DIY Heated Jacket

[cycleops612]

A tip I would give u young uns is you only get one back, and it isnt even designed to be upright, let alone hitting potholes at speed with a heavy back pack e.g.

A good general rule (trust me, a bad back is a bitch and semi inevitable in time), is keep what weight u can on the bike, not u person.

So if the battery u have in mind is a lump, consider putting it on the bike and plugging the jacket in when riding.

others have said, worry about warming the torso, and the extremities will take care of themselves. Sounds right. But electric gloves would appeal in real cold all the same. If u agree, it seems wise to consider them together so they at least share a battery.

 

[motomech]

You couldn't mean the batteries I'm carrying in my jacket.
They are about the size of a Mars Bar,.....
or the size a Mars Bar used to be

 

[dozentrio]

I carried my main bike battery in my backpack for a while. At first it was SLA too. I quickly learned that was a bad idea. Even a LiPo pack quickly gets painful. The convenience isn't worth it, definitely at least sling your battery over the front handle-bars in some kind of baggage carrier until you find a better solution

 

[MrDude_1]

a bad back is a bitch and semi inevitable in time

strangely.. how do you get a good strong back and keep it strong? Lift heavy weights. :lol:

 

[motomech]

a bad back is a bitch and semi inevitable in time

strangely.. how do you get a good strong back and keep it strong? Lift heavy weights. :lol:

Always ride motorcycles w/ the clipons ABOVE the fork crown :lol:

Seriously, I'm 65 and always worked at physical jobs and don't have any back problems. But I learned @ a young age to lift w/ my legs, not my back.

 

[MrDude_1]

a bad back is a bitch and semi inevitable in time

strangely.. how do you get a good strong back and keep it strong? Lift heavy weights. :lol:

Always ride motorcycles w/ the clipons ABOVE the fork crown :lol:

Seriously, I'm 65 and always worked at physical jobs and don't have any back problems. But I learned @ a young age to lift w/ my legs, not my back.

Scooby is so screwed then... lol.

 

[cycleops612]

a bad back is a bitch and semi inevitable in time

strangely.. how do you get a good strong back and keep it strong? Lift heavy weights. :lol:

Always ride motorcycles w/ the clipons ABOVE the fork crown :lol:

Seriously, I'm 65 and always worked at physical jobs and don't have any back problems. But I learned @ a young age to lift w/ my legs, not my back.

Correct. Same. I had a furniture moving biz. Thats tough. But a backpack on a bike has caused me grief. Dunno the math, but not hard for a 2kg weight to become a 2kg x ?? shock to a spine hitting a pothole fast.

No need to get religious about a few ounces, but a good general rule.

e.g, i like a helmet light, but no way would i put a battery there. Then we are talking REALLY fragile necks.

 

[Mündawg]

You couldn't mean the batteries I'm carrying in my jacket.
They are about the size of a Mars Bar,.....
or the size a Mars Bar used to be

exactly what i was thinking. Thanks OP for the link i plan to make one of these jackets soon.

 

[markz]

I just bought 5 pads from Sparkfun, great deal on shipping from USA to Canada, only ~$4.50usd doesnt matter if you buy one or 5 plus $4.95usd per pad. I cant wait for them to come in as we just got our first dump of snow and the cold weather is here. I just hope we get a white Christmas this year.

I will try some alternative DIY idea's. Ribbon cable was mentioned somewhere on E.S., I will try that along with vaping NiChrome wire or stainless steel wire sewed into cheap clothing.

 

[cycleops612]

I just bought 5 pads from Sparkfun, great deal on shipping from USA to Canada, only ~$4.50usd doesnt matter if you buy one or 5 plus $4.95usd per pad. I cant wait for them to come in as we just got our first dump of snow and the cold weather is here. I just hope we get a white Christmas this year.

I will try some alternative DIY idea's. Ribbon cable was mentioned somewhere on E.S., I will try that along with vaping NiChrome wire or stainless steel wire sewed into cheap clothing.

Wire from an old electric blanket? Even snip up a cheap new one? I think I paid $7 for one from china ages ago.

 

[amberwolf]

It's been used before; look up the other threads on this basic topic and you'll find my posts on that (and other people's too). Goodwill or other thrift stores are a good source for the blankets or heating pads.

 

[DrkAngel]

I think I'll be using waterproof led strips.
Soft flexible and durable!
Comes in various wattages, from 12V ~2a per 5m to 12V ~5A per 5m
3514
3528
5050
5630
Can also be throttled down with 2s instead of 3s or regulated with 7 wattage digital dimmer for $1.

Yeah, I know, about 20% energy "wasted" as light.
Red available for slightly more heat, can even wrap the tail end around head as safety marker, digital dimmer has blinking function also!

 

[markz]

Have you found a good price on LED strips?

I think I'll be using waterproof led strips.
Soft flexible and durable!
Comes in various wattages, from 12V ~2a per 5m to 12V ~5A per 5m
3514
3528
5050
5630
Can also be throttled down with 2s instead of 3s or regulated with 7 wattage digital dimmer for $1.

Yeah, I know, about 20% energy "wasted" as light.
Red available for slightly more heat, can even wrap the tail end around head as safety marker, digital dimmer has blinking function also!

 

[Ykick]

Have you found a good price on LED strips?

Although I haven’t used them for heated clothing I bought some of these LED strips for my RV and model airplane:



http://www.ebay.com/itm/281420460647?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

There's metal on the backside and running 3S they can get hot enough to slightly melt styrofoam. I used crude standoff's in my plane to prevent any meltdown.

Here’s a pic of the plane - flies like a lantern in the sky:

View attachment 1

This device comes in very handy to control them for the strips I put inside my coach/RV.

http://www.ebay.com/itm/261978878990?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT

 

[DrkAngel]

Much better prices on auctions ... sometimes, but this is what I got recently.

5 meter - $7

12A dimmer flasher controller - $1.14

Mounted red around rear rail of rack, added controller in flash mode, from 12V converter tacked into battery >> controller On/Off switch.

 

[cal3thousand]

I bought these recently for $3.50 a pair. Together, from a 5V powerbank, 2 pads draws ~10W. That's not going to keep you too toasty, but I'm in So Cal.

50W = 5 units < $20. 5V buck adapter or powerbank gets you a cheap DIY heated jacket.

I'm thinking about rolling these up inside my handle bars to see how they do. I might have to try and shove 2 into one side for 10W per grip.

 

[markz]

Thats a great idea for heating handlebars.

 

[cycleops612]

just sayin, the old fashioned concept on insulation works too.

an odd observation that may help?

being a messy etc. guy, as i repeatedly traversed my strewn floor barefoot, there was one patch my foot was instantly warm, strikingly so.

it was a piece of ~:

https://www.google.com.au/imgres?imgurl=http%3A%2F%2Fwww.willardpackaging.com%2Fimages%2Fastro-foam_black_bkgd_folded.jpg&imgrefurl=http%3A%2F%2Flikesuccess.com%2Ftopics%2F14167%2Ffoam&docid=QYQA2Y4VPGnyIM&tbnid=91aj9awfMnbLyM%3A&vet=1&w=483&h=400&bih=704&biw=1421&q=packing%20sheet%20foam&ved=0ahUKEwjn9YrmnvvQAhUJhbwKHUnSCB0QMwgcKAEwAQ&iact=mrc&uact=8

a ~3mm thin white foam, often used as protective shipping wrapping.

at worst, it may be a way of improvising ~warmer attire if you get caught short. Available in most good dumpsters near you.

And why is it we messy guys have to make all the great discoveries like penicillin and this? We are carrying all you anal people.

 

[motomech]

I bought these recently for $3.50 a pair. Together, from a 5V powerbank, 2 pads draws ~10W. That's not going to keep you too toasty, but I'm in So Cal.

50W = 5 units < $20. 5V buck adapter or powerbank gets you a cheap DIY heated jacket.

I'm thinking about rolling these up inside my handle bars to see how they do. I might have to try and shove 2 into one side for 10W per grip.

I'm thinking about rolling these up inside my handle bars to see how they do. I might have to try and shove 2 into one side for 10W per grip.

You won't feel a thing. The long h.bar and open internal space just absorbs the heat.
I just did my grips w/ dedicated grip heaters which are much more HD than the Spark Fun pads;
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B018K7NXWG/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o05_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
Just for kicks, I rolled one up, stuck it inside the bar and ran it on 3S LiPoly, nothing really. Then I tried 6S, a little bit warm. And this is without a grip. Then I wrapped the bar. w/ the kit provided insulating tape, wrapped the heater grid around the outside and forced a standard "locking" type MTB grip over it(this would have destroyed the Spark Fun pads). On 3S it was a little but warm, so I tried 6S and it got too hot. The MTB grip has a bonded plastic tube inside that delays the heat transfer and then holds the heat which I did not like, so I went with some Grab-On grips;
https://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00AWRQXIY/ref=oh_aui_detailpage_o06_s00?ie=UTF8&psc=1
After soaking them in water, they slipped on easily and on 6S, they are nice and toasty. And I really like the feel of the Grab-Ons. I did not use the shrink-fit tubes supplied in the grip heater kit because they are stupidly large and I didn't use the 2-level switch either.

 

[amberwolf]

Alternately, you can put wind-guards (like bushguards, with different intent) on the bars, and by keeping the wind off your hands it will help keep from carrying the heat away in the first place.

If you do it like Bluegoatwoods did it, then there's little space for air to get in or out, so any warmth in there stays better.
https://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=6&t=36427&p=527738

If you do it like I did it, it's less effective but easier to get your hands off the grips quickly for whatever reason you may have. Mine have worked well enough for the minimal cold here for the last 3 years; they also help with rain--keeping it off of my hands and the trhottles/ebrakes, which previously I would sometimes have issues with while wet.
https://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=12500&p=832126&hilit=crazybike2+cover#p832126

 

[DAND214]

I did the guards with 2 liter pop bottles. Cut them in half and tie wraped them to the bars. Not pretty but they worked!

Dan

 

[markz]

Grab On grips, are the foam ones with a little give to them. I never tried those before, I always thought they were for Walmart bikes and stuff, just cheap. But if they transfer heat well then why not.

 

[amberwolf]

I did the guards with 2 liter pop bottles. Cut them in half and tie wraped them to the bars.

I did that too, with Delta Tripper, before I did it on CB2; didn't work as well as the coroplast ones though the bottles were easier to make into guards:
https://endless-sphere.com/forums/viewtopic.php?f=2&t=22720&hilit=delta+tripper&start=100#p726894

 

[cycleops612]

A quaint reference i saw in a ~1950 UK set period novel, was of the devoted father packing hot water bottles in the Jag to pick up his daughter from the village station.

Since i am at it, another book mentioned that up to 5 hp (3.65kw~) cars got one rate of petrol ration, and up to 8 hp cars got another.

holy cow. a corolla is 80 kw here in oz. Yet clearly 5 hp/3.6kw will transport 4 or more passengers. Before that, a family buggy presumably used one or two HP .

 

[Punx0r]

Those HP ratings were a legacy for taxation purposes, actual engine power would have been many times that.

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tax_horsepower