If you’re riding right through the colder months, there’s one easy way to make it better: heated kit. A toasty-warm Bob Pickett investigates…
It’s the winter of 1976, a motorcyclist is working at an aeronautical machine shop. He rides in on a cold, wet and blustery day. The longer he rides, the colder he gets. Seeing him shamble through the door, shop owner Gordon Gerbing has an idea and sets to work with one of his engineers… Gerbing Heated Clothing is born.
Gerbing expanded into Europe, establishing a separate company to deal with local markets. In time,Gordon Gerbing handed over the reigns of the US company, and it appears the new management overreached. Gerbing USA went into receivership, were bought by GYDE… who went into receivership themselves! In 2019 Gordon Gerbing relaunched his company, moving to Philadelphia where (in their own words) they are operating as a cottage industry.
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Thankfully, Gerbing Europe was separately capitalised and were unaffected. At one stage the two companies shared ideas and tech but this relationship ended and Gerbing Europe has no involvement with the US company (do not try to mix and match their kit).
Gerbing Europe has its own factory in Asia where the kit is made, with testing and development done in-house in the Netherlands. The European distributors meet up twice a year to discuss sales and what each team would ike introduced. A lot of ideas come from the UK team (hard knuckle protection, wireless remotes and the new premium jacket design were all requested by the UK).
Gerbing’s patented ‘Microwire’ heating system is composed of thousands of conductive filaments 1/10th the thickness of a human hair. Each garment is controlled by a sophisticated power management and distribution system to maximise warmth and comfort. Such is Gerbing’s confidence in this system, it has a lifetime warranty (non-electrical components have a one-year warranty).
Designed for anyone exposed to the elements, Gerbing kit is used by groups such as the Armed Forces, the Police Force, the Health Service, motorcyclists, pilots, athletes and individuals with limited mobility.
TRIED AND TESTED
Gerbing XTREME Urban Gloves
£199.99 (+ 2aH battery kit at £89.99)
Gerbing Premium Jacket Liner
£199.99 (+ 10aH battery kit at £159.99)
Gerbing stresses connecting to the bike’s battery gives the best results. I powered the kit using optional battery packs because I regularly hop on and off different bikes. Gerbing advises the battery packs give approximately 100 minutes’ charge on minimum temperature, enough for most people’s commute or a longish weekend ride.
The temperature when testing was 5 or 6 Centigrade (depending which weather app I checked). Add in windchill, that’s a decent test.
The XTREME Urban gloves, even without heat, are full-on, heavy-duty winter kit made from 0.6mm premium Aniline leather with a grippy goatskin palm and Hipora liner. On the lowest setting (each glove has a temperature controller) a gentle warmth adds to the glove, coming through quickly. Switching to medium, after a few minutes it was properly hot (full heat is disabled – it can be switched back on, but that’s meant for long rides in serious sub-zero conditions; on a more stop/start ride you’ll blister your hands). The great thing about independent controllers is you can set different levels on each glove.
So they’re plenty warm, what are they like as riding gloves? Like all thick winter gloves, the trade-off is reduced feel. I’d like a broader span between thumb and forefinger.
I also found the finger fit was spot-on, but the thumbs were long, leaving the tips flapping, so definitely try before you buy. (Since testing, following feedback from me plus other customers, Gerbing has remodelled the glove to deal with the span and thumb length issues.)
The heat controllers were hard to operate in gloves. Adjusting the level (stationary obviously), I struggled to feel the microswitch in the controller (the colour around the switch changes for the heat level); if I got it wrong I had to wait for the next stop. If you want a more tactile glove (which will improve feel at the switch) Gerbing recommends the XR.
The Premium jacket liner is intended to replace your jacket’s existing one, but can be worn as an additional layer.
As per Gerbing’s recommendation I wore a long-sleeved base layer under the liner. It’s tailored for a compression fit with stretch panels to allow movement without bunching. And it does exactly what it says, staying perfectly in place no matter how I moved on the bike, feeling comfortable at all times.
Heat came through the moment I turned on via the little fob (again on the lowest setting). Like the gloves, I could feel a gentle warmth on my torso and arms. At full heat it was too much for the conditions I was riding in; it will keep you warm and happy around the Zero mark. IMPORTANT NOTE: If wiring to the bike battery it is essential to purchase a Temperature Controller. Without this the jacket will operate at 100% heat, which unless in extremely cold climates (like Scandinavia) will cause skin discomfort (see ‘How does it fit together?’).
THE DIFFERENCE BETWEEN SAFETY AND DISASTER
Gerbing made heated jackets for the British Olympics team; both swimmers and gymnasts used the kit. They found that by staying warmer to the last minute, reaction times were 7% quicker. The converse applies as you get colder; reaction times slow and digits stiffen.
At 70mph the Highway Code shows the braking distance as 96 metres, or 24 car lengths. You’re 7% slower – doesn’t sound much, right? That’s an extra 6.72 metres… or a little over 1.5 cars. So that car you’d normally stop well before hitting? You’ve gone through both it and part of the next one.
HOW DOES IT FIT TOGETHER?
Powering by battery pack? The gloves use two small batteries, housed in a small pocket on the gauntlet of each glove. This added to the bulk, but I didn’t notice once moving. Set temperature by each glove’s controller. The jacket’s battery goes in a bum bag, connected to the jacket via (optional) extension lead. Slid behind me, I didn’t notice the battery at all.
Connecting to your bike’s battery? The power lead plugs into the jacket. (Not sure about connecting to your battery? Do you have an Optimate lead fitted? There is an optional extra lead you can plug in which allows you to connect to that). There are pre-fitted connectors in the jacket for gloves (in the sleeves). Trousers and socks connect via the ‘Accessory’ socket.
What kit are you going to run? Jacket only? The single controller (£39.99) is fine. Running gloves and/or trousers and socks as well? You’ll need the Digital Controller (£49.99) which has two plugs. For jacket, trousers, gloves and/or socks with independent control, of each element use the Dual Temperature Controller+ (£59.99).
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