UKC

At the start of last winter I bought a pair of Montane extreme gloves, luckily half-price. I got a fair amount of use out of them with a fair amount of winter walking and climbing (roughly 3 weeks of use). I also used them occasionally in the Alps in summer. I noticed at the beginning of this season that they were starting to wear away at the fingertips and sure enough after one winter walking trip (which they were barely used) and a couple of days winter climbing they now have holes in the pertex outer at the fingers.

On contacting Montane they claimed that "two winter seasons from a pair of gloves would sound reasonable for a lot of people". Is this right, should you expect gloves to last such a short space of time? Should I bother trying to take them back to the shop? They are also now not even close to be water resistant and soak water up like a sponge.

In reply to sheelba:

Pertex is never super tough when it can be abraded. I'd stick some seam grip over the wear holes, spray them with reproofer and crack on.

Looking at the pics of the gloves, I reckon 3-4 weeks of climbing and winter walking is pretty good for pertex gloves.

In reply to TobyA:


Yep. I have a pair of these gloves, but I bought them knowing they are not really for winter *climbing* - at least not any great amount of technical climbing. I consider them more a cold-weather mountaineering glove, though I bought them for a sled trip in Antarctica, for which they are ideal.

I don't consider gloves in the same way I consider other bits of gear. Individual pairs will fit differently, due to the complicated construction processes, which also makes them expensive, which given their uses also makes them often poor value, which means a lot of 'good' gloves are not really worth it and something cheaper will do - for some things. For other things, you want the best gloves you can get. Also, given how much you use your hands climbing, all the sharp and rough stuff they handle, the places you shove them, gloves get hammered more than most other clothing.

In reply to sheelba:

Winter climbing destroys gloves. I'm happy if I can get more than a season out of a pair. With that in mind I never buy the expensive ones, but every time I see a cheap pair in a sales bin I snap them up!

In reply to sheelba:

as far as soaking up water like a sponge - typical of pertex based mitts/gloves - and the 'warm when wet' mantra is at the core of all of the pile/pertex clothing that is out there.

FWIW I use buffalo mitts, I've had one pair since 93 and another newer one - they will look pretty battered after a while, but still function well. Until you get too close to a gas lamp in which case the pertex vanishes in a flash!

In reply to sheelba:

I've trashed gloves in one winter route, never mind two full seasons! You are well ahead..............buy some more if you can't fix them with glue and thread.