Best Dry Glove Ring System

[buddhasummer]

Where did you guys pick up your Kubi systems?

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I got mine from DRIS re branded by UTD. They came assembled incorrectly and without instructions which caused some initial head scratching. One of the gloves was damaged so had to wait for a replacement to be sent. One of the zippers on the pouch was also broken. UTD apparently had no replacement pouches in stock so it was suggested I send the pouch back for repair. With the associated cost of return postage from Japan I didn't bother. None of this was DRIS fault and did all they could to fix the issues but it was a headache nonetheless, the joys of buying online offshore. Given the price of these gloves I wasn't overly impressed. Based on this I wouldn't recommend the UTD version.

I have since been in direct contact with Kubi.sk, the owner Peter is a very nice guy, and ordered some spare O rings. Although their site lists postage as being by courier they will send normal post which is very reasonable. Prior to that I tried contacting Kubi UK whose service was non existent despite numerous mails and phone messages as such I wouldn't recommend them.

I paid around $277 including freight, freight is the killer. I'm not sure what's happening with freight costs out of the US but USPS seems to be increasing it's charges exponentially in recent times. Once upon a time even with freight costs it was still quite a bit cheaper ordering out of the US but with ever increasing freight costs and the hassle if there is something wrong the order I will now, if I can get item locally, pay a little more and have peace of mind that any issues can be quickly and cheaply resolved. Unfortunately I've had issues with 3 of my last 5 US orders which has resulted I'm me paying return freight costs and waiting in some cases weeks for replacement item. You guys/gals in the US are very lucky.

@insomia, great price, lucky.

 

[Belce]

My choice for dry gloves is the Kubi as well. I get to dive with Steve when he comes out here and have seen them in use by a few. They are simple compared to some systems and very robust.

 

[buddhasummer]

I have about 15 dives on mine, have changes gloves out, showa, three times from Med to large orange 620 and then to black 660. Can now swap out/fit new gloves in less than 5 minutes. No leaking issues.

 

[buddhasummer]

Around 50 dives now with the Kubis, no leaks, no problems. I have noticed however that the latex at the point where the suit cuff is positioned is starting to show small cracks. I'm wondering if this is created by the constant tension on the seal by the Kubi suit side ring? Any one notice the same?

 

[Storker]

Since this thread has been resurrected, I thought I'd chime in with my - so far limited - experience with the Antares system. Note that I've just got a handful of dives with it so far.

Yes, there's a learning curve for seating the rings properly on donning to avoid leaks. With a little bit of care, I don't think it's much of an issue after a couple of dives. I got that fixed on my second dive (on the first, I flooded one of my gloves. Thank g-d for wool glove liners and wool underwear!). Same thing with doffing. I chose the Antares system because I've got moderately sized hands (when I buy gloves I buy size 9), and the slimmer profile seemed better for me. Also, I've got a Waterproof D7, and Waterproof's drysuits come with the Antares outer ring already installed, you just switch the inner ring that holds the wrist seal in place.

Around here, quite a few divers use drygloves, and many of those have switched to vinyl gloves sold for work and fish industries instead of dedicated drygloves because of the cost. I use the orange Showa 620 vinyl gloves in size 10, and I can get ten pairs of those for the price of one set of the Nordic Blue "smurf" gloves. As an underwater photog, I also prefer the dexterity of a somewhat thinner glove over the robustness of a somewhat thicker glove. Being a size 9, size 10 Showas is about a perfect fit for me with a pair of moderately thick wool liners inside. The Showas weren't much of a pain to install on the Antares glove rings; it took me the whole of ten minutes including measuring for the first time where to cut the cuff.

 

[Redshift]

I had oval rings before thinking of getting dry gloves. They didn't even have them at the time.
So when later I decided to have dry gloves, I went with the Antares. They don't look as strong as others (the Kubi look really nice), but I like the small profile of the oval rings.
I have had a few leaks, which I think were caused by the glove slipping a bit when taking them off and not sealing well on a subsequent dive. I started paying more attention to that and it got better. Quite often though it would slip so much that the glove would come off and leave the ring still in place, but I changed the inner ring that keeps the glove secure to a thicker one I thought was too thick to use (it's harder to install, but it went in) and now they are more secure.
Si-tech also have a round system that seems a bit stronger and can be installed directly on the latex seals.

 

[aaen]

Around 50 dives now with the Kubis, no leaks, no problems. I have noticed however that the latex at the point where the suit cuff is positioned is starting to show small cracks. I'm wondering if this is created by the constant tension on the seal by the Kubi suit side ring? Any one notice the same?

This is normal with all dry glove systems. The rings stretch the seals. I've used the same seals with my kubi and also my viking cuffs for over two years. Just put a bit of seal saver from time to time.




Steve

 

[opie712]

I have the antares gloves and could use some help I've got in 10 dives my right hand is always dry my left has been wet 9/10 dives almost ready to trash em

 

[SanDiegoSidemount]

I have the antares gloves and could use some help I've got in 10 dives my right hand is always dry my left has been wet 9/10 dives almost ready to trash em

Do you flex the locking tabs outward before putting them on so they lock with a very positive click? No click, no good.

Also have you checked the o-rings and lubed them?

Finally stretch the glove a bit to double check you didn't inadvertently put a tiny tear in your left glove when installing the rings..

Any of these things could make your gloves leaky.

 

[buddhasummer]

For anyone interested, Kubi now have a sole distributor based in the UK. They show a new fitted version that permantly attaches to the suit. I'm trying to find out if this new system allows for Sitech quick seal replacement. I suspect not but hope so. That being the case you'd have the best of both worlds, great glove system and replaceable wrist seals, too much to hope for? I'll post back once I have more info. The website is unclear. If my hope is realised, Mike you'll be getting my suit back again.

---------- Post added March 11th, 2015 at 01:02 AM ----------

Just sent am email to the owner, will post back with his response.

---------- Post added March 11th, 2015 at 01:03 AM ----------

Just sent an email to the owner, will post back with his response.