Gerbings Microwire liner - good & just-found-out bad....

[DubbleJay]

Nope. Not defective. Except the design.

Just go feel your jacket, you can tell where the heating pads are (and are not). For example the heating pads on on the top of the jacket sleeves, but none on the bottom (top/bottom defined as on your bike holding the bars). Same for shoulders. Same for your kidneys.

Read about others experiences here: http://advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=649013

Hopefully they changed the design when they brought back the manufacturing to the US from China this year. When I spoke with Gerbings about mine, they basically said 'tough, that's the way it is. ' No where near as good as their earlier jackets.

I went with Warm-n-Safe, gen 4, heating coverage everywhere. Happy. Their wireless controller is FANTASTIC as well. Only have to deal with one wire connection to the bike. Nice. I wonder how long it will be till Gerbings copies this as well.....

I really gotta agree with others.... Ive had my Gerbings Microwire jacket for 2 years. Ive never felt cold spots and certainly havnt noticed hot spots. It heats from the neck collar all the way around. Very much how it might feel to take a jacket out of the dryer put it on. Toasty. Who knows what was going on with the one you had, but I really cant identify with your description of the jacket. I have always felt Gerbings was top-of-the-line and always find that my gear out lasts friends who go with First Gear, WnS or others... Seems like the controller designs always fail which of course can also be attributed to poor fuse attention... Not all my friends read instructions

I have their gloves and with the dual hard-mount controllers mounted to my S10 its a perfect setup. They also have LIFETIME guarantee as opposed to the 1 year limited offered by WnS. That gives me a little piece of mine considering the cost of the gear.

 

[Tremor38]

I really gotta agree with others.... Ive had my Gerbings Microwire jacket for 2 years. Ive never felt cold spots and certainly havnt noticed hot spots. It heats from the neck collar all the way around. Very much how it might feel to take a jacket out of the dryer put it on. Toasty. Who knows what was going on with the one you had, but I really cant identify with your description of the jacket. I have always felt Gerbings was top-of-the-line and always find that my gear out lasts friends who go with First Gear, WnS or others... Seems like the controller designs always fail which of course can also be attributed to poor fuse attention... Not all my friends read instructions

I have their gloves and with the dual hard-mount controllers mounted to my S10 its a perfect setup. They also have LIFETIME guarantee as opposed to the 1 year limited offered by WnS. That gives me a little piece of mine considering the cost of the gear.

You can probably chock it up as sensitivity to cold varying between individuals. I've owned just a heated vest for six years running and, as long as my core is warm, I'm a happy camper. That said, it doesn't make the feeling of cold arms or even unevenly-heated arms any less real for somebody else.

 

[stevepsd]

I was talking to another rider who was unhappy with his Gerbings Microwire (hot & cold spots - on the arms, back, shoulders, kidney) - he had just upgraded from his old Gerbings and talked to someone helpful at Gerbings (which must have been someone else than I talked to - they told me basically, 'tough'). He had switched out to the new Microwire and a new riding jacket (a Kilimanjaro) at the same time.

Gerbings said it was the jacket. If you have a drafty jacket (which the Kilimanjaro is - without the liner), the new Gerbings microwire has no insulation to speak of in the line (compared to the older style) and the heat will dissipate before it does any good. The went back to his old jacket and the new Microwire suddenly had less (but not completely gone) cold spots. Throwing another liner on top of the Microwire made it good.

I did not have this issue when I replaced my Microwire with the Warm&Safe, so maybe theirs is better insulated and a better windbreak.

So I guess, don't ride in a drafty jacket.

 

[HoebSTer]

riding with a drafty jacket seems pointless anyway, unless one lives in southern hot states and draft is a good thing. Not here in Seattle. I too don't think the micro-wire is that hot, but when i turn it off on a 48 degree rainy day, i start to get colder. So, I guess it is working, i just can't feel it.

 

[stevepsd]

I will say that the FirstGear Kiliminajaro seems drafty - not as in air flowing in thru openings, but it seems to come in thru the fabric. The FirstGear Rainier TPG does not. Wish I could have tried the Microwire with the TPG, or the older Gerbings with the Kiliminajaro.

 

[Karson]

thanks for bringing up this thread...i ended up going the wns route based off of the concerns of the functionality of the gerbings latest offering. the owner of wns, i tell you, he's got some hostility towards gerbing or anything from china just reading advrider...

either way, sounds as if customer service for both company's is top notch, but ultimately i think wns's gen4 jacket and pants will suit me well. I've got heated grips and hippo hands, but still experienced chilly finger tips on the freeway in the upper 30's...went with lee parks gloves.

 

[Tremor38]

thanks for bringing up this thread...i ended up going the wns route based off of the concerns of the functionality of the gerbings latest offering. the owner of wns, i tell you, he's got some hostility towards gerbing or anything from china just reading advrider...

either way, sounds as if customer service for both company's is top notch, but ultimately i think wns's gen4 jacket and pants will suit me well. I've got heated grips and hippo hands, but still experienced chilly finger tips on the freeway in the upper 30's...went with lee parks gloves.

The warm-n-safe products are top-notch. That said, it took me awhile to 'warm-up' pun intended, to his products because he bashes products from other vendors right on the front page of his website. I'd rather have marketing that lets the merits of the product stand on its own. I think his hostility toward any brands other than warm-n-safe is a bit over the edge. For instance, I own the EX02 heated vest, which is the best overall electric vest I've owned (I've owned a vest from First Gear which is made by Warm-n-safe). He acknowledged, begrudgingly, that EX02 vest is a good product, but still found a way to bash it...something about it not being easy to wash.

On a positive note, he doesn't mince words when it comes to his opinions and he answers any and all emails. Funny how when I showed him some info for the heating elements (fabroc) on the EX02, he wanted to know where he could get them. ::025::

 

[twinrider]

Mike bashes Gerbing because for years he supplied them with his heat-troller and introduced them to the use of coax connectors, which he pioneered, and subsequently Gerbing had his heat-troller copied and produced in China. Apparently they copied a lot of his jackets' other features over the years.

http://www.warmnsafe.com/we-invent-they-copy-why/

He can seem gruff but gives top customer service. Always answers emails promptly and if you have a problem with his products he takes care of it right away.


I own a Gerbing Microwire jacket and G3 gloves as well as a W&S Gen 4 jacket and Ultimate Touring Men's Heated Gloves. No issues with the heat of the Gerbing jacket but I prefer the W&S jacket because it's set up with a pocket to house the remote sender and coax connectors, while the Gerbing has a clunky plastic backing plate for the coax connectors, and they don't stay connected well if you move around on the seat. It's also hard to use the W&S remote heat-troller with the Gerbing jacket, and it's far superior to Gerbing's heat controller. I do like the G3 gloves better for their fit and finish as the wires and seams are totally unobtrusive, but I use the W&S gloves when it's raining as they have the handy visor wipe. They also have carbon fiber armor so will likely offer better protection in a crash.

 

[MikeBear]

Does anybody know why Firstgear has WnS glove liners on their website? Is it same company?

http://www.firstgear-usa.com/heated_liner.html

 

[twinrider]

Does anybody know why Firstgear has WnS glove liners on their website? Is it same company?

http://www.firstgear-usa.com/heated_liner.html

Firstgear is rebadged W&S. Buy directly from W&S for the best price, use advforum in the coupon code at checkout and you'll get a hefty 20%-plus discount.

 

[Checkswrecks]

As I posted earlier, I've had an early Gerbings for a number of years and was thinking to switch to W&S.


HOWEVER


After really looking and trying all three makers current offerings (Gerbings, Warm & Safe, and newest Powerlet), I got in on the ADVMotorrad special on the Powerlet rapidFIRe jacket with the wireless dual controller. The heat is much smoother and more evenly distributed. Rather than trying to select from all of the Gerbings sizes, the Powerlet elastic side panels keep it perfectly fitted. It is even a nice looking jacket by itself with a little outside layer to soften it and keep the heat in. The wireless control idea is GREAT.


I am really impressed.

 

[vnp514]

As I posted earlier, I've had an early Gerbings for a number of years and was thinking to switch to W&S.


HOWEVER


After really looking and trying all three makers current offerings (Gerbings, Warm & Safe, and newest Powerlet), I got in on the ADVMotorrad special on the Powerlet rapidFIRe jacket with the wireless dual controller. The heat is much smoother and more evenly distributed. Rather than trying to select from all of the Gerbings sizes, the Powerlet elastic side panels keep it perfectly fitted. It is even a nice looking jacket by itself with a little outside layer to soften it and keep the heat in. The wireless control idea is GREAT.


I am really impressed.

Another vote for Powerlet.

Pete

 

[twinrider]

Fwiw, the Powerlet's wireless control is made by W&S. W&S's Gen 4 jacket also comes with the elastic side panels and reflective material for nighttime safety, and the latest Gen. 4 jacket is waterproof as well. No experience with Powerlet but I know W&S's customer service is second to none.