I perhaps should have posted this in the MYOG but I thought I might get more answers here. I did have a search...

We had an actual cold day last week, as in -2C on the way to work, and my fingers really suffered. I've got a large selection of gloves but they don't seem to be enough anymore so I thought that pogies would be the answer? The commercial ones are expensive and probably overkill as it's likely to only be between 5C and 0C on my rides here, so I thought I might make a pair of Pogies-Lite. I have a section of materials and insulation already so they would only cost me time. Using my spare Jones loops and a bit of card I drew round my hand holding the grip and then sketched the shape I thought was big enough, this was turned into a mock-up using an old delivery bag.



I stiffened the cuff with a strip of card to hold it open. Then tried on the bars.



I also tried them on the bikes and they seem to be big enough but maybe only just. As I've never seen or used a pair in real life I have some questions,

Does the cuff have to be stiffened to hold it fully open all the time for ease of entry?
With the open cuff does the rain get in?
Does it need fixing to the bars to stop it sliding off or is just clinched around the bar to keep the draft out enough?
I'm thinking a coated PU for the outer with a fleece inner, or do they need more insulation to work? I have some thinsulate I could use as well?
Should I increase the size for more space inside or will this then not warm up as much?

All advice from pogie owners/users gratefully accepted.

Does the cuff have to be stiffened to hold it fully open all the time for ease of entry?
Not fully open but a little something round the edge makes access easier.

With the open cuff does the rain get in?
Not really or certainly not that you notice.

Does it need fixing to the bars to stop it sliding off or is just clinched around the bar to keep the draft out enough?
That's enough. If it's pulled tight(ish) round the bar upstream of the lever, then it can't really fall off.

I'm thinking a coated PU for the outer with a fleece inner, or do they need more insulation to work? I have some thinsulate I could use as well?
I've got a few pairs. One is only very lightly insulated and they're still warmer than gloves ... wind chill young man.

Should I increase the size for more space inside or will this then not warm up as much?
I'd just make them big enough so they don't feel restrictive.

I'm liking the poly bag version - I don't think you need make a VII

sean_iow wrote: ↑Fri Dec 18, 2020 10:02 am I also tried them on the bikes and they seem to be big enough but maybe only just. As I've never seen or used a pair in real life I have some questions,

Does the cuff have to be stiffened to hold it fully open all the time for ease of entry?

Yes and no. I've used pogies both with and without but those without (Alpkit Bearpaws) were of softish material that the opening "flattened" but more like a letterbox than a clam if that makes sense. There was still enough form to the material that you could just push your flat hands fingers first into the pogies. The others (Relevate Williwaws) are much stiffer, I think they have either a wire or extra material around the perimeter to keep the shape, and the shell stays open like a letterbox and the actual closure is a drawcord mechanism inside that. In fact the Williwaws are best described as a funny shaped box.

sean_iow wrote: ↑Fri Dec 18, 2020 10:02 am With the open cuff does the rain get in?

Not really unless you leave them pointing upwards.

sean_iow wrote: ↑Fri Dec 18, 2020 10:02 am Does it need fixing to the bars to stop it sliding off or is just clinched around the bar to keep the draft out enough?

The Williwaws come with their own bar plugs and have loops on the inside to latch over a groove in those. Can't remember what the Bearpaws had. On the inner point usually it's just a velcro strap to hold the pogie in place.

sean_iow wrote: ↑Fri Dec 18, 2020 10:02 am I'm thinking a coated PU for the outer with a fleece inner, or do they need more insulation to work? I have some thinsulate I could use as well?

For the UK fleece will be more than enough. The Bearpaws were just fleece and I reckon they were good to -6C, the main problem with the original version was that the outside edge was just velcro "for rapid exit in case of a crash" but it just let the cold in!

sean_iow wrote: ↑Fri Dec 18, 2020 10:02 am Should I increase the size for more space inside or will this then not warm up as much?

You probably want the internal volume to be big enough that both hands could fit into (but the cuff entrance wouldn't let you). They want to be big enough that you can reach around all the controls and just hold the bar without being constricted or having to move the pogie to avoid being constricted.

Cheers guys, I've got some time off over Christmas so I'll add them to the project list.

Bearbonesnorm wrote: ↑Fri Dec 18, 2020 10:18 am I'm liking the poly bag version - I don't think you need make a VII

I'd have to order something else for delivery to get another bag for the other hand

All joking aside, in an emergency, just putting poly bags on the end of the bars would probably make quite a difference, windproof, waterproof and as they are non-breathable they would warm up like a vapour barrier glove

mate i have pogies, the only thing which would make them better is if the part over the bars was more angled to suit the jones sweep

Mike wrote: ↑Fri Dec 18, 2020 12:12 pm mate i have pogies, the only thing which would make them better is if the part over the bars was more angled to suit the jones sweep

The shape I drew had more of an angle to match the bars but I made the corner 90 degrees so I could use two existing sides on the plastic bag, so I'll stick to my template for the real thing

Sean, I can take some shots of mine if you want some ideas on what has already been done.

whitestone wrote: ↑Fri Dec 18, 2020 1:29 pm Sean, I can take some shots of mine if you want some ideas on what has already been done.

yes please.

I thought that pogies would be the answer? The commercial ones are expensive

£28 didn't seem expensive to me. That's currently working out at less than £5 per year.

Kudos for making your own though.

I was also about to suggest hot Pogs but they all seem to be sold out!
If you are making your own, try to engineer some way of attaching them to the bar end plugs. My hot pogs tend to flap around quite a lot and whilst this aint a huge issue, my 45 north ones which attach to the bar ends are nice and stable which makes for easier entry, as it were.....

ScotRoutes wrote: ↑Fri Dec 18, 2020 1:33 pm £28 didn't seem expensive to me. That's currently working out at less than £5 per year.

Kudos for making your own though.

I couldn't find any that were anywhere near that, I probably looked in the wrong places? If I didn't already have the materials it would cost me more to buy the fabric than that.

htrider wrote: ↑Fri Dec 18, 2020 1:49 pm If you are making your own, try to engineer some way of attaching them to the bar end plugs.

I had considered that, I have an eyelet kit that would enable me to put an 5mm eyelet in them. I could put an M5 rivnut in the bar end plug and fix them on with an M5 bolt and large washer.

htrider wrote: ↑Fri Dec 18, 2020 1:49 pm I was also about to suggest hot Pogs but they all seem to be sold out!

I've just searched them, I had seen that site but they were sold out of the cheaper styles The lack of available and cheap is what led me down the myog path. Plus I can make them less warm for my southern climate.

sean_iow wrote: ↑Fri Dec 18, 2020 1:52 pm

htrider wrote: ↑Fri Dec 18, 2020 1:49 pm If you are making your own, try to engineer some way of attaching them to the bar end plugs.

I had considered that, I have an eyelet kit that would enable me to put an 5mm eyelet in them. I could put an M5 rivnut in the bar end plug and fix them on with an M5 bolt and large washer.

Perfick!

I have these cheap ones, which are ace for the times I've needed them. Not in stock though

https://www.hotpog.co.uk/products/classic-pogies

benp1 wrote: ↑Fri Dec 18, 2020 4:01 pm I have these cheap ones, which are ace for the times I've needed them. Not in stock though

https://www.hotpog.co.uk/products/classic-pogies

Sean they are really easy to make. Ideal way to recycle old Anorak sleeved, someone has blogged it. Bivvy booties from the body sorted.
It send you a pattern if you want. I made some Rain poggies, like a guy in idaho /iowa for gravel biking.
A little job is recessed press stud faster on bar cap. So the light poggies don't flop down when hands out.
ran pogies mean you can used summer of full finger gloves year round.. Amazing.. Mine weighted about 40g pair

ledburner wrote: ↑Thu Feb 04, 2021 8:07 pm It send you a pattern if you want.

That would be helpful, I did start on them over the Christmas break, the first was based on the plastic bag mock-up. The plastic version was made by drawing around the template I had cut out but it didn't take into account the seam allowance which was included in the template, it was just taped together around the outside. On the sewn version this resulted in it being smaller and so it wasn't really big enough.

As I had 2 weeks off I had plenty of time so made another with more generous dimension, if anything it then came out too big. At this point I decided to put this project on the back burner and made my hammock instead. I'll recycle the Mk1 and Mk2 pogies into something else and there's some reasonable sized bits of material in them. They would have been ok for Jeremy Beadle but sadly he's no longer with us so my target market for sales has gone.

I added a stiffener to the top of my Alpkit ones because I found that although I could get my hands in fine, they tended to bunch up towards the bars and provide less protection.

Also trying to work out the best way to attach the bar ends because they still get pushed forward. I like the bar end/rivnut idea, but I'd rather not put something all the way through the pogie and sew something to the lining instead.

thenorthwind wrote: ↑Fri Feb 05, 2021 8:56 am Also trying to work out the best way to attach the bar ends because they still get pushed forward. I like the bar end/rivnut idea, but I'd rather not put something all the way through the pogie and sew something to the lining instead.

I didn't fancy trying to make a hole on mine either, plus if it wasn't in the right placed I wouldn't be able to move it. I put an eyelet in a short piece of webbing and sewed it on the seam inside.



The pogie is flexible enough to be able to do the bolt up.

Ah good thinking, I might have a crack at something later while the sewing machines out, it's blowing a hoolie and persisting it down, and I'm thinking about it.

Could you sew half a pop stud (plastic one, like on the bottom of cheap duvet covers) into the lining, and then glue the other half onto bar end plugs?

PaulE wrote: ↑Fri Feb 05, 2021 10:02 am Could you sew half a pop stud (plastic one, like on the bottom of cheap duvet covers) into the lining, and then glue the other half onto bar end plugs?

Newies, available everywhere - crafty places. They do resin (plastic) studs, but are a bit small 5mm across the snap part, I guess.
Alternatively. KAMSNAP size T5, like above or T8 are better.. EBay, amazon mail order, etc

Please note, The riveting pliers are extra.
obviously plastic snap don't corrode, and don't feel like cold spots unlike metal ones

ledburner wrote: ↑Fri Feb 05, 2021 12:03 pm

PaulE wrote: ↑Fri Feb 05, 2021 10:02 am Could you sew half a pop stud (plastic one, like on the bottom of cheap duvet covers) into the lining, and then glue the other half onto bar end plugs?

Newies, available everywhere - crafty places. They do resin (plastic) studs, but are a bit small 5mm across the snap part, I guess.
Alternatively. KAMSNAP size T5, like above or T8 are better.. EBay, amazon mail order, etc

Please note, The riveting pliers are extra.
obviously plastic snap don't corrode, and don't feel like cold spots unlike metal ones

This is the poggie plan.
They were made out of siliconised shower proof nylon. A top waterproof layer would also work, Breathable material maybe overkill. I put cords in seams on closures. Velcro would work at the bar seams. A thin fleece line would work, I have found them very good with out.
They would need to be enlarged to make Oven Mitts. I folded all internal seams towards the upper, fell eamed on upper edge so water would run over overlap, not through the the seam. I've see lots of garments where this has been overlooked.

I read in another forum somewhere of a guy making pogies and he used a magnet behind the bar end cap and stitch another magnet to the lining of the pogie to keep it in place yet still easy to remove. I think he sandwiched the lining magnet between to squares of corduroy first then stitched that in place.

Martin B wrote: ↑Fri Feb 05, 2021 2:40 pm I read in another forum somewhere of a guy making pogies and he used a magnet behind the bar end cap and stitch another magnet to the lining of the pogie to keep it in place yet still easy to remove. I think he sandwiched the lining magnet between to squares of corduroy first then stitched that in place.

Hi Martin, B
That's, another good idea , as long as they don't corrode