What kind of gloves does everyone wear?

[MSilvia]

No gloves in water over 65 degrees unless I'm lobstering. Akona Kevlar-coated 5mm gloves between 65 and 45 degrees. SiTech "ring system" dry gloves if it's colder than that.

[Grizbear98]

I have a pair of 5mm deep sea gloves with rubber grips. First piece of equipment I ever owned

[SynCitizen]

Is it true that some or alot of tropical locations dont allow the use of gloves? Is this so that your not as tempted to touch/damage the reefs?

[scubadiver888]

Originally Posted by SynCitizen

Is it true that some or alot of tropical locations dont allow the use of gloves? Is this so that your not as tempted to touch/damage the reefs?

This is true. For example, to dive in Bonaire you are not allowed to wear gloves.

It is not so much you are not as tempted to touch the reef. A lot of people honestly try not to touch the reef but they do anyways without realizing it. If you are not wearing gloves you will realize you are touching the reef and correct yourself. If you are wearing gloves you will not feel you are touching the reef and might cause more damage.

Darrell

[CompuDude]

Henderson InstaDry 3mm gloves, when the water is warm enough to dive wet. Love those gloves. Not very durable, but while they last, nothing compares in the Dexterity+Warmth department.

Usually I dive dry with drygloves, though. Standard blue Atlas triple-dipped gloves.

[SPLzero]

Originally Posted by scubadiver888

Are you just looking for what everyone is wearing or WHY they wear what they do?

Kind of both. I find it very helpful to have a thread like this. For myself or anyone looking at buying a new pair of gloves.

[thor]

5mm Henderson Gold Core. Great gloves. Very warm. I don't wear any in warm water, although I may buy some reef gloves in case I accidentally put my hand inside a queen bed sized giant clam that I heard are around the Phillipines.

[Aussie]

I wear the mares 3mm almara gloves. They last, feel good on and are priced well. I dont have a problem with them when I use my camera also.

Regards Mark

[Geoff_T]

I second the 5mm Henderson gold gloves. What is most important to me is they are warm, dry quick so no sticking my hand in a soggy glove. And have a slick inner surface so I can take them on and off under water if say my buddy starts chilling mid dive. This has happened twice with two different people.

[scubadiver888]

Originally Posted by SPLzero

Kind of both. I find it very helpful to have a thread like this. For myself or anyone looking at buying a new pair of gloves.

Look at the gloves that are rated as semi-dry. I've had a few different pair of gloves before the Whites. All the gloves had an elastic strap with some velcro. You'd put the glove on and pull the strap tight. The straps always loosen up and even when they are new don't do a really good job of keeping the water out. Once it gets below 50F my hands start getting cold within minutes.

If you look at the semi-dry gloves (often sold as good for wet or dry suits) they have seals on the wrist, just like the neck seals on a good wet suit. They also are blind stitched, glued and have a seal on all the stitching. The only way water is getting in these things is through the wrist cuff. I put my wet suit over top of the gloves and my hands stay pretty much dry.

Obviously, if you are not diving in water colder than 50F you don't need 5mm semi-dry gloves. You want to go for a 3mm or maybe a 1mm. The thinner the glove the easier it will be for you to use your hands. With 5mm gloves I have to squeeze everything really hard because I cannot feel anything; I once dropped my mask because I thought I was gripping it hard enough but obviously was not.

Additionally, if one 5mm glove is easier to move in (stretchy neoprene) it is going to compress more at depth and be less insulating. I rented a few different pair until I found what I liked.

Finally, there are also the 3-finger gloves, sometimes called lobster gloves. Just like mittens are warmer than gloves above water, 3-finger gloves are warmer than 5-finger gloves underwater.