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Racer Multi-Top Gloves - good feel & waterproof without compromising protection

Joined
Feb 20, 2006
Messages
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Location
Cypress (NW Houston)
First Name
Becca
I'm kinda a gear-collector (to put it nicely). I have several different pairs of jackets, pants, gloves, and boots. I look for quality and comfort, but also protection.

Lately I've been particularly challenged in choosing gloves. My every-day riding gloves (Tourmaster Scarabs) are leather, with armor over the knuckles, a long adjustable gauntlet, and a wrist-strap to keep them on my hands in the event of a crash.

My cold-weather riding gloves are similar. Tourmaster Coldfront Carbons are leather, waterproof, and have the same protective features with a whole lot more bulk in the form of insulation. Problem is....they suck to ride in. The insulation takes away from feeling the controls.

I've also got a couple of cheap pairs of less bulky waterproof textile gloves, but I never felt comfortable with the protection levels offered and tend to avoid riding in them.

I really wanted a happy medium.... something with good protective features, but waterproof without the bulk.

About a year ago I found just such a wonder: the Racer Multi-top. I finally scraped together the cash to purchase them two weeks ago.

I first tried them on last year at Road Rider, a large gear store in San Jose, CA and later found them available online at Motostrano in Redwood City, CA.

From the description on Motostrano http://www.motostrano-store.com/ramuwamegl.html

Aniline-nappa leather l kangaroo-leather palm and fingers l HIPORA Waterproof l Schoeller® Keprotec® backed l plastic mesh knuckle protector l 2-layer reverse leather palm l non insulated for exceptional fit and feel. A sporty waterproof and breathable touring glove, kangaroo leather palm, Keprotec abrasion resistance, and highest quality craftsmanship.

Comment from another friend who owns these gloves:
"warm, comfy, well built, good mid-weight gloves"

Feel:

The soft kangaroo palm is flexible and the liner slides comfortably against skin. The hipora waterproof and breathable liner doesn't add much bulk, but these gloves definitely aren't as sensitive as a single layer of leather. Still, when you compare them to something like the Tourmaster Coldfront Carbon (which I own for arctic temperatures), they are like a second skin.

I find riding with the Tourmasters to be difficult. The lining in the Racers subtracted a little from feel, but I would be quite comfortable running some tight twisties in them. I could feel the throttle turning under my fingers and had no problem reaching for the levers.

Warmth:

I haven't done extensive testing, but I had to commute home a few nights ago on the freeway in 50 degree weather (a half hour ride). I felt no need to turn on my gripwarmers. They are advertised as unlined, but the extra few layers that make them waterproof seems to add some significant windchill protection...at least enough to get you down to cold temperatures supplemented by gripwarmers.

Sizing:

These gloves seem to run a bit small. I normally wear a men's small in gloves. The Racer men's medium was a better fit, leaving more room for my thumb when curled around the bars, without too much excess in the other fingers. A friend purchased a men's large about a year ago and decided later that a men's XL would have been a better choice. Women's sizes are available.

Going up in size a little bit might be iffy in daily wear race gloves, but isn't an altogether bad idea when it comes to cold weather gloves. I often find that my fingers swell and get stiff in really cold weather, making gloves that fit well in a warm store become slightly constricting and annoying in the cold.

Cost:

Pricey - $155 from Motostrano. I managed to catch them during a sale and got $10 knocked off that price, with free shipping.
 
Re: Racer Multi-Top Gloves - good feel & waterproof without compromising protection

rocketbunny said:
I'm kinda a gear-collector (to put it nicely). I have several different pairs of jackets, pants, gloves, and boots. I look for quality and comfort, but also protection.

Lately I've been particularly challenged in choosing gloves. My every-day riding gloves (Tourmaster Scarabs) are leather, with armor over the knuckles, a long adjustable gauntlet, and a wrist-strap to keep them on my hands in the event of a crash.

My cold-weather riding gloves are similar. Tourmaster Coldfront Carbons are leather, waterproof, and have the same protective features with a whole lot more bulk in the form of insulation. Problem is....they suck to ride in. The insulation takes away from feeling the controls.

I've also got a couple of cheap pairs of less bulky waterproof textile gloves, but I never felt comfortable with the protection levels offered and tend to avoid riding in them.

I really wanted a happy medium.... something with good protective features, but waterproof without the bulk.

About a year ago I found just such a wonder: the Racer Multi-top. I finally scraped together the cash to purchase them two weeks ago.

I first tried them on last year at Road Rider, a large gear store in San Jose, CA and later found them available online at Motostrano in Redwood City, CA.

From the description on Motostrano http://www.motostrano-store.com/ramuwamegl.html

Aniline-nappa leather l kangaroo-leather palm and fingers l HIPORA Waterproof l Schoeller® Keprotec® backed l plastic mesh knuckle protector l 2-layer reverse leather palm l non insulated for exceptional fit and feel. A sporty waterproof and breathable touring glove, kangaroo leather palm, Keprotec abrasion resistance, and highest quality craftsmanship.

Comment from another friend who owns these gloves:
"warm, comfy, well built, good mid-weight gloves"

Feel:

The soft kangaroo palm is flexible and the liner slides comfortably against skin. The hipora waterproof and breathable liner doesn't add much bulk, but these gloves definitely aren't as sensitive as a single layer of leather. Still, when you compare them to something like the Tourmaster Coldfront Carbon (which I own for arctic temperatures), they are like a second skin.

I find riding with the Tourmasters to be difficult. The lining in the Racers subtracted a little from feel, but I would be quite comfortable running some tight twisties in them. I could feel the throttle turning under my fingers and had no problem reaching for the levers.

Warmth:

I haven't done extensive testing, but I had to commute home a few nights ago on the freeway in 50 degree weather (a half hour ride). I felt no need to turn on my gripwarmers. They are advertised as unlined, but the extra few layers that make them waterproof seems to add some significant windchill protection...at least enough to get you down to cold temperatures supplemented by gripwarmers.

Sizing:

These gloves seem to run a bit small. I normally wear a men's small in gloves. The Racer men's medium was a better fit, leaving more room for my thumb when curled around the bars, without too much excess in the other fingers. A friend purchased a men's large about a year ago and decided later that a men's XL would have been a better choice. Women's sizes are available.

Going up in size a little bit might be iffy in daily wear race gloves, but isn't an altogether bad idea when it comes to cold weather gloves. I often find that my fingers swell and get stiff in really cold weather, making gloves that fit well in a warm store become slightly constricting and annoying in the cold.

Cost:

Pricey - $155 from Motostrano. I managed to catch them during a sale and got $10 knocked off that price, with free shipping.
Its a great glove but they don't claim it to be warm. I have the bulky tourmaster and don't like the feel but they are warm..... I would be glad to pat 150 but i have summer and spring gloves I would love a winter glove that was warm and ha some good feel.
 
Re: Racer Multi-Top Gloves - good feel & waterproof without compromising protection

Wanting to upgrade from my perforated Icons, and after trying on a million gloves over the last weeks, I finally went with the Joe Rocket GPX. They are so soft inside, I just love them. They are not really warm though.

The thing that bugged me most about gloves is that some have the stitching inside and I cannot stand that. Also, some have a larger pinkyfinger on the left glove or the thumb is tighter on the right glove, etc. Is it so hard to make even gloves? :roll:
 
Re: Racer Multi-Top Gloves - good feel & waterproof without compromising protection

Good review with lots of detail. If only I could afford to be a "gear collector"!

I've found that adding a glove liner to my vented 'Stitch gloves provides enough added warmth to tide me over until the frigid temps set in. I picked up a pair at Academy for under $10.

Speaking of which... Hey BlackWidow, can I have them back? :giveup:
 
Re: Racer Multi-Top Gloves - good feel & waterproof without compromising protection

Faylaricia said:
Wanting to upgrade from my perforated Icons, and after trying on a million gloves over the last weeks, I finally went with the Joe Rocket GPX. They are so soft inside, I just love them. They are not really warm though.

The thing that bugged me most about gloves is that some have the stitching inside and I cannot stand that. Also, some have a larger pinkyfinger on the left glove or the thumb is tighter on the right glove, etc. Is it so hard to make even gloves? :roll:

Darlin', it's not the gloves. Your hands are mutant. :P

As far as Cruzin's comments...
I wasn't looking for warmth so much as waterproof. In my experience, lined waterproof gloves combined with heated grips are sufficient down to relatively cold temperatures (relative meaning anything above mid 40s). This is my experience with thin textile waterproof gloves. If it is truly cold, time for the Tourmasters. If it's just raining and mildly cold, having dry hands makes all the difference. YMMV

These Racers should be appropriate and comfortable for touring in most temperatures, meaning that I won't have to change gloves during the day on a long tour, even if it starts looking like rain. This convenience is important enough to me to be worth $150.

<edit> And Rebecca's reminder about the availability of thin glove liners is useful. With these gloves slightly oversized (but still fitting where it counts), I probably have room for liners to add some more versatility while saving feel.
 
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Re: Racer Multi-Top Gloves - good feel & waterproof without compromising protection

Great review. :thumb:

I could probably use a good pair cold weather gloves. What I have isn't all that warm and doesn't provide a whole lot of protection.
 
Re: Racer Multi-Top Gloves - good feel & waterproof without compromising protection

These look like decent winter gloves for me, If their XXL will fit me long fingers. How big is a the friend who got the XL's? most XL gloves are too small for me.

I usually just use light/midweight waterproof gloves for cold/wet weather, and usually carry a set of triumph waterproof unlined gloves with me on long rides but these look to be nice ones I might want to wear all the time.
 
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