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PEdAL ED Shawa arm warmer

7
£42.00

VERDICT:

7
10
Water and wind-proof without fluffy insulation, these are well-designed to go fast in cold-to middling temps.
Weight: 
76g
Contact: 

At road.cc every product is thoroughly tested for as long as it takes to get a proper insight into how well it works. Our reviewers are experienced cyclists that we trust to be objective. While we strive to ensure that opinions expressed are backed up by facts, reviews are by their nature an informed opinion, not a definitive verdict. We don't intentionally try to break anything (except locks) but we do try to look for weak points in any design. The overall score is not just an average of the other scores: it reflects both a product's function and value – with value determined by how a product compares with items of similar spec, quality, and price.

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The PEdAL ED Shawa armwarmers are waterproof and cut to fit you on the bike. Designed to match the Shawa jersey, they're a good option for warmer rides where you want to stay dry, or colder, faster, wetter rides.

Pros: on-the-bike cut, taped seams

Cons: the alternatives are pretty good for less cash, sizing is out

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Designed in Japan and made in Italy from a dual-layer waterproof / windproof tape-sealed fabric, the Shawa arm warmers are a good match if you've already forked out £160 for the matching Shawa jersey.

Spring clothing guide: How to choose and use the best gear to ride through the most unpredictable season

It's hard to get excited about arm warmers, as they have one job: keep your arms warm. I have appallingly bad circulation, and with a suitable mix of merino baselayers the Shawa warmers did the job in temperatures ranging from zero to 13° C and wind, rain and sleet. That's a fair spread of conditions, and a testament to the design and fabric. They aren't 'thermal' unlike the British cyclist's go-to bad-weather arm garb, the Castelli Nanoflex Armwarmer - but with suitable layers underneath that's not an issue and means you can opt for no insulation on warmer days without boiling.

If I'd followed PEdAL ED's size guide I'd have worn the Extra-Small or Small - which I can only imagine being really tight and short. As it was the Medium was spot on for my not-buff-classic-cyclists long arms. The fabric is pretty stiff and nowhere near as stretchy as Castelli's Nanoflex, so you need to get the long cuffs sorted around your inner gloves before donning outer layers, if like me you wear several pairs. Once in place they stayed put, the upper arm grip strip doing the job well.

Out for 2 hrs at 85% heartrate - upper Zone 4 - in 3-8° C, overcast with no wind and two merino base layers under arms, I stayed perfectly warm and didn't feel uncomfortable. If you run hotter just lose a base layer.

Likewise an appallingly-grim hour out in 3-degree rain, wind and sleet proved their worth - my hands remained functional, which with my circulation is quite some feat.

£42 RRP is a lot of money, considering the logical alternative Castelli Nanoflex are £35 RRP and come with thermal warmth as well as waterproofness. But if you don't want or need thermal fluff and want to keep water and wind out, the Shawa armwarmers are a good option. Just remember to size up.

Verdict

Water and wind-proof without fluffy insulation, these are well-designed to go fast in cold-to middling temps.

If you're thinking of buying this product using a cashback deal why not use the road.cc Top Cashback page and get some top cashback while helping to support your favourite independent cycling website

road.cc test report

Make and model: PEdALED Shawa arm warmer

Size tested: Medium

Tell us what the product is for

It's for going fast in bad weather.

PEdALED say:

The Shawa arm warmers are designed to match the Shawa Jersey for a complete protection from winter elements.

Like the Jersey these Arm warmers are specifically created to protect from rain and wind and still mainting the right fit.

What makes the Shawa totally different from the rest is its special two-layers construction.

The internal taped seams ensure the waterproof characteristic of the Shawa and the internal pocket is perfect for a smartphone and wallet storage keeping them dry during rain showers.

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

- WATERPROOF AND WINDPROOF

- TAPED SEAMS

- STRETCH FABRICS

- BREATHABLE INNER LAYER

- SLIM FIT FOR PERFORMANCE

Rate the product for quality of construction:
 
8/10

Very well-put together

Rate the product for performance:
 
8/10

Kept the water and wind at bay

Rate the product for durability:
 
8/10

Can't see them failing any time.

Rate the product for fit:
 
8/10

For a stiff fabric they fit well - if you are particularly large of bicep they may be tight.

Rate the product for sizing:
 
5/10

The size chart for my chest recommends the XS or S - which would have been very tight and short. The Medium were perfect.

Rate the product for weight:
 
9/10

Featherweight.

Rate the product for comfort:
 
8/10

The angled cut is great on the bars.

Rate the product for value:
 
5/10

For the money the Nanoflex might edge them out.

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

Washed up just fine

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

I liked them - kept my poor circulation going when ridden fast.

Tell us what you particularly liked about the product

The cut and length, ignoring the sizing recommendations and going 1-2 bigger.

Tell us what you particularly disliked about the product

Nothing, really. Apart from the price.

Did you enjoy using the product? Yes

Would you consider buying the product? Not really

Would you recommend the product to a friend? Maybe.

Use this box to explain your overall score

If not for the price, they'd be a star better. The price is high, no question, which drags the value equation down.

Overall rating: 7/10

About the tester

Age: 44  Height: 183cm  Weight: 72kg

I usually ride: Merida Ride 5000 Disc  My best bike is:

I've been riding for: Over 20 years  I ride: A few times a week  I would class myself as: Expert

I regularly do the following types of riding: cyclo cross, club rides, general fitness riding, mtb, Dutch bike pootling.

Living in the Highlands, Mike is constantly finding innovative and usually cold/wet ways to accelerate the degradation of cycling kit. At his happiest in a warm workshop holding an anodised tool of high repute, Mike's been taking bikes apart and (mostly) putting them back together for forty years. With a day job in global IT (he's not completely sure what that means either) and having run a boutique cycle service business on the side for a decade, bikes are his escape into the practical and life-changing for his customers.

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2 comments

Avatar
nortonpdj | 5 years ago
0 likes

£42?  Silly.

Avatar
efail | 5 years ago
0 likes

Scissors, paper.........stone!

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