zzzzip
Well-known member
I've always had trouble deciding what gear will work for me in what conditions, so I thought the following might help someone who is thinking of buying some of this stuff:
Tourmaster Venture Air Pants
Fieldsheer Quatro jacket
Dual Star heated grip kit
Tour Master Coldtex waterproof insulated gloves
and as an aside, Jenson's JHD910 radio with Chatterbox helmet speakers
So, picture this: 28 degrees, sunny, wind from the north at 15 mph (you guys north of the border will have to do your own conversion; I'm a simple man). I've never ridden in temps less than 42 degrees because I get too cold in an hour. Today I went out for almost 2 hours.
Underneath it all I was wearing jeans, a mock t, sweater, and I added a fleece since there was ample room under the jacket. And Danner Gortex insulated hunting boots. Actually, I probably looked like my mother used to dress me when I went to play in the snow.
I am a chea.... frugal person so I was looking for clothing to allow me to ride at 32 degrees if I got caught out. I prefer 50 and above.
I found the jacket performed very well as far as cold and wind go. Don't know about rain, but it looks like a keeper and have nothing bad to say about it.
The pants were also excellent, but again, the rain will tell. I have rain gear, and with the pants allowing for removal of insulated lining, and wind/rain liner, to just go with mesh, I think it will be great for touring. At least I know they will keep me warm down to 28 degrees between coffee stops every 2 hours.
The grips were run on high all the time, and did keep up with the cold, enough to make it comfortable. I don't have guards, and before I would have been toast.... er, ice in less than an hour. Hands weren't an issue. The Dual Stars are a great addition (and not that difficult to install) and I'm glad I did them.
The gloves as usual worked well. I've had them for a couple of years, and they are waterproof-- at least for 6 hours. I was afraid they would insulate the grips too much, but it seemed to work out-- at least on HI.
I've been wanting tunes, but not at the expense of breaking the bank. So I tried the Jensen with helmet speakers. With the stock windscreen and a Nolan 100E it is pretty noisy-- even full up. Still I could make out the song and of course hear the advertisements even better.... and if I was cruising around at say 55 on a good day, rather than at 65-70 into a 15 mph headwind, I think it would be fine. I could have gotten more volume, but that just wrecks the ears. So, I will call this setup "adequate".
My head finally got cold, but that was my fault for not wearing something in the helmet. Toes were borderline after 2 hours, but good enough.
Anyway, I hope this helps somebody in making a selection. I don't have the hight dollar stuff , and don't use the heated gear. I could have done more, like long underwear, but I was looking to know the extreme for conditions I might encounter on a normal trip away from home. This is about my extreme and I think I finally have the minimum gear for it.
B)
Tourmaster Venture Air Pants
Fieldsheer Quatro jacket
Dual Star heated grip kit
Tour Master Coldtex waterproof insulated gloves
and as an aside, Jenson's JHD910 radio with Chatterbox helmet speakers
So, picture this: 28 degrees, sunny, wind from the north at 15 mph (you guys north of the border will have to do your own conversion; I'm a simple man). I've never ridden in temps less than 42 degrees because I get too cold in an hour. Today I went out for almost 2 hours.
Underneath it all I was wearing jeans, a mock t, sweater, and I added a fleece since there was ample room under the jacket. And Danner Gortex insulated hunting boots. Actually, I probably looked like my mother used to dress me when I went to play in the snow.
I am a chea.... frugal person so I was looking for clothing to allow me to ride at 32 degrees if I got caught out. I prefer 50 and above.
I found the jacket performed very well as far as cold and wind go. Don't know about rain, but it looks like a keeper and have nothing bad to say about it.
The pants were also excellent, but again, the rain will tell. I have rain gear, and with the pants allowing for removal of insulated lining, and wind/rain liner, to just go with mesh, I think it will be great for touring. At least I know they will keep me warm down to 28 degrees between coffee stops every 2 hours.
The grips were run on high all the time, and did keep up with the cold, enough to make it comfortable. I don't have guards, and before I would have been toast.... er, ice in less than an hour. Hands weren't an issue. The Dual Stars are a great addition (and not that difficult to install) and I'm glad I did them.
The gloves as usual worked well. I've had them for a couple of years, and they are waterproof-- at least for 6 hours. I was afraid they would insulate the grips too much, but it seemed to work out-- at least on HI.
I've been wanting tunes, but not at the expense of breaking the bank. So I tried the Jensen with helmet speakers. With the stock windscreen and a Nolan 100E it is pretty noisy-- even full up. Still I could make out the song and of course hear the advertisements even better.... and if I was cruising around at say 55 on a good day, rather than at 65-70 into a 15 mph headwind, I think it would be fine. I could have gotten more volume, but that just wrecks the ears. So, I will call this setup "adequate".
My head finally got cold, but that was my fault for not wearing something in the helmet. Toes were borderline after 2 hours, but good enough.
Anyway, I hope this helps somebody in making a selection. I don't have the hight dollar stuff , and don't use the heated gear. I could have done more, like long underwear, but I was looking to know the extreme for conditions I might encounter on a normal trip away from home. This is about my extreme and I think I finally have the minimum gear for it.
B)
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