I needed a new pair of winter gloves as I had planned to review a couple of bikes in December. As you know, this time of year in the UK can be a tad chilly. With no heated grips available and coupled with cold inflicted numbness in my hands as a sufferer of Raynaud’s Disease, I decided that heated gloves would be the way to go.
Thanks to Keis, I received a pair of G701 Premium Heated textile Touring gloves, you can see our post New Keis gloves are hot stuff for more info. The gloves came in an extremely well designed box. Everything from the graphics, battery packs, wiring and the gloves themselves are of a high build quality.
You can choose to wire them up to your bikes battery but as I was riding a test bike, I went for the twin battery packs. Instructions were initially a little confusing; working out where which wire went where.
The twin (rechargeable) battery packs (which are an added extra option) once connected were designed to go with a companion vest but I fed mine from my bike jacket pocket, through the arms. I found out later there are in fact pockets in the gloves to accommodate batteries.
Just like most new items I found the gloves are initially a bit stiff, tricky to grip the bars at first, but once worn and bedded in, that will sort itself out.
Once you’re ready to turn the gloves on you need to keep your finger pressed down on the ‘on’ button for a second. There are three heat settings which are green, orange and the hottest, red. I wasn’t on the bike long enough to test battery life but if they are like the vest, they should last be around 4 hours.
Even without the the heating turned on the gloves feel warm and for the ride I had the gloves on the lowest setting. I headed off along the south coast. It was sunny it was cold with the wind coming off the sea, perfect testing conditions. Happily my hands were cosy and I had sufficient feel for all the controls. Numb hand issues resolved!
The gloves are waterproof, using a hydrophobic fabric which luckily I didn’t need to test out as it stayed dry. There is also a newly designed visor wipe positioned on the left index finger for those damp days.. Another feature includes touch screen capacitive pads on the index finger and thumb.
My verdict.
My overall impression from the gloves – well made quality items, including the batteries and wiring. The gloves are a must for anyone who wants to ride their bike, or walk the dog, or even ski, throughout the winter and stay warm. Unlike heated grips, these heated gloves will carry on keeping hands warm whilst off the bike.
As someone who suffers from Raynaud’s Disease, these gloves are perfect. It means you can carry on winter riding with confidence in the knowledge you can feel the throttle, clutch lever and brakes. The only small gripe is that the instructions were initially a little confusing.
If you are going for longer rides or a tour you may want to compliment the gloves with a Keis Heated vest as well.
You can catch Maja’s review of the Keis Heated Bodywarmer – Ladies B501WRP Review here
For more info on Maja’s Motorcycles Adventures click below
