Heated vest... What's the best bang for your buck? | Page 2 | GTAMotorcycle.com

Heated vest... What's the best bang for your buck?

Tourmaster heated vest with controller here. Wired, plenty warm if you need it (2 degrees @100 km/hr was fine). I recommend the jacket instead for the easier connection to the heated gloves.

With the vest, you need to use an extra y-connector and snake the wires into your jacket and they promptly try to slide out when you disconnect the gloves.

Can't be bothered with batteries and chargers. Easier to add the "plug in" routine before riding in colder weather.

Heated gloves are better than grips but are less convenient. Given how the gloves are put together, the thumbs are heated on the backs, like the rest of your fingers. Problem is, when you grip the bars, your thumbs point forward into the airstream and can get pretty cold.
 
FLSTC said:
Consider heated grips - more convenient than gloves... But may get cold fingers if holding clutch/brake for a while in traffic, and heat is on the palms only vs all-around...
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A good set of heated gloves work so well you might never bother with heated grips again. I know I didn't.

..Tom
 
I agree with that....the heated glove liners I have are very thin and comfortable .....and a lot less hassle than heated grips which I also like,

The wiring through the jacket is a tad annoying but feels real good when that warmth hits.

http://www.powerlet.com/product/microclimate-h1-glove-liner-w-5-position-controller/667

I've never taken them above 4 as they get too hot. They are very very thin so fit under gauntlets and even my summer mesh gloves ....I often wear them just on their own for local rides.

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Picture does not indicate how thin they are.
 
I might have to try these... I have velocity heated gloves and just had one fail even though I have almost never used it. When I have used it in the past I never felt like they put out much heat at all... they are good gloves otherwise, but I don't think the heating part of them works well.

Just how thin are these liners though? Because my velocity gloves fit, well, like a glove, so I don't have much room to spare.

MacDoc said:
I agree with that....the heated glove liners I have are very thin and comfortable .....and a lot less hassle than heated grips which I also like,

The wiring through the jacket is a tad annoying but feels real good when that warmth hits.

http://www.powerlet.com/product/microclimate-h1-glove-liner-w-5-position-controller/667

I've never taken them above 4 as they get too hot. They are very very thin so fit under gauntlets and even my summer mesh gloves ....I often wear them just on their own for local rides.

imageResizer.php


Picture does not indicate how thin they are.
Click to expand...
 
Lyman wife and I both had nothing but issues with Tourmaster heated gear. Too bad as it started nice and looked like a good value but so many issues with the stuff in a year or so of ownership that we returned it. In fairness to Tourmaster they were very good at giving the store we purchased from (GP Bikes) full credit for the returned jackets and gloves.

I got a Warm n Safe jacket, my wife got Gerbing. We both have Gerbing gloves.. All working really well!

My wife was at GP Bikes last week and the Gerbing rep was there. Gerbing has a new overpant that has a zip-in heated liner. My wife is petite and her Gladius doesn't have a lot to block her from the wind so needs more heat than me and this looks like a great combo for her. I ordered her in a pair.. At this point small is the smallest size they have so we hope that won't be too bike for her.

..Tom
 
V-Tom said:
Lyman wife and I both had nothing but issues with Tourmaster heated gear. Too bad as it started nice and looked like a good value but so many issues with the stuff in a year or so of ownership that we returned it. In fairness to Tourmaster they were very good at giving the store we purchased from (GP Bikes) full credit for the returned jackets and gloves.

I got a Warm n Safe jacket, my wife got Gerbing. We both have Gerbing gloves.. All working really well!

My wife was at GP Bikes last week and the Gerbing rep was there. Gerbing has a new overpant that has a zip-in heated liner. My wife is petite and her Gladius doesn't have a lot to block her from the wind so needs more heat than me and this looks like a great combo for her. I ordered her in a pair.. At this point small is the smallest size they have so we hope that won't be too bike for her.

..Tom
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I don't think anything could be too bike for anyone, but that's my opinion. I've got a heated vest with the collar that plugs into the motorcycle battery.
It does very well, but I only need it on extreme days.
I don't like my arms to be overheated, a thin layer of Merino wool over a layer of silk seems fine for the most part.
Otherwise, I double stack the wool, but might not need the vest then.
 
Chasem said:
I personally have a Powerlet Heated Jacket that works pretty damn well.

Powerlet_Heated_Jacket_Liner.jpg
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I have 2 Powerlet jackets - one FIR for the missus and the one wired for me and they are both amazing. I have taken my bike out at highway speeds at -25deg for an hour and the wired jacket kept me very warm at full heat. During normal cool weather riding above 0deg, I usually keep it at 1/2 heat and having my neck warmed is amazing.
On a side note... wait til you try heated socks.
 
shanekingsley said:
I have 2 Powerlet jackets - one FIR for the missus and the one wired for me and they are both amazing. I have taken my bike out at highway speeds at -25deg for an hour and the wired jacket kept me very warm at full heat. During normal cool weather riding above 0deg, I usually keep it at 1/2 heat and having my neck warmed is amazing.
On a side note... wait til you try heated socks.
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My winter boots are pretty toasty.... I'm really interested in heated pants though! ;)

As far as the heated neck, on my Powerlet FIR one I don't feel that? Maybe I just don't have it turned up high enough.

Sent from my SM-N910W8 using Tapatalk
 
My heated neck is on the wired one, not the FIR one.

And it's worth mentioning that anyone running multiple pieces of heated gear should consider using a digital or led voltmeter to indicate power draw. Some bikes don't have very powerful charging systems. The voltmeter I use is from Datel - digital and waterproof.
 
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shanekingsley said:
wait til you try heated socks.
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Quick note about the Firstgear heated socks. While amazingly nice and warm, they get a bit too warm. To the point that they've left burn marks on the top of my feet.

Still good though, I have them paired with the Firstgear pants, Powerlet jacket, Gerbing gloves, and Warm & Safe wireless troller. Fantastic package to keep me warm
 
I've been using the Powerlet jacket liner for 3 years with no issues. I always change the battery in the dual zone controller at the beginning of the riding season because the last thing you want is for that transmitter to not work. The heat it can put out is more than I'll ever need on a motorcycle. I have the Gerbings G3 gloves which also provide more heat than needed. Heated grips are nice to take the chill off but if you ride in single digit temps for any length of time gloves will be needed. The only problem I see with the G3 gloves is that they won't provide much protection if you go down. I like to have a good feel on the controls so heavily insulated gloves are not for me.
 
The carbon gloves are better for protection and are a better fit than the g3 gloves, but they let more cold air in so they aren't designed for really cold riding. I use the g3 gloves in cold weather and the carbon gloves in cool weather.

And yes the socks get hot! Using a controller is a must.
 
I have the Gerbin heated liners and the Gerbin heated jacket:

The jacket is amazing, keeps me warm and all times including the neck, I have a temperature controller (extra $100) because I find that it gets too hot with just the on and off switch.

The glove Liners are crap, they are thin but not thin enough to fit under any gloves only under some XXL winter gloves from Walmart and then I can't feel the controls and they are too thin when it gets really cold out to wear on their own, yes they warm up a lot but the air gets inside, plus they burned the top of my hand, I guess one of the wires gets too hot. Also no protection whatsoever but I knew that when I bought them

I bought a new model winter heated glove from Jimmy at velocity and so far so good, the insulation without heat is fantastic and once I turn them on, they keep my hands warm, also they are not too bulky so I feel the controls perfectly. I don't think these are out yet but once they come out I would recommend them to anyone. Just have them for 2 weeks so i can't comment on how long they will last or if the batteries keep charge but so far they last about 3 hours on the highest setting before a need for recharge as advertised.
 
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I have an old set I bought off of e-bay for $250. Jacket, pants, gloves and socks. Added a Warm 'n Safe dual remote controller. Longest ride about 7 - 8 hours at 3C using jacket, gloves and socks. Have used pants 2 or 3 times. Once everything else is toasty the pants are really not needed. Jacket and gloves a no brainer, but spring for the socks, they make an amazing difference in overall ride comfort.
 
MM
Just how thin are these liners though? Because my velocity gloves fit, well, like a glove, so I don't have much room to spare.
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You need space in the glove - you might want a couple of sizes up in an armored glove to accommodate.
In not too cold weather they fit fine under my mesh summer shorty gloves with knuckle armor but when It's cold I use my First Ascent gauntlet....no armor but warm....not stiff but inevitably additional bulk ....the liners themselves add very little.

That said ...I figure any cold temp ride is a cautious ride anyways.
 
When I was commuting from Ottawa to Kingston I had a pair of super cheapie D-cell battery operated heated socks from crappy tire....aside from having bulky batteries strapped on my feet the damn things were awesome...seriously don't knock them until you try them.
 
I just got a pair of powerlet heated glove liners in the mail... and a heads up that these are currently on sale for only $55CDN plus tax and $18 shipping (very fast shipping too through Purolator). http://www.powerletcanada.com/heated_clothing

These things work awesome. I tried them out for the first time today and on level 3 out of 5 my hands were very warm. I wore them inside some Olympia Goretex overgloves.

These gloves also use FIR, but in my experience are many many times warmer than the Firedupx battery operated heated gloves. I barely feel the heat in those (especially the broken one ;-) )... these liners, on-the-other-hand are the real deal. I'm not sure how I rode in cold weather before without them.

heated_clothing.jpg
 
what do you plug it in to?

do you also have the jacket?
Motorcycle Mike said:
I just got a pair of powerlet heated glove liners in the mail... and a heads up that these are currently on sale for only $55CDN plus tax and $18 shipping (very fast shipping too through Purolator). http://www.powerletcanada.com/heated_clothing

These things work awesome. I tried them out for the first time today and on level 3 out of 5 my hands were very warm. I wore them inside some Olympia Goretex overgloves.

These gloves also use FIR, but in my experience are many many times warmer than the Firedupx battery operated heated gloves. I barely feel the heat in those (especially the broken one ;-) )... these liners, on-the-other-hand are the real deal. I'm not sure how I rode in cold weather before without them.

heated_clothing.jpg
Click to expand...
 
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