Pedal ED Kaido Arm Warmers

Pedal Ed's Kaido arm warmers didn't really keep my arms that warm. Which was a shame.

Made in Italy from 'peachface' material, which is sort of a minimal Roubaix-style lycra with a brushed inner surface, the Kaido arm warmers are nicely constructed with plenty of length, thumb loops to keep them in place at the wrist, and geography-teacher-chic contrast panels on the elbows which may or may not be your thing. When you first put them on they're comfortable and the top grippers and thumb loop keep them secure.

I've used these mostly in conditions where I'd normally wear a base layer, jersey, gilet and armwarmers, when the mercury was showing 8-10°C. And I have to say that they struggle to keep my arms warm. My rides nearly always start with a long downhill from cold, since my house is right at the top of a big hill. It's a pretty good test of how well an armwarmer will cope, and the Pedal Eds generally left me a bit parky. I think their main problem is that the fabric isn't either windproof enough, or quite thick enough. Either one or the other will normally do the trick.

The other thing that doesn't really work is the thumb loop. It's not a bad idea in theory but there's just too much material bunched up between your thumb and forefinger here – and a number of seams too – that they were genuinely uncomfortable on a 3hr ride underneath a pair of mitts, and I had to take my thumbs out of the loops half way round. Underneath a looser fitting full finger glove it's less of an issue, but I think the design needs addressing.

The elbow patches aren't a functional thing, they're more about style and you can choose from four colours (blue, brown, grey, black). They might offer a bit of extra cushioning or save you from holing them if you did go over on your elbow though.

Overall I was a bit underwhelmed by the Kaidos. They're not that warm and the thumb loop needs a rethink. For £7 less you could have the Castelli Thermoflex arm warmers (/content/review/117865-castelli-thermoflex-arm-warmers) which are still the ones to beat at this kind of price.

Verdict

Well made with quirky looks, but performance isn't on a par with rivals