Heated Vest And Gloves

[BakerBoy]

I've Gerbing T5 gloves and heated insoles on one circuit, a Gerbing jacket on another circuit, both driven by a clip-on Gerbing controller which plugs into a pigtail I've hanging out from under the seat. I went this path because 1) I got a great deal on the Gerbing setup from the Gerbing rep visiting a local BMW shop, and 2) I had 2 bikes at the time and only chose to buy 1 controller.

The jacket and insoles generate a lot of heat, but the gloves are marginal IMHO. Even when I disconnect the insoles and turn the T5 gloves to full power, they really don't provide enough heat for my cold fingers under about 20*F.

I always ride with them fall through spring, even if turned off.

 

[gixxerjasen]

Geez, where was this conversation when I was shopping for this stuff in the middle of the hot summer?

 

[Bill Lumberg]

Ended up going with heated glove liners from warm n safe. I thought about it, and realized that, with my gear, my hands are really the only thing that gets cold, with rare exception. 45 degrees, FJR nominal speed, and even with the gloves on the lowest setting, and the grip warmers on the lowest setting, my hands were very warm. After half an hour, I wondered if I was just imagining them working that well. Turned them off, and in less than a minute, the cold started creeping in, feeling like I had placed my hands in a freezer. My core and legs are good- but with the FJR, my hands have been a source of notable discomfort every mile when it's below 50 or so. Not any more. Thanks for the recommendations. Money well spent.

 

[MNFJR]

I have had Gerbings liner and gloves for 8 & 10 years respectively and have been very happy with them. They have repaired my gloves and replaced my dual controller at no charge, no questions asked.

I have to say they do stand behind their lifetime warranty.

 

[TomInPA]

Ended up going with heated glove liners from warm n safe. I thought about it, and realized that, with my gear, my hands are really the only thing that gets cold, with rare exception. 45 degrees, FJR nominal speed, and even with the gloves on the lowest setting, and the grip warmers on the lowest setting, my hands were very warm. After half an hour, I wondered if I was just imagining them working that well. Turned them off, and in less than a minute, the cold started creeping in, feeling like I had placed my hands in a freezer. My core and legs are good- but with the FJR, my hands have been a source of notable discomfort every mile when it's below 50 or so. Not any more. Thanks for the recommendations. Money well spent.

You won't regret getting the jacket when you're ready. It actually makes it possible to recover from core heat loss. That feeling you can't get warm is a killer on a long ride.

 

[REB]

I have used a Tourmaster Synergy heated jacket liner for years. My wife has a Firtgear jacket liner. The TM is thicker and a little better made. The FG is still nice and thinner for fitting under a jacket. It seems that the TM (made by Gerbing) has better heat distribution along the arms but the FG works great too.

On the FJR I have them connected to an Easter Beaver distribution block under the seat on switched circuits. On my KTM 1190 I just have the fused leads that come with the jackets connected directly to the battery. I have yet to mount a permanent powerlet. I just tuck the SAE connectors up under the seat when not in use.

I love it. We rode the other night when it was only 33 degrees F. Our jackets still were not on high. Its like riding around while sitting in a hot tub. We just ordered heated pant liners. Never will I be without heated gear since I live in the Pacific Northwest and it is cold often.

My wife also uses the Firstgear heated gloves and she likes them but they are a pain to plug in and get on by yourself. She says they work great. I just use warm gloves and find no need for heated gloves. I just turn on the heated grips a little if I need to.

 

[Fred W]

It's probably worth considering that what you need is dependent on just how cold the weather is that you intend to ride in.

If your goal is to be more comfortable in 45 - 50 degree weather, you may not need a heated jacket liner or gloves. Just a good set of grips and layering your riding gear appropriately is probably adequate. Even you thin blooded southerners who are apt to get chilled at normal room temps are not in real danger of loss of manual dexterity or core heat loss as long as you dress appropriately.

However, if you intend to ride in temps much below 40 degrees F, at or below freezing, for more than about an hour you will really appreciate having a full jacket liner at a minimum, to assist in maintaining your body heat. When your core begins to get cold its auto response is to reduce the warming blood flow to your extremities to maintain the heat in your vital organs, so somewhat non-intuitively when your core body temp dips it's your hands and feet that suffer first.

Maintaining dexterity in your hands is critical to safely operating your motorcycle. Heated grips will help, but when it gets really cold you'll need more. Heated gloves and liners will keep your hands warm and limber when grips are not enough. And they can usually be used together for the best possible comfort since the gloves don't (usually) have any heat wires in the palms, and the grips don't really keep the backs of your hands, finger tips or thumb warm.

You can go whole hog and get heated pants liners and foot beds or socks, but those are not nearly as important as the jacket liner and gloves/liners. I often ride in the New England winter months at or below freezing (usually on my Vstrom which has a lot less wind protection than an FJR) with Warm'nSafe rider gloves and 90W jacket liner and a set of Oxford heated grips, and can stay out on the bike all day in relative comfort.

 

[Big Sky]

Correct me if I'm mistaken, but a riding pal has the First Gear jacket liner with a remote controller. He said when the remote's batteries die, the liner shuts down. He said the remote is using battery power at all times when the liner is powered and that battery life is fairly short. He thus carries extra batteries now. Is that the case? If so, I would opt for the hardwired controller. Also I would note that hand guards seem to help keep the hands - especially the backsides - warmer by keeping the cold wind blast from directly flowing over the gloves. The guards with heated grips seem to work well enough for me. They also keep much of the rain off the gloves.

My wife loves riding pillion but hates being cold (she says Hell is surely a very cold place). I have considered getting her a heated jacket liner, gloves, etc., but she already putters with gear so much at mount and dismount time that I fear several more minutes of standing around while she connects, adjusts. No heated gear for her...yet. Here's another perhaps novel idea I've considered for her: installing some flyswatter type grip heaters (Symtec Heat Demons?) on the Givi top box mounting rails that run along the rear sides of the seat, then cutting down some Grip Buddies (or pipe insulation) to slip over them. In theory, she could grip these and warm her hands - passenger heated grips. What do y'all think?

 

[Fred W]

Even with all the same heated gear that I have, I can't get Josie on the back of the bike (very often) when it goes below about 45 degrees.

But you know... I'm OK with that "alone time".

 

[TomInPA]

Correct me if I'm mistaken, but a riding pal has the First Gear jacket liner with a remote controller. He said when the remote's batteries die, the liner shuts down. He said the remote is using battery power at all times when the liner is powered and that battery life is fairly short. He thus carries extra batteries now. Is that the case? If so, I would opt for the hardwired controller. Also I would note that hand guards seem to help keep the hands - especially the backsides - warmer by keeping the cold wind blast from directly flowing over the gloves. The guards with heated grips seem to work well enough for me. They also keep much of the rain off the gloves.
My wife loves riding pillion but hates being cold (she says Hell is surely a very cold place). I have considered getting her a heated jacket liner, gloves, etc., but she already putters with gear so much at mount and dismount time that I fear several more minutes of standing around while she connects, adjusts. No heated gear for her...yet. Here's another perhaps novel idea I've considered for her: installing some flyswatter type grip heaters (Symtec Heat Demons?) on the Givi top box mounting rails that run along the rear sides of the seat, then cutting down some Grip Buddies (or pipe insulation) to slip over them. In theory, she could grip these and warm her hands - passenger heated grips. What do y'all think?

The implementation by Warm and Safe uses a remote Troller that only signals the jacket receiver when a change in temperature is requested. The batteries (2-AAA) easily last over a year, and the ones I just took out tested on the multimeter at 80%.

I use the W&S glove liners, and can use them in my MESH gloves down to freezing, at which point I put on the Olympia Gore-Tex gloves over them. I don't have any hand shields and have never had cold hands with this down into the 10s F.

I don't really know why so many people don't get it. The 90 watt jacket from W&S is among the best and warmest on the market, to the extent it has been copied by nearly everyone. https://www.warmnsafe.com/we-invent-they-copy-why/

 

[Fred W]

And the warm'nsafe (also sold as First Gear) gloves and liners are far more effective than the others by most accounts.

Add to that that Warm'nSafe has a lifetime warranty on their heated clothing (not the HeatTrollers) and they are very hard to beat.

 

[BigOgre]

Correct me if I'm mistaken, but a riding pal has the First Gear jacket liner with a remote controller. He said when the remote's batteries die, the liner shuts down. He said the remote is using battery power at all times when the liner is powered and that battery life is fairly short. He thus carries extra batteries now. Is that the case? If so, I would opt for the hardwired controller.

The implementation by Warm and Safe uses a remote Troller that only signals the jacket receiver when a change in temperature is requested. The batteries (2-AAA) easily last over a year, and the ones I just took out tested on the multimeter at 80%.

. . . .

I don't really know why so many people don't get it. The 90 watt jacket from W&S is among the best and warmest on the market, to the extent it has been copied by nearly everyone. https://www.warmnsafe.com/we-invent-they-copy-why/

Thanks for the reminder. My batteries were over two years old, still working, but replaced them while it was open.

One thing Tom forgot to mention: unlike your friend's First Gear jacket, the W&S liner will work without the remote Troller. When you plug it into the bike's power it'll come up to 30% power. If you wish to adjust the temp or turn it off completely you would use the remote to do so.

A note if you're making comparisons. I have been using the Gen IV Waterproof liner for a few years now and like it for many reasons, including that it wears and looks more like a light jacket than a liner. This makes it more versatile although maybe not as thin as others. Still, when you consider this will be about the only layer you'll wear under your gear instead of having multiple layers of something else, it's not much of a factor.

 

[MrZappo]

Correct me if I'm mistaken, but a riding pal has the First Gear jacket liner with a remote controller. He said when the remote's batteries die, the liner shuts down. He said the remote is using battery power at all times when the liner is powered and that battery life is fairly short. He thus carries extra batteries now. Is that the case? If so, I would opt for the hardwired controller. Also I would note that hand guards seem to help keep the hands - especially the backsides - warmer by keeping the cold wind blast from directly flowing over the gloves. The guards with heated grips seem to work well enough for me. They also keep much of the rain off the gloves.
My wife loves riding pillion but hates being cold (she says Hell is surely a very cold place). I have considered getting her a heated jacket liner, gloves, etc., but she already putters with gear so much at mount and dismount time that I fear several more minutes of standing around while she connects, adjusts. No heated gear for her...yet. Here's another perhaps novel idea I've considered for her: installing some flyswatter type grip heaters (Symtec Heat Demons?) on the Givi top box mounting rails that run along the rear sides of the seat, then cutting down some Grip Buddies (or pipe insulation) to slip over them. In theory, she could grip these and warm her hands - passenger heated grips. What do y'all think?

As TominCA said, the troller only uses power when you change settings, otherwise it is effectively off. Is does not run constantly.

One thing to add to this though ...

Warm-n-safe gear automatically reverts to a setting of 30% in the absence of a signal from the controller. So, if the battery dies while you are riding, the setting will stay where you left it until the vest/gloves lose power (you shut down the bike).

If the batteries are dead in the controller and you are stuck on the road, the vest/gloves will immediately turn themselves to 30% upon power up until a controller tells them otherwise. If the controller is dead or lost or whatever, the worst case scenario is that you will be stuck with 30% heat all day ...

 

[Niehart]

Correct me if I'm mistaken, but a riding pal has the First Gear jacket liner with a remote controller. He said when the remote's batteries die, the liner shuts down. He said the remote is using battery power at all times when the liner is powered and that battery life is fairly short. He thus carries extra batteries now. Is that the case? If so, I would opt for the hardwired controller.

The implementation by Warm and Safe uses a remote Troller that only signals the jacket receiver when a change in temperature is requested. The batteries (2-AAA) easily last over a year, and the ones I just took out tested on the multimeter at 80%.

One thing Tom forgot to mention: unlike your friend's First Gear jacket, the W&S liner will work without the remote Troller. When you plug it into the bike's power it'll come up to 30% power. If you wish to adjust the temp or turn it off completely you would use the remote to do so.

My warm and safe control uses a watch style battery (Energizer CR2032 3 volt). I change it once a year but have had it die in between because I forgot and left it on when I got home.

I also now carry an extra battery and the small screw dirver in my tool kit.

 

[TomInPA]

Correct me if I'm mistaken, but a riding pal has the First Gear jacket liner with a remote controller. He said when the remote's batteries die, the liner shuts down. He said the remote is using battery power at all times when the liner is powered and that battery life is fairly short. He thus carries extra batteries now. Is that the case? If so, I would opt for the hardwired controller.

The implementation by Warm and Safe uses a remote Troller that only signals the jacket receiver when a change in temperature is requested. The batteries (2-AAA) easily last over a year, and the ones I just took out tested on the multimeter at 80%.

One thing Tom forgot to mention: unlike your friend's First Gear jacket, the W&S liner will work without the remote Troller. When you plug it into the bike's power it'll come up to 30% power. If you wish to adjust the temp or turn it off completely you would use the remote to do so.

My warm and safe control uses a watch style battery (Energizer CR2032 3 volt). I change it once a year but have had it die in between because I forgot and left it on when I got home.

I also now carry an extra battery and the small screw dirver in my tool kit.

Niehart, if you want to upgrade to the newest Heat-Troller, Mike will exchange that sending unit for $35. Similarly if you have a Gen 3 jacket or other Warm N Safe product and want a Gen 4, he will exchange for $159...I don't know if you can add on the 20% forum discount, but I doubt it. I originally had the "coin" battery but swapped last year.

 

[bluesurf]

+1 for the Warm n Safe waterproof heated liner. I swapped a ~12 year old Gerbing in for a substantial discount on it and love the upgrade, even though I had a great relationship with the Gerbing team when they were in Union, WA. The Warm n Safe is thinner, better wiring, warmer better even heating and more stylish.

My remote unit is powered by the CR2032 battery, and I always keep a few of those on the bike since another critical component (Speed Cheetah Vizalert receiving unit) utilizes them.

 

[07FJRVegas]

My wife and I have Seidio jacket liners from Cycle Gear. Comes with a controller and power connection to the battery (I have mine wired to a fuse box). Jackets are thin, comfortable and maintain heat at one of 4 temps which you select. Low is good unless it is very cold. Controller sticks out bottom of jacket - front of left leg for easy access to turn on/off and select temperature. Very happy with the jackets.

 

[rfespinosa]

Correct me if I'm mistaken, but a riding pal has the First Gear jacket liner with a remote controller. He said when the remote's batteries die, the liner shuts down. He said the remote is using battery power at all times when the liner is powered and that battery life is fairly short. He thus carries extra batteries now. Is that the case? If so, I would opt for the hardwired controller.

The implementation by Warm and Safe uses a remote Troller that only signals the jacket receiver when a change in temperature is requested. The batteries (2-AAA) easily last over a year, and the ones I just took out tested on the multimeter at 80%.

One thing Tom forgot to mention: unlike your friend's First Gear jacket, the W&S liner will work without the remote Troller. When you plug it into the bike's power it'll come up to 30% power. If you wish to adjust the temp or turn it off completely you would use the remote to do so.

My warm and safe control uses a watch style battery (Energizer CR2032 3 volt). I change it once a year but have had it die in between because I forgot and left it on when I got home.

I also now carry an extra battery and the small screw dirver in my tool kit.

+1 this is my experience also. I carry a spare CR2032 in the jacket, I change it once per season and have never had a dead battery doing that.

 

[REB]

The heated gear has been great since my wife now is more willing to ride. I have it set up easy for her to just grab her Kilimanjaro jacket with FG liner in it, plug in ang go. We both like heat so the liners are used anytime it's below 60. Last night did a couple hours around local back roads and it was between 50 and 55 with slight rain. Jackets on about "2 or 3" clicks. Grips on low. Nice and warm. Two jackets and grips on I was still at 14 volts. Pant liners could be a problem on my KTM 1190. I wonder if any of you guys know if the FJR stator can support two jacket liners, two pant liners, one gloves, and grips? I always carry an Antigravity XP5 just in case.

 

[REB]

And here is the solution for my perpetually cold feet on and off the bike.

https://www.ebay.com/itm/221630034670

Hope they work good. Seems like the best ones out there. I saved a lot of money by buying from Austria surprisingly. I will use them off the bike more than on the bike.