Armadillo

Raiderfn311 · Post by **Raiderfn311** » Thu Dec 15, 2011 1:41 am

Ive read great things about armadillo gloves and I love the look, but cant seem to find a source in the US. If anyone can help it would be great.

Post by **ericalm** » Thu Dec 15, 2011 1:54 am

I don't think they have a US distributor anymore.

Raiderfn311 · Post by **Raiderfn311** » Thu Dec 15, 2011 2:02 am

I was afraid of that. Im looking for some cold weather gloves that actually WORK. When Ive searched online, it seems most reviews for these gloves are lukewarm at best. Any suggestions would be nice, as its usually 30 degrees(give or take) on my morning rides to work.

Post by **ericalm** » Thu Dec 15, 2011 2:20 am

Get heavy winter textile with Thinsulate linings, then add wither silk or merino glove liners.

Raiderfn311 · Post by **Raiderfn311** » Thu Dec 15, 2011 2:25 am

Thanks for the tip.

teabow1 · Post by **teabow1** » Thu Dec 15, 2011 4:17 am

ericalm wrote:Get heavy winter textile with Thinsulate linings, then add wither silk or merino glove liners.

What do you mean by "heavy winter textile"?

I was riding my bicycle in -2°C weather (I think that's about 28°F?) to and from my MSF rider course site a few day ago. The ride is 40 minutes long. No problem riding at -2C weather except my fingers were numb, cold, and painful. I haven't yet figured out a good solution to the finger problem because coming from where I lived in California, -2°C is rare.

Post by **ericalm** » Thu Dec 15, 2011 4:46 am

Looks like Armadillo distribution in the US might now be through MRP:
http://www.martinracingdealer.com/Categ ... OOTER+WEAR

You can't order directly through them, but your dealer may be able to if they want to deal with MRP.

I don't know about the gloves, but Armadillo's jackets have been plagued with quality issues. Many dealers dropped the line, one reason they're hard to find these days. They may have improved; I dunno.

Have a look here:
http://www.superscooterparts.com/Catego ... OOTER+WEAR

teabow1 wrote:
ericalm wrote:Get heavy winter textile with Thinsulate linings, then add wither silk or merino glove liners.
What do you mean by "heavy winter textile"?

Textile glove built for cold weather riding. The added liners, thin as they may be, make a HUGE difference.

Leather is also good for winter, but often not as good for wet. Some winter gloves have Gore Tex membranes or Hipora (whatever that is), which should help.

teabow1 · Post by **teabow1** » Thu Dec 15, 2011 7:26 am

Ah, thanks. I'll try to remember this thread when I'm looking for winter gloves for scooters.

Raiderfn311 · Post by **Raiderfn311** » Thu Dec 15, 2011 3:29 pm

40 minutes on a bike at 28 F? Very impressive.

viney266 · Post by **viney266** » Thu Dec 15, 2011 7:33 pm

silk or similar material thin liners make a HUGE difference in any glove. Creating an extra layer and an extra air barrier. After that? Its all in how much you have to spend, but there are still some very good motorcycle gloves in the 40-60 dolllar range that work quite well.
My faves? tourmaster winter elites, but they are not cheap. but the cold tex or polar tex are almost as good for half the price.

Raiderfn311 · Post by **Raiderfn311** » Thu Dec 15, 2011 10:21 pm

Well viney, my hands are the most affected part when I ride in the cold, so I may just pull the trigger on some elites. If you have any good source for them let me know. I've bought all my x-mas presents, its time to treat me.

Edit-I found some Elite II MT's for 125.99 at Leatherup.com. Does this sound about right? I believe this is a "new" model, but I could be wrong.

Jackie F · Post by **Jackie F** » Fri Dec 16, 2011 4:41 am

REI has a nice pair of liner gloves for $15.

http://www.rei.com/product/801672/rei-p ... ner-gloves

viney266 · Post by **viney266** » Fri Dec 16, 2011 5:38 am

Raiderfn311 wrote:Well viney, my hands are the most affected part when I ride in the cold, so I may just pull the trigger on some elites. If you have any good source for them let me know. I've bought all my x-mas presents, its time to treat me.

Edit-I found some Elite II MT's for 125.99 at Leatherup.com. Does this sound about right? I believe this is a "new" model, but I could be wrong.

^^^ Yeah, thats sounds about right... Its been a while, but retail is probably around 150 for them these days...My pair is about 4 years hold and with my silk liners good for some REALLY cold rides.

LunaP · Post by **LunaP** » Fri Dec 16, 2011 7:39 am

One may also consider heated gloves (in the hundreds) or heated grips (50), or handlebar muffs (I know Tucano Urbano makes some that fits the Buddy, if that's what you have).

I myself may end up with heated grips soon. Probably a pain to install, but well worth it in the end. My commute is 2-25 minutes... longer if I slow for inclement weather or morning traffic. When it starts being 18 degrees out in January when I head to work at 8:30am, I bet I'll thank myself.

Southerner · Post by **Southerner** » Fri Dec 16, 2011 2:56 pm

I don't know if I want to invest in the complication of heated gloves, but even my very thick winter gloves allow some of the cold through, mostly due to wind blast on my knuckles. I would suggest goind the grip mitt route myself but if I could just keep the wind off, I think that would be the worst of it.

I have considered, but have yet to purchase, some sort of windblocking hand guards. The offroaders have had them for years for obvious reasons, but others exist for street use as well.

Example:
http://www.cruisercustomizing.com/hand- ... t/NC-N5512

Having never used the mitts, I wonder if they make using the controls more difficult, especially since you can't see them.

When I clicked on this thread, I was thinking the subject was the actual animal as a road hazard.

Dooglas · Post by **Dooglas** » Fri Dec 16, 2011 5:04 pm

The subject of this thread wasn't what I expected. I was going to say that my advice about armadillos is not to hit one while riding a scooter. Given the actual subject, my best tip is silk glove liners.

viney266 · Post by **viney266** » Fri Dec 16, 2011 5:18 pm

LunaP wrote:One may also consider heated gloves (in the hundreds) or heated grips (50), or handlebar muffs (I know Tucano Urbano makes some that fits the Buddy, if that's what you have).

I myself may end up with heated grips soon. Probably a pain to install, but well worth it in the end. My commute is 2-25 minutes... longer if I slow for inclement weather or morning traffic. When it starts being 18 degrees out in January when I head to work at 8:30am, I bet I'll thank myself.

I had heated grips on my KLR650 for years. They worked well!, only problem is. I'm not sure how many scooters can handle the load on the electrical system. Some can, something you need to check.

And yes, blocking the wind is key. I broke a handguard off my KLR in a woods crash, and WOW what a difference in the cold. I got another on there right away. Whatever way you choose to accomplish this doesn't matter, but its the key to cold weather riding. I take most of my cold gear off in March...It isn't always pretty , but it works!

The heated gloves are an option, especially now that they make lipo powered battery ones ( about $150)...I have yet to try them, but I like the idea. The literature says 4 hours on a low setting...Hmmmm? I wonder

LunaP · Post by **LunaP** » Fri Dec 16, 2011 5:34 pm

Dooglas wrote:The subject of this thread wasn't what I expected. I was going to say that my advice about armadillos is not to hit one while riding a scooter. Given the actual subject, my best tip is silk glove liners.

XD We don't even HAVE armadillos over here... I didn't give it a second thought

Silk liners are wonderful, but they don't cut wind at all. They add a little extra warmth, but if wind is truly the problem they won't be the ultimate fix. Still, an awesome thing to have... get them anyway.

Southerner wrote:I don't know if I want to invest in the complication of heated gloves, but even my very thick winter gloves allow some of the cold through, mostly due to wind blast on my knuckles. I would suggest goind the grip mitt route myself but if I could just keep the wind off, I think that would be the worst of it.

I have considered, but have yet to purchase, some sort of windblocking hand guards. The offroaders have had them for years for obvious reasons, but others exist for street use as well.

Example:
http://www.cruisercustomizing.com/hand- ... t/NC-N5512

Having never used the mitts, I wonder if they make using the controls more difficult, especially since you can't see them.

When I clicked on this thread, I was thinking the subject was the actual animal as a road hazard.

A while ago, 2wheelnsanity posted about some cheapie handguards he got on eBay and installed on his 170i, said they were working out pretty swell. He posted photos, they actually kinda went with the bike surprisingly well if you ask me.

As for mitts... Lokky uses them, not me... but he's put them on both his Stella and my Buddy 170i, and does okay. The shifting is an eensy weird on the Stella, but that's due to space in the muff and the shape of it, not because he can't see. Tucano Urbano is the brand of the ones we're using, they fit the buddy very well, they're the only ones we know of that do well over the Buddy's weird DOT signals... but there there are other brands that make the muffs different ways, different ways to attach and all that. I think it's kind of like mix n match with whatever bike you have.

viney266 wrote:
LunaP wrote:One may also consider heated gloves (in the hundreds) or heated grips (50), or handlebar muffs (I know Tucano Urbano makes some that fits the Buddy, if that's what you have).

I myself may end up with heated grips soon. Probably a pain to install, but well worth it in the end. My commute is 2-25 minutes... longer if I slow for inclement weather or morning traffic. When it starts being 18 degrees out in January when I head to work at 8:30am, I bet I'll thank myself.
I had heated grips on my KLR650 for years. They worked well!, only problem is. I'm not sure how many scooters can handle the load on the electrical system. Some can, something you need to check.

My 170i has the accessory charger plug, I was thinking somebody somewhere probably made heated grips that could plug in to that... but I haven't actually looked yet tbh. I have to buy a winter jacket, and then maybe new tires already... I just hit 2000 miles

Heated grips may actually have to wait til next winter...

Southerner · Post by **Southerner** » Fri Dec 16, 2011 5:46 pm

Really, one could perform a cheap experiment to see if knuckle guards would work. You could simply cut out some temporary models from milk jugs or beverage bottles and jury-rig them in position with masking tape or whatever, just to see how well they work. If found satisfactory, you could begin shopping for whatever model might be made to work on a particular scoot. I don't know how they usually attach.

But if there's a set of muffs that are known to work, I'd probaby go that route unless they're really expensive.

siobhan · Post by **siobhan** » Fri Dec 16, 2011 7:57 pm

Southerner wrote:I don't know if I want to invest in the complication of heated gloves, but even my very thick winter gloves allow some of the cold through, mostly due to wind blast on my knuckles. I would suggest goind the grip mitt route myself but if I could just keep the wind off, I think that would be the worst of it.

Having never used the mitts, I wonder if they make using the controls more difficult, especially since you can't see them.

When I clicked on this thread, I was thinking the subject was the actual animal as a road hazard.

I can't say enough good things about heated gloves. No way I could some of the winter riding I do without them. I have the battery powered kind that can connect to the bike's battery as well. There are a bunch of companies making them; you can find them for about $200, although the less expensive ones don't have armour/aren't made for scootering/motorcycling (more for outdoor sport events, skiing, etc.). I did a blast down I95 in the 20s on the DRZ and the only part of me that was a bit cold where my toes.

As for mitts/muffs: you don't look down at your handlebars to operate the controls so the visual getting in the way doesn't happen. What I disliked about them was pulling my gloved hand in and out...I never felt like I could get my hand back in there quickly (mind you, why my hand was off the grips while commuting is another question). That said, I ride with guys in the woods and they use them and they don't get in their way. They use the Tusk cheapies.

michelle_7728 · Post by **michelle_7728** » Sat Dec 17, 2011 3:13 am

I have the Gerbings Hybrid heated gloves (self-contained batteries) and absolutely love them. Yes, they were expensive, but I think they were worth it. I have spent at least that much in other gloves over the years and ended up giving most all of them all away.

I have silk hand liners that I use under my rubber gardening gloves. They keep my fingers toasty, so I thought I'd try them in my Gerbings. Don't bother. Silk hand liners might be a good idea to help with other gloves, but with the heated ones, it's like they deflected the heat 'away' from my hands.