Spring is upon us, and for most seasonal riders that means we're itching to get back in the saddle. At least, if you can stand a little cold! The low spring temperatures is exactly what's holding a lot of riders back. Riding a motorcycle is amazing, but getting off the bike after half an hour, partially frozen, sucks big time. I myself am always fighting against my own body. The cold itself isn't the bigger issue for me, I can't stand cold wind. This is precisely why I wanted to try out a heated jacket on the motorcycle.
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Electrically heated clothing has a hefty price tag
But electrically heated clothing is incredibly expensive. For a heated motorcycle jacket, you can easily pay more than 250 euros. And also for heated undergarments like this Klan-e vest or this bodywarmer from LenzYou'll also pay around 150 euros or more.
An alternative is the heated vest from Macna, which will stay in place with velcro just fine, if you have a Macna jacket. But I ride with an IXS or Restyle jacket and am afraid the whole shebang will move and slide under my clothes. Also, Macna has equipped the system with its own type of batteries, which are incredibly thick and bulky. And when I look at the placement of the heatpads, they sit high between the shoulder blades and on my collarbone. I know my muscles get incredibly sore if I wear heat on those exact spots for too long.
So what the hell are you supposed to do? The Yoko First Layer Heat Vest of 64 euros is an option. But this feels as flimsy as one of those soccer mom volunteer vests that came from Ali express. And looking at the neckline already gave me a major-kick response as I personally hate it when things have a tight neckline in the front. So I kept looking and eventually found a heated bodywarmer on amazon
A heated vest, but from Amazon
Pretty pink is not ugly! But for the men, the gray and another alternative is at the bottom of the blog. A heated vest from Amazon may not sound so appealing, especially if you don't know Amazon very well. I order there often myself and honestly the shipping, returns and customer service is better than bol.com!
The heated vest itself I'm very pleased with. It fits well, even in the armpits. The measurements in the chart perfectly match what you get delivered to your home, so no nasty surprises there either. The seams were all solid too, and the "garbage bag feel" of the fabric is not too bad. The inside of the heated vest features wonderfully warm fleece fabric and a zippered pocket for your power bank.
In short, a good alternative to an overpriced heated motorcycle clothing.
Pro tip: Get a big power bank! I get mine at the Action, those are nice and thin, and pretty cheap as well. With a 500MaH powerbank you have about 45 minutes of heat on the highest setting. The lower the setting the longer it will last of course. You're better off getting a big one so you don't run out of power when you're away from home for a longer period of time or get stuck in traffic.
The main features of the heated motorcycle vest
For your convenience, I have briefly listed all the features for you:
- 4 heating zones: 2 on the belly, 1 in the middle of the back and 1 in the neck
- 3 temperature settings with color indication
- Convenient zippered pouch to store power bank
- Water repellant zipper
- Multifunctional
- Carbon fiber heating elements, hollow cotton and polyester fibers
- Washable by handwash, but beware of the usb cable (ff wrapping is better)
Benefits of heated motorcycle clothing for women
The biggest advantage is that you have a private carry-on sauna that you can tuck under your protective gear. Something I'm very content with. The heated motorcycle jacket has three different settings. So you're not stuck with the nuclear heating mode.
The three different temperature settings are designated by color. Blue for 30-35 degrees for when you still want that little extra warmth on days with an extra chilly breeze. White for 40-45 degrees for just staying toasty. And Red for 50-55 degrees, for those days when you need core-splitting mode because your car broke down and you have to ride your bike to work.
Disadvantages of the heated bodywarmer from amazon
Of course, there are a few drawbacks. First of all, they don't sell a lot of sizes of this vest and it just has to fit you. And it is an extra layer under your motorcycle clothing, although the vest is quite thin. If you can wear a bodywarmer or a nice sweater under your motorcycle suit, you can fit this under there as well.
In addition, the bodywarmer has no sleeves, so your arms do get cold if you only wear a long-sleeved T-shirt underneath. I speak from experience that riding around freezing with just a thermal shirt, this vest and an IXS women's jacket was not really comfortable on the arms. (Was not a winter jacket I must add and no extra liners).
The price of the heated women's vest
Of course, one of the most important aspects is to price. Because in this case I was just looking for a cheap alternative to the heated jacket from the motorcycle store. Which quickly go towards 250 euros. The women's heated motorcycle vest costs €38.91 (Note this is a size L) and it men's heated motorcycle vest costs €45.99 (Note the size, this is an XL). Fortunately, women's sizes correspond well with the size chart below.
Need a different size? This one is hard to find from this brand. The next vest I'm going to try on is the Heavyoff heated vest for men. Here you can choose all sizes from XXS to 4XL in addition to 2 colors. So this review will follow!
Heated motorcycle gloves
If you're a shivery type with icicles for fingers who has to peel her fingers off the handlebars after a ride like me, heated gloves come highly recommended if you don't have heated grips. These don't have to depress your bank account either by the way. I've put 2 below for you that are really worth trying. The good thing about Amazon? If you really don't like it, just return it free of charge within 30 days.
Electric heated glove
These heated gloves come with 2 7.4V rechargeable batteries which each have an output of 3000MaH. These ensure that you have warm hands for up to 6 hours. The electrically heated glove has a soft fabric on the inside. And comes with a manual and a storage bag. The batteries simply put a zipper pocket and the electric glove is easy to operate by your thumb. This heated glove is available in two sizes. Medium with a hand circumference of 20 to 21cm and Large with a hand circumference of 21 to 22cm.
A second option is these heated gloves. The controls of this electric glove are above the wrist strap, but the battery compartment is in the same place. The glove has 3 temperature settings (40-46 degrees, 50-55 degrees or 60-65 degrees) and comes with a set of 2x 3200MaH batteries. On the highest setting these will last 3-4 hours and on the lowest setting you can use these heated gloves for up to 8 hours of enjoyable warm hands. The gloves can be ordered in three circumference sizes; Small 17.7 to 20.3, Medium 20.3 to22.8 and Large 22.8 to 25.4cm.
Heated motorcycle socks
And then if you really want to take it a step further with heated socks ... Well you can also try thermo pad foot warmers . These provide up to 8 hours of warmth under your feet. I have tried this in the past and did not like it very much. It works the same as the Hansaplast heat patches, but under your feet. For the first few hours, I found this uncomfortably hot. And I prefer not to have it literally hot under my feet on the bike. And in the context of durability, 10 x and then you can buy new ones.
But heated socks are definitely on the list for me as well. I'm looking at these electric heated socks. These heated socks also have three settings (45, 55 and 65 degrees) and last from 5 to 12 hours on one battery charge depending on the setting. The battery is 4000MaH and can be stored in a small pocket at the top of the sock, on the calf that is. So they may be just out of place with higher motorcycle boots. But then you can use the electric heated socks happy easy return and have your money back within a few days. The sock is a "one size fits all" from 21 to 25 cm. Which should correspond to EU shoe size 34 to 40. And if there is a little bit of stretch in them you might be able to fit them with 4/42 too. But I still have to find that out with my size 42 legs.
And all that is still cheaper than a single heated motorcycle jacket at the biker store.
If you want to know more about what to look for when buying heated motorcycle clothing and the benefits. Then also read this blog.
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