Tourmaster Synergy Heated Gloves

Summary:  Our Tourmaster Synergy gloves barely put out any heat, unlike the Tourmaster Synergy heated vest, which pumps out almost too much. 

In my opinion, the gloves are clumsy, they make my hands sweat, the gauntlets are strange and the wiring connectors get in the way.

I really like the Tourmaster Synergy vest but, I'm sorry to say (and sorry to be so blunt about it), the matching Tourmaster Synergy gloves are a big let-down.

Two of us have tried everything we can think of, and the gloves are functional, but we just don't feel any heat, no matter the setting.

The gloves come with a waterproof controller and motorcycle wiring harness, and they also have the ability to connect to any other Tourmaster Synergy heated clothing item.  The wires for the gloves must be worked down the sleeves of the rider's jacket, and each glove is plugged in to the harness. 

But the connectors are bulky and there's no acceptable method that we've found to hide the big gray connectors under the gauntlet, so the connector and the wiring gets in the way of the gauntlet and trying to secure the gloves.

The gauntlet has an extra section of material out the back that, I guess, was added to hide the connectors, but it only serves to make a jumble of the wiring.  It takes me way longer to get the wiring routed through the jacket, get everything buttoned up and then try to put on the gloves and get going than I'd like.

Since Tourmaster recommends that the Synergy garments are only turned on after the bike is started, this means I have to get all suited up, remember to button up my jacket, put in my earplugs, put on the helmet and do everything else, then put the gloves on last and sit on the bike, plug myself in and start it up. 

Which also means I now have to wait on the bike until it warms up.  Normally, I'll start the bike first thing and then make the final preparations and by time I'm ready, the bike is warm enough to go.

Tourmaster Synergy Gloves - Controller and Wires in the Way

Tourmaster Synergy Gloves - Controller

The Synergy gloves don't really have much else to offer, in my opinion.  The quality seems rather low, the padding is minimal and although the lining is comfortable, the gloves make my hands sweat.

The controller has to be placed in a small pocket on the right glove and a section of Velcro-backed leather is used to secure the controller to the glove.  It just seems to me like the gloves weren't designed with the same care as the Synergy vest.  They seem more trouble than they're worth, and since we can't tell if they are putting out any heat, it's hard to recommend them. 

My advice is to stick with the Synergy vest and hope that they upgrade the gloves in Version 2.0.  As of this writing, the gloves are unavailable on the Tourmaster site, so I wonder if they had problems with them and are re-tooling.

NOTE:  I filled out a request form on the Tourmaster website on November 18, 2007 to let them know about the problem we had with the Synergy gloves.  I received an automated response on November 19 that reads, in part "Your message has been received.  Your request has been forwarded to the appropriate party.  We attempt to answer all emails as quickly as possible in the order they were received." 

For information on current draw and other details, please refer to our Tourmaster Synergy Heated Vest Review.

UPDATE:  One more thing I forgot to mention... The thumbs on this pair of Synergy gloves are very short and out of proportion to the length of the fingers.  My hands are normal male size large and I've never experienced this problem before (at least to this degree).  My thumbs are jammed into the gloves, which causes discomfort within minutes of riding and actually makes it difficult to handle the controls on the bike. 

 ►Comments

Comments?  Send them to Comments are ordered from most recent to oldest.

From "K.J.C.":  "I purchased some Tourmaster Synergy gear last week (jacket + gloves) and have been using them on my morning commute (30 freeway miles, low 30s) and have no complaints.  Like you said in your jacket review, the thing puts out unbelievable heat, and I found that having it on medium at 80mph is enough to keep me comfortable.

Your glove review, though, was complaining that you couldn’t feel the gloves putting out any heat, and I’ve found that to be the case as well… however, my hands did definitely NOT get cold/numb like they used to.  I tried using the gloves, unplugged, for some of my ride in this morning, and they got pretty cold pretty quick.  I think this demonstrates that the gloves DO work. 

Would you really want your hands to be subject to the kind of heat the jacket puts out?  Think sweaty palms.  As long as the gloves keep my hand in the ‘not cold’ zone, I’m not going to complain about them not putting out enough heat."

From "J.P.":  "I completely agree with everything you said.  The gloves have not worked for me and the thermostat keeps shutting off.  This is a brand new pair.  I have emailed Tourmaster and still have received no response other than the automatic reply.

I feel that Tourmaster is ignoring customer concerns to avoid a financial loss.  This is selfish of them and I am sure they are aware of this by now.  I have read forums and other on-line reviews and it seems like a great amount of Tourmaster's synergy gloves have defective temperature control units.  I tend to wonder how many defective pairs were sold.

The thumb space is tighter than average.  Also, unless you want to deal with the hassle of taking off your jacket and removing the wires each time, you would have to walk around with bulky wires hanging from your sleeves.  That is, of course, if the gloves worked."

From "J.R.":  "I have to disagree with your conclusion on the Tourmaster Synergy Heated Gloves.  My wife and I got each other a pair for Christmas and they are working wonderfully.

I have ridden in temperatures in the low 30s with them on and my hands have been nice and toasty; I don't even notice the temperature on my hands.  They are very comfortable, not bulky at all, and the connectors fit nicely under the gauntlets.  They heat up very quickly and provide a nice even warmth to my entire hand."

Editor's Reply:  It's possible we have a defective pair, but we haven't received a response from Tourmaster.