You don't need heated clothing, just a smart use of layers. When I was there last August, it was +6C at Nordkapp itself. September to October seems to be about the same in terms of average temperatures - but be careful, it's not impossible to get snow and ice that early in the season, especially if you are riding through inland Sweden or Finland. (The Norwegian coastline is warmer than one might think, because of the Gulfstream.)

I had a textile touring suit with the thermal lining, a softshell/fleece under it, and thermal underwear. And it was fine. The biggest problem was keeping my hands warm, and woolen glove liners under my moto gloves worked for that.

Moose mitts for your hands. I don't even bring anything heavier than summer-weight gloves when I've got Moose Mitts. Don't bother with the cheap imitations.

I've never used heated clothing or grips, and I've survived so far. But I've got a practiced ability to absorb suffering, and I have gotten hypothermic--not to mention I've taken expensive hotel rooms of pure desperation to warm up and dry my gear.

What's convinced me not to bother with the plug-in clothing is that everyone I meet who uses it talks about how wonderful it is....or was, before this connector or that one failed. Last thing I need is one more potential point of failure to stress over.

We now return you to your regularly scheduled programming.

FWIW, we don't - ever - travel without heated vests. When you're seriously cold, your BRAIN stops working well, long before noticeable hypothermia sets in, so you're NOT SAFE TO RIDE. Either stop, or buy a warm layer or three as needed, OR just plug in.

Heated vests are compact, have a bit of a layer effect even when not plugged in, and make a MASSIVE difference in pleasure on the road. What WAS unpleasant, is now just fine with a little heat. And personal preference matters too - Susan is usually on HIGH on the back behind me, and I'm on half or a quarter. We love the rheostat system that Warm'n'Safe uses - mines even a remote, and works a treat - I can mount it up front with just velcro, with no wires, and just dial in the heat I want.

Another important tidbit when people say "I was fine without...etc." is the question of a fairing vs naked bike.
HUGE difference to your upper body.
A Boxer twin vs a single - HUGE difference to your feet.
Hand protectors or not - HUGE difference to your need for a heated grip or gloves.

Personally, heated grips and a vest is fine. We've ridden in below freezing with that and, from the inside out, a light synthetic long sleeved undershirt, t-shirt, electric vest, heavy warm fleece layer, and riding jacket with waterpoof liner. Note that's on a faired bike, (both our R80G/S with handlebar fairing and 1200GSA with a smaller than standard screen), with hand guards.

Re failures - I've been using heated kit since 1981, and have never had a failure while riding. I've seen connectors fraying and fixed them BEFORE they fail, but even that is rare - in fact one was on a 30 year old vest!

BIG TIP: You WILL fail to remember you're plugged in, and get off the bike while connected, giving the connectors a big yank and stress! So when mounting the cable, make sure 15cm / 6" dangles freely, not fixed, so that when you get off the wire just straightens out and unplugs itself nicely.

Note that when new, the SAE connector many use is very tight, so keep the connector lubed with silicone so that it's easy to self-disconnect.The other type isn't usually an issue, but make sure it's easy.
hope that helps!

__________________
Grant Johnson
Seek, and ye shall find.
------------------------
Inspiring, Informing and Connecting travellers since 1997!
www.HorizonsUnlimited.com

It's also worth mentioning the Exotogg inflatable vest (https://exotogg.com) plays nicely with heated gear, essentially keeping the heat in where you need it. You can turn down your electric gear, and if anything bad happens electrically, you have an emergency backup so that you don't die.