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Chrome Midweight Cycle Gloves

7
£47.00

VERDICT:

7
10
Windproof, warm for their low bulk and stylish, but expensive given the lack of bike-specific features
Good windproofing
Subtle looks
Wrist opening is very baggy
No grippers
Not water resistant
Weight: 
91g

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 Chrome Midweight Cycle Gloves are warm and practical when it's cold or damp, though snugger wrists, proper water resistance and some palm grippers would be nice given the pricing.

Chrome makes stuff with urban cycling in mind – 'Useful gear. Made for city,' as they say – but these are perfectly usable for regular road riding too.

> Buy these online here

> Find your nearest dealer here

The uppers are built from two panels, with the outside three fingers and the majority of the back of the hand being ripstop nylon, whilst the rest is synthetic PU leather. The Chrome logo is reflective for a little touch of visibility.

Beneath this is a relatively thin layer of insulation that works well; I used these down to 2°C and they were fine, although that's pretty much the limit. The insides are soft and fleecy too, so they're comfortable as well as warm.

The wide, shortish cuffs don't do anything to seal out drafts though – it's a shame there's no Velcro to cinch them in with, as unless you have forearms like lamp posts the elastic inserts won't do anything.

2021 Chrome Midweight cycling gloves - elastic.jpg

These are at least impressively windproof everywhere they do cover your skin.

While not offering any 'official' water resistance, they cope okay with light showers or even short bursts of intense rain. Once soaked though, that PU leather holds a fair bit of water, especially in the palm.

> 25 of the best winter cycling gloves for 2021 – keep your hands warm and dry

The 'casual' look means you just get the two small pads on the outside of the palm for comfort – far less than many more dedicated gloves – but for me at least it worked well. I don't often feel the need for a huge amount of padding in winter gloves anyway.

2021 Chrome Midweight cycling gloves - padding.jpg

I did miss having any silicone grippers though, as it would have been nice to have a little more grip on the levers at times.

You do get touch screen areas on the thumb and forefinger, at least, and these worked well on my iPhone. The quality of these seems to have markedly improved in the last couple years across the industry, which is great to see.

2021 Chrome Midweight cycling gloves - finger detail.jpg

Value

At £47 these are fairly expensive given the lack of bike-specific features such as water resistance, tight-sealing cuffs or silicone grippers. For instance, the Sportful WS Essential 2 Gloves offer the same low-bulk warmth but use water-resistant Goretex fabric and give better grip, and are just £3 more at £50.

Meanwhile the Altura Firestorm Gloves offer a similarly basic design to the Chrome ones (if a more cycling-y look), and are £39.99.

Overall

I like these gloves for their lack of bulk, subtle design (they don't look weird if you wear them off the bike) and effective touch screen elements. However, at this price I would expect them to be somewhat richer in actual cycling features.

Verdict

Windproof, warm for their low bulk and stylish, but expensive given the lack of bike-specific features

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road.cc test report

Make and model: Chrome Midweight Cycle Gloves

Size tested: Large

Tell us what the product is for

Chrome says these are: "Midweight cycling gloves built tough, stylish and functional. Thick enough to stay warm, thin enough to ride."

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

Chrome says:

Insulated cycling gloves for fall/winter riding

Touch screen sensitive fingertips

Padded palm for riding comfort

Thick enough to stay warm. Thin enough to ride

Rate the product for quality of construction:
 
8/10

They seem well made, with extra thickness in key areas. The stitching stayed secure throughout the test period too.

Rate the product for performance:
 
7/10

Keep out wind and most of the rain.

Rate the product for durability:
 
7/10
Rate the product for fit:
 
7/10

The wrists could be a slimmer fit, but otherwise good.

Rate the product for sizing:
 
6/10

They come up small; the large I tested fitted more like a medium.

Rate the product for weight:
 
7/10
Rate the product for comfort:
 
8/10

Nice fleecy lining and decent windproofing.

Rate the product for value:
 
4/10

With no grippers, water resistance or other cycle-specific technical features, £47 seems high.

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

They take 30 degree washes without any issues.

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

They performed well, keeping out the worst of the weather, although more waterproofing on the palms and a tighter fit on the cuffs would be good.

Tell us what you particularly liked about the product

The touch screen elements work really well.

Tell us what you particularly disliked about the product

The wide cuffs.

How does the price compare to that of similar products in the market, including ones recently tested on road.cc?

At £47 these are fairly expensive given the lack of bike-specific features such as water resistance, tight-sealing cuffs or silicone grippers. For instance, the Sportful WS Essential 2 Gloves offer the same low-bulk warmth but use water-resistant Goretex fabric and give better grip, and are just £3 more at £50.

Meanwhile the Altura Firestorm Gloves offer a similarly basic design to the Chrome ones, and are £39.99.

Did you enjoy using the product? Yes

Would you consider buying the product? Yes – in a sale

Would you recommend the product to a friend? Yes

Use this box to explain your overall score

These are decent gloves, but arguably a little underspecced for the price – with water resistance and some bike-friendly grippers they would score higher.

Overall rating: 7/10

About the tester

Age: 33  Height: 6 ft  Weight:

I usually ride: CAAD13  My best bike is: Cannondale Supersix Evo

I've been riding for: 10-20 years  I ride: Every day  I would class myself as: Expert

I regularly do the following types of riding: commuting, club rides, sportives, general fitness riding, fixed/singlespeed,

George is the host of the road.cc podcast and has been writing for road.cc since 2014. He has reviewed everything from a saddle with a shark fin through to a set of glasses with a HUD and everything in between. 

Although, ironically, spending more time writing and talking about cycling than on the bike nowadays, he still manages to do a couple of decent rides every week on his ever changing number of bikes.

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