# What sailing gloves do you wear?



## modul8 (Oct 26, 2008)

looking to buy some sailing gloves. 
What are your recommendations?
Thanks


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## lapworth (Dec 19, 2008)

I don't use gloves usually because I only have 24' sloop other wise I just use cheep work gloves. I am kind of new to sailing you think gloves matter ?


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## mgmhead (Jan 14, 2007)

Sailing gloves, Harken with leather palms and open finger tips. Onboard work gloves, all leather short cuff, prop and shaft cleaning gloves (in water) I wear oyster shucking gloves, good grip and great protection from barnacle cuts.


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## FarCry (Apr 21, 2007)

Sailing gloves are Gill short fingers. Harken gloves do not seem to be cut to fit my hands very well and don't have enough ventilation for most days on the water here. They are my spare pair. My Gills are on their third season, which will be their last.

I burned up a pair of off brand gloves in one race. So much for saving money.


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## mgmhead (Jan 14, 2007)

FarCry said:


> I burned up a pair of off brand gloves in one race. So much for saving money.


You weren't saving money...you were saving skin :laugher


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## sailingdog (Mar 19, 2006)

Most of the time I wear JetPilot brand jetski gloves. They're about the best gloves I've found for sailing.


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## genieskip (Jan 1, 2008)

I have never been comfortable with gloves. I just get sore hands the first few days out.


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## Freesail99 (Feb 13, 2006)

I have a pair of gills, 3/4 finger.


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## pdqaltair (Nov 14, 2008)

*Atlas Fit Work Gloves*

I got the tip from some high-end dingy sailors, that they gave better wet line grip than any other glove. Simply clip the finger tips where you like - because the tips are rubber coated, they won't fray.

I have carpal tunnel problems and grip problems, so for me they are a god send. They have shortcomings:
* They don't wear well. You may go through several pairs a season. Trimming hard and letting the rope through your hands they may not last a few races. Who cares.
* They grip too much... sometimes. They can't be beat for hauling an anchor line or jumping a halyard, but coiling line and delicate trimming require a bit of re-learning. A lighter touch.
* They're not cool looking...
* A touch of gas or fuel ruins them. Give them the pitch.

but on the plus side:
* They are cool.
* They are cheap. Perhaps $5.50, but free from the office
* Plenty for visitors.
* Good for fishing. Who would want to land a bleeding fish with high $$ gloves? The stink lingers in leather but rinses out of these.

Also, if you visit a commercial fisherman's store you will find they make 2 progressively warmer models for the winter. Not cool. Leave the fingers in.

After using these for a bit I gave all my high-end gloves away. I did keep the nice Gore-tex winter gloves!


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## serah (Jan 26, 2009)

*MEC neoprene gloves*

In warm weather, I have a pair of fingerless racing gloves I won from my old sailing club. Forget the brand right now. Ok, except that as the palms aren't leather, but some sort of grippy material (they had an almost sandpaper like texture when I won them, most of which is gone now) Would recommend leather palms 

For cold weather sailing, I actually wear my MEC kayaking gloves- full fingered, neoprene backs and cuffs, with leather palms and fingers with sticky little pads printed on the leather. The pads are peeling off a bit, but as a whole, they've held up well, even after two full seasons. We raced for 6 hours last Sunday in the freezing rain and snow, and I was the only one on board with hands that weren't completely numb.  The fancy gloves that are supposed to keep your hands dry never did for me. I've settled for wet but warm hands. Even better is that I've found that I can take these gloves off for 5 minutes, stick them in the armpits of my cruiser suit, and they're toasty to put back on. Still wet, but warm at least.

They're not fancy, but they were cheap, and they work well.


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## Maine Sail (Jan 6, 2003)

*When racing...*

When racing I use a pair of SAS Safety, Mechanics Pro model gloves. I've tried many gloves but these allow me to do most everything I can do with bare hands only with gloves on. Tying knots etc. etc. is fairly easy with these. Plus they were dirt cheap at about $13.00... Some prefer open finger I prefer closed provided they give a good fit..

*SAS Gloves*


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## CLucas (Feb 10, 2007)

Gill 3/4 finger for me -- they have a kevlar palm that has definitely saved me some skin on several occasions. WM often has their house brand on sale for cheap -- they're okay, but the quality of workmanship and materials is definitely noticeable. Besides gloves for the Admiral and my oldest daughter, I keep at least one extra pair on board for guests/crew (the WM ones are cheap enough).


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## pdqaltair (Nov 14, 2008)

*Before I went disposable, Ronstan Amara Sticky Race Gloves, 3 finger.*

The tacky surface only lasts a season, but the gloves last seasons. Still good for mowing the grass. Clearly I have a taste for gloves with increased grip. It really cuts down on hand fatigue, for me.

Amara does not wear as well as thick leather, but as long as there are multiple layers in the key areas, it holds in there until the rest of the glove is tired. Avoiding burning up gloves is mostly a matter of control. Watch the fingers near winches and the like! Gloves won't help.


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## floatsome (Jul 5, 2008)

This always ends up being highly personal. Seems to me that most local cruiser/racers go through a variety of gloves over the years and then finally find something they like, so start with anything that protects skin, has a good grip and allows knot management. When they don't work out, retire them to the guest bin and try something else.

Teenage kids lose theirs regularly, so parents of teen sailors get to experiment with various models. 

For the Grand Banks north of the Gulf Stream on a night shift at the helm: cotton liner gloves inside heavy long-sleeved rubber green fisherman's gloves. Carry a stack of the liner gloves so a dry pair is always available. Wool takes too long to dry out on a boat at sea.


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## zz4gta (Aug 15, 2007)

Atlas for the cheapies and guests, olympic dingy sailors use them for a reason. However, I like the harkens for grip (even though the back of the hand material falls apart). Currently I'm using Gill's kevlar jobbies, they're pretty stiff and don't grip as well as harken when dry, if you put a little water on em they grip better. The gills have very little wear on em. I think I'll try the Gill Pro's after these give out, but they're a little more pricey. 

People who don't wear gloves amaze me. It's cheap insurance to keep your hands from being destroyed.


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## Valiente (Jun 16, 2006)

I use MEC half-finger bicycle gloves in the summer, and in the winter I use full finger bike gloves with wool "flip" top mittens and leather palms. I have a pair of neoprene diver's gloves if I have to fish stuff out of the water in April or November. I also have long, gauntlet-style heavy chemical-resistant gloves for cleaning up caustic or toxic goo aboard, and a bunch of vet's latex gloves for painting and assorted mucky jobs.

I have been known to wear "grippy dot" gardening gloves while racing, because at $1.99 a pair, I happily cut down the fingers and let the dots shear off on fast-moving line. Basically, though, I find that much of the gear I have for four-season bicycling suffices for Lake Ontario sailing, like a full Goretex rain suit with a wool sweater, a fleece turtleneck and a wicking T-shirt underneath.

I usually only get cold driving powerboats and workboats, however. Not enough movement.

I wear Thinsulate watch caps under my bike helmet. Basically, I find if you


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## denverd0n (Jun 20, 2008)

Don't check out Anchor Gloves. The company owner spams websites by reviving 4-year-old threads to post glowing reviews, without revealing his affiliation.


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## hellosailor (Apr 11, 2006)

Best gloves I ever had were Kevlar short-fingers from the Mystic Seaport Museum, who haven't offered them in a long time. But you can buy pretty much the same thing as "kevlar trash handling gloves" in the big hardware stores. Light yellow Kevlar knit that outlasts every sailing glove, and you can always cut off three fingertips if you don't mind either raveled edges or finishing them.

They never harden up, they don't shrink, they never burn through from friction. They don't go well with dress whites, but they're great for working the boat.


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## newhaul (Feb 19, 2010)

Yep this is an old post I looked at the date and thought there was something not right this is n issue I have seen many times over the years here there should be a way for the mods to lock post ion to old posts say over a year old its to easy to start new thread not to have this option and they can just reference older thread. Personally I use cheap work gloves from my trucking days about two bucks a lair when handling my anchor a and chain to protect my hands from cuts.


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## hellosailor (Apr 11, 2006)

"there should be a way for the mods to lock post ion to old posts say over a year old "
Apparently there is no such option in any of the commercially available forum softwares. Which means the mods would have to manually flag and troll every thread in order to lock out the old ones. Which might in turn might not always be a good idea either.


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## newhaul (Feb 19, 2010)

I agree it would be nice though maybe something to sugest to the programmers .


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## Donna_F (Nov 7, 2005)

hellosailor said:


> "there should be a way for the mods to lock post ion to old posts say over a year old "
> Apparently there is no such option in any of the commercially available forum softwares. Which means the mods would have to manually flag and troll every thread in order to lock out the old ones. Which might in turn might not always be a good idea either.


Allowing some threads to be revived and brought to the surface is sometimes beneficial depending on the topic.

The mods have discussed closing "crew wanted" threads where the OP has set a clear date and it is obvious that, three years (or whenever) later, there is no point in anyone trying to respond to it.


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## Faster (Sep 13, 2005)

Locking old threads has been discussed.. it would be a manual function at this stage; not a big deal but naturally some would be 'missed' or lost track of.

OTOH occasionally someone will come along with a new slant, suggestion, or valid comment and the thread can revive itself for a time - not always a bad thing. Locking it would have prevented that, though of course a new thread could be started on the same topic if that was the case...

Revival of seriously old threads often points to scammers, and it can make them easier for us to spot...

So.... could go either way


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## Classic30 (Aug 29, 2007)

Faster said:


> Locking old threads has been discussed.. it would be a manual function at this stage; not a big deal but naturally some would be 'missed' or lost track of.
> 
> OTOH occasionally someone will come along with a new slant, suggestion, or valid comment and the thread can revive itself for a time - not always a bad thing. Locking it would have prevented that, though of course a new thread could be started on the same topic if that was the case...


I, for one, agree with that.

Aside from "Crew Wanted" and "Merry Christmas"-type threads with obvious use-by dates, locking a thread simply because it's old could stop the OP (if he/she is still around) from responding to fresh info, simply because they didn't see the new thread - in amongst the noise. So, keep it as is, I say. 

..and on the topic of sailing gloves: Ever since I had the skin of all of my fingertips torn off during a spinnaker hoist when they guy tailing lost his footing and let the halyard fly, I don't wear anything other than the full-finger variety.

For general cruising I guess the cut-off style are fine, but if you're on a race boat - you've been warned!


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## Cruiser2B (Jan 6, 2011)

I use the Mechanics type gloves, very flexible and protective leather in palm and finger area. These are full finger. Cheap and available anywhere.

Good thread...no need to lock this oldie


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## genieskip (Jan 1, 2008)

Never wore gloves.Probably never will


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## Don L (Aug 8, 2008)

there's sailing gloves, and people buy them?

wow what is the world coming to


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## Classic30 (Aug 29, 2007)

Don0190 said:


> there's sailing gloves, and people buy them?
> 
> wow what is the world coming to


Perhaps you didn't notice the world of Yacht Racing happening around you? It makes the news sometimes...

If you crew on a modern racing yacht and you're not wearing gloves whilst handling the ropes, you can expect to eventually lose at least the skin off your fingers (although I've know people - experienced, skilled and talented people - who have lost fingers also, not just skin).

..and when this happens, it's incredibly inconvenient for the rest of crew because it usually means they have to retire from the race to take you to hospital.


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## H and E (Sep 11, 2011)

Gill short fingers.


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## denverd0n (Jun 20, 2008)

newhaul said:


> Yep this is an old post... there should be a way for the mods to lock post ion to old posts say over a year...


There are good reasons, sometimes, to revive old threads. In this case, it was revived by a spam posting. I came upon the thread soon after the spam, put up my own post, and then flagged the spam posting. It happens. Not a big deal, and I appreciate the moderators staying on top of this sort of thing pretty well.

Personally, I would not want to see all old threads locked. You just have to be a little careful to note how old the thread is that you are posting to.

Oh yeah, and just so my own post doesn't get flagged as being off-topic... I use the fairly cheap Gill fingerless gloves. I have also used even cheaper mechanics type gloves from Harbor Freight. Either work fine. As for those who don't wear gloves, more power to you, but my guess is that if you ever have a line get away and burn your hand, you will change your mind.


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## hellosailor (Apr 11, 2006)

" You just have to be a little careful to note how old the thread is "
The burden falls on the reader, only because the software authors are uninspired and perhaps lazy. If any of the forum software authors had any pride in their work, they could add the option for threads to VISIBLY age out. Like a paper sign or a bottle of beer left in a store window for too long...they could fade over time.
So, the default black text in every post could become 10% "grayer" every six months, while the default "white" background became 10% darker. Or the dark banner across the top of every message could get 10% lighter.
It would be really trivial for web forum software to "visibly age" and make it that much faster for forum members to immediately see they were looking at old faded posts, instead of relying on people scanning dates.
And of course, then they'd have an excuse to charge forums for updated software.


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## jimgo (Sep 12, 2011)

How 'bout building in a time calculation into the "post quick reply" button? Look at the date of the most recent response, and if there's a difference of some time period (2 weeks? A month? A year?) then you pop up a dialog box to the submitter telling them that the thread is older and asking whether they still want to proceed.


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## hellosailor (Apr 11, 2006)

That would work, but it doesn't alert the reader until *after* they've arguably wasted their time composing a post. Good graphics (fading) could alert the reader as soon as they saw the page.


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## zz4gta (Aug 15, 2007)

To stay on topic, 

I've switched to using Ronstan sticky race gloves very grippy. I still use Gill Pro's for certain big boat stuff, they do last a long time. But for mast work I like the ronstans, a little better grip for fast hoists.


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## MarkSF (Feb 21, 2011)

I have ordinary Ronstans, and they've easily outlasted several other brands - 2 seasons and going strong. I had West Marine and Harken before this, both lasted about 1 season.


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