by Bill C. for webBikeWorld.com
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.
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►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.