winter gloves system

Leigh,
Take a look at the Defeet Wool Duragloove. These are tough and very warm. The Defeet Handskins are a nice cool weather option.

http://www.defeet.com/60211/Gloves.html

I've tried A LOT of options and have yet to find anything that works for me.

Mountain Hardwear Powerstretch
OR PL150
Defeet Duraglove
OR PL400 mitt
OR Stormtracker
several others…

I just ordered a pair of the new Rab VR Tour gloves and hope those will work for me. If not, I'll likely try RBH Designs VB mitts next. I don't have Reynaud's, just very cold hands.

The RBH-made BPL VB mitts with a liner work very well for me (I use a buffalo fiber liner glove – very tough [http://www.yellowstonetraders.com/bison-gloves-socks-hats/buffalo-fiber-full-finger-gloves.html]).

For cooler but not frigid temps I really like the Extremities windblock gloves.

I also just discovered Specialized Sub Zero winter glove system for cycling and really like that, might try it out for backpacking as well. [http://www.specialized.com/us/en/bc/SBCEqProduct.jsp?spid=58114]

Shug did a video on winter gloves recently with some nice over and under mitts from Black Rock Gear. Wrist warmers were also a good idea.

The Outdoor Reearch professional modular mitt shells are really strong, quite comfortable on their own, and have plenty of volume to use with any glove liner I want. They are certainly not the lightest choice, but I am much more confident that they are not going to fail at difficult point in a hike. For really cold environments, I also use OR modular mitt double liner, or the gore-tex liner. My hands never feel cold with this combo. I find that the liners are comfortable enough for me to sleep with, and make a real difference in my night time comfort.
Jim

I recently discovered Manzella Silk-weight Windstopper gloves. These have all the function of liners with the added benefit of being windproof. I wear them in my several pairs of gloves and in my OR shell/w double liner mitts. What I really like about them is that in really cold windy conditions I can take my hands out to use my camera without freezing my fingers.

I also spent time searching for really really warm general use mitts–I spend months at a time each winter in Northern Canada–and ended up with the Gordini Ultimate Mitts, which have down insulation and a heavy wool liner. These are much warmer than my OR shells with their double liners, but a bit on the heavy side. I got 'em for $35 from Sierra Trading.

These weren't very breathable or stylish and the color choices aren't the greatest for stealth camping/hiking.

They did however serve me well for the purpose for which they were purchased. They kept my hands quite warm and dry while I was collecting water in that cold mountain water source.

The interior of the gloves have a soft absorbent lining that aids with getting the gloves on and off.

I can see them being used as VBL gloves but I'm afraid that as temperatures rise and exertion levels climb persperation inside of the gloves could become and issue. They are however available in varying sizes at hiker resupply heaven, a.k.a. The Dollar Store, and are quite inexpensive.

The extra long cuffs can be trimmed in the interest of weight savings. ;-)

Party On,

Newton

Leigh,

I will second Thom's suggestion for the Defeet Duraglove, he turned me onto these over a year ago and I've been very pleased. Like you I was looking for something more resilient than merino liners of the smartwool and ibex variety and the Duraglove is considerably warmer and handles wood fire tasks and scrambling around on rock well.

My system is similar to yours in warmth and flexibility, minus the mitts, other than extreme cold (*which I avoid like the plague) this setup has worked well and doesn't have any gaps for me, is relatively inexpensive, warm, and durable for tinkering with wood stoves and such:

Defeet Duraglove + MLD eVent mitt (seam sealed!) (Good down to 32F)

Or….

Lighter merino liners + OR Omni glove + MLD eVent mitt (everything else south of freezing)

what temps will you be using it at …

and what for (ex. will you be pulling on trees and rocks, durability, rainy winter conditions, etc …)

I recently bought a pair of Rab Latok event gloves. they're well reviewed elsewhere on this site. I haven't had a chance yet to try them in the snow. I'm hoping that they'll replace my liner/outer system. They seem quite warm. They're also very dexterous.

i own and use the latoks …

like most other gloves theyll wet out eventually with heavy snow work … they arent fully WP

i use a light merino liner inside the glove, it adds to the warmth and wicks away moisture … also use subway food gloves for a cheap vbl, bring a whole bunch as they eventually tear

to help dry the latoks or keep em warm … simply put em under yr armpits when not using em ..

and hand wash em (or any primaloft glove) as machine washing will flatten the loft, putting em in the dryer at low helps fluff em up

Thanks Eric: I'm hoping to not need my smartwool liners with these because of the Latoks' nice fleecy interior but I'll carry them while I learn their limits. Gloves are impossible; warm but too bulky; modular but liners catch on velcro; etc. The Latoks seem to come close to being dextrous, simple and waterproofish-warm.

The Latoks have a fully waterproof eVent membrane.

they are the "best" gloves ive tried on for climbing

i basically went into every outdoor store with my climbing gear … and tried putting on my harness, using zippers, tying knots in cord/webbing … etc … while wearing gloves

other than lighter gloves such as the stormtracker or other such … only the latoks were "warm" enough and dexterous enough to do all the required tasks

i think youll like em … as a bonus they arent that expensive at $65 either

edit … mike i do not believe the latoks are seam sealed inside …

I've had excellent luck with the lighter weight mitts from RBH Designs, with the built-in VBL, combined with either a light-weight liner (EMS or OR) or a mid-weight liner inside. Never needed anything more, down to at least 0F.

I just did a search and the RAB Latok glove in size Large is on sale at ProLiteGear for $49.98: http://www.prolitegear.com/rab-latok-glove.html . Buy 2 cents more and you get free shipping.

No affiliation with ProLite, of course.

If they aren't seam sealed, then i doubt Rab would legally be able to call them waterproof on their website under UK law. What makes you believe they aren't seam sealed?

having used them id be surpised if they were … theres 2 simple solutions

ill take one of my newer latoks and submerge it in water right now …

and lets ask rab on their fbook page

Remember they have a big hole in the ends. ;)

I'll second the RBH mitts. I have a pair of the older BPL RBH mitts. I use them with an old pair of Outdoor Research Windstopper Airfoil gloves. Lots of warmth without bulk. I can take off the mitts and have excellent dexterity with the liner gloves, and very quickly warm my hands with the RBH mitts.

When researching these gloves I read somewhere that they aren't seam-sealed, hence not fully waterproof. For my purposes I think that they'll be close enough. YMMV.

after submerging for 20 min+

i found that
– the hands are effectively waterproof … no air bubbles escaped and while there was a bit of a clammy feeling, no water came through so far
– the part near the wrist seemed to wick in moisture, this spread to the rest of the upper part on the inside glove … it is possible that despite my best attemps, moisture did get through that "big hole" somehow … however i was pretty careful, much more so that i would have been outdoors

so i do stand corrected in that they are effectively WP, the hands anyways for 20 min… however i can say that they will likely get damp fom snow creeping in as they are not full gauntlets, especially if youre taking them on and off … however i do find they do dry quicker than leather gloves, and they do insulate decently when damp with a merino liner

ill post up rabs response once it comes in

this just makes me realize how good a deal this is … $65 for an event glove that is warm, light, dexterous and "waterproof" … intereting how they receive so little attention …

Wow, way to go Eric! I bought mine on sale for $45.00;(sorry can't remember where and I'm at work) now I'm even happier. These gloves are "close-fitting" i.e. you may need to size up–or certainly pay close attention to sizing charts–esp. if you want to wear liners.

John, thanks for the reminder about the Playtex gloves. I've been wondering what I'd use when doing a lot of snow shoveling and ice axe work this winter, and those should work perfectly. They'll keep my hands dry, prevent ice from cutting up my hands, and still offer plenty of grip on my ice axe if I need to self arrest.