Sportful Fiandre Gloves 2020

The Sportful Fiandre gloves are warm – especially considering their low bulk – and very comfortable, and the Polartec backs keep out rain, although water can get in via the palms.

We reviewed Sportful's Fiandre Light gloves earlier in the year and were impressed by their windproofing, light weight and grippy silicone-striped palms. As the difference in names suggests, the Fiandre gloves that we have here are designed for more testing conditions – down to 0°C, according to Sportful.

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That's about right, in my experience. Picking these gloves up and putting them on, I thought they'd be good down to maybe 5°C or so but I'm happy to say that they're far warmer than I expected. Although they're lightweight and not at all bulky, I've been wearing them on frosty autumn/winter mornings and my fingers have felt absolutely fine – and I'm really, really not known for suffering in silence when it comes to getting cold!

The backs of these gloves are made from a Polartec NeoShell soft shell fabric that stops cold air getting through, while low-bulk Primaloft provides the insulation. The fleecy polyester lining helps with warmth too. The wrists fit closely when you have the water-resistant zips done up, so draughts don't get in there.

Personally, I prefer a zip to a Velcro closure because there's no chance of it catching on other clothing, but it's a little bit harder to undo. The other downside is that you don't get the same level of adjustment if you want to stuff your sleeves inside the tops of the gloves, for instance.

Those zips give you enough space to get the Fiandre gloves on and off without the need for a wrestling match. Even if your hands are slightly damp and sticky following a mid-ride puncture repair, you can get them back inside easily enough.

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In use you can tell that there are multiple layers here, but you still get very good lever feel. For example, I've been riding a Van Nicholas Rowtag bike over the past few weeks, with Di2 shift levers that sit right alongside each other; it has been easy enough to distinguish between the two levers, whereas I've found it difficult in thicker gloves before, changing up when I wanted to change down.

The palms and fingers feature silicone stripes that provide excellent grip and avoid any slipping on the controls. This is one of the strongest features of these gloves; this is really gummy stuff that stays put even on a wet handlebar.

You get a double layer of fabric in the area where your palm meets your fingers, and an ulnar pad to help relieve pressure and prevent tingling and numbness. The tip of each forefinger is touchscreen compatible, so you can swipe through screens on phones and bike computers without needing to take your gloves off. It's not like using a touchscreen with bare fingers – you have to be more deliberate than normal – but it's do-able.

The Polartec Neoshell fabric has a little stretch to it so a close fit doesn't feel uncomfortably tight, and it contains a waterproof membrane, so if rain or spray gets just on the back of your gloves it doesn't get inside.

However, I found that water could still get inside these gloves – not via the top but through the construction. When out in proper rain, my hands eventually got wet, so I'd call these water resistant rather than waterproof.

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That S printed on the back of the hand is reflective, by the way. That comes in handy when signalling at night. It's a big ol' logo so it's easily seen.

At £95, these are among the more expensive gloves that we've reviewed on road.cc lately. I'd say that these provide a comparable level of warmth to the Endura Pro SL Primaloft Waterproof gloves that I reviewed last year (I went riding with a Sportful glove on one hand and an Endura glove on the other to check). The Sportful gloves have some high-end features, like the water-resistant zips and the silicone striped palms, but the Endura gloves are waterproof and are priced £57.99.

Conclusion

The Sportful Fiandre gloves are comfortable and warm in winter temperatures without being at all bulky. However, my experience is that although the Polartec NeoShell fabric doesn't let water through, the gloves as a whole won't keep your hands completely dry in wet conditions.

Verdict

Warm and grippy gloves for cold conditions, but not fully waterproof