GripGrab Windster Gloves

GripGrab's Windsters are good quality, wind and water proof gloves that allow for lever grip combined with smartphone usability.

I often find that when using winter gloves that feel and grip is sacrificed for warmth. What I have been particularly impressed by with these gloves is that they manage to not only keep your hands warm and dry, but it is still relatively easy to grip and feel handlebars and levers.

The Windsters have several features that set them apart, the main one being that the fingertips work with touchscreen phones. In thinner and less hard wearing gloves, it is much easier simply because you have more control over your finger moving. Using the touch technology on these is a breeze though and allows you to use both phones and more importantly touch screen cycle computers while wearing them.

The palms have a decent helping of silicone grip in the middles which stops slipping on the bars. What I particularly like is the similar surface on the first two fingers which helps with grip on the levers, something that has been incredibly useful when using the gloves in wetter conditions.

There is also a gel pad on the lower left of the palm, which helps to absorb vibrations from the handlebars. This is an uncommon feature on cold weather gloves as many think that the extra padding of the gloves themselves is enough, but it makes a big difference to your ride, especially in harsher conditions at this time of year.

The backs of the gloves have a lot of reflective piping and logos which is useful in the dark. Much of this is subtle such as the small reflective dots and this kind of attention to detail is seen throughout the glove.

Quality is good throughout, with strong, resilient stitching, and a fit that doesn't make you feel like you are wearing oven gloves. Maintaining warmth but minimising additional padding has been made possible through the use of well thought materials, that also maintain an impressive level of breathability for a glove that can be used in freezing conditions. I particularly liked the sweat wiping surface on the thumbs, why do so many glove companies forget this on colder weather gloves?

I was very impressed with how breathable they manage to be even in slightly warmer conditions, combined with warmth in the cold. I used these gloves in conditions ranging from 1-10 ˚C and they performed well in a variety of temperatures and conditions.

I used them in torrential downpours and they lived up to their waterproof billing. I also appreciated the elasticated wrists on the gloves which created a good seal and protected my wrists from the elements. Combined with the elasticated cuff means that elements are totally kept out; after two hours of cycling in the rain, my hands stayed impressively warm and dry.

Verdict

Very well made gloves that live up to the claim of being both wind and waterproof