leejams Posted March 31, 2003 Share Posted March 31, 2003 I am looking for a waterproof/warm climbing glove and found these on sale. Is there such a thing as waterproof? Using them for wet vegetable belay's, punching hand holds through wet crust etc... Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sobo Posted March 31, 2003 Share Posted March 31, 2003 leejams said: I am looking for a waterproof/warm climbing glove... No such ice climbing glove exists. Seriously! Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cracked Posted March 31, 2003 Share Posted March 31, 2003 Waterproof, yes. They are called neoprene. Fully waterproof. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
sobo Posted March 31, 2003 Share Posted March 31, 2003 Neoprene would not at all be considered "waterproof". Wetsuits and NRS's paddling gloves are made of neoprene. The way neoprene keeps the skin warm is that it accepts water into its open pores, where the body warms it and keeps it warm. A truly waterproof fabric would be urethane coated nylon, rubber, or some such. 'Course, then it doesn't breathe. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
fern Posted April 1, 2003 Share Posted April 1, 2003 I got a pair of these this winter. I wear them without the liners and they were much warmer than I was expecting. They were pretty stiff at first, but the leather softened up. I didn't have them leak at all, but I was only wearing them for short ice-cragging stuff not burying them in snow or whatnot. I've heard that they aren't all that waterproof unless you seam seal the fingers and wax the leather palms. I don't really care if my hands get wet as long as they stay warm though. One of my main complaints was that the wrists and cuffs don't seal very tightly and the barrel-lock on the cuff is HUGE! Also if your hands get a little damp the permanent liner can invert when you pull out and then it's a pain to get back in. If you can get them for a similar price to some decent snowboard gloves it's probably an OK deal ... it's not like they are the bomb, but they're not awful. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
cracked Posted April 1, 2003 Share Posted April 1, 2003 sobo said: Neoprene would not at all be considered "waterproof". Wetsuits and NRS's paddling gloves are made of neoprene. The way neoprene keeps the skin warm is that it accepts water into its open pores, where the body warms it and keeps it warm. A truly waterproof fabric would be urethane coated nylon, rubber, or some such. 'Course, then it doesn't breathe. these aren't waterproof? Or are they not neoprene? My friend says her drysuit is made of neoprene. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
leejams Posted April 1, 2003 Author Share Posted April 1, 2003 appreciate the info, sounds like they are worth the money. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
rbw1966 Posted April 1, 2003 Share Posted April 1, 2003 cracked said: sobo said: Neoprene would not at all be considered "waterproof". Wetsuits and NRS's paddling gloves are made of neoprene. The way neoprene keeps the skin warm is that it accepts water into its open pores, where the body warms it and keeps it warm. A truly waterproof fabric would be urethane coated nylon, rubber, or some such. 'Course, then it doesn't breathe. these aren't waterproof? Or are they not neoprene? My friend says her drysuit is made of neoprene. Nope--those are PVC which is coated nylon, not neoprene. Your friend may very well have a neoprene drysuit but as I recall those are not completely waterproof. Neoprene wetsuits are not waterproof either--hence the term wetsuit. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
PaulB Posted April 2, 2003 Share Posted April 2, 2003 sobo said: Neoprene would not at all be considered "waterproof". Wetsuits and NRS's paddling gloves are made of neoprene. The way neoprene keeps the skin warm is that it accepts water into its open pores, where the body warms it and keeps it warm. Neoprene is indeed waterproof! Wetsuits work by warming up a thin layer of water between your skin and the neoprene. The water enters through the neck, ankle and wrist openings.... not through pores in the neoprene. Many dry suits are made of neoprene. What makes them "dry" is the latex cuffs and neck seal, and the fact that the suit is slightly pressurized. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Montana_Climber Posted April 2, 2003 Share Posted April 2, 2003 Very true about the drysuits being neoprene. These are diving drysuits. Sailing drysuits are coated nylon. Neoprene is also used in the fishing industry to make waterproof waders. However, I do not think that neoprene is inherently waterproof by itself. After working in an industry with it, I am fairly certain that in order to make it waterproof it must be melded with another fabric as a laminate (or at least coated). Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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