Tested: Sub-£120 waterproof motorcycle gloves

Is it possible to get a set of truly waterproof, warm winter gloves for under £120? We review some of the best.

CAN you get a pair of warm and waterproof all-weather gloves for under £120? That's what we set out to discover.

Buying a decent pair of all-weather gloves is difficult. Many offer high-tech sounding fabrics and look smart but often deliver disappointing results, by which time you're stuck with them.

Online retailer GetGeared sent us a bunch of gloves to test from: Alpinestars, Knox, Held, Weise, Spada, Oxford and Rev'It!

We subjected the gloves to four tests; three 'lab' tests to check their ability to keep water and freezing temperatures out and a road-test to get an idea for their fit, feel and performance out in the real world. Each test carried a maximum score of 10, meaning a faultless glove would come away with 40 out of 40.

Test 1: Cold Test. Can our tester keep his gloved hand submerged in ice for five minutes?

Test 2: Waterproofing. Can the gloves withstand being submerged up to the cuff in water for 15 minutes? 

Test 3: Dry/wet weight test. How much more do the gloves weigh after being submerged and therefore how much water have they taken on?

Test 4: Road test. We wear all the gloves on a set route and see how they feel out of the lab and into the real world. 

Held Sting

The Held Stings are one of the nicest gloves in this test. They look great, fit really nicely and have nice features like knuckle armour and a visor wipe on the left index finger. However, they performed so badly in our lab tests there’s no way we could recommend them. The entire glove was soaking wet within 30 seconds of being submerged and they scored only 3/10 on the ice bucket test too. They also took on a fair amount of water in the process, going from 92g dry to 234g wet, meaning they’ll take a millennium to dry.

Cold test: 3/10 

Waterproof test: 1/10

Dry/wet weight test: 3/10

Road test: 7/10

Total: 14/40

Price: £59.99 - buy here

Oxford Pilot

At only £39.99, the cheapest of the bunch, we didn’t expect the Oxford Pilots to perform that well. And we were right. After only a couple of minutes in the ice bucket my hand was counting down the seconds to freedom and warmth. The outside edge of my hand and pinky finger were completely sodden after only 30 seconds of being submerged. On a slightly more positive note the Pilots allow decent freedom of movement when riding and have a few padded areas for added protection around the palm and knuckles.

Cold test: 5/10 

Waterproof test: 3/10

Dry/wet weight test: 4/10

Road test: 6/10

Total: 18/40 

Price: £39.99 - buy here

Spada Linea

The Spada Linea gloves performed really well in almost all of our lab tests. They laughed off the ice bucket test and kept my hands completely dry when dunked in water for 10 minutes. They would have gotten a perfect waterproof score if it weren’t for the fact they took on a fair bit of water when submerged. The glove is relatively bulky and the leather has an artificial feel to it, which lost it a few points in the road test.

Cold test: 9/10 

Waterproof test: 9/10

Dry/wet weight test: 2/10

Road test: 5/10

Total: 25/40  

Price: £49.99 - buy here

Weise Runway

If ever I get caught in a snowstorm whilst riding I hope I’ve got a pair of Weise Runways on me. They’re quite bulky but they’re so warm it’s almost worth it. They also scored 9/10 in our waterproof test keeping our hands 100% dry for the whole 10 minutes. It would have received a perfect score but the Runways swelled up a bit after being submerged, going from 128g dry to 253g when wet. We like the full grain leather construction but we’re not so keen on the lack of armour.

Cold test: 10/10 

Waterproof test: 9/10

Dry/wet weight test: 4/10

Road test: 6/10

Total: 29/40 

Price: £69.99 - buy here

Rev'It! Vapor H20

Rev’It!’s Vapor H20 glove is one of the most protective gloves in this group test with carbon armour over the knuckles, individual armour over the two middle fingers, and a slider on both the pinky finger and palm area. They’re also one of the best looking and fit like, err, a glove, thanks to their quality construction. They performed acceptably in our ice bucket test, offering enough warmth to get through the five minutes in relative comfort, which rewarded them with a 7/10 score. Our fingers were also dry after the 10-minute waterproof test but the inner material began to feel moist suggesting they may not have lasted much longer.

Cold test: 7/10 

Waterproof test: 7/10

Dry/wet weight test: 7/10

Road test: 9/10

Total: 30/40 

Price: £119.99 - buy here

Alpinestars Apex Drystar

Alpinestars’ Apex glove is made from a combination of leather and textile. It has armour over the knuckles, on the fingers and around the palm and fits securely via a long wrap-around strap joint with a thinner wrist strap. We’re not particularly keen on the ‘claw’ fingers, a sign of poor manufacturing, but the gloves feel nice on the road and performed acceptably in our lab tests too. Holding my hand in ice for five minutes was bearable - we thought they deserved a 7/10 for their efforts. They also stayed dry for the 10-minute waterproof test but I could feel the onset of slightly moist fingers, suggesting they may not have lasted much longer.

Cold test: 7/10 

Waterproof test: 8/10

Dry/wet weight test: 8/10

Road test: 7/10

Total: 30/40 

Price: £64.95 - buy here

Alpinestars Equinox X-Trafit

The Equinox gloves are predominantly textile with some leather stitched in over the fingers and knuckle armour. They weigh only 91g and have a Gore-Tex lining which helped them secure a 10/10 result on our waterproof test. They absorbed hardly any water meaning they’ll dry quickly and they’re warm too, scoring 9/10 in our ice bucket test. Fit and finish is top notch and thanks to the light weight they offer a load of feel at the handlebars.

Cold test: 9/10 

Waterproof test: 10/10

Dry/wet weight test: 8/10

Road test: 9/10

Total: 36/40 

Price: £92.99 - buy here

Held Wizzard X-Trafit GTX

The Wizzard gloves are made from Kangaroo leather and goat skin and are probably the least winter-biased gloves in the test with their thin lining and short cuff. Still, they kept our fingers satisfyingly toasty in the ice bucket and completely dry in the waterproof test, thanks to the Gore-Tex lining. Like the Alpinestars Equinox gloves, they hardly absorbed any water. Feels like a motorcycle glove should with lovely fit, quality construction and great freedom of movement. Just a shame that the only armour is foam padding around the knuckles and palm area

Cold test: 9/10 

Waterproof test: 10/10

Dry/wet weight test: 9/10

Road test: 8/10

Total: 36/40 

Price: £114.99 - buy here

Knox Covert

The winner of our group test, the Knox Coverts do it all. Made with thick, supple leather the Covert gloves feature Knox armour across the knuckles, fingers and palm area to offer plenty of protection. They kept our hands satisfyingly warm in the ice bucket and completely dry throughout the waterproof test. They weighed only 30g more after being submerged in water giving them a 10/10 score on our dry/wet weight test. The waterproof inner liner is bonded directly to the shell to ensure no water gets in. It also means that when you remove your hand from the glove, the inner material won’t stick to your hand and pull out. The Coverts would have received a perfect score if it wasn’t for a lack of decent adjustment around the cuff area. A zip is used in place of a cuff strap making it difficult to secure the glove tightly around the forearm. At £99.99 they’re a whole £20 cheaper than the most expensive glove in this test and they will laugh off everything winter has to throw at them.

Cold test: 9/10 

Waterproof test: 10/10

Dry/wet weight test: 10/10

Road test: 9/10

Total: 38/40 

Price: £99.99 - buy here