gloves

Electric gloves are hard to beat! However, if you don't want to spend the money, get a pair of MOOSE PAWS ($20.00) and FREE RIDE windproof gloves. Chemical heat packs fit into a zippered area on top of the gloves and will keep your hands warm for up to 10 hours. The foot heat packs also work well. I ride year round in Eastern North Carolina and we have had a few days of teens and quite a few in the 20's.
 
#19 ·
I'll agree with Sparc's Hotchick.

Ok, so I'd agree with her if she told me to jump off the Brooklyn Bridge.

I have a pair of Gerbing G3 gloves and they are totally decadent. You do not want to admit that you own them if you are a hard core biker. These things are seriously warm. I clip a controller on my belt and crank them up or down with the weather.

For the record, I am lying. I am a hard core biker, and do not actually own a pair of Gerbing G3 gloves.

I do not own a pair of Gerbing G3 goves.
 
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