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Re-waterproofing gloves


Duc2V4

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So yesterday I rode nearly four hours in the rain going to and from San Diego, although I had rain gear on, jacket, pants, boots, gloves, all but my gloves held up to the rain. I had used them a few times before and had no problem with them keeping the water out but yesterday proved too much for them. I have read and heard that most rain gear needs to be “reconditioned” in order to keep its water shedding properties, many suggest using Nik Wax. Just wondering from those who ride in the rain, what do you use to “re-waterproof” your gloves and/or other rain gear.

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I’ve had very good results with this spray on water repellent from Walmart:

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Before spraying it on, remove armor and liners from jacket and pants, machine wash with Woolite  - short cycle on delicate setting, then hang dry. Don’t wash riding gear any more often than absolutely necessary. Clean boots and gloves by hand if they need it, hang until completely dry. Don’t bother hanging the boots if they need to dry, just leave ‘em set. Heck, wear the boots around the house if you’re so inclined - they’re harder to hang than the other stuff. To hang gloves I use hangers for pants with spring clips and attach one glove to each clip. Once everything is completely dry, I take it out to the back yard, hang it on a board spanning two ladders, and drench it with the waterproofer according to the directions. The first time I used it I was worried about the puddles of waterproofer under the gear, but it doesn’t stain or seal concrete or bricks. Let everything dry at least 24 hours - more if possible - before riding. Figure on using three $6 cans to treat one pair of boots, 2-3 pairs of gloves, one textile jacket, and one pair of textile pants.

 

This waterproofer helps the gear shed water from its outer layers instead of immediately soaking it up into leather and fibers, but it still relies on whatever waterproofing is designed into the garment to keep water away from your body.

 

Note - after you use this or any silicone-based waterproofing on your boots, carefully scrub the soles with windex or some other cleaner to remove the silicone. Otherwise you’ll feel like you’re walking on an ice rink until the waterproofer wears off of the bottoms of your boots.

 

As Duc2V4 mentioned, Nikwax treatment is highly recommended - the Rev’it guys at the motorcycle show said Nikwax is the way to go for washing gear. I plan to try that next time. 

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Duc2V4, Knox Zero 2 Mk II gloves are my go to rain gloves. I haven’t been through a torrential downpour like the one you experienced yet, but they kept me dry through two hours of light rain on my last trip. The Zero 2s also passed webbikeworld’s bucket test - they put the gloves on then submerge their hands in a bucket of ice water for 5 minutes. The Knox kept their hands dry in the bucket.

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I started riding years ago when I couldn’t afford much and the equipment basically wasn’t around, so I used anything that worked. I carry a tailpack. For rain gloves I carry a spare pair of good, old gloves.  You can either buy large washing rubber gloves and put them over the gloves, or put thin plastic gloves on underneath the old gloves which keeps your hands dry (not great for hot days). For boots. Put a grocery bag over your socks to keep your feet dry and then boots on. I’ve done this numerous times, as I’ve found that on multiple day rides waterproofing your boots doesn’t last. 

 

I have a couple of riding suits and one is ventilated.  Great for hot days, but if you start off early in the morning, too effective, and cold. So I use a black garbage bag and put it under my jacket front. Keeps the wind off, and much warmer. 

 

For or getting caught out on a suddenly cold day, stuff newspaper under your jacket.   For the gloves, buy cheap thin  Dollar store gloves to put under them. 

 

Apart from the newspaper there’s nothing above that can’t be stuffed under your seat and left there until you may need it. 

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1 hour ago, sfdownhill said:

Duc2V4, Knox Zero 2 Mk II gloves are my go to rain gloves. I haven’t been through a torrential downpour like the one you experienced yet, but they kept me dry through two hours of light rain on my last trip. The Zero 2s also passed webbikeworld’s bucket test - they put the gloves on then submerge their hands in a bucket of ice water for 5 minutes. The Knox kept their hands dry in the bucket.

I have a pair of Knox Zero Mk I Outdry gloves that I’ll wear sometimes but the guantlet is a bit too big for the rain coat to go over them, so I don’t use them when the downpour is heavy. They have the gator to help keep the water from seeping in from down your arm so they’ll work when the rain is light.

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1 hour ago, VFR750 said:

I started riding years ago when I couldn’t afford much and the equipment basically wasn’t around, so I used anything that worked. I carry a tailpack. For rain gloves I carry a spare pair of good, old gloves.  You can either buy large washing rubber gloves and put them over the gloves, or put thin plastic gloves on underneath the old gloves which keeps your hands dry (not great for hot days). For boots. Put a grocery bag over your socks to keep your feet dry and then boots on. I’ve done this numerous times, as I’ve found that on multiple day rides waterproofing your boots doesn’t last. 

 

I have a couple of riding suits and one is ventilated.  Great for hot days, but if you start off early in the morning, too effective, and cold. So I use a black garbage bag and put it under my jacket front. Keeps the wind off, and much warmer. 

 

For or getting caught out on a suddenly cold day, stuff newspaper under your jacket.   For the gloves, buy cheap thin  Dollar store gloves to put under them. 

 

Apart from the newspaper there’s nothing above that can’t be stuffed under your seat and left there until you may need it. 

For the most part, my under garments work like a champ keeping me warm and wind free (when wearing perforated gear) but I have on occasion done the news paper trick when I got caught off guard. I haven’t done the latex/rubber gloves under/over my main gloves but I hear that works well too as far as waterproofing goes. I’m pretty sure everyone who rides knows that waterproof is relative, as with enough time and rain, the gear eventually gets over saturated and thus gets to your skin. For the most part the gloves I wore have done their job in the past, so I’m looking for a way to restore that capability to some degree. At least to give me more time with dry hands.

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Waterproofing depends on the material. 

 

1. Textiles get a gentle wash with LIQUID detergent (like Nikwax) at low temp (as above) and then GENTLE tumble dry. This realigns all the fibres and gets rid of the impurities that help water soak past the waterproofing. After a couple such treatments it needs a waterproofing top-up with Nikwax or similar. 

 

2. Leather gets submerged in a lukewarm bath with baby shampoo for about 10 mins, lightly agitated, seams brushed clean with a nail brush and then rinsed in cold water to remove any residues. Boots need to be hung upside down (broomstick works well) to drip dry with balled up newspaper inside. Newspaper changed every day until completely dry. Never force dry with heat - let it dry naturally (my Altbergs took nearly a week last year). Then apply a good wax like Leder Gris or Snoseal liberally and buff off until the surface warms up. Another option is to warm the boots by wearing them around the house for a while. This opens the pores of the leather to absorb the wax deeply but can stretch the leather which might be undesirable (good for stretching tight stuff). 

 

One note on gloves: hot water penetrates faster than cold! That means if you have heated grips your gloves will leak faster - sorry!  

 

Stray 

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3 hours ago, Duc2V4 said:

I have a pair of Knox Zero Mk I Outdry gloves that I’ll wear sometimes but the guantlet is a bit too big for the rain coat to go over them, so I don’t use them when the downpour is heavy. They have the gator to help keep the water from seeping in from down your arm so they’ll work when the rain is light.

 

I’ve had my eye on the Rukka Imatra glove because of its slim gauntlet, outlast, and goretex. Gonna have to wait until another pair of gloves wears out before plunking down $250, though.

 

The Revit Stratos also looks good for wet weather temps over 40F - goretex, slim gauntlet.

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3 hours ago, sfdownhill said:

 

I’ve had my eye on the Rukka Imatra glove because of its slim gauntlet, outlast, and goretex. Gonna have to wait until another pair of gloves wears out before plunking down $250, though.

 

The Revit Stratos also looks good for wet weather temps over 40F - goretex, slim gauntlet.

The pair I was wearing were Rev’it Summit 2 H2O, not sure how they compare to the Stratos one for one but they have a small gauntlet and meant for medium temps. They use Hydratex, rather than Goretex though. I’ve eyed Rukka too but still in limbo as to what I’m going to try next. Knox is my usual go to glove but Rev’it has had some good choices I like too.

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I'd be careful with silicone stuff, it "contaminates" stuff it gets in touch with and if you have any plans of using glue, don't use silicone

Skickat från min E5823 via Tapatalk

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