Dryglove Liners

[rob.mwpropane]

Hey all... looking for some advice. I am overall pretty happy with my cold water setup. Did an 80 min dive yesterday in 48F ish water and stayed warm, sweat a little even... except for my hands. They were cold to the point that they hurt. It was bearable, but that last 30 min was a little uncomfortable.

I wear marino wool liners underneath shows 720's. I even have a wrist warmer that the glove goes over top of. I really don't want to go to heated gloves, that would be a huge expense that I'm not willing to do at the moment. I saw the Forth Element G1 liner, but holy crap @ $70 that's more than the gloves, liners, and wrist warmers combined. Any alternatives? I might try going back to the yellow liners that come with showas.

How about for hunting? I was thinking maybe slipping a 2 or 3XL wet glove over the showas? The only time I've ever had a tear is when a lobster is after me or on the wreck itself.

Thanks all! Happy diving.

 

[Thrutch]

I use these wool+thinsulate gloves down to 39F for up to 100 minutes under Kubi dry gloves (I forget the brand of the dry glove itself, but they're thin rubber). The long cuff works well for keeping my wrists insulated.

Be sure to also keep your core warm. Adding an extra thinsulate fleece vest really helped with cold feet and hands for me.

 

[rob.mwpropane]

I use these wool+thinsulate gloves down to 39F for up to 100 minutes under Kubi dry gloves (I forget the brand of the dry glove itself, but they're thin rubber). The long cuff works well for keeping my wrists insulated.

Be sure to also keep your core warm. Adding an extra thinsulate fleece vest really helped with cold feet and hands for me.

Yeah, I think I need thicker wool liners like you posted. I have the black ones (burton power stretch), but they're kind of thin. Used to be $15, now $25... go figure. I also have the yellow liners that showa sells, but they're made from acrylic.

Edit: I also use wrist warmers found on Amazon.. I really like them. I put them on before the suit, can still use my fingers but they cover the gap and stay inside the suit much better than trying to shove gloves up there. Pic below;

 

[Thrutch]

Never thought about wrist warmers. Might have to check that out this year.

I really like the wool and thinsulate pairing. I have tried just wool (thinner, to be fair) and just thinsulate (found 100g weight + softshell) with chilly results. I have worn liners like those Burton ones, too, but in temps only briefly below 50. I didn't find them as warm as the aforementioned thinner wool.

I find I can still manipulate small boltsnaps just fine with those Bruceriver gloves—to the point that I never switched back to my summer liners this year.

 

[lexvil]

The secret is to get air in there regularly to let the insulation fluff back up.

 

[flymolo]

Are you putting equalization tubes underneath your wrist seals to get a bit of air in? That should help with the cold. FWIW I wear the same drygloves as you, with the 4th element wrist warmers and a pair of smartwool merino liners (make sure they are actually merino and not like the 70% polyester ones they also sell).

Showa 720s are pretty durable and should last you more than a few dives even when wreck diving or lobstering. Just try not to pinch any sharp metal and keep a spare set of gloves in your drysuit bag.

 

[grf88]

I use cheap Ragg wool liners which are the warmest I have found. As others have said make sure air can get into your gloves and put your hands above your head to get new air in as necessary.

 

[rob.mwpropane]

Never thought about wrist warmers. Might have to check that out this year.

I really like the wool and thinsulate pairing. I have tried just wool (thinner, to be fair) and just thinsulate (found 100g weight + softshell) with chilly results. I have worn liners like those Burton ones, too, but in temps only briefly below 50. I didn't find them as warm as the aforementioned thinner wool.

I find I can still manipulate small boltsnaps just fine with those Bruceriver gloves—to the point that I never switched back to my summer liners this year.

2 sets for $10;

The secret is to get air in there regularly to let the insulation fluff back up.

I dive with the seals cut out, so there should be enough air. I try to raise my hand every so often to get air in there, but maybe I'm doing it too late. Maybe sqeezing my hand early on to get the blood flowing would help too.

Are you putting equalization tubes underneath your wrist seals to get a bit of air in? That should help with the cold. FWIW I wear the same drygloves as you, with the 4th element wrist warmers and a pair of smartwool merino liners (make sure they are actually merino and not like the 70% polyester ones they also sell).

Showa 720s are pretty durable and should last you more than a few dives even when wreck diving or lobstering. Just try not to pinch any sharp metal and keep a spare set of gloves in your drysuit bag.

No seals (or at least cut way back)

I use cheap Ragg wool liners which are the warmest I have found. As others have said make sure air can get into your gloves and put your hands above your head to get new air in as necessary.

I'll have to check out those liners. I do not think either of my liners are wool (before this thread I thought they were).

 

[doctormike]

The Fourth Element ones are pricey but awesome. Keep you warm even in a flood...

 

[lexvil]

2 sets for $10;



I dive with the seals cut out, so there should be enough air. I try to raise my hand every so often to get air in there, but maybe I'm doing it too late. Maybe sqeezing my hand early on to get the blood flowing would help too.

No seals (or at least cut way back)

I'll have to check out those liners. I do not think either of my liners are wool (before this thread I thought they were).

No seals make it worse, the air goes out as fast as it goes in, warmer (not warm) water is more forgiving, once you let air in it needs to stay for a bit.