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gloves for ice climbing?

Original Post
Marek Sapkovski · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Jun 2013 · Points: 65

-- Few times this winter, my hands/fingers got so cold i could not feel the tools
-- What gloves do you personally use for climbing ice and mixed in cold weather?
-- Are there gloves that are insulated but supple so I don't get pumped just trying to bend my fingers.
-- Would it be a bad idea to wear lobster-style gloves/mitts?
-- Would it be a bad idea to explore electrically heated gloves?
-- Any other thoughts are welcome.

Dobson · · Butte, MT · Joined Oct 2011 · Points: 215

It would help to know what gloves you're using and what conditions you are climbing in.

Surprisingly, the solution to cold hands is often not just to buy warmer gloves. You need to actively keep your hands warm which will allow you to wear thinner, more dexterous gloves.

Don't stand still at the belay, keep moving and keep blood in your fingers. Don't overgrip the tools and shake out frequently. If you're squeezing all of the blood out of your hands and never allowing any to flow back, the warmest mittens in the world won't help you. Sometimes a thinner glove will be warmer because you won't be squeezing as hard.

Dan Flynn · · Northeast mostly · Joined May 2009 · Points: 5,065

Kinco insulated pigskins to save $,
but
BD punisher pro are the bomb. I was out in -13F yesterday and my fingers stayed toasty all day, changing to puffy ski gloves occasionally to belay.

Never tried mittens, but can't see how it would work. People will probably tell you to drink tea from a thermos, warm up your core, and try putting chemical warmers on the back of your hands or taped to forearms, too.

saltlick · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Mar 2009 · Points: 475

Marek,
In my experience, it's not so much about how well the gloves insulate as it is about how little they constrict your circulation. You can pile all kinds of fluffy crap onto your hands and still get the screamin' barfies if there's not enough warm blood getting to your fingers.

1) Get your heart-rate up before you swing into each pitch.
2) Wear a thin, windproof glove (I like basic cowhide work-gloves treated with Nikwax)
3) Shake some blood down into your hands whenever you get a rest
4) Keep your belay mitts in your jacket so they're nice and toasty when you need 'em
5) Keep your climbing gloves in your jacket whilst belaying so they can dry out a bit
6) Bring extra climbing gloves

I dunno how your day-to-day circulation in your hands is, but my recipe has worked well for me down to 0F and windy.

Jeff Johnston · · Bozeman, MT · Joined Sep 2010 · Points: 110

Because gloves are just about the lightest thing in my pack I carry a glove rack.
what I carry.
1 large set of mittens with leather palm with inner liner for belay.
1 pair of Gecko hot from camp, so far my go to gloves for leading Ice if it is above 20F.
1 pair of super thin ironclad gripworx gloves for drytooling ironclad

1 pair of blackdiamond punishers for cold weather climbing.

Max Forbes · · Colorado · Joined Jan 2014 · Points: 108

I used this system this winter and it worked pretty well for me..

I always wore a pair of Outdoor Research PL 150 gloves. These guys go on once I am out of the car and stay on all day. Makes the transition from on pair of glove to the other a lot more pleasant and gives you dexterity as if your weren't wearing nay gloves at all. here

when climbing I wore the OR Warrant Glove, which is a heavier leather glove that streched a bit over the season. Overall very waterproof and a bit thinker than most, but worked great for long sections when I was using tools. Keep my hands warm all day with a guided group when it was around 15-20 and windy as hell. Link here.

As a belay glove or just a general keep me warm glove I used the OR Alti mits, which are just a standard over-mitt. Link is here.

Overall this worked pretty good for me the entire season. Something like these is also great to have for those super warm days, but overall I found that the warrant gloves worked really great for me all season, especially as someone who usually has cold hands. I think one of the best things you can do for yourself is get a good pair of belay mitts to wear between climbs. Makes an absolutely huge difference.

I've also done some climbing with the Soloist and torrent gloves both made by Black Diamond and I think they did a good job of keeping my hands warm, however I did not find them to be very waterproof and thus I switched over to the OR warrant glove.

(P.s. the OR theme happened somewhat accidentally, I don't have a weird thing for OR, however they do make some amazing stuff)

Brian Croce · · san diego, CA · Joined Aug 2011 · Points: 60

+1 for the OR Warrant.

All of the insulation is in the back of the hand so doesnt affect your ability to grip or swing tools as theres nothing on the palm, but leather.

This is my go to cold weather climb glove.

Dobson · · Butte, MT · Joined Oct 2011 · Points: 215

Here's a list of what I'm using a lot of the time in different conditions.

Approach - OR PL100 or BD Powerstretch

Lead or moderate weather - OR Lodestar (awesome) or RAB Latok, (the old BD Punisher were ok)

Belay or cold weather - BD Ice or RAB Guide

Mixed or warm weather - OR Mixalot or golf glove

Other - OR Alpine Alibi (excellent for moderately cold weather with nasty conditions and endless snow that would soak a different glove)

I've tried layering gloves, but it doesn't work as well as I want it to. Expedition mittens are awesomely warm, but not really useful for the temperatures in Montana.

wisam · · Unknown Hometown · Joined Jan 2012 · Points: 60

Blackdiamond mid weight gloves are my go to glove down to 0F, unless it's extremely wet. They aren't waterproof but they are cheap enough to buy a second pair to switch into.

If Its extremely wet Neoprene paddling gloves are the best bet in my opinion, but I really only like them when it's super wet.

The key for me is getting my heart rate up before climbing. If I have a good long approach, that will do the job as long as I don't hang around too long before the first climb.

If I'm climbing someplace with a short approach and its really cold like -30 and we have a TR, I've climbed in heavy mitts like OR Alti's or BD mercury's using leashes so I don't have to grip the tool. Works well for a warmup climb without getting the screaming barfies, but leashes for me are no fun. I usually only do one or two TR laps before the leashes and mitts come off.

Guideline #1: Don't be a jerk.

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