Category
🤖
TechTranscript
00:00Hey, this is Anthony with RevZilla TV, where you can watch, decide, and ride.
00:04Welcome to our motorcycle glove sizing and buying guide at RevZilla.com.
00:13So in this video, I'm going to walk through gloves.
00:15We're going to start off talking about sizing, and then we're going to move through the common
00:19types of glove, from short, leather, textile, and then we're going to go into full gauntlets.
00:23But really what you need to remember, if you're considering motorcycle gloves, because God
00:27bless them, there are a lot of folks out there that aren't wearing gloves every day,
00:31gloves come down to really three key factors.
00:33They come down to protection for your hands, they come down for function, meaning a better
00:37interface with the controls on your bike, and then they do come down to style.
00:40Most guys want to wear a glove that's going to match their style and the type of bike
00:43and type of gear that they wear.
00:45So in this video, I'm going to start off with sizing right now, but if you want to click
00:48ahead, I'm going to walk through the four basic types of short and full gauntlet gloves
00:52that we have at RevZilla.com later on in the video.
00:56Let's dive into sizing.
00:57Two key ways in which gloves are typically measured, and remember, every glove on the
01:01site that's worth its salt is going to have a video where I talk about specific sizing
01:04in that video, and it's also going to have a size chart.
01:07Now, the first way that you're going to see motorcycle gloves be measured is it's going
01:12to typically be a range, or it'll give you the instruction that says, put your hand flat
01:16on top of a tape measure, I have a tape measure, I have it in inches, and take the widest measurement
01:20across the widest part of your palm, typically that's just below the knuckles.
01:24So what I'm doing is I'm laying it out here, I'm going to put my hand down on top of it,
01:27I'm going to come in right around four inches.
01:29I would go back to my size chart, and I'd be able to tell definitively what glove size
01:34I would need.
01:35Now, I will say this, for most gloves, if you're right on that cusp of the size, go
01:38to the next size up.
01:39If a glove is too tight, textile gloves do not break in.
01:42So if you're running out of room, you're going to have a hard time with your controls probably
01:45reaching your turn signals.
01:47Also, if you're looking at leathers, keep in mind they're going to break in about 5%.
01:51So that's glove option one, and the size chart on the specific glove brand page or
01:55glove page you're on will tell you that.
01:57Option two is the circumference of your hand, and remember, it might be a definitive measurement
02:00in inches.
02:01It might also correlate with the European size, but the size chart's going to tell you.
02:04What I would do is I would take my measurement now, and the beauty of this is you don't need
02:08a helper.
02:09You just need a soft tape or a piece of string, and what I'm going to do is I'm going to pinch
02:11the end of the tape measure right below my knuckle, and I'm going to go around the widest
02:16part of my hand.
02:17If you want to be safe, sometimes your hands can be slightly different sizes.
02:19I'm going to do both of them and then take the wider measurement.
02:21I'm going to come in here, flaring my hand out here just over that eight and a half mark
02:26when I go all the way around.
02:27That's going to give me that full circumference measurement for certain brands that I'd be
02:30able to go back to the size chart, but the big thing that you can do here is look at
02:34that size chart but watch the video because some models within some glove brands are going
02:37to have some nuances to them, and I'll give you a frame of reference whether it fits big
02:40or small as well.
02:42The other thing to consider is ladies' gloves, and remember, for you ladies that are watching
02:47There's no difference in how you're going to measure your hand, but what you should
02:50expect compared to a men's glove is that the palms will be thinner and the fingers will
02:53be a bit longer, and that's really the difference from an ergonomic standpoint that we see in
02:57most leather or most ladies' gloves that are done by manufacturers that really think through
03:02the way they're designing those gloves.
03:05From here, we're going to walk into the common styles of gloves.
03:08We're going to do short leather, short textile, and then we're going to do full gauntlet leather
03:11and full gauntlet textile and talk about the different things you should look for when
03:14you're looking at those types of gloves.
03:17Remember, click right here, subscribe to us at RevZilla TV on our YouTube channel, and
03:20leave us any feedback on this video that you see fit your opinion.
03:23I'd love to hear it.
03:24Leave it right there after you subscribe to our channel.
03:26The first type of glove I'm going to get into is your leather short cuff.
03:30Most common, you'd wear leather over a textile because it is more protective, more abrasion
03:35resistant.
03:36Remember, your hands are always ... You're programmed to put your hands down if you're
03:38going down.
03:39This is an Icon Pursuit glove, classic black.
03:42Notice that it is perforated.
03:43A lot of times, perforation is for airflow, and I'll talk about seasonality really quickly.
03:46A leather glove typically, unless it says it's waterproof, which not many are, is going
03:50to be really a spring, summer, fall.
03:52It's going to be three season warm weather is what you're going to get out of leather,
03:56and depending on how it's vented or perforated will be how it performs in the summer.
04:00Now, I will say this.
04:01With any short cuff glove, it's meant to kind of meet up with the cuff of your jacket.
04:04Not a lot of rocket science there, but a lot of times, the opening on a leather glove is
04:07going to be a little smaller, the opening on a short cuff rather, because there's less
04:10glove to hold it onto your hand.
04:12You can see how this works.
04:13The anatomy is going to be the constructions.
04:14A lot of times, you'll see cowhide.
04:16You'll see goatskin, which offers more tactile touch.
04:19You can see kangaroo, which is lightweight and really strong, a bit of an upgrade.
04:22And then you look, hard protection across the knuckle.
04:25You'll see tongue sometimes.
04:26You'll see gel in the palm of the hand, reinforcement across the control areas, and then depending
04:30on how the cuff's done, this Icon Pursuit has micro-Velcro, so it's not going to bite
04:34any of your base layers or jackets.
04:35Again, it's about how technical you want to go, but also about style.
04:39I personally prefer leather gloves for summertime riding.
04:42I'm an ATGAT guy.
04:43I've gone down.
04:44I know what happens when you don't have gloves on and you put your hands down.
04:46It's not pretty.
04:47But leather's basic, and a lot of it is about style, level of investment, and the type of
04:51functionality that you want.
04:52Typically, you don't see waterproof or insulated leather gloves.
04:55That's something you'd see in more of a textile or even a leather glove that's a full gauntlet.
04:59So our next glove in the lineup would fall into the textile short cuff category.
05:03So again, textile's a little bit more lighter weight, lighter weight than leather, sometimes
05:06a little bit less of an investment, but you get more adventure out of a textile.
05:09When I say adventure, a lot of times there's a lot of different flavors they can do.
05:12You'll still probably see leather in the palms.
05:15Sometimes a mixture, like in this Alpinestars SMX Air Carbon 2, of leather as well as Clorino.
05:20You still might have different areas of protection in the heel of the hand and the ball of the
05:23thumb.
05:24But again, looking at this, this is a mesh glove with leather inserts, carbon fiber on
05:28the knuckle, sub $100.
05:29Again, short cuff.
05:31This glove, in my opinion, would be less protective than the Icon Pursuit, just in the fact that
05:34it's not completely leather, but it's going to breathe better.
05:37That's one of the things, whether it be textile on top or it be a mesh on top, you're going
05:41to get a little bit more flexibility in the glove's design from a textile glove.
05:46Again, this is a sport glove.
05:47There are adventure gloves.
05:48There are touring gloves that come in a short cuff fashion.
05:50It comes down to personal preference, as well as style preference, as well as level of investment.
05:54You're going to see that through some of the bells and whistles.
05:57I'm going to quickly note that the SMX 2 Air Carbon from Alpinestars is probably one of
06:00the most popular gloves, if not the most popular glove, ever made in the motorcycle industry.
06:04The next category we have is a full gauntlet leather glove.
06:07I call these race gauntlets.
06:09That's typically where you see them.
06:10Now, there are some gloves that are going to be full gauntlet and leather that might
06:14be a little less technical, single gauntlets or single cuff, that you can get for spirited
06:18street riding.
06:19Typically, you don't see full gauntlet leather gloves that are waterproof.
06:23What you see are bomb-proof gloves designed for the track with aggressive pre-curves.
06:27Remember, the leather is going to break in about 5%.
06:29You want them to fit really, really tight.
06:31I will say this is a rule of thumb.
06:33The more you spend is going to be the increase in level of technical protection and functionality
06:37that you get.
06:38I have a Pro Metal RS from Dainese.
06:41That's a mid-range, hardcore track day glove from them.
06:44It's a race glove.
06:45It sits right below that Pro Metal RS.
06:47Now, looking at it, or the Full Metal RS rather, I'm going to have a carbon fiber stainless
06:52knuckle composite, dual layers of leather.
06:54You're going to see Kevlar stitching, a lot of different components that are meant to
06:58be guarding against different types of crashes, flexibility in the back of the hand.
07:03As I start to rotate over, we have a single cuff.
07:05You see race gloves that have dual cuffs.
07:07Again, you're going to see cowhide.
07:08You could see kangaroo here as a higher level of investment in the palm.
07:12You'll see Nomex or Kevlar linings to protect you in the event of a crash.
07:17Here on this Dainese, you're going to see a palm slider, protection at the ball of the
07:21thumb.
07:22They have an external grip patch here.
07:24That's an additional area for tactile response on the bike.
07:27Look at how aggressive this pre-shape is.
07:30I will say, too, as you go up and up into the race world, you might see external stitching,
07:34which is a comfort factor, but again, these gloves are meant to protect your hands and
07:37be bomb-proof.
07:38Go over top of your race suit, always over top, or your jacket if you're riding on the
07:42street, but again, designed to be extremely technical.
07:45Most race gloves, too, are going to have a wrist adjuster as well as a flap.
07:48These days, into the European market, we're actually seeing some gloves come out that
07:52are less perforated and are also going to carry a CE rating.
07:55The last category we have when you think about gloves at a very high level is going
07:59to be your full gauntlet textile.
08:01This is actually a very flexible category.
08:03If you think about your full gauntlet leather, you're looking at three-season warm weather,
08:06spring, summer, fall, track day, hardcore sport riding use.
08:09When you get into full gauntlet textile, you could see a temperate season glove.
08:12You could see a glove that has full insulation for the wintertime.
08:15You might see Gore-Tex or other waterproof membranes.
08:18It really depends on the makeup of the glove and the application you're riding.
08:22Get past style really quickly.
08:23You know the type of style you're going to be looking for, what you want to match.
08:25Then you really need to think about, am I taking this glove, does it need a lot of gnarly
08:28off-road protection and beefed up knuckles, or is it a multi-season glove where I'm going
08:32to be hitting lots of different climates on the same ride on the bike?
08:36When you think about the glove and how it's going to fit, too, remember, it needs the
08:40fit you spot on because textile doesn't break in.
08:42If it's too small, you're going to have a hard time operating your controls.
08:45Really be careful in your fit strategy.
08:47Also think about it this way.
08:49The more layers in the glove give you the more seasonality.
08:51When I start adding a Gore-Tex layer, when I add a thermal layer that might be thick
08:56or might be thin depending on how deep into the winter I might want to take it, you start
09:00to create more layers within the glove that are going to create less tactile response
09:03from your bike.
09:05As opposed to a leather or a thin glove with one layer, you're going to have more protection,
09:08more insulation from the elements as well as from the pavement, but you're going to
09:11feel a little bit less of your controls.
09:13That's the trade-off you're making.
09:14Other things to look for.
09:15Remember, Gore-Tex, waterproof, breathable means you're going to stay comfortable even
09:19when it's really nasty out and that water is not going to get in, but your hand still
09:23gets to breathe.
09:24There are other manufacturers that make their own version of waterproof materials.
09:27They don't breathe as well as Gore-Tex.
09:29You'll see visor wipers.
09:31Many times, just like other textile gloves we've talked about, it's still going to be
09:34a leather palm for that protective factor.
09:36Notice big areas of dual reinforcement, protection at the ball of the thumb, heel of the hand.
09:41This is a dual honeycomb slider here on my Revit Fusion.
09:43You will still see wrist adjustment as you go up in the food chain from a premium standpoint.
09:47Then typically, you typically see only single cuff constructions.
09:50Remember, when you get into the cuff, most good gloves that are premium are designed
09:54with a cuff that could go over your jacket if you wanted to, but it could also be ratcheted
09:58down to go under your jacket depending on how you're riding.
10:01Again, that's the type of thing where you need to know what kind of jacket you're wearing
10:03and how you typically want to interface it with the glove itself.
10:07Remember too, depending on your hand position, whether you're in the tuck, in the three-quarter,
10:10or if you're upright, you should also think about where water might run down your sleeve.
10:14Is that going to go into the cuff?
10:15Where do you need to put that cuff underneath your jacket so it rolls off over the top?
10:19Remember, the key point to hammer home here is with full gauntlet textile gloves, it's
10:23as much about seasonality and weather, whether or not you're getting insulation or waterproofing,
10:27as it is about the protective factor, whether or not you need beefed up knuckle protection
10:31and finger protection, or if you're going with something that's a bit more smooth and
10:35sedated like this Revit Fusion, which is just a great multi-season option.
10:39When it comes into care and maintenance for gloves, the better you take care of them,
10:43the longer they're going to last.
10:44Of course, if you're not having a get-off and ripping them up.
10:47Again, a lot of times we don't recommend you throw them in the washer.
10:50Spot clean them, sometimes with warm soap and water, but ultimately you're not submerging
10:54these gloves.
10:55The leather's not meant to get wet.
10:56The textile is meant to get wet in a lot of cases, and is a little easier to clean.
11:00If you really follow those rules, you don't beat on them, you don't throw them in the
11:03laundry, many times a premium set of gloves is going to hold up multiple seasons, will
11:07stay intact.
11:08In the case of some of the really high-end gloves, you can even have a get-off and they
11:11should hold together and you'll be able to keep riding.
11:14The next step in your journey is to make sure that whatever glove you're looking at
11:17at RevZilla.com, you watch the video detail breakdown that I do.
11:20I talk about sizing, I talk about seasonality, I talk about functionality.
11:24From there, if you still have questions, read the customer reviews on any product detail
11:28page for any glove, and call us.
11:30We're here.
11:31We ship for free, but give our gear geeks a shout.
11:32We'll walk you through the line.
11:33See us at RevZilla.com or 877-792-9455.
11:38I hope that our glove sizing and buying guide gives you more context and a better starting
11:42point to get the right glove, the right fit, the right first time from RevZilla.com.
11:46I'm Anthony.
11:47We'll see you next time.