Serious Waterproof shell mittens?

The Outdoor Research Revel Shell mitts are pretty good. They’re Pertex Shield rather than Goretex, but I think they tick most of your boxes.

Thanks @S long. GTX not required, as long as it’s a waterproof material and taped seams, it’s fine by me.

Edit:

I looked at the Revels. They seem light duty to me: no leather palm, and the reinforcement material doesn’t cover the tips and side of the fingers and thumb, so very similar to my Extremities.
That said, some reviews quote regular use without problems.

I was looking for something more like my Hestra Heli’s with leather (or other reinforcement material) wrapping all the way up and over the finger tips.

OR Mt Baker mittens. Not sure if you can get them without the liner, but the shell is probably the most durable and waterproof shell on the market. For good reason, as Mt Baker is a pretty rough place, and often with wet snow. So durable and waterproof are the name of the game out here in the PNW mountains.

I got a pair and gave away the liner gloves to someone, as they are terrible. Shells are excellent.

Fully taped, and 3L Goretex.

@Yoprawn, I hadn’t thought of the Mt Bakers. (I actually have a 20 year old pair of the trigger version.  They are worn and not very waterproof anymore, and a very different design, but they were great).

They might just be the perfect option. They certainly tick all my boxes!

I was looking at the same thing you needed, and the OR Mt Baker mitts are the only ones on the planet I could find that ticked every box.

There was one that came close, but their seam taping was a joke and leaked. OR Baker mitts are pretty much like sealed rubber that breathes.

I was only mad that I had to buy the liners, but I did get them with the REI 20% off, so not too bad.

Another vote for OR Bakers. Seriously good shells, moderately good liners but you can’t get them separately so just bring another set of liners you like and you’re covered.

Since 2008, I have been quite happy with my BPL over mitts which are 100% waterproof, insulated, with a grippy leather palm, and an excellent long wrist cuff /gauntlet to cover the edge of the parka sleeve.

They were made by RBH Designs. The ultralight mitt is a bit lighter than the BPL version.

RBH also sells shell mittens for $100.

https://www.rbhdesigns.com/collections/gloves/products/ultralight-mitt

BTW I don’t think any Goretex fabric is 100% waterproof even when seam sealed.

Hi Bruce,

I got the liner from RBH. I was under the impression their shells were not taped, and the palms only leather, which is what my Hestra Heli’s are too, so I didn’t get the shells.

Are you saying  that they do have waterpoof farbic inside the palm and taped seams?

Hello Tjaard, I shall get out my winter box tomorrow and inspect the over mittens to see if the seams are sealed.

I suppose the more exact description of my experience is to say they have shown themselves to be more waterproof that expensive Goretex gloves I own from OR and other vendors.

I discovered my “new favorite” mountaineering and backcountry skiing mitt shells last year when I was researching and testing mitts for the mitten shell gear guide – the Black Diamond Waterproof Overmitts. I then prayed Flexseal on the palms and have been really happy with the result – very light overmitts, and a very grippy palm.

An answer going in a different direction which might be useful although it’s probably obvious

If your torso gets cold, you redirect blood from your hands to attempt to maintain torso temperature, leaving your hands cold.

I think your problem is keeping your hands warm?

Then, you should have more insulation around your torso and your head.  And arms and legs.

That will make your hands warmer.

As they say “If your feet are cold, put on a hat” – also applies to hands

Ryan,

yes, I bought those BD overmits for my daughters last year based on your review. I love the articulation of them.

I was worried though that they wouldn’t be durable enough without any reinforcement across the finger tips.

I don’t need them to last for ever, and I have lots of other gloves/mittens, but I also don’t want to trash them in two seasons.

Yeah, that makes sense. These are definitely light duty in the context of mountaineering.

Do you not have issue with the elastic wrists?

I tried those Black Diamond Waterproof Overmitts, only shortly, and found the elastic around the wrist wasn’t enough to hold them secure on my hands. I like having independent control over the wrist and cuff for tightening because of the huge variation in insulation I can use in a trip, from none to packed full.

Hello Tjarrd,

My overmittens are lined so I don’t have a direct view of the inside of the outer layer.  Upon visual inspection of the seams from the outside, the seams in nylon fabric that on the outside of the hand and gauntlet are not seam sealed.  On the leather that covers the palm, thumb, and inside of the fingers, the seams appear to be sealed with the same waterproofing coating as used on the leather.  The seams also appear to have a backing on the inside that could be seam sealing tape.  When I run a faucet with water flowing gently for 30 seconds over one of the seams, I detect no water intrusion. I see that

RBH indicates on the web site that the leather on the palms is “waterproof.”  My mittens are over 10 years old and the construction details might have changed. You should probably ask RBH whether the leather and the seams in the leather are waterproof.”

I use the overmittens with ski poles when snow shoeing, snow camping, and for photography in cold weather.   When I expect a lot of contact with wet snow here in our California mountains, for example, when building a snow cave, I remove the mittens and use latex surgical gloves under cheap fleece gloves.

Hope this helps.

https://raggedmountain.com/accessories/hand-wear/

Thanks for checking Bruce.