Staying warm

[Moise]

I can believe wearing a balaclava inside a helmet will compress the liner. One winter, I wore thin, silk gloves inside a pair of gloves, and they always felt loose after that.

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[avimistry]

Heat is lost through your head/neck, hands, and feet first:

-Balaclava + fleece neck warmer
-Those white surgical-type, latex-free gloves as under gloves (a pain to get on, and works best on shorter rides under 60min as it can get a lil sweaty.. but it works)
-Long socks and short socks + waterproof boots(goes without saying, but having the added WP membrane helps keep the wind out)

For the limbs and torso you just gotta be smart about your layering. Thermals, windproof sweater/hoodie as midlayer, etc. Keep it snug together as you want to minimize wind getting under/between the layers, and not blow up like a baloon. The plastic waterproof oversuits (1 or 2 pc) act as an additional wind barrier.

I haven't tried it but recently thought of it, hot water bottle under midlayer.

[russd7]

its not rocket science. people tend to over think things.

my riding attire for winter singlet, brushed cotton shirt and if its really cold (frosty) i may wear a jersey or swazi top and then my bike jacket, and on the lower half is jocks and jeans and riding trou and if its really cold and i can find them i wear my possum fur socks otherwise its just me work socks. gloves are a pair i bought in rotorua back in 2001 but i do always carry a spare pair in case they get wet. i do have pussy grips on the zzr but find them utterly useless unless i put elephant gloves on the bike which i have only done a couple of times. i dont use a neck sock anymore tho i always carry it in the top box just in case.

if its a decent rain i chuck a pair of wet weather leggings over my riding trou and used to use a drizabone on top half till i lost it, bought a one piece wet weather suit once and wore it once before deciding it was a waste of money.
My definition of cold is somewhat different to a lot tho, all depends what one gets acclimatized to i guess

[avimistry]

Yeah, all depends on your tolerance for cold. I see riders all layered up, and I also see riders with a jacket, jeans, and the regular stuff. Unless the latter has heated base layers and are all toasty inside. Speaking of heated apparel, there are a number of brands doing base layers (bike powered or battery packs), and there's also the mid-to-outer layer stuff used by tradies (Milwaukee heated hoodie). I've never used any and don't really plan to any time soon. For one, these aren't cheap. I'd then rather invest in a top tier base layer (something like SharkSkin). Also, heated apparel are more suited for really long distance touring than commuting imo. But if you really want to go heated, then try the passive heated stuff first (microwave heat pads, etc).

[IronPawz]

Today I am going to by a marino top given they just keep coming up and my 5 layers under by jacket (the start of this thread) sounds like it could be less. Also my two layers of thermal leggings and jeans under pants seems off to so perhaps some of them. There is a decent Farmlands in town here to look at. I think I personally get cold easy (ever since I lived in Sydney for nearly five years).

But trust me on the hottie those things WORK LIKE A CHARM when it is really cold.

As the for the helmet I almost always wear my macpac hoodie up under my helmet and not feel there is an issue between it in and out. I've had that helmet for to many KMs now so need to replace it. Starting another whole area to research being a good helmet (mmm another thread.. must have been done to death that one surely).

Probably come to a conclusion on this thread personally so THANKS to everyone who added great advice (especially JellyWrestler because you said something that sparked my hottie test and that was totally worth knowing).

Stay warm out there however you do it being cold is a bad idea and not much fun. Op shops are the excellent option for ppl on a budget because old ladies love to be warm also so they are generally well stocked with good thermal layers for nex ta nix.

[Maha]

A wool lined oil skin vest or jacket will kept it all out, and for a lot less than you'll pay for a top of line jacket.
Doing it this way, you can have a decent leather jacket all year round without the extra outlay of a decent winter jacket worth between $600-1300.


http://www.farsouth.co.nz/oilskin-vest-nz

[Big Dog]

I used to dick around with neck socks but find a buff and a beard work much better.

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[Maha]

I used to dick around with neck socks but find a buff and a beard work much better.

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My homemade neck warmer is a beanie with a hole cut in the top.

[Big Dog]

My homemade neck warmer is a beanie with a hole cut in the top.

Lol. I found some 3 for $3 thin cotton imitation buffs at a $1 shop.
Much cheaper than beanies. I have 2 fleece ones somewhere that started life as 1 i bought at a safety shop but it was too thick and not wind proof so I cut it in half and had a silk scarf sewn in to each half. 100% wind proof.
Only trouble is it makes such a perfect seal pin lock fogs up.
Just the beard works above 5. Beard and thin buff do the trick at anything above -2.

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[Big Dog]

A wool lined oil skin vest or jacket will kept it all out, and for a lot less than you'll pay for a top of line jacket.
Doing it this way, you can have a decent leather jacket all year round without the extra outlay of a decent winter jacket worth between $600-1300.


http://www.farsouth.co.nz/oilskin-vest-nz

I couldn't find an oil skin that ticked all the boxes so I went with one of these: http://www.trademe.co.nz/1138450266
Ticks all the boxes and works a treat.
Fits over my leather jacket.
100 wind proof.
Has exterior pockets.
Keeps the core dry if it rains.

Surprisingly warmer than wearing a long sleeved merino and a wool jersey... but I could wear those as well if the temp dropped.

Might have a gander at your link when next in charge of a spare hundy...

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[Moi]

I've read all through this thread - IMHO, one of the better reads on KB - and so many have said merino is the answer.

I must have be doing something wrong... while I was still working I used to wear a polyprop short-sleeved t-shirt under all of the other gear. Bought some merino and found that it always felt cold on the skin as opposed to the polyprop which as soon as I put it on I'd feel warm, so the merino is in the bottom drawer and the polyprop is still in use. Never worked it out... Perhaps someone here might have a suggestion or two, as would like to use the merino t-shirts rather than have them hiding in a dark drawer...

Thanks.

[IronPawz]

A wool lined oil skin vest or jacket will kept it all out, and for a lot less than you'll pay for a top of line jacket.
Doing it this way, you can have a decent leather jacket all year round without the extra outlay of a decent winter jacket worth between $600-1300.


http://www.farsouth.co.nz/oilskin-vest-nz

Actually they look good. Makes me want to ask another question. Is leather warm compared to standard type jackets. I'd imagine they are harder generally to get a few additional layers under them (assuming tight fit). Still with a layer like that listed above would it be say warmer, less so or similar?

[Maha]

Actually they look good. Makes me want to ask another question. Is leather warm compared to standard type jackets. I'd imagine they are harder generally to get a few additional layers under them (assuming tight fit). Still with a layer like that listed above would it be say warmer, less so or similar?

Leather is colder than textile but with an over jacket/vest sweet as. Perfect during the warmer months, in fact a leather jacket with vent zips even better. For the colder months though it is each to their own and some can spend a tremendous amount of trying to keep warm (heated this and that, warming up torso/hands/bum etc) when the answer is a much less strain on the wallet. Yes a vest is warm/rain proof. I wore one for a number of years, it got extremely wet at times but I stayed dry, zero wind chill is a bonus. I sold it in 2014 when I didn't ride for that year.

When buying though, try it first with your riding gear on.
Unfortunately, winter gloves are generally bulky. I rode last winter in summer gloves because my bike had hand guards and the hands didn't get cold at all.

[Big Dog]

I've read all through this thread - IMHO, one of the better reads on KB - and so many have said merino is the answer.

I must have be doing something wrong... while I was still working I used to wear a polyprop short-sleeved t-shirt under all of the other gear. Bought some merino and found that it always felt cold on the skin as opposed to the polyprop which as soon as I put it on I'd feel warm, so the merino is in the bottom drawer and the polyprop is still in use. Never worked it out... Perhaps someone here might have a suggestion or two, as would like to use the merino t-shirts rather than have them hiding in a dark drawer...

Thanks.

I find merino (like most wool) is not warm at first.
It takes a few days wear to get rid of the manufacturers smoothness and for the fibres to do their thing.

If you only wash sparingly and with will wash easily the measure of polypropylene and warmer when not actually moving much such as in a bike.

The big differences I find are:
How cold and wet you feel when both fabrics are wet.
If you haven't washed the lanolin out wool is water resistent if not proof.

And how they smell after wearing them all day. Polypropylene stinks of sweat where unless you use laundry powder on then merino just smells like merino.


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[MrMarko]

Fairings... freeze my bloodey nuts off on the enduro.