With minimal seams and no zip, the Madison DTE Stellar Tech Isoler Thermal Leg Warmers With DWR are comfortable to wear and keep you pleasingly warm, but the water-repelling treatment is a little lacklustre.
Check out more options in our guide to the best arm and leg warmers for cycling.
Including a DWR (durable water repellent) coating is a nice touch for sprinklings of rain and puddles, but here I don’t think it’s a feature to base your buying decision on, as I just don’t think it does much to keep you any drier than those without. I’ve worn these in pretty grimy and soggy conditions, and while they could shrug off the occasional small puddle splash, they got saturated pretty quickly when riding through any real puddles or from constant spray off the roads.
On dry days, though, they do keep you nicely warm. They’re at the thicker end of the scale, and work well when the weather is colder rather than those transitional days where you might want your legs covered for some of your ride and then exposed for other bits.
They do best in temperatures around the higher single digits into the lower double digits, in my opinion, keeping me pleasantly warm in that range.
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I’ve worn them for up to seven hours on the bike and have been impressed by the comfort they offer. With just a couple of seams, one each side, there’s less chance of any chafing compared with designs made with more panels.
This pairs nicely with the thick silicone gripper at the top, which is comfortable against the skin yet grippy. I had no issues with them not staying up, even when totally saturated.
The length worked well for me, too; I have relatively short legs for my height, and found these long enough to cover everything, without being too long.
They also include a substantial amount of reflective material at the bottom to aid visibility throughout the darker days, although when riding in poor conditions I found that muck tended to flick up off the road and pretty much cover these sections.
Value
At £29.99, these are pretty well priced, especially with features such as the nice big gripper and reflective sections.
Gorewear’s Shield leg warmers, for example, come in at £49.99, but then they use Gore-Tex Infinium material, which Ed said helped to keep him dry, so worked a bit better than the water resistance here.
George was also impressed with the GripGrab AquaRepel 2 warmers‘ ability to keep water out, but at £65 they come in at more than twice the price of the Madisons.
They are undercut by Decathlon’s Van Rysel Cold Weather Cycling Leg Warmers, though, which are just £19.99. We haven’t tried those, but Stu was very impressed with the Van Rysel Cool Weather knee warmers.
Conclusion
Overall, these warmers do a decent job of helping to keep you warm and clean when out in grim weather. The water resistance is a bit underwhelming, but for the money they’re not a bad option, and the reflective sections are a bonus – before they get too splattered.
Verdict
Comfy and warm with a good fit, but the DWR treatment doesn’t add a lot
Make and model: Madison DTE Stellar Tech Isoler Thermal Leg Warmers With DWR
Tell us what the product is for
Madison says: ‘Thermal cycling leg warmer with explosive reflectivity for maximum visibility in low light conditions. Features exceptional next to skin fit and DWR to repel spray and showers’
Tell us some more about the technical aspects of the product?
Madison lists:
For those in between days when the weather can’t make its mind up, Madison DTE thermal Roubaix warmers are the answer
Great for warming up before events or stuffing in your pocket for emergencies on the Sunday ride
The brushed Isoler thermal Roubaix fabric gives you the feeling of protective comfort when the temperature drops
4-way stretch material enables a close and smooth fit
The DWR water resistant coating helps repel spray and light showers
Flatlock stitching and single seam eliminates any unwanted chafing
Lower portion of the sleeve has Stellar Tech reflective detailing to enhance low light visibility
Wide silicone grippers helps keep the warmer in place
Main fabric; 85% Polyester / 15% Elastane coated with C6 DWR coating
Limited lifetime warranty
Rate the product for quality of construction:
9/10
A nice thick gripper, and no sign of wear.
Rate the product for performance:
6/10
They keep you warm but the DWR coating doesn’t really do much – I’m not convinced they keep you much drier than those without.
Rate the product for durability:
7/10
No early signs of damage or wear.
Rate the product for fit:
8/10
A comfy fit without being baggy or too tight, and a nice length for me.
Rate the product for sizing:
8/10
Rate the product for weight:
6/10
They’re thicker than the average leg warmer, so weigh a litle more as a consequence.
Rate the product for comfort:
8/10
The thick gripper and pleasant material choice kept me comfy for hours on end.
Rate the product for value:
5/10
They’re not bad value compared with others, but would score higher here if the DWR treatment worked better.
How easy is the product to care for? How did it respond to being washed?
Washing has been easy with no issues.
Tell us how the product performed overall when used for its designed purpose
The DWR isn’t great, and they don’t shrug off much water, but otherwise they’re pleasant and keep you nicely warm.
Tell us what you particularly liked about the product
I like the thick gripper, and the warmth.
Tell us what you particularly disliked about the product
The DWR is pretty pointless.
How does the price compare to that of similar products in the market, including ones recently tested on road.cc?
They’re at the cheaper end – though more money can bring more protection.
Did you enjoy using the product? Yes
Would you consider buying the product? Yes
Would you recommend the product to a friend? As long as they realise they won’t keep their legs dry, then yes.
Use this box to explain your overall score
They’re pretty good; comfy and warm, if not very good at keeping you dry. The price is still good for what you get, though.
Age: 24
I usually ride: Storck Aerfast My best bike is:
I’ve been riding for: 10-20 years I ride: Every day I would class myself as: Semi pro
I regularly do the following types of riding: road racing, commuting, touring, club rides, fixed/singlespeed, mtb,
