Deep South Divers
Contributor
For about four years now there's been an ongoing discussion about drygloves - what fits on what dryglove rings, and what's the best for whatever application and type of diving you do. That discussion is at Ultima Dry Glove System question.
The thing is - the thread started as a discussion specifically about the Waterproof Ultima Dryglove Ring system, and progressed into a lot of us trying different gloves for different reasons. Over the years we've established a handful of favorites, from gloves that are thin and supple to those that are tough and better suited for a work environment... From those that are designed to be thin and easy to use, to those that are warm and very insulative. Oddly, the two are not always mutually exclusive.
Do you dive wrecks in cold water? Are like me and a working diver working in hazardous environments? Then you'll want a tough, cut and abrasion protective glove that'll stand up to the abuse. Diving the springs in 72 degree water, but use drygloves because wrist seals don't work well? You'll want something much thinner and more dexterous.
There's a ton of info over there on that thread, with a lot of real-world testing and opinions from people who actually dive drygloves every day (at least in the wintertime). Some of us have thousands of dives on drygloves, and some of us don't... But a lot of us are doing hundreds of dives a year on them, and so I've decided to attempt to quantify our findings in a chart for the group's benefit... And start a new thread here specific to dryglove recommendations.
For interest and in an effort to make this thread relevant even in the summer months, I've also included a "wet glove" section... Recommended glove selections, based on protection from hazards in four key categories - none of which have anything to do with warmth. Keep in mind that all of these wet glove recommendations are stretchy, "next to skin" type gloves and will not provide any reasonable warmth or cause any issues with dexterity and tactile feel. These are the gloves we use in the work environment - they may or may not apply to you as a sport diver.
Here's the chart:
This chart is available for download at www.deepsouthdivers.org/gloves.jpg (JPG format) or www.deepsouthdivers.org/gloves.xlsx (Excel format).
If you have info that you'd like to add to the chart, please PM me and I'll get your info on there as well.
A quick explanation to the chart: All of the gloves are published with a protective rating from 0-5 in each respective category. The rating is done by a third-party European safety organization and are trusted and to the best of my knowledge, unbiased.
My company does not sell any of these gloves - but will endorse the use of all of them. There is no "junk" on the chart. Should you wish to try a pair, feel free to purchase them on Amazon or Zoro - a Google search for them usually comes up with very affordable pricing.
Hope this helps someone.
The thing is - the thread started as a discussion specifically about the Waterproof Ultima Dryglove Ring system, and progressed into a lot of us trying different gloves for different reasons. Over the years we've established a handful of favorites, from gloves that are thin and supple to those that are tough and better suited for a work environment... From those that are designed to be thin and easy to use, to those that are warm and very insulative. Oddly, the two are not always mutually exclusive.
Do you dive wrecks in cold water? Are like me and a working diver working in hazardous environments? Then you'll want a tough, cut and abrasion protective glove that'll stand up to the abuse. Diving the springs in 72 degree water, but use drygloves because wrist seals don't work well? You'll want something much thinner and more dexterous.
There's a ton of info over there on that thread, with a lot of real-world testing and opinions from people who actually dive drygloves every day (at least in the wintertime). Some of us have thousands of dives on drygloves, and some of us don't... But a lot of us are doing hundreds of dives a year on them, and so I've decided to attempt to quantify our findings in a chart for the group's benefit... And start a new thread here specific to dryglove recommendations.
For interest and in an effort to make this thread relevant even in the summer months, I've also included a "wet glove" section... Recommended glove selections, based on protection from hazards in four key categories - none of which have anything to do with warmth. Keep in mind that all of these wet glove recommendations are stretchy, "next to skin" type gloves and will not provide any reasonable warmth or cause any issues with dexterity and tactile feel. These are the gloves we use in the work environment - they may or may not apply to you as a sport diver.
Here's the chart:
This chart is available for download at www.deepsouthdivers.org/gloves.jpg (JPG format) or www.deepsouthdivers.org/gloves.xlsx (Excel format).
If you have info that you'd like to add to the chart, please PM me and I'll get your info on there as well.
A quick explanation to the chart: All of the gloves are published with a protective rating from 0-5 in each respective category. The rating is done by a third-party European safety organization and are trusted and to the best of my knowledge, unbiased.
My company does not sell any of these gloves - but will endorse the use of all of them. There is no "junk" on the chart. Should you wish to try a pair, feel free to purchase them on Amazon or Zoro - a Google search for them usually comes up with very affordable pricing.
Hope this helps someone.
