I love my gloves!

[Waternut]

I used to have a pair of O'Brien gloves with amara palms and used them for 9 years waterskiing and 1 on jetski's. I let a bunch of friends use them and they stretched them out and abused them a bit so they started getting a bit ratty and started giving me blisters. My friend with bigger hands still uses them though so they are still holding on.

I bought a pair of HO 41 Tail Syndicate gloves with amara and kevlar palms and have been using them for a season and a half. http://www.gettommys.com/Ski/Ski-Accessories/HO-41-Tail-Glove-(2008).html The kevlar provides additional grip and reduced blisters even more. These pictures were taken after 3 straight days of riding and 3 tanks of gas. My left hand takes the most abuse and it has a slight white dot under my pinky that will be gone by tomorrow. As you can see, the gloves themselves look almost brand new except for the slight discoloration on the white and the white dot in the middle where I grabbed something on my dock.

The one downside is they chew through grips pretty fast and since I have small hands, I need the ruffian grips which already don't have much grip on them. The way I see it is, I can replace the grips every year for $12 or so but blisters will ruin an entire weekend.

 

[is a cult]

do they protect the wrist from strains ?

 

[itismejoshy]

great review! i wish they where fingerless......i go through a pair of motocross gloves every couple months...and they are cheap....

 

[Waternut]

do they protect the wrist from strains ?

No because a few big jumps on other peoples ski's and it'll make my wrists hurt. I think it's the strong handlepole spring and the stiff pole that do it to me. For some reason, when the pole doesn't fall onto the hood during a landing, I can't fight the pole and my wrists collapse but that's just me. I'm used to a weak spring and my wrists go down with the pole and then my wrists are in line with my arms.

 

[Waternut]

Well it's been a complete season for me (7-8 months worth of riding)... Here are the grips that I used. For all intents and purposes, the grips are toast. Of the two, only one has a side that looks like grip still. All the other sides are bald or bald and disintegrating. Never had a single blister all season though and in the months where I didn't need a wetsuit, I typically rode until the tank was empty or longer. Gloves still look the same.

 

[Bobert540]

I use my Obrien slalom ski gloves and love them. They have been holding up great and provide nice wrist support. These HO gloves look like they will hold up!

 

[NVJAY775]

Bringing this one back. How have they held up? I'm looking for some new gloves this season.

Thanks
Jay

 

[Pablo]

I think he was still wearing these gloves this year at Daytona and still are going strong. I shred a pair or two of Fox moto-x gloves per season. These gloves are worth the investment from what I've seen.

 

[NVJAY775]

That sounds good. I tried on some random pair of waterski/wakeboard gloves that were like his, but they had such a preformed grip, that they would have sucked for throttle and trim. His don't look so preformed for a rope handle, which would be sweet.

 

[227]

I love the velcrow wrap around wrist strap feature. I've been using Jet Pilot gloves and find that the velcrow lay over strap wears quickly and becomes useless. My next pair of gloves will be the waterski style with the wrap around wrist strap.

 

[Waternut]

Yes these gloves are still holding on strong and I still like them. The only thing that has happened was one of the thumbs got worn through the leather on the side. It's something wierd with the way I grip with my left hand. I do it on mtn bikes too. I just bought a black $2 jean patch from walmart and melted it on with an iron. I don't even see the patch unless I specifically look for it. All the kevlar in the palm and everything else on the gloves is good as new.

On a side note... The preformed grip is awesome. You'll love it once you start using a glove that has it. Also, don't buy the glove that fits comfortably in a store. I can't stress this enough. The Amara leather expands slightly when wet. I physically can't put my gloves on when they're dry but they're borderline too loose when wet.

 

[Shonuff]

Is it me or do those gloves seem insanely industrial?

 

[Kny21]

Ski gloves are the best... They're built to last unlike most jet ski or mx glove. Added cost is well worth it for a decent quality glove.

The wrist straps provide strength and support for wrists and have cinches on the backside of the hand to tighten the palm area for a skin tight fit. Loose gloves cause blisters, a proper size glove should be too tight of a fit when dry.

 

[MDStandUp]

Is it me or do those gloves seem insanely industrial?

they look beast. im sure they are the best you could get but im looking for something a little less loud. i had a pair of football receiver gloves that didnt hold that great but i loved them that they were not bulky and didnt go high up my wrist. keep my tan going. anyone got anything simple and small?

 

[Shonuff]

They look like boxing gloves.

 

[sportfish258]

I tried these on at Daytona . They helped my arm pump tremendously . I'm getting a pair they are thin, tough and They fit me like .... well you know a ..... i just can't

 

[NVJAY775]

My last pair were just some cheapies I picked up at big5. They felt pretty good and kept me from tearing up my hands, but they were done before sumer ended. After looking at some other gloves, I am still liking the Tail's. They look pretty good and functional. Some other gloves have a special thing in the palm for holding the rope (which could be cut out I think) but I don't want to take a chance on them being weird and having to send them back. There are some pretty cool looking gloves out there, but the Tail's still look like a winner to me.

 

[Tyler Zane]

i just really dont like to wear gloves while i ride. they make my hands all mushy.

if you didnt wear gloves so much you wouldnt get blisters on your girly hands.

 

[Matt_E]

i just really dont like to wear gloves while i ride. they make my hands all mushy.

if you didnt wear gloves so much you wouldnt get blisters on your girly hands.

X2.
I don't like'em either. Doesn't matter how cold it is.

 

[Crab]

mandatory here, my 10 dolla home depot gloves are perfect, cheap and last a long time.