Lightweight waterproof rain mitts/gloves

[Ethan A.]

I currently do not have any milder weather waterproof gloves – just mildly water resistant ones. The cold weather ones are bulky and heavy (Columbia gaunlet skiing gloves I picked up on STP for $19 a few years back).

Can anyone recommend any good lightweight rain mitts or gloves? So far I've found the OR Endeavor Mitts, Paclite (3.9 oz/pair for size L) and have heard about new seamless waterproof gloves from Komperdell (Alpine and Freeride – haven't checked them out yet). What would be best choices?

[Mark Verber]

My first choice would be MLD eVENT mitts. Other options on my recommended handwear…scroll down a page or so for unlined shells list.

[Ethan A.]

Thanks Mark, I was looking for something just like that. I've read your excellent home page and was going to go back to that section on handwear.

Do you also know of other handwear that is a little more durable and in a glove form? I'm also looking for something a little more durable I can use for some sports I do regularly where durability matters more (like roller skiing – a road version of cross country skiing, and nordic walking/running).

[Dale Wambaugh]

I have some Mountain Hardwear Tempest SL gloves made with Conduit cloth and a thin fleece-ish liner. I do wish the liners were removeable. They are discontinued and I beleive the Epic gloves fill the same niche. I did see some closeouts listed for the Tempest SL.

I've never given them a dunk test to see how the seams hold up, but in cold rain, they have done the trick for me. Hiking with trekking poles in cold rain calls for some thin water resistant gloves.

[Mark Verber]

The Tempest SL gloves won't pass a dunk test. The seams aren't sealed. The wet out for me in wet snow… rain would be even faster.

One of the reasons you don't find many rain gloves is that where seals are sealed the fabric is pretty stuff which ends up rubbing between your fingers.. most people would find this uncomfortable.

As to more durable… the OR mitts look like there would be a bit more durable than the MLD mitts. If you want durable, I would typically suggest give up on "waterproof" and go for "warm enough" when wet.

[Frank Deland]

thepacka.com makes silnylon shells.

[Ethan A.]

I've emailed Komperdell for weights of their seam sealed waterproof gloves, but no answer after 2 days. Willl share what I find out (though my guess is that they are heavier and will probably be more useful for regular local nordic walking/roller skiing for us given added durability).

[Michael Skwarczek]

Twice last season I used the unplanned "warm when wet" approach. My body heat warmed the water in the wetted out gloves. But I didn't dare remove them.

Why not just go fully waterproof and give up on breathability? This year when temps can only offer freezing rain conditions, I'm considering a pair of sized up rubber kitchen gloves (rubber mitts would be even better) and a merino liner.

[Ethan A.]

I am thinking about going full waterproof, which is why I've been interested in the Komperdell gloves and the MLD Mitts.

[Ryan Teale]

I have the Lattitude Mitts which are the same as the Endeavor but come with a softshell liner glove. At 4 ounces for the mitts alone they are a little heavier than some others but they are also more durable and have a nice long gauntlet. They are also easier to take on and off because the cuff cinch works one handed for both on and off. This is very nice for taking pictures or getting something out of your pack. You can remove the "idiot" cords which allow them to hang from your wrist when you pull them off your hands which will save you a little weight.

[Gregor Bender]

I'm considering some paddler's gloves for use in hiking. I found the level 6 neoprene paddling gloves for just $8 on amazon. There are also alot of other options for higher end gloves. They're not breathable at all, but I dont think my hands would mind that too much. These would just be for the rain. I'd use fleece or ski gloves when it wasn't raining.

[David Chenault]

The OR Endeavor mitts are very nice, and actually waterproof.

The problem with neoprene for hiking it that it is not windproof at all, and very prone to convective heat loss.

[Zack Freije]

Anyone tried the ZPacks rain mitts or another similar product?
http://zpacks.com/accessories/mitts.shtml

0.8 oz and $59

[Chad “Stick” Poindexter]

I have a pair of the ZPacks overmitts. I bought them to replace, or at least have a lighter option than my MLD eVENT mitts. However, due to the warmer weather, they are not really needed now so I have not been able to use them much.

They are smaller than the MLD mitts. They fit me fine perfect when I am simply wearing them, however, if I grab my trekking pole I can feel a little bit of pressure on the end of my thumbs. I think that if the thumb were to be about 1/2" longer they would be totally perfect.

I can layer one of my OR PL150 gloves under them but anything more would start to push it IMO.

I like the fact that they come taped, unlike my MLD mitts that needed to be seam sealed. These were my first seam seal ever, and it went ok, however, since they were still tacky even after drying they stuck together and then looked like crap. I need to attempt to peel it all away and redo them…

However, they keep my hands dry and at 0.7 oz (on my scale) they are light weight. These should fit my needs just fine since the coldest I should experience around here will be low teens, or maybe high singles, if I am lucky. For the most part though we average in the high teens to low 20's, so these with my OR gloves are all I need.

As far as durability, I dunno yet. I think that is still out on this material in general. Considering how often I actually need to wear mine though, I feel like they will be with me for a number of years…and if not, I still have the heavier/larger MLD mitts…

[Mathew MacDonald]

I would suggest the Extremities Tuff Bags. They are hard to get in the US, you will have to order them from the UK but they are worth the hassle. Mediums (?) come in at 2.4 oz on my scale. The Tuff Bags are in between the MLD mit and the OR Endeavor in weight and durability. Another bonus is you dont have to seam tape them like the MLD.

Here is a review:

http://maceachain.blogspot.com/2010/11/extremities-tuff-bags-pack-lite-mitts.html

[Inaki Diaz de Etura]

I use a very similar product, simple silnylon mitts poorly made at home. They're nearly identical to the ZPacks ones except mine are cut straight with no provision for an opposing thumb (for no other reason that I had no clue about mitten design), link here if you want to see them. They're 0.6 oz for the pair and can layer over medium thickness gloves/mitts.

What I really want to say is I don't think it's worth to bother with breathability. Some other contributor further up the thread mentioned not bothering with waterproofness, which is another good approach. The thing is hands are very exposed because we need to keep using them for some things and eventually they get wet anyway. The other thing is the waterproof/breathable paradigm takes a price on factors like weight, stiffness, price… not worth it IMO for the hands.

I went the non-breathable path because hands don't sweat much when they're cold. I try to keep the hands just bearably cold so it's not painful and they're still fully functional. The silnylon shell keeps most of the humidity outside, cuts wind and keeps a reasonable micro-climate inside. If it's cold, a light or medium fleece inner is kept reasonbly dry (or maybe it's more accurate to say "reasonably wet") to provide insulation. It's not perfect but better than anything I've tried before.

[Simone Zmood]

I found out about the Extremities Tuff Bags on a BPL thread and ordered them from the UK. I've only had them for 6 months but so far they have been terrific. I used them last month without liners for two days of walking 6-8 hours in very cold and heavy rain, followed by two days in the snow using a thin liner. My hands stayed warm and dry. They seem very robust for the light weight.

[Link .]

1.7 ounces taped waterproof and durable $40.51

[William N]

If anyone is interested. I just cranked out a pair of waterproof ripstop nylon mitten covers-all the way to the elbows covers. They’re oversized, but they seem to work like they’re supposed to. And they weigh almost nothing.

I’m heading to Scotland for backpacking and some kayaking. Because I won’t have a base (to stash gear) I figure if I bring it I’ll have to carry it. I need mittens for chilly/windy, waterproof mittens for kayaking and lightweight mittens for midges. My kayaking mitts weigh 8 oz, but are too warm for anything else, I have some nice fleece ones that pop open for my fingers 3.5 oz-but they’re not waterproof. So I just whipped up some ripstop nylon mitten covers that were 1.8 oz (2.15oz after I sealed the seams.) I’ve done a lot of kayaking and the NRS tight fitting mitts are almost too good.

I’ve seen the Z-pack mitten covers, they’re quick nice. I used a different simpler  thumb design method. (Which is the interesting aspect for DIY/MYOGers). Three parts. The back or top and then two parts for the palm and palm/wrist (or elbow) the thumb  I attached a jpeg of the basic design.

First you stitch the thumb and the seam across the palm. Then with the thumb held away stitch the perimeter. Turn it inside out and it’s a mitten. The measurements I used are too big-but they worked. I just needed something to easily  fit over my arm and hand-in-my-fleece-mittens. Most importantly the thumb has to work. With this simple design it does.

[Link .]

Wow digg’n up the oldies, this thread is from 2007!

[Pedestrian]

Check this out from Skurka’s blog:

Review: Showa 281 Gloves || Inexpensive water- & windproof shell

https://andrewskurka.com/2017/review-showa-281-gloves-temres/

[William N]

Can I attach a pdf to a post here? I’ll give it a try. I just made a new pair of mitten covers using Silnylon. The fit seems pretty good. They were easy to sew but took me a few hours–I’m a noob on a sewing machine. It would be easy to modify the pattern to make regular mitten covers that only go just above your wrist. Image one is inside out showing the hems, my hand inside is in my fleece mitten. Bottom image is one of the covers hanging up to let the seam seal dry.  These are two different mitts, I altered the colors for each.

[William N]

Let’s see if the pdf pattern  goes through. It’s ten pages,  Nope. Only jpegs and such. Screen capture. That’s good enough. If anyone wants the pdf I can send it along. I learned a lot about pattern making with this project. Now onto the fully water-tight gaiters. (I’m canabalizing a new pair of OR Crocodiles for the uppers. )

 

[Eric Blumensaadt]

I have two pair of OR GTX mitten shells that I have seam sealed. If I was in a “3rd season” situation with a lot of rain expected I could use the smaller of the two pair,  with fingerless fleece gloves if temps dropped.

But my preferred answer to this problem is closed cell neoprene duck hunting gloves. Warmth with no wrist leakage.

[Author]

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