Osi Aquapore 500 Winter Gloves

OSI AQUAPORE 500 WINTER GLOVES

EVALUATION

THE 50-PERCENT SOLUTION

SOMETIMES, A QUICK-AND-DIRTY FIX takes care of a thorny problem just as well as a nicely planned solution. But other times, such remedies are like sticking a Band-Aid on a bullet wound: They don’t completely solve the problem, or if they do, not for very long. But the correct solution leaves less to chance. By being well-thought-out, it overwhelms a problem with sheer force, piledriving it right into the ground.

OSI obviously favors the second approach to deal with the problem of cold, wet hands, and the proof is in the firm’s Aquapore 500 winter gloves. For example, OSI packs in three layers of insulation to keep cold outside where it belongs (most coldweather gloves use only one or two layers). Thinsulate and open-cell foam run throughout (except in the palm), joined by 8-ounce fiberfill covering the gauntlet and back of the hand. OSI also passed over the commonly used Gore-Tex for waterproofing, instead opting for Aquapore, a similar fabric the firm claims is designed specifically for gloves. An outer shell of 400-denier nylon oxford and leather completes OSI’s full-force solution to cold and rain.

OSI’s distributor, KG Engineering Inc. (115 Front St., Woonsocket, RI 02895; [401 ] 765-0130), is so certain the gloves can crush those problems that it guarantees them to be the warmest available and 100-percent waterproof. And the Aquapores make good on part of that guarantee; too good, in fact. Ours weathered several showers, including one 5hour-long storm, and kept the rain out each time. They were just as diligent, however, about keeping moisture in. The inner liner is designed to wick away perspiration, and the Aquapore liner should allow moisture to escape, but both failed to do so. If the rider’s hands would sweat, or get wet before pulling on the gloves, the gloves’ interiors stayed damp and clammy for days.

The other half of KG’s guarantee takes a bit of a beating. Certainly the Aquapores are warm—enough so that your hands will sweat if the temperature rises much above the 50s. But despite the gloves’ triple-threat insulation, one tester complained of cold fingers within a few hours in mid-40s temperatures. Another found them no warmer in freezing temperatures than other less bulky gloves.

Indeed, even though the deep-pile insulation doesn’t make the Aquapores the warmest winter gloves, it does help make them some of the bulkiest. OSI tried to sidestep the problem by building in curved fingers, using only a single layer of foam padding in the palm and sewing in a leather flex panel over the knuckles. But there’s still too much padding and insulation for good dexterity and control feel. The sizing was off on our pair, too; tagged XL, they offered a near-Medium fit.

Still, some riders might be able to put up with the odd sizing, bulkiness and moisture retention. Because, for the most part, the Aquapores (S through XL in black-and-red or redand-gray for $49.95) are a thoughtful, well-considered solution to the problem of staying warm and dry. But for most riders, they’re not the correct solution; that slipped right through OSI’s fingers. Which is why most riders will let the Aquapores slip right through theirs. ®