Reviews

B’Twin 500 Winter Cycling Gloves – review

Excellent gloves at an even better price

The B’Twin 500 Winter Cycling Gloves may be only £12.99 but they perform like gloves which cost considerably more, being warm and comfortable, while offering decent protection from rain.

For me, budget winter gloves bring to mind poor construction and loose stitching, not much in the way of windproofing and sopping wet hands in the lightest showers. The kind of gloves that you may start off with as a new cyclist, cautious about making a bigger investment, only to realise that in the winter the extra money for a decent set of gloves (and other clothing, for that matter) is one of the best investments you can make.

However, B’Twin look to dispel those pre-conceptions with the 500 gloves, which sit in a range which also includes the lighter and cheaper 300 gloves (£5.99) and bulkier and more expensive 700 gloves (£22.99).

The B’Twin 500 gloves may only be £12.99 but they good the job very well indeed

The first place to start with winter cycling gloves is their warmth and thanks to a good fleecy lining and reasonable, if not spectacular, windproofing, these gloves work well. Although B’Twin don’t claim that the 500 gloves are completely windproof (that’s likely where the 700 gloves come in), it was only at high speeds and in low single figure temperatures that I noticed a breeze coming though. It meant that my hands stayed warm in typical conditions in the south of England, but without getting uncomfortably sweaty.

The gloves also offer a fair amount of rain protection thanks to the water repellent outer fabric. I found that in heavy, persistent rain some water made its way through but, in reality, that was only in really poor conditions and these will do the job for the most part.

In terms of comfort, the gloves are made from a soft fabric which sits well next to the skin and their relatively low bulk means you still have plenty of feel and control on the handlebar. Extra padding on the palm just below the fingers, below the thumb and on the outside of the palm help keep things comfy on longer rides.

The gloves have silicone grippers on the first and second fingers as well as the thumb. These work well and help provide a good level of grip on the shifters and brakes, including in the wet. There’s also a large, soft sweat/snot wipe on the outside of the thumb, which also works well for clearing rain off your glasses.

Extra padding on the palm adds comfort, while there’s silicone grip in the right places

We tested the fluorescent yellow gloves and that certainly helps in the visibility stakes, although I would like to see a bit more reflective material used, alongside the small patches on the tips of the first two fingers and a small logo. If you don’t want high-vis yellow, the gloves are also available in black, blue, red and, for women, cyan.

Another impressive feature of these gloves is their touchscreen compatibility, using a conductive material on the thumb and forefinger. I could easily control elements on my phone that some other ‘conductive’ gloves often struggle with, like pinch gestures on maps.

The elasticated cuff provides a secure closure

Conclusion

The B’Twin 500 Winter Cycling Gloves offer a level of quality, water repellency and warmth that you wouldn’t normally expect at this price point. There are couple of minor improvements which could be made but really these are excellent gloves at a bargain price.