18650/26650 foot warmer

I ride a mountain bike 20 miles a day. Lately in Idaho, it’s getting kinda chilly at night when I go and I have circulation problems in my feet = numb toes about 30 minutes into the ride. Thick wool and passive chemical foot warmers don’t work below 30 F because of the wind chill factor.

Anybody seen an 18650 powered foot warmer? Ideas?

I run a warrior on my helmet and a HD 2010 on my bars w/ video running the whole time. I have got some interesting footage to say the least. Including an accident that I almost took to Judge Judy. The guy settled after I sent him the footage. Ramblin………-Matt

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Is there a layer between your foot and the wire? I asked about heat packs before but this could be a nice project for a pair of mittens.

also, d

Never seen anything like that before. There are certainly some better grade heated hunter type socks out there - Cabelas has something that is supposedly crazy warm - hold on - $200 pr, so there must be something special going on there w technology or quality grade.

Is the rest of you warm and dry while you are biking…? Sounds silly, but I used a heavy dose of foot powder when I was working outside … after trying boots, socks, heat packs, nothing worked, feet just too far from the heart and they compress socks, liners, etc to the cold layer.

(However) When I winter camp I wear northern style leather and canvas mukluks, there is NO pressure on any part of your foot - compared to a typical pak boot or lace up hunter or work boot style. Thats a big part of it right there, you are not constricting blood flow at all. I use two layers of loose fitting wool socks, w a neoprene, thinsulate liner… sinfully warm compared to old clunky pac boots. That will take me down to –30 in the early AM in upstate NY.

Can’t see you wearing that on a mtn bike, certainly you couldn’t clip in. Might set a new style, though.

Yeah, I clip in. The mountain bike shoes have to be pretty tight to control the “up stroke” when you’re pedaling. Not much room for thick wool.

They make winter spd shoes around 200 bucks a pair. I am told that when your body senses cold, it slows circulation to the extremities to keep the “core” up to temp. My heart rate monitor is showing 140 to 160 BPM most of the ride so my “core” is very warm. -Matt

try some spray on antiperspirant on your feet when riding. old hunting/ice fishing trick.

did you try with neoprene covers for the shoes? in winter, using them i feel way better, normally sod shoes are very vented, and with those neoprene covers the wind is highly stopped

I’ve been putting baggies on for about a month. As the night temps are dropping, so is the effectiveness of the set up I’m using.

If anyone’s interested, I found these http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B0009HMFPC/ref=oh_details_o00_s00_i00?ie=UTF8&psc=1 They got HORRIBLE reviews, mostly the “no heat at all” complaint.

I decided to gamble, and it payed off. Instead of putting AA’s in there, I put 14500’s. Boy, we have some heat coming off these now! I left it on for two hours and no ill effects so far. 14500’s cool to the touch. I am going to do some more experimenting w/ these -Matt :bigsmile:

if 14500 li-ion is too much, maybe try lifepo4. there was something that took AAA that i decided to try a 10440 in... lets say the results were more than pleasing

gotta love battery technology

If wool is too thick, I wonder if you might be able to insulate your shoes just as effectively with plastic. They keep heat in pretty well. Maybe you can try cutting up a plastic bag and and wrapping it around your socks before putting on your shoes?

Mylar "space blanket" would be better alternative for this, maybe combined with some kind of warmer.. Has anyone tried that?

Yeah, I have done the baggie thing inside; out.

The enemy is moisture. It really is amazing how much hands and feet sweat. Most everyone has put on a pair of rubber gloves one time in their lives…….

I really can’t believe how much energy these *#%!fire 14500’s put out inside a shoe. This contraption will probably work with regular socks. I’m going out for my 20 mile ride on Sunday night. Should be around 25 F. Add a steady 13 mph wind chill to that… -Matt

Nice!
I’d guess they could become too hot even?
Can you test the current its pulling?

I do a fair amount of standing around in camp when out in winter…just came back from a trip (last night) in upstate NY and between the cold, the wet, mud and the wind, my toes were quite nippy the whole weekend- unlike our normal stationary camp, where we can haul in winter boots, this was a backpack outing and those boots are not cold friendly.

Gonna check those little heaters out.

Update. I went out for my twenty-miler last night. Ambient temp 35 F. Average speed around 13 mph, so wind chill is definitely a factor. With 2 14500’s in each, I had to cycle the warmers on and off. Actually they are a little too hot, and don’t last as long as I thought. Probably about 30 minutes if left on but that would be WAY too hot. I’m thinking about modding this thing to have 3 18650’s put out 5 watts. (USB port). -Matt

I turned on my flashlight in my pocket the other day when I was cold. It was a help.
Basically what you need is flexible wire with about the right resistance and a lithium ion battery. My best socks have been made in Norway. Since you are riding, you are generating a lot of heat yourself, which might favor more clothing rather than heaters. If you can keep your body warm, more blood will flow to your feet.
My worst problem with cold weather was when my glasses frosted over. Fortunately I knew my way well by that time.

Two layers of baggies. One against skin to stop sweat. The second outside your socks to stop wind and water.

It looks like you found your battery solution though.

There is a guy (Technical Advantage Gear) that I have bought a few (well thought out and executed) extreme cold weather pieces for (gloves, mitts, hats, long johns) who has told me that the hardest part of the body to design good gear for is the feet.

And when you need something quite specialized, like a bicycling shoe, MTB style, w a clip in pedal…paddling upriver, you can make it work, but not well.

Hope that battery mod works out for you.