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Galibier Barrier Deep Winter Gloves

9
£24.85

VERDICT:

9
10
Excellent cold-weather gloves at a very keen price, lacking only touchscreen compatibility to make them perfect
Weight: 
136g
Contact: 

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With a few clever details that really help them do their job well, Galibier's Barrier Deep Winter Gloves ensure toasty hands when temperatures drop to low single figures and below.

  • Pros: Very warm, surprisingly cheap
  • Cons: No touchscreen compatibility

No single detail makes the Barrier Deep Winter Gloves stand out. What's impressive here is that Galibier has managed to combine a host of features such as lots of insulation, total windproofing (the barrier of the name), reasonable water-resistance, reflective details, a comfortable neoprene-and-Velcro cuff, and a grippy palm in a pair of gloves that cost less than 25 quid. And you also get things you'd expect in gloves at this price like soft fabric on the back of the thumb to wipe a runny nose, and gel padding at the bottom of the palm to cushion your hands.

> Buy these online here

This is all achieved without excessive bulk. The Barrier Deep Winter Gloves are more substantial than the Pearl Izumi Pro Softshell Lite Gloves I reviewed previously, but they're also much warmer. Where those gloves really bottomed out around 5°C, the Barrier Deep Winter Gloves are still going strong down to freezing temperatures and below.

The warmth comes from the combination of a fleece internal glove and windproof layers over the top to keep out the chill. That's enough to keep your hands toasty even if things get a bit damp. The softshell outer layer resists water for a while, but if it's really bucketing down it eventually gets through.

Galibier Barrier Deep Winter Gloves - back.jpg

Galibier doesn't bill the Barrier gloves as waterproof, so that's to be expected. I asked Galibier's Myles McCorry how water-resistant the Barrier gloves were supposed to be and he told me: "They will only fend off a shower and are designed for thermal insulation rather than rain."

McCorry says there's a layer made from HiPORA, which is waterproof and breathable, between the fleece inner glove and outer foam and foil insulation. But the outer layers will still get wet and that's enough to eventually allow water to seep through. It takes a while, though. I had dry hands on a drizzly commute, with water beading off the backs of the Barrier gloves.

> Buyer's Guide: 21 of the best winter cycling gloves

In dry conditions though, they're marvellous. My hands have been actually warm – rather than just 'not cold' – so far this winter, and there's enough headroom in the Barrier gloves' performance so far that I'll still be reaching for them however bad January and February get.

The Barrier Deep Winter Gloves come up a shade small, so if you're anywhere near the cusp of typical sizing or Galibier's recommendation, go for the next size up. I usually take an L or XL in gloves, and could have really done with an XL in the Barrier Deep Winter Gloves. Our size L samples weren't tight enough to impede circulation, but I'd have liked just a bit more room. McCorry says they flatten out a bit with the first wash, but I couldn't detect any difference after washing them.

Galibier Barrier Deep Winter Gloves - palm.jpg

Perhaps the most significant missing feature is lack of compatibility with touchscreens. When it's cold and miserable I'd rather not have to take off a glove to answer the phone or respond to a text.

That said, how often do you get a call or text that's really urgent? I can live without that ability if the alternative is to pay almost twice as much for similarly-warm gloves that like my iPhone.

And that's the big advantage of the Galibier Barrier Deep Winter Gloves. Similar gloves like the Specialized Element 1.0s or the Sportful Sotto Zeros are £45-£55. To get this level of performance for just £25 is a bargain.

Verdict

Excellent cold-weather gloves at a very keen price, lacking only touchscreen compatibility to make them perfect

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road.cc test report

Make and model: Galibier Barrier Deep Winter Gloves

Size tested: Large

Tell us what the product is for

Keeping your hands warm in the winter, even when it's very cold.

Galibier says:

"The Barriers are highly insulated, cycling specific, winter gloves.

"Next to the skin is a soft, thin fleece lining offers loads of warmth. Around the outside of that there's a polyurethane membrane that provides the weatherproofing and stops ALL wind from stripping finger heat. The bulk of the insulation comes courtesy of 100g HyTex internal glove, while the final outer layer is a combination of 5 specific, hard-wearing synthetic fabrics, each chosen for durability, malleability or reflective qualities.

"The seams are on the outside of the liner rather than pressed up against your fingers so there's no irritation there. The lowers are synthetic leather with silicone printing on both the palms and the fingers that gives you a decent amount of grip to prevent hands slipping on wet bar tape or levers.

"Upgraded visibility and inner lining for breathability for 2019."

Tell us some more about the technical aspects of the product?

Galibier lists the features thus:

Palm: Designed with three-panel palm for a tailored fit with Ulnar nerve protection

Anti slip silicone anatomically padded palm. Additional Padding designed primarily for hood riding

Inner: Moisture-wicking, 4-way stretch membrane – Outer: Nylon/Polyester windproof outer fabric

Reflex logo and piping on the back for visibility

Thermal Rating: 5 ideal for sub zero temperatures

Rate the product for quality of construction:
 
8/10

Generally tidy cut and stitching with one or two spots where the alignment of edge and stitch wasn't quite perfect, but nothing that affected function.

Rate the product for performance:
 
9/10

Warm without being too bulky and with enough water-resistance to get you home if the weather turns unexpectedly wet.

Rate the product for fit:
 
9/10

Insert obvious 'fits like a glove' gag here.

Rate the product for sizing:
 
7/10

Size L samples could have been just a shade roomier.

Rate the product for comfort:
 
9/10

Cosy and warm; what's not to love?

Rate the product for value:
 
10/10

They're significantly cheaper than many gloves that provide a similar level of cold protection like the Sportful Sotto Zeros or Specialized Element 1.0s. If you told me these were £40 or even £45 I wouldn't be surprised. For £25, they're a bargain.

How easy is the product to care for? How did it respond to being washed?

Completely unscathed by a cool wash and subsequent drying on top of the radiator. Give them plenty of time to dry, though – they come out of the washing machine pretty soggy inside.

Tell us how the product performed overall when used for its designed purpose

Extremely well. Warm hands FTW!

Tell us what you particularly liked about the product

Having warm hands.

Tell us what you particularly disliked about the product

Lack of touchscreen compatibility.

Did you enjoy using the product? Yes

Would you consider buying the product? Yes

Would you recommend the product to a friend? Yes

Use this box to explain your overall score

If these gloves were the £40-£45 typical of the category, they'd be a solid 4/5, but their sheer value for money pulls them up. If they were touchscreen-compatible I'd have to look very hard for an excuse not to give them 5/5.

Overall rating: 9/10

About the tester

Age: 53  Height: 5ft 11in  Weight: 100kg

I usually ride: Scapin Style  My best bike is:

I've been riding for: Over 20 years  I ride: Most days  I would class myself as: Expert

I regularly do the following types of riding: commuting, touring, club rides, general fitness riding, mountain biking

John has been writing about bikes and cycling for over 30 years since discovering that people were mug enough to pay him for it rather than expecting him to do an honest day's work.

He was heavily involved in the mountain bike boom of the late 1980s as a racer, team manager and race promoter, and that led to writing for Mountain Biking UK magazine shortly after its inception. He got the gig by phoning up the editor and telling him the magazine was rubbish and he could do better. Rather than telling him to get lost, MBUK editor Tym Manley called John’s bluff and the rest is history.

Since then he has worked on MTB Pro magazine and was editor of Maximum Mountain Bike and Australian Mountain Bike magazines, before switching to the web in 2000 to work for CyclingNews.com. Along with road.cc founder Tony Farrelly, John was on the launch team for BikeRadar.com and subsequently became editor in chief of Future Publishing’s group of cycling magazines and websites, including Cycling Plus, MBUK, What Mountain Bike and Procycling.

John has also written for Cyclist magazine, edited the BikeMagic website and was founding editor of TotalWomensCycling.com before handing over to someone far more representative of the site's main audience.

He joined road.cc in 2013. He lives in Cambridge where the lack of hills is more than made up for by the headwinds.

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8 comments

Avatar
Podc | 3 years ago
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Got some of these in April and they have been waiting patiently for the colder weather. Got their first use today. Hands were lovely and warm (temperature was 5°c feels like 1°c). Not really cold but I think they will be fine down into negative temperatures based on how warm they were today. They do feel a bit clunky but I guess the bulk is what gives them their warmth. They also worked on my Garmin screen.

Great gloves at a great price - thanks for the recommendation. 

Avatar
matthewn5 | 1 year ago
0 likes

I've got a pair of these, absolutely brilliant gloves. They do come up small, so go a size larger. A bit stiff when new, but they wear in instead of wearing out.

Update: the only drawback is the thumbs seem a bit short for the size.

Avatar
CyclingInBeastMode | 4 years ago
0 likes

Down to zero I wear a pair of Carnac gloves, magnetic wrist closure that has seen me just fine for three winters, if it's really cold and or piddling it down, Polaris Extreme, they're just superb deep winter/extreme weather gloves, hipora lining is fantastic.

Sadly no onger available so I bought two pair while I had the chance!

Avatar
Secret_squirrel | 4 years ago
0 likes

Shame they are totally sold out on their site as of Dec 23rd, with no more coming and with most of the winter still to go?

Whats the point of reviewing a product if its not available?

 

surprise

Avatar
Freddy56 replied to Secret_squirrel | 4 years ago
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Secret_squirrel wrote:

Shame they are totally sold out on their site as of Dec 23rd, with no more coming and with most of the winter still to go?

Whats the point of reviewing a product if its not available?

 

surprise

Galibir Ive found are pretty good at having stock. Defo worth waiting on.

Avatar
bfslxo | 4 years ago
0 likes

My go too deep winter glove & we get shi**y winters here in Belfast.

Absolutely crackin gloves & actually have a very good level of waterproofing.

I bought a 2nd pair just to carry on my winter rides even though there is nothing wrong with the pair i have, jsut love being able to change them at the coffee stop if they have got wet

Avatar
Freddy56 | 4 years ago
0 likes

Mine are 3 winters old, and they will do another.  Great gloves.

Avatar
The _Kaner replied to Freddy56 | 4 years ago
0 likes
Freddy56 wrote:

Mine are 3 winters old, and they will do another.  Great gloves.

Same here. Still in reasonable shape, plus the silver reflective version are great for dark evenings/mornings for that extra bit of safety.

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