GripGrab Waterproof Knitted Winter Gloves

There's really no such thing as a fully waterproof glove, but judged as winter models, these GripGrab Waterproof Knitted Winter Gloves are good at keeping your hands comfortable even if water does eventually get through. But there are loads of good gloves out there, which is one reason our best winter gloves buyer's guide is so popular.

These GripGrab gloves are surprisingly warm given their light weight and low bulk. Starting a morning ride at 8°C I expected to get cold hands until the sun got up. I was wrong. My hands were completely warm and comfortable.

However, 'waterproof' is a bit optimistic. After two hours of riding in the rain, they were soaked right through, inside and out, despite my jacket cuffs being over the wrists to try to provide a bit of a seal.

This isn't very surprising. Short of a double layer of Marigolds sealed around your forearms with multiple turns of duck tape, it's impossible to make gloves that are properly waterproof. Those Marigolds would get sweaty and unpleasant very quickly, and that's the problem: if you want gloves to be nice to wear, you have to make them out of fabric of some sort. That means seams and flexibility, both of which eventually let water through.

But while I had wet hands at the end of that ride, they were still fairly warm and comfortable and I really don't think you can ask more of that from winter gloves. (I'd love to be proven wrong, though. If you've found gloves that truly resist hours of rain, let me know.)

What I really like about these gloves is how free the movement of your fingers is in them. I literally typed this paragraph while wearing them and while I had to fix a few typos they didn't slow me down by much, which is not something I could say about some of my favourite winter gloves. That freedom comes from the sheer flexibility of the knitted layers, something you don't get with gloves made from waterproof hardshell and softshell fabrics.

It's a bit annoying that the GripGrabs aren't touchscreen-compatible. A few years ago, this was okay as you probably didn't want to take your mobile phone out in the wet, but modern phones are far more water-resistant. I've seen an iPhone completely unharmed by half an hour in the bottom of a hot tub, so a bit of rain's not going to hurt. GripGrab makes merino glove liners with touchscreen-compatible tips so it seems odd that these gloves can't get the same treatment.

I asked GripGrab why there were no touchscreen tips on these gloves and in one of the fastest customer service interactions ever I was told: 'At that time, it was not an option for our supplier to put it into the glove. We know it's a shortcoming, but we're working to change it.' Maybe next winter then.

Double up

I'm going to take this opportunity to relay the best tip I've ever come across about winter gloves: carry a spare pair. Your hands are going to get wet and when you set off after a coffee stop it's a huge morale-booster to slip your hands into warm, dry gloves instead of the wet (and therefore cold) ones you took off half an hour ago. (Thanks to the cycling community on Mastodon for that one – join us at toot.bike.)

Construction and details

The Waterproof Knitted Winter Gloves are made from a knitted nylon/Lycra outer shell and a blend of acrylic, nylon and Lycra for the inner, with a breathable membrane in between. Both inside and out appear to have been woven in one piece, which must involve some serious knitting-machine wizardry

The palm, thumb and first and second fingers have silicone gripper print that holds on to your handlebars very nicely, and there's a small reflective flash on the back of the little finger, so remember to pretend you're having tea with the vicar when signalling.

There's no padding, which is both blessing and curse. Too much padding on winter gloves and they get bulky and awkward but without any you do feel every bump. I don't ride for more than a couple of hours at a time in the winter; if you're a winter mega-mile-muncher then you might want more padding.

Rivals

There are so many winter gloves out there that you're spoiled for choice (and it's one of our most popular buyer's guides). Restricting the scope to lightweight gloves at around the same price, George really liked the Castelli Tutto Nano Gloves; Rob was impressed by the Sportful WS Essential 2 Gloves; Mike liked the Stolen Goat Climb & Conquer 4 Seasons Gloves; and if you want good touchscreen compatibility check out the Q36.5 Anfibio Winter Rain Cycling Gloves that Shaun reviewed.

Who should buy GripGrab Waterproof Knitted Winter Gloves?

If you keep riding through the winter good wet-weather gloves are essential. These do a decent job of keeping your hands comfortable, and while they're not completely waterproof, they're effective enough in light rain. Good then, for commuting riders and those who don't embark on 100-mile wet-weather epics.

Verdict

Good gloves that'll keep you comfortable when it rains, but they're not truly waterproof