Cyclcist11023131

I wear fingerless gloves when I ride my more performance oriented bikes. Always have. Saved my hands more than a few times in spills.
Are glove sizes getting smaller? I ordered some xxxl gloves last week off Amazon. I couldn’t even get my fingers in. Xxxl - infant 👶. I sent them back and ordered a different brand. As large as they sell yet too small for me. I can’t even palm a basketball. What gives? I would like another set of gloves but the previous maker has disappeared. I go thru them about every four months, so I try to get them in bulk. Just don’t like paying $30 for a set of gloves at the bike store that last as long as a $10 set on the internet. Anybody solve this conundrum?

sdmc530

I solve this buy going to my LBS and getting the $30 version. I can make sure they fit and yes, they cost more, but I feel like I accomplish a couple of things. I know my gloves will fit. I think you probably get a better glove from your local LBS, AND you support your local LBS.


I know your conundrum but as a fellow big hander I just pay the money every 2-3 years for new gloves.

fietsbob

+1) Go in to a bike shop, try them on.. buy them there.. forget online buying .. don't be so bloody cheap!


Custom made gloves will really cost a lot, but fit perfectly ..




I don't like paying the garbage company for totally un needed volume every month.. I have to get over it.





....

jbell_64

At least look for brands that have a size chat so you can measure your hand and go from there. pearl izumi seems to be pretty accurately made to their size chart.

DrIsotope

For fingerless, in brands that actually make a 2X, I can fit in most-- PI, Giro, Garneau, Fox Racing. Forget about Lizard Skins, they run criminally small. Giro tend to be more stretchy than the others, so more comfortable. My problem really start to show up when I'm shopping for full-fingered-- Shower's Pass doesn't even make a glove big enough. I own a single pair of work gloves that don't feel like they're trying to push my fingertips back into my hand.

Oh, if you're ordering ANY of those Chinese brands with nonsense names like Vbiger, Zookki, INBIKE, etc, etc-- don't expect any of them to fit. They use their own sizing format, which is apparently specific to someone 5' tall and 100lbs. I wear a Large jersey from any major manufacturer. In a Chinese clone jersey, a 3X is too small. I don't think they realize people-- much less hands-- get any bigger.

I would say try the Louis Garneau 1 Calory, as you can usually find them in 2X for $8-11 a pair, but they seem to be out of stock pretty much everywhere. Time of year, I guess.

indyfabz

Do you like ordering things on line and then sending them back when they don't fit right--at least twice as I read your OP--and then feeling frustrated about it? It's $20 amortized over many years. (I've got gloves that are at least a decade old.) Some problems are self-created in the quest to get the lowest price possible.

TimothyH

Buy from Backcountry and you will always get two day free shipping and free returns.

Call them and ask for an account rep (gear head) to be assigned. Place all your orders through them. If the product does not fit then just let them know and they will email you a UPS shipping label to return it.

My gear head Kyle sends me two sizes of everything and I return what I don't want for free, just put it back into the bag, drop it off at UPS near my house and done.


-Tim-

Skipjacks

I don't have big hands. But I can't find bike gloves less than size XL that I can even get on my hands. Half the time the XL's are small.

And that's with major brand names.

Personally I like work gloves. I HATE the palm padding on bike gloves. I'd rather pad the grips on the handlebars and be able to feel the bike in my hands. Makes it easier to do anything off the bike too. (Hold a water bottle, grab a fence post, high five a dude with an awesome bike, etc)

I only wear gloves to keep my hands from blistering and to give me a little anti scrape protection if I fall or ride too close to a branch or something.

So I get my riding gloves at Home Depot. They have fingered and fingerless gloves for working (hammering, shoveling, etc) that have no padding. They are sized for normal American human hands. They are well made for ventilation and comfort. They have no palm padding. And best of all THEY ARE CHEAP!! Like $20 for a 2 pack cheap.

fietsbob

OP have any gloves that fit, already?

Squeeze

Hardware/home improvement store. Most sell a variety of gloves (including fingerless) for less than bicycle store gloves.

kevindsingleton 

REI usually has a clearance bin at the end of the season, and there are almost always bike gloves for cheap. You just have to shop, off-season, and store them until needed.

pdlamb

I've given up ordering gloves (and helmets) online. Helmets, because my head apparently isn't shaped like the molds those are made from. Gloves, because I've gone from a size L, to an XL, to XXL, to XXXL; or maybe just XL, depending on the brand (and I can't keep them straight). Two years ago Pearl Izumi gloves apparently shrank a size to a size and a half from one year to the next.


So I'll visit the bike shops, try stuff on, chat with the clerks or mechanics, and buy a pair or two of gloves while I'm there. Keeps their lights on, and sometimes I really appreciate having a local resource. $20 difference? I wasted a lot more than that on an overpriced greasy dinner. And it comes out to $4 a year (or less) for my usage.

Leebo

Shop local, ( wait for it) where you can actually try some stuff on. Go to a big box store, as said.

jefnvk

Any big box type bike selling store (REI, Performance, Dicks, etc) will likely have gloves every bit as cheap as the internet. I've bough all mine locally, never spent more than $15.

Heck, if you're going cheap anyhow, Wal-Mart even has serviceable options.

Skipjacks

See! I'm not the only absolute genius here!

High five, my friend! We've utilized a life hack.

drlogik 

Bendopolo,

Yes!

I have big paws also (I can palm a basketball) and wear the biggest gloves I can find. I have turned my back on bike-specific gloves in-lieu-of these fingerless gloves from Mechanix. The XXL fit big hands, they wear like iron, are machine washable and will seriously protect both front and back of your hands in a crash and work great for sanding gravel off of tires while riding. For $25 bucks, NO other bike glove I have found comes close. And, they don't look stupid while riding. They look like regular black cycling gloves on the bike.

My current pair are 6 months old, have been through the wash a half dozen times and still have a lot of wear left in them.

Oh, and if you're a mountain biker that rides through forest trails with low-hanging branches those pads on the back of the hand really do the job.

M-Pact Fingerless Fingerless Gloves | Mechanix Wear

Cyclcist11023131

I come off as kind of a dope on this one. Got some great ideas though. Like shoes, I go thru gloves in six months. When I find something I like, I usually buy five or more pair. I am an urban adventurist. Biking is only a part of the game. Regularly climbing, running, jumping, wading and such. Tough on the clothes/skin/ feet/ hands. I used to not notice. Now that I’m retired, being frugal is part of the game. It’s about planning, the less I spend on gloves the more I can put towards Bonefishing in the Bahamas. Buy the way, I love Schwalbe Marathon plus tires. They are pretty expensive. Got five pair hanging in the garage. So I will up my game in gloves, and while I like white gloves(heat), I might look into those mechanics gloves. At least for the next six months.

jefnvk

Yep, should mention that Mechanix are also my cool weather long finger gloves, but I find them a bit heavy for fingerless summer options. They also come in a nice hi-viz green, a bonus in my opinion.

Hardrock23

I wear a large to extra large in womens gloves, depending on the brand. I have to go to the store to try em on though. My issue is finding the bigger sizes in the womens gloves. They tend to be sold out or still don't fit, plus I don't like gel padding so there is less to choose from.

I went in a month or two ago to find some long finger gloves and none of them fit me well in either women or men sizes. I have short fingers and a large palm. They were all way too long.

I'll second the Louis Garneau 1 Calory gloves. Seems Performance still has some for men, but at least on my end the site is acting up right now. They were pretty much the only glove that fit me well and I got them for about $7 IIRC (msrp $14). They are nice & stretchy, soft, with minimal (foam) padding...plus the colors don't bleed like other gloves. Come in quite a few different colors, including white.

Sullalto

"Buy from your local LBS, or REI"

LBS generally doesn't stock XXL gloves, much less XXXL. I can't buy gloves or shoes at REI, they simply don't stock the biggest sizes-and they're a huge company. Most LBSs won't either.

Most XXL are a touch small, but workable for shorter rides. I do have a pair from performance that fits.

They don't stock the sizes the OP is talking about.

kevindsingleton 

There may not be a solution for every problem.

Maybe OP should go into the gigantic glove-making business. Clearly, there's a market.