Gloves.

**James Deuce** · 21st January 2009, 11:59

What the hell is up with gloves?

5 years ago I bought a pair of XL Orina winter gloves. They're warm, mostly water proof (and still warm when they're not) but can only be used in sub-Antarctic conditions. Anything over 14-15 C and your hands are uncomfortably hot. Best of all, they fit. They haven't worn appreciably either.

I have a pair of Minotaur summer gloves I bought from TonyB. They almost fit, the shortness in the palm means the wrist closure doesn't quite meet at my wrist. They are 2XLs and bought 2-3 years ago. Just starting to wear out, and they've been great. Really good internal seams and bags of feel at the controls.

I bought a pair of 1tonne 3XLs and they are WAY smaller than the Orina XLs. My fingers barely fit in the glove fingers and the wrist closure is mid-palm. I've found this with EVERY pair of gloves I've tried from EVERY manufacturer I can find with their 2XL's. I was really excited about finding someone bringing 3XLs into the country only to find they are between XL and 2XL compared to most other manufacturers. They are lovely looking gloves but I could tell they were too small from the size of the envelope they turned up in, let alone trying to put them on.

What the hell am I going to do? My hands aren't THAT big, but I can't find comfortable gloves anywhere. Quasi's 2XLs are about the same size as the 1tonne 3XL gloves.

Totally screwed. Does anyone have any sensible suggestions for summer gloves that are all leather or a leather kevlar combo, with knuckle protection that isn't going to cost me more than $500? I want decent protection, not string vests for the hands or fingerless chaps for Mrs Palmer.

How can the sizing get so screwed up in such a short period of time? Are bike gear manufacturers so greedy that in moving all their production to Asia/SE-Asia they've ignored things like quality control and the simple fact that 150 years of excessive available food quantities have made us "western" types bigger than people on even healthy lo-calorie diets, let alone subsistence diets?

**vifferman** · 21st January 2009, 12:12

What brands have you tried, Jim? (Bet he says, "All of them!")
I don't envy you - I suspect I have normal-sized hands, as the only trouble I've had is with small variations in size left to right, due to poor QC, the odd fingers being a bit long, and the wrist closure not being on the wrist but creeping up onto the palm.
I've had lots of brands of gloves (no-name, AGV, Spidi, Teknic, Held, RJays, etc.) and my favourites are still Spidi (current waterproof/winter gloves) and Held (rest of the year). RJays quality was abolsute shit, and the worst gloves I've ever owned were some Orina waterproofs: feel apart at the seams in normal (occasional!) use, and were horribly sweaty.

**jrandom** · 21st January 2009, 12:17

I've spent the last three years riding through summer in a pair of NEO leather gloves that cost me about $90 at Mt Eden MC.

After several bins they've finally worn through enough that they didn't feel sufficiently protective, so I went looking and ended up getting another pair of NEOs.

I don't have them here at work and I forget the exact model name, it's the usual silly sort of deal like 'Munter' or 'Hammerer' or 'Homosexual Aggressor' or something, but they're kangaroo leather with carbon fibre knuckle armour, and were only $95 at Cycletreads. The kangaroo skin is beautiful to wear; light and supple, wonderful feel to it.

I was quite prepared to spend twice that much, but those really were the nicest gloves I could find.

The size M fits my dainty paws like a charm, so I'd suspect that the L or XL might be good for your mitts. Go check them out!

**James Deuce** · 21st January 2009, 12:19

Neo don't make anything big enough, but thanks for the thought.

There's actually sod all real difference between XL and 2XL for most of them there glove manufacturing varmints.

**James Deuce** · 21st January 2009, 12:21

Originally Posted by vifferman

What brands have you tried, Jim? (Bet he says, "All of them!")

Pretty much. If there's a 2XL on the rack I've tried it.

**Hitcher** · 21st January 2009, 12:26

I too have noted glove "shrinkage", but not to the same extent as James. I routinely by 3XL gloves now when previously I could find 2XLs that fitted well.

My new summer gloves are Teknic (very nice too, BTW). My previous ones were RJays, but they didn't meet the "knuckle armour" criteria listed above.

I suspect I shall be up for a new pair of winter gloves soon, as my beloved Clovers are starting to wear.

**ManDownUnder** · 21st January 2009, 12:28

I got a pair of Quasi gloves (XL) and they were too tight to start with, I persisted and about 2 weeks later (I'm guessing... 12 hours riding time?) they were a good fit, and now they're perfect.

It's not that initial tightness you're talking about is it?

**James Deuce** · 21st January 2009, 12:54

No, they simply aren't long enough. Tightness doesn't worry me but the heel of the glove never comes down past the bottom third of my hand and the fingers aren't long enough, even taking into account the stretch factor. The webs of my fingers don't meet the base of the glove's fingers for instance.

**TerminalAddict** · 21st January 2009, 13:02

seems to be a nation wide problem

I used to buy medium gloves, now I buy large gloves, and the fingers are inevitably a little too long

**yungatart** · 21st January 2009, 13:03

I have the opposite problem, my fingers are always too short, as is my palm and then my left hand is considerably larger than my right..
I hate shopping for gloves and boots/shoes!

**vifferman** · 21st January 2009, 13:16

While we're whinging/wittering on about Paw Protectors, although I've had some gloves fall apart by dint of threads unsewing themselves, most of my gloves have had to be sent to the Big Paw Protector Bin In The Sky solely because the fingertips (especially the left thumb) have worn through during normal use. I've glued/sewed new bits on a couple of them, but it looks naff.
(I've NEVER ever (no, not ever) binned a pair of gloves to death. In fact, I dunno if I can remember my hands/gloves ever touching down during a bin).

Anyway, why can't gloves be a bit more durable? Armour and padding and Flash Features is all Well & Goode (Inc.), and I actually enjoy buying New Stuff, but it irks having to toss a pair of glubs (even if it is only into the back of my bike gear cupboard) just because the thumb has extra ventilation.
Why isn't there a :spudwhat: emoticodweebicon any more, to emblazon these questions with?
Why do I keep asking about the spuddy thingie?

**Str8 Jacket** · 21st January 2009, 13:20

Originally Posted by James Deuce

The webs of my fingers don't meet the base of the glove's fingers for instance.

OMG, you have ducks feet for fingers?!?!

**Hitcher** · 21st January 2009, 15:27

I suspect that this problem comes with getting apparel made by inadequately breifed and supervised Asians. RM Williams and Icebreaker gear has suffered a similar fate since manufacture stopped in Australia and New Zealand respectively. Product managers should ask the question as to what they're trading off in return for things being manufactured in a low-wage economy.

**vifferman** · 21st January 2009, 15:37

Originally Posted by Hitcher

Product managers should ask the question as to what they're trading off in return for things being manufactured in a low-wage economy.

They don't ask - just enjoy the increased profit margins.
As for Icebreaker stuff - I've bought all mine (and the wife's, son's mother-in-law's) from the outlet store down't'road. Nowt wrong with any of it, even though it's supposedly seconds or ends-of-line. Oh OK, my shirt doesn't have an Icebreaker logo on it, coz some 8-year-old Chinese dwarf forgot to do it, but otherwise I'm happy. (About my clothes, at least...)