Gloves for Monterey

[Eric Sedletzky]

Gloves? you don't need no stinkin gloves!

I used to wear 5 mm gloves and my hands were always marginal. Then one time we went out on my boat and I forgot my gloves. I went in anyway and told my buddies that I was probably only good for a few minutes and I was more than likely going to have to bail after a few minutes and leave them to finish their dive without me.
Somehow I made it the whole dive. My hands were frozen but after getting back on the boat and getting warmed up they came around fairly quickly.

The next time I went out diving I had a brand new pair of gloves that were 3 mil which I bought by accident. I thought they would be way to thin but after that bare hand dive they seemed like more than enough.

I now only use 3 mil kevlar gloves and after freezing them real good that one time, they don't get cold anymore. Isn't that weird?

 

[Bob3]

The overwhelming majority of the Endurotech gloves sold in CA are the 3mm.
The gold dredgers go for the heavier gloves w/internal cuff.

 

[RoyN]

Any opinions on this glove?

http://www.pinnacleaquatics.com/productdetails.aspx?prodid=64&toplvl=17&catid=17&catprods=17

 

[Eric Sedletzky]

Any opinions on this glove?

http://www.pinnacleaquatics.com/productdetails.aspx?prodid=64&toplvl=17&catid=17&catprods=17

They look pretty good.
Get a pair and let us know how they work.

 

[RoyN]

They look pretty good.
Get a pair and let us know how they work.

I'll have to go through a refit again because I just lost 90 lbs and trying to stablize my weight.

 

[Chuck Tribolet]

Any opinions on this glove?

http://www.pinnacleaquatics.com/productdetails.aspx?prodid=64&toplvl=17&catid=17&catprods=17

I don't like the shape of the fingers in the picture. Let your arm fall to your side and
just relax. Look at the shape of your hand, note the way the fingers are bent. That's
the way a good glove is made. This one looks flat.


Chuck

 

[Bob3]

... I don't like the shape of the fingers in the picture. ...

It sorta looks like someone's hand is inside the glove, making that odd shape.
I suppose its time to make a post to the Classifieds section again.

 

[reefugee]

Just an update:

I ended up purchasing a pair of Seaskyn gloves from my LDS for $29. I like how the glove fit (easy to put on and short at the wrist). However, the 1mm thickness was a concern, as well as the slight slit in the glove would allow more water movement. But I figured for $19, it's worth trying. Worst case scenario - the gloves would go into my warm water gear bag. Anyway, I dove with the glove this past weekend at Breakwater. My hand was a little cold - but bearable on both dives. If I was in a wetsuit (instead of a drysuit) - I don't know if these gloves would have worked for m. I may end up having someone sew a little material over the slit opening to reduce water exchange. Overall - I am happy with the glove for Monterey diving, but will keep my eyes open for other glove options.

 

[Catt99]

Resurrecting an old thread instead of starting a new one.

I'd be interested in additional experiences with Monterrey diving and glove needs. My wife and I were certified in 2004 and more or less all of our diving is vacation diving in the tropics.

We did two dives in Monterrey shortly after being certified, but the combination of colder water, less visibility, shore diving in surf, and diving on our own and therefore responsible for navigation was a bit discouraging -- the fact that my wife is much, much more sensitive than I am in cold water, and that we have three young kids meant that we haven't really made an effort to get out and dive Monterrey. Our most recent vacation to the tropics really sparked a renewed interest in diving for me, and I want to take advantage of our location near-enough to Monterrey. So we're going to take a drysuit course with the hope that we'll get away to Monterrey for the day or weekend and dive more often.

Our one trip to Monterrey we rented wetsuits (including gloves) in Monterrey -- unfortunately my log only shows that we rented 7mm farmer johns, and I have no additional notes regarding specifics about glove / hoods. We dove in Cabo San Lucas and I was OK in a 3mm full suit w/o gloves; my wife wore two full 3mms, and a hood and could do without gloves. My log shows bottom temps of ~65-70F but that's a bit of a guestimate,obviously. We did a few dives in Catalina and wore 7mm suits again; my log shows no gloves and I have no memory of significant loss of dexterity or problems with my hands -- I do remember dropping through the thermocline and thinking "crap it's cold" but that's (I think) as much a result of no hood and no extra warmth around my core; my wife had a hood but shared my sentimentof "crap it's cold."

So, I need to buy gloves to wear with rental dry suits for training and several dives thereafter before I get my own sense of what's right for me. I'm not going to spend more than I have to because again I'll find what's right for me with experience but I'd like to buy intro gloves that won't be wildly out of whack with what might make sense for me longer term.

I'm wondering what others think is a good, cheap, entry-level glove (thickness / make / brand) for someone who apparently isn't exceptionally susceptible to feeling cold, would like to maintain as much dexterity as possible, but is also a bit of a warm-water-weenie who doesn't have a lot of experience in colder water and whose prior dive experience is predominantly in the tropics wearing a 3mm shortie or a rashguard with never any thought to gloves.

Thanks for reading a long post.

 

[Thalassamania]

7 mm three finger mitts. Hand signal/Gloves/Monterey Story.