Gloves for digging?

[Celtic Dragon]

Do any of you were gloves when digging and if so, what type do you wear? Thanks.

 

[Bucksport]

Always wear gloves for safety! Any good cheap mechanics gloves, or the cloth ones that are partially dipped in rubber work great.

 

[azsh07]

I do...main reason...poison Ivy sucks...and worse than the leaves is the roots of poison ivy...10x more potent if you cut through them. Maybe you don't have it but that is my main reason....next is mud...seems mud comes off gloves easier than skin....odd.

I use gloves meant for automotive work usually..unless it is real cold. I just like the feel of them...stretchy unlike leather or sued but usually have a kind of grip surface on the fingers and palms. Amazingly the action of swinging the coil will wear out the palms and fingers in spots if you use too thin of a glove...but then again small price to pay even if you toss em every few months for thin chepo's.

I am sure people have many different preferences depending on where they live and what they dig in. I just like the ones with some stretch to them with some reinforcement in the fingers as long as the reinforcement is not thick...again like a mechanics glove.

that is just my preference......try a few out at Pep Boys...or whatever parts store. Hardware stores also have alot of different glove styles too!!

 

[tabman]

For Summertime use, the Wells Lamont lightweight work gloves ( nitrile coated). For the rest of the time, the Altas Thermafit Glove.

They both fit well and are reasonably priced.

I keep several of each on hand and when they get dirty, I just hand wash them and hang them up to dry. I always have a clean pair on standby.

The insulated ones are good down to around 35/40 degrees and get a little too warm at 70/75 degrees.

tabman

 

[Elton]

Light weight leather driving gloves work perfect... fits well......wipe clean after detecting .......fit well for handling coins etc...

 

[Oldguy]

Any of the above gloves are fine for warm weather, I use 3 mm neoprene wetsuit gloves for cold weather. Neoprene keeps your hands warm when wet. I use to use neoprene fishing gloves but they are only coated with nylon on one side and wear out quickly. Wet suit gloves have nylon coating on both sides and last much longer but cost the same.

 

[Neil]

I like the atlas dipped gloves and this past winter bought some insulated ones that were even great for working a snow shovel or snow blower. That rubber stuff grips good even when wet and they hold up well.

 

[purplesage]

Gloves are fer sissies....

 

[fowlercharles]

Hi Celtic Dragon , I would advise everyone to wear gloves !! I learned early on that some glass shards are with out a doubt the sharpest objects that exist and are known to be plentiful in dirt. Nuff said for glass shards. I've worn all kinds of gloves and prefer snug, finger fitting leather gloves that allow as much natural 'feelability" as possible. Wore a pair of my snug fitting "heli-arc welding gloves for years. Made of deerskin and very soft and very comfortable. Not to say that the right glass shard could not slash through them, but that can be said for most any glove you can find. Caution when digging is still a must as gloves are still no "guarantee" against a slashed/ punctured finger. At present I am trying a pair of C.C. Schmidt work gloves from Tractor Supply Store. They are very comfortable in warm or cold weather and can be thrown in the washer and dryer after every dig if you wish. Just take them out of the dryer and put them on while they are still a little damp so to reshape to your fingers, then let them air dry. HH Charlie

 

[Mega]

Over here in the UK i use neoprene fishing gloves,these have the ends of the fingers that can be flipped back these are on velcro so that you can tie hooks onto line that type of thing without taking the whole gloves off.They are very light and have lasted a reasonable amount of time,and also cheap too buy as well.

 

[Steve O]

I use the thin gloves that sheet metal workers use, they're not prone to being cut easily...I think Atlas makes them. A good cut from glass will screw up the rest of the hunt. A good puncture from a piece of old barbed wire is no joy either.

 

[khouse]

I hated gloves until I sliced my finger open on a tab. Then cut the same finder on another tab about a month later. Now I use a glove just on one hand. I can tell you that I tried all sorts of gloves and I finally found one that is top of the line, cool to wear, cut resitant and it will last at least 6 month to a year without you wearing through your fingers. You can get them at Grainger for 28 bucks or I just found them on Amazon for a lot cheaper.
http://www.amazon.com/North-Safety-NFD16G-Resistant-Gloves/dp/B008ENNP48

 

[copperdave]

I jsut bought a package of gloves from Costco, think it was six in the pack, had a rubber coating on the inside, they are for gardening but i like it for detecting,, works great, think they were around $10 for the pack

 

[mudpuppy]

Gloves? Cheap, thin, and disposable, or none at all..not been cut yet, but have come close a time or two. I hunt gloveless, and also detect beaches barefoot, so its only a matter of time for me to really get cut really bad...like stepping on a bottle bottom in the dark, or jamming a finger down in a hole and gashing it on a busted glass top....like I said, I've come close...but no cuts detecting to date...I do carry superglue for this eventuality, but would prefer not to have to deploy it...

Mud

 

[purplesage]

Awww man!! I cast out some good bait and didn't even get a nibble....

 

[mudpuppy]

Well, you tried Purplesage, and thats what counts! If it helps any, I appreciated your well placed cast, perfectly chummed at feeding time, but was also puzzled to the lack of action...I guess thats why I gave up fishing in favor of this addiction...sometimes a guy cant buy a bite, but he can always find a penny!.. Nice attempt! I guess some folks find gloves too serious a topic to make sport of!
Mud.

 

[khouse]

I just wanted to add that I believe these gloves are woven with Kevlar and that's why they last so long. It's not the same as the rubber covered gloves at the stores.

 

[hartage]

Would you believe cheap dollar store gloves ? But let me explain why.... First off they fit GREAT ! they are cloth dipped in polyurethane (chem resistant synthetic rubber) the dipped part fits my fingers perfectly without the constricting feeling of full rubber gloves. I think I loose very little in tactile feel so I still reach into the hole to identify target by feel. The gloves fit like a second skin. Dirt does not stick very well to the dipped part (cloth back so does not get hot) and what does stick, once it's dry a quick rub together of hands and it drops away so much it's almost clean. So far I'm on week two on the same pair of gloves and they barely show signs of wear. I project they'll be ready to replace after a month or so. To replace it's a whole $1.08 inc tax. Needless to say if I were to loose them somewhere I won't cry for too long over $1.08

Now I must admit, these are the best looking, best built dollar store gloves I've seen. They are black in color, the cloth and the diped part. The cloth used is actually very stretchy and form fitting, feels like ribbed spandex like cloth. I found them at "99 cent only" stores. I think they are the same as or very similar to these harborfreight gloves here http://www.harborfreight.com/nylon-knit-gloves-with-polyurethane-palm-large-97403.html

Hope it helps. Good luck on your hunts !

 

[Mike Hillis]

I don't normally use gloves myself. When I think I do need them I just use my old pig skin work gloves. I don't need to feel for anything when moving dirt out of a hole so I don't need any type of specialty glove. I do pay attention to what I'm doing when I put my hand or finger into hole, though. Don't want a cut and get some type of flesh eating bacteria from the ground chomping away on my finger or hand

HH
Mike

 

[Goldstrike]

I buy mine at Walmart. You'll find them in the fishing equipment section for around $3 and change. You can wash them several times before they start to disintegrate but at a little over $3, you can buy a bunch and they'll last a long time.
Here in SoCal, it's mostly dry and warm to hot so these gloves are both lightweight and breathable but give some protection from the broken beer bottles and ring pull edges that you'll find in the parks and beaches.