Thank God, a motovlogger who realises what base layers are for, wicking moisture! In regards to the leaking experienced by the Component jacket, I think it could potentially be related to how much you use it. If it's your main jacket for wet weather, then there will be a lot of crud getting onto the membrane. When the membrane has dirt going slightly into the microscopic pores, water will use that to seep in, so it's entirely possible a wash and reproof will see it fit for way more hours of use in rain. I always recommend washing your gear twice a month and reproofing at the same time, either with a wash-in system like Storm or Nikwax or using a spray on, preferably one with no aerosols. As someone who sells bike kit for a living, even with someone buying 2 grand's worth of GoreTex, my advice will be the exact same
I was at the BMW Motorrad event in Garmisch a few years ago and Gore-Tex actually had a stand there and were demonstrating why heated grips make make the gloves leak. Put simply, water vapour passes through the membrane from the warm side to the cold side, so warm sweat can pass out, but cold rain cannot get in. The greater the temperature difference, the better it works, and when the air temperature gets closer to body temperature (30c+), it becomes ineffective. Heated grips reverse the situation and the outside becomes the warmer side and allows the water vapour into the glove. If this happens to you, turn off the heated grips and briefly hold your hands in the air to cool your palms. This will restore the normal function of the membrane and the dampness inside the glove will pass outwards. The inside of the glove will dry out in about 30 minutes, even in heavy rain. This has worked for me with Hein Gericke, BMW and Richa gloves.
It's good kit, but even with this and layering my good lady always gets cold on the back. To solve it I bought her a non bike specific heated waist coat. It's a game changer for her. Small battery pack lasts all day, and I carry a spare just in case. It's so good she wears it cycling to work, on long walks or even gardening in the cold. Also allows her to dispense with 2 layers. Can't recommend it enough, and being non bike relatively cheap. £50 including the power pack) Safe, happy travels 👍
Absolutely correct on the assumption about the gloves. The membrane allows water vapour to pass from hot to cold so if grips on high then warmer than hand therefor leak. Have found mine are all fine on low heat only.
Thanks Tony a very balanced review 👍. After various bits of clothing failing in heavy rain over the years I now always go with a brand that uses laminate goretex. Given they guarantee it for life I think it's a safer bet and they also test all the products using their name. I now use a mix of rukka, Richa and sidi and it's stood up the heaviest rain. I agree about the halvarssons jacket, I use the same one and it's really comfy. Ride safe and happy new year👍🇬🇧
Love my old Halvarssons suit, Knox gloves and Cardo Bold, considering a Revit suit next time. Base layers from Halvarssons are superb. Big fan of Knox and they are pretty local to me here in wet and cold Northumberland. Really heavy rain I wear a Revit hi vis rain jacket as an extra waterproof layer.
Hi Tony, great review as always. The water leak with using heated grips has happened to me with two goretex gloves (Richa Atlantic gtx & Richa Invader gtx), and those has never leaked before nor after in normal circumstances so might be the case... Although Halvarssons membrane have a tendency to leak sometimes anyway so for a kind of trip you did, I would take nothing but goretex and would probably pack a winter gloves too :) Thanks for the great videos Happy new year!
I've done nearly 10000 miles on my REV'IT TRENCH GTX Jacket through harsh winter & rain and its never leaked or gone damp even though I've washed it maybe 10 times now. I use Nikwax and even dried it at high temp in tumble dryer multiple times but it's still going strong.
I found with bike gear you get what you pay for. I feel like all my previous boots were a waste of money before I bought Daytona boots. Recently got the Rukka Nivala 2.0 and it feels premium and very comfy, loved my old Hein Gericke Tuareg Goretex gear but Rukka is in a different league. Also have Revit summer gloves, they are fantastic. :) For the helmet Schuberth E1 and I think it's great, in combination with the Schuberth integrated intercom system.
Your assumption on heated grips and gloves with membranes is correct. It's actually not about vapour, as the rain water will (hopefully) not get that hot or put under pressure in your gloves. Put simply the membrane will tilt from hot to cold allowing fluids to flow into this direction. That's how membranes handle sweat to be transported from the heat source (body) to the cold (environment). However there are membranes, that are more sophisticated, like GORE TEX, these membranes operate in a different way. It is unlikely, you actually have the issue on the side of your glove, where the membrane is stitched in. It's more likely the water got into the gloves through parts, that aren't covered (well) with the waterproofing membrane. Another aspect is the K-factor of your gloves (the membrane), which will tell you, how much water they may resist. The thing with low K gloves is the pressure you will apply by grabbing the handlebars. The more loose your grip is, the longer the water may stay out. The stronger your grip on the handlebars is, the more water will get forced through the membrane by that pressure. This is a common problem when activating grip heating in the rain. This is even worse with very tight grips, as there is no way for the water to go other than through the fabrics.
I too love the Ljusdal gloves but I have the same experience of them - they wet through in the rain and can take days to dry afterwards. Thing is your hands do get nice and warm if you run your heated grips whilst the gloves are wet...
I like gear videos. Layering seems to be the way to do it. My problem in Thailand is staying cool. I like the waterproof pants you feature for use in Europe. Regarding keeping your feet dry, I used to use a pair of British Army Gore-Tex bootliners under a pair of slightly oversized TCX mesh race boots. Worked well but not for GB in winter. As regards gloves, I wear a pair of mesh gloves with an old pair of Belstaff waterproof overmitts [purchased before Belstaff became trendy and ludicrously overpriced]. Again, not in a GB winter. Arai helmets fit me well. Roof Boxer V8 for me in humid Thailand. Happy New Year, bro.
Great video Tony I was watching your trip and wondering how it all stood up , as for the glove issue I’ve been told by two different manufacturer’s the same thing and without heated grips on a wet pair stayed dry , but obviously if it’s cold as well your stuffed .
Hi gloves letting water through because of heated grips never heard of that I have a pair of richa goretex gloves used on two different bikes with heated grips on and had zero water get through unlike my alpinestars drystar trousers definitely not dry.
Nice reviews Tony. The only piece I've owned are the Halvarssons Ljusdal (Or "Yousdal"). Very happy in terms of fit and feel, great fastening system. But recently, the inner lining on the left glove has detached and are now useless. Had them 10 months. Very disappointed in the end.
Hi Tony Great video as always l have used Halvarsson for years very gook kit ,but like you said water and heated grip doesn't go well together so you end up either cold or wet hands. It will be intresting to see if you find an alternative that works to give both. As for waring layers its a must for me all year round merano base layers are my choice is EDZ are what i use ,but just don't put a cotton t shirt in the mix as this holds the moisture.
