If you work with your hands, you know you need to take care of them. Why not protect them and make your job easier? Ironclad Work Gloves come designed specifically for the tasks you do. We took a close look at four of their most popular models.
Ironclad HUG Heavy Utility Work Gloves
The first of these is the Ironclad HUG Heavy Utility Gloves. Ironclad designed these particular gloves for high durability and toughness. Several key features pop out Immediately. First, we noticed the one-piece synthetic leather palm and finger sidewalls. Ironclad also double stitched all the major stress and wear areas. Even more, we liked the rubberized impact protection zones over the knuckles. To keep the glove tight on your hand there is a hook & loop wrist closure strap on the backside.
One of the smaller touches that many might not have noticed was the terry cloth sweat wipe built into the thumb. While a small thing, for those who work in warmer climates (or just work hard), being able to wipe that sweat out of your eye with your gloves on is pretty handy. Even better—when the gloves get nasty, you can just throw them in the wash! With these gloves on our hands, we had great dexterity, yet still felt like they protected our hands. In our experience, these gloves seem best suited for material handling. They also work well for general construction and when using hand and power tools around a jobsite. The Ironclad HUG Heavy Utility Gloves have an MSRP of around $27.
Ironclad GUG General Utility Gloves
Next in our lineup were the Ironclad GUG General Utility gloves. The major selling point of these gloves is their overall utility. And by that, we mean that they work for almost any trade or general application you can think of.
These also feel like a more lightweight glove. Ironclad designed them to breathe and offer all-day comfort. The General Utility gloves also have thermoplastic knuckle protection and a reinforced thumb and saddle. A hook and loop closure on the backside ensures that, once you put them on, they stay put. These gloves are most suited for things like handling packages and boxes, working on vehicles, or even driving and sports. Is that football constantly slipping out of your grasp? We’d bet money these gloves land you the touchdown almost every time!
We also loved the terry cloth sweat wipe. Conveniently located on the back of the thumb, it lets you wipe your brow at will. The Ironclad General Utility has an MSRP of around $20.
Ironclad CCG Cold Condition
Ok. So for all of you that live in those cold, windy and wet places, they have a glove for you too. It is the Ironclad CCG Cold Condition Glove (and as a bonus, ours came with a matching knit cap, too). The idea behind these gloves is that they are designed to offer both wind and water resistance and keep you toasty down to temperatures of 32 degrees F. The palms of these are made of synthetic leather which is further reinforced in all major wear prone areas with Duraclad 600 which is Ironclads version of heavy duty, yet very flexible synthetic leather.
The whole outside shell is treated with DuPont Teflon, making them oil and water repellent. The inside is lined with a soft microfleece that helps keep you warm but does not bulk up the gloves so that they maintain good dexterity. The wrists of the gloves have a neoprene-like material that stretches and keeps a snug fit on your wrists. What we liked is that these gloves did not feel much bulkier than the regular gloves we looked at and they offered a lot more features. Workers in cold storage facilities will appreciate these gloves for sure, along with anyone who has to operate equipment or tools in cold places. These gloves are among our favorites, especially as we head into winter. The Ironclad CCG Cold Condition Gloves have an MSRP of around $34.
Tuff Chix Landscaper
The final pair of gloves that we looked at was the Tuff Chix Landscaper Gloves. Yeah, guys, these are for the ladies in your life. You know you need to keep her hands nice, and what better way to do it than with these gloves designed for a woman’s hands. These gloves have features like reinforced fingernail guards, seamless roll-top fingertips, padded knuckle protection, and a special pattern that better follows and fits a female’s hand.
My wife took a quick liking to these gloves and was among the first to “test” them out. She found that these gloves are well-suited for working in the yard, gardening, remodeling, and using tools. The Tuff Chix Landscaper Gloves have an MSRP of around $21.
Ironclad Ranchworx Work Gloves RWG2
Ironclad RWG2 Ranchworx work gloves have several key features we really like. The “rolltop” seamless fingertips give you a lot of dexterity without sacrificing protection. You also get Kevlar reinforcement around the critical wear areas‚ like your thumb.
We also found we could put these gloves on very quickly thanks to a rubberized cuff. You get the ever-increasingly popular terry cloth sweat wipe on the back of the thumb. Finally, this glove, while leather, can get tossed into the washing machine. The premium goatskin won’t dry out on you or shrink.
Conclusion
As with many things in life, you get what you pay for. In the case of Ironclad work gloves, you get great features that will enhance your performance and comfort, but they might cost a little more than the run-of-the-mill gloves you’ll find at your nearest big-box store. Still, their usefulness and performance make up the difference.
