DIY Pogies

[werksmini]

Moving from California to Toronto this fall I forgot how miserable my hands get when the needle drops below freezing. I had seen some pogies online and in some stores but noting seemed worth the expenditure. MEC, a Canadian retailer, sells them here but they looks a bit cheese. Some were a bit nicer but with a price tag I am not trying to hit. I saw this thread on MTBR and got inspired to make a set myself.

The main objectives were to make something more compact and user friendly than many I had seen. The goal was to make them easy enough to take on and off that I would actually use them as well as keeping them from being embarrassingly large. The single speed also helped keep things slim as I don't need thumb/point dexterity (albeit these would work fine for a geared setup).

I went to the fabric store and got some Cordura and light insulation. From what I read you do not need/want thick insulation as it will make them unusable in anything above 20f. The product I found had a thin feltish side and a thin almost neoprene reverse side. The neoprene side would be on the hand side to promote sliding in and out.

I had seen some that were two ply with a dart sewn in for structure as well as some that featured a 3rd vertical layer to give structure. Some of the two-ply ones also used a stiffener like thin plastic to keep the opening shape and fore/aft rigidity. My goal was to not have to use a stiffener and keep it two-ply. The choice of the thicker cordura material makes this possible.

This thread would be worthless without pictures right? Here are some terrible ones. Huawei phones make poor cameras.

I first made a poor template on cardboard and cut it out onto some spare fabric. The first attempt was actually fairly close but required a second. You can see I wanted a "press-fit" on the bar/lever end. A lot of designs use a velcro lashing to tame the gaping opening. I wanted to avoid this.

IMG_20131125_152702.jpg

IMG_20131125_152732.jpg

Here are the three iterations or templates.

IMG_20131125_154537.jpg

The cut fabric.

IMG_20131125_162527.jpg

Macro shots are apparently not possible but you can get an idea of the two fabrics.

IMG_20131125_162611.jpg

IMG_20131125_190948.jpg

IMG_20131125_191006.jpg

IMG_20131125_191017.jpg

The only made two final adjustments. I stitched in some velcro in the opening bar opening between bar and brake lever as well as using some elastic on the inside to pull the pogies rearward. They attached to the end of the grip. Ourys have that nice lip to hold on the elastic.

I was super stoked with the outcome and took a spin around the block without gloves in a windy 20-25f which left my hands nice and toasty. I doubt I would use anything but a light MTB glove above 15f.

Anyone else with experience with pogies? I can grab other shots if anyone is interested in a terrible but detailed photo.

[Will Neide]

Looks good! It really doesn't take much to keep the digits warm and MTB pogies are a must IMO to ride in winter. Like you noticed, you only need a thin glove. I made a bunch last winter for local folks.

I also make drop bar pogies. Took me a few iterations to get things dialed in. I wanted something so I could ride the hoods, drops and top bars with ease. I was able to work out a good design to allow quick transitions. Here's a few shots from a pair I made for someone with Woodchippers.
IMAG0672.jpgIMAG0673.jpgIMAG0678.jpgIMAG0677.jpg

[werksmini]

What does the inside interface look like? I am thinking about making some for my drop bar'd bike. Velcro opening? The addition of a horizontal shift cable adds some complexity.

[Will Neide]

What does the inside interface look like? I am thinking about making some for my drop bar'd bike. Velcro opening? The addition of a horizontal shift cable adds some complexity.

Yep. Long velcro opening that allows for horizontal shift cables like the old shimano or retroshift set-ups. I have tested and used it on SRAM,Shimano and Retroshfit with no problems.

I'll see if I can snap some pics tonight with them on the bike with the Retorshifters.

[Will Neide]

Made some more last night. Perfect weather to try them out. This was my commute today. Temp was 32/33 degrees on the way home, so the hands were a little too hot.

11331512794_4f4f0ef6f8_z.jpg

11331512044_d9d7e755cf_z.jpg

11331412135_a8c05e9fa8_z.jpg

[Will Neide]

It was 12 degrees when I took this picture (was 7 degrees on the way into work). Had some thin gloves on inside the pogies. I always recommend wearing, at a minimum, a thin pair of gloves. You do have to take your hands out to adjust helmets, straps, blow snot rockets, etc. and it's cold to do all that without any gloves on.


12 degree commute by Wilco Cycleworks, on Flickr

This pair is headed to South Dakota.


Orange Drop Bar Pogies by Wilco Cycleworks, on Flickr

[Too Tall]

WOW. Impressed here.

[GonaSovereign]

I misread the thread title and was coming to find pierogies. In my defence, there is a bottle of Sriracha on your table.
Nice pogies. Welcome to Toronto. I'm happy to say you can put your mitts away now.