Unlike motorcycle jackets and pants, motorcycle gloves really don’t have all weather capabilities.
That’s why MotoCAP, the world’s first service that rates protective motorcycle gear for safety and comfort, does not provide ratings for glove comfort.
They say there is not enough material in a glove to obtain a sample for the thermal comfort measure.
While gloves can have extra layers of insulation for winter and perforations and even small vents in the knuckles for cooling in summer, they can’t be an all-weather glove.
They are simply too small to have zip-out thermal liners or zip-open vents for cooling.
It’s a shame as hand comfort is important.
I find that if your hands are cold your whole body is cold and vice versa.
And when you are uncomfortably hot or cold, it affects your concentration which can lead to mistakes with injurious repercussions.
All weather solutions
Many riders wear silk or felt gloves under their motorcycle gloves for extra warmth in winter.
However, we have found it either makes the gloves too tight with the liner in or we have to wear oversized gloves to accommodate the liners and they are too loose when we take them out. That adversely affects throttle and lever controls.
So the simple answer is there is no all-weather glove that we have found and we’ve tested quite a lot over the years.
Our best advice for handling all weather conditions is to take a spare pair of gloves with you.
After all, they are small enough to fit in your jacket pocket or small shoulder bag.
I have a small tail bag in which I keep a neck sock and two spare pairs of gloves.
This is especially handy in South East Queensland’s autumn/winter/spring where temperatures can more than double on your ride from the single digits in the morning to the high-20s in the early afternoon.
If water-proofing is your concern, carry a spare pair of extra-large dishwashing gloves to put over the top or get some spray-on waterproofing.
Buying survey
The 2018 Canstar Blue customer satisfaction survey found that 9% of riders don’t wear gloves even though they know they should and 6% have suffered a hand or finger injury while riding.
The survey of more than 400 riders also found that Baby Boomers are more likely to choose comfortable motorcycle gloves.
Meanwhile, Millennial riders buy for style and are most likely to buy gloves online and in a deal with other protective gear.
The average rider spends $102 on gloves. Some 21% buy online, 42% try them on in a store first and 29% research gloves before buying.