Fox Ranger Fire glove review
Fox's Ranger Fire gloves tackle winter weather and cut the chill without cleaning out the cash drawer.
Review Rating
Basics
Temperature Rating: not available
Weatherproofing: water-resistant palm
Sizing: M’s S-XL, W’s S-L
Pros
available in men’s and women’s; gripper gives a solid connection with brakes and shifters; thumb nose wipe
Cons
touch screen fingers don’t work; hard to get on
$36
Fox
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It is possible to get a great pair of cold weather gloves for under $40. The Fox Ranger Fire gloves are warm enough for most rides, even cold and snowy deep-winter rides. They cut the wind, and they don’t slide around in rain or a wintry mix. But the touchscreen fingers didn’t work.
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For a lot of rides, I don’t want an ultra-insulated full winter glove; I want hand protection that takes the chill off better than the thin, meshy gloves I ride with when it’s warm out. And the price of many cold-season bike gloves chafes me when I just need an extra layer, or two, between me and rain, wind, and cold.
Fox created exactly this with its Ranger Fire glove. The water-resistant palm and amply-siliconed fingers give me a confident grip on the bars, while the stretch cuff seals out the weather. Brushed fleece under a tightly-woven outer fabric provides warmth. Fox sewed a large, glove-friendly loop at the wrist that helps when pulling these gloves on, but it is a tight squeeze to get my hands into them.
Supposedly, the Ranger Fire gloves have conductive threads in the forefinger and thumb for touchscreen compatibility, but I’m not able to get my iPhone to respond. This is of course a bummer, yet Fox is hardly the only company with this problem. Several winter gloves I tested this season claimed to have this touchscreen compatibility, yet all but a select few fell flat when it came time to actually answer phone calls.
The Ranger Fire Gloves are made by a mountain bike-focused brand, but they are as good for road and gravel as dirt and snow. The construction allows for plenty of maneuverability and I’m easily able to grip flat bars and hoods on drop bars. That comes in handy when it’s time to grip brake levers, especially in cold conditions.
In deep winter when I am riding with pogies, these are the perfect glove once I get my blood flowing. The Ranger Fire gloves can take some effort to get on, but once they’re on, the fit wonderfully. I love the palm and finger grippers, but if Fox wants to claim smartphone compatibility here, the conductive threads in the fingers need work.