MTB Gloves or Mitts?

[Trevelyan]

After nearly going arse over tit on my mountain bike this evening I've decided that it's time to invest in some gloves. Hopefully then when I do eventually end up rubber side up I'll still have some skin left on my hands. A bit more shock absortion for my hands would be nice as well. During winter I used normal fleece gloves for warmth but I'm not sure whether to stick with a full glove for summer or go for cooler and more flexible fingerless cycling mitts. Any tips or recommendations?

[RRS_Staffs]

I use mitts in summer and full gloves in winter for MTB and road

Today I rode in gloves which were too warm inspired by my mitts ride on Weds when I froze!

On the MTB I dont care about padding due to the fork
On the road I absolutely must have padded gloves/mitts

Cheers - not sure Ive helped

[Gooby]

http://www.dakine.com/bike/gloves/defender/

I am on my second pair of these - they are brilliant. Well ventilated but seem to keep your hands at the right temp all year round (apart from depths of winter!) Excelent protection. They have knuckle guards which stip brambles and gorse penetrating as you brush it at super speed. They are comfy and dont slip.

For road use the knuckle guards leave a satisfying dent in the side of a MPV that tries to swipe you off the road!

[MadDad]

I have quite a few sets of gloves depending on the weather and where I am riding, this time of year I tend to use Knog Ocra's (mits), very comfy, close fitting and nicely padded on the palms, if it is a chilly morning, or the terrain is a bit nasty I favour a pair of 661 comp full fingers, again nice fit, decent padding and knuckle protectors on the top side of the fingers.

[Fluffsri]

After an accident a few years back and loosing the skin of 2 fingers its gloves all the way for me. Summer, winter, road, mtb I wear full finger gloves all the time.

[shalmaneser]

The best gloves bar none IMO - Troy Lee XC gloves @ £19.99ish. Last really well too.

I wear these all year, unless it's really cold in which case I've got a set of Fox antifreeze gloves.

[Floor Tom]

shalmaneser said:

The best gloves bar none IMO - Troy Lee XC gloves @ £19.99ish. Last really well too.

I wear these all year, unless it's really cold in which case I've got a set of Fox antifreeze gloves.

Up to a couple of weeks ago I would have agreed, but then I got some Trot Lee Ace gloves, same finger length but slightly shorter in the cuff, but mopst importantly a wipe pad on the thumb. Both are very nice gloves but I will be getting the Aces from now on, you should try a pair.

[a11y_m]

Full-finger gloves for me all-year round. Purely for the protection factor if when I stack it, but also good against jaggies/thorns in the summer. Very personal preference but I like Specialized gloves although I do have a selection of new Fox and Troy Lees to try this year (cheap in the sales last year).

[splanet]

Floor Tom said:

Up to a couple of weeks ago I would have agreed, but then I got some Trot Lee Ace gloves, same finger length but slightly shorter in the cuff, but mopst importantly a wipe pad on the thumb. Both are very nice gloves but I will be getting the Aces from now on, you should try a pair.

I use the Troy Lee XC gloves pretty much all year round too. Would recommend, although the Ace gloves sound a lot like the XC gloves from a few seasons ago. The new XCs don't have a great snot wipe pad.
Can't cycle without gloves, feels wrong.

[Ironballs]

Always have gloves or mitts on the bike, picked too much gravel out of my flesh to do otherwise. Specialised are usually pretty comfy and hard wearing

[shalmaneser]

Personally I preferred the old XCs without the velcro, but the aces do look nice.

Got a few pairs of XCs here to be getting on with though!

[notax]

Nowadays virtually all mtbers wear gloves not mitts. There are decent lightweight ones available as mentioned above and it is worth it for the extra protection.

[AdamD]

I used to use all sorts of mitts but never found them particularly comfortable and were useless when the cold whether came.

Last year I bought some Fox Unibomber gloves from Evans and have been very impressed - they are wearing very well considering the hammering they got through winter. They are comfortable and flex very easily and keep you warm on the cold days and suprisingly cool on hot days considering they are a closed glove. Dexterity for brakes and gears is great as the fingers have breaks in the leather where your joints are and also have a handy palm patch for wiping your face from sweat etc.

Best bit is they match my white bike and the hard carbonesque knuckle protection is pleasing (they look a bit handy too in a scuffle!).

http://www.bikeradar.com/gear/category/clothing/gl...