HESTRA ERGO GRIP OUTDRY DEXTERITY SHORT GLOVES REVIEW

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As a climber/instructor, one of the things I obsess with, are gloves.  Having worn a whole selection, tested, tried and pushed them to their limit.  I have yet to find the perfect all around glove.  But I’m sure this is just a relative statement, and perfection in anything does not quite exist.

HESTRA ERGO GRIP OUTDRY DEXTERITY SHORT GLOVES

Someone suggested to me, looking at Hestra gloves.  The more research I did, the more appealing these became, i.e. they have been around since 1936.  They only make gloves, so one would assume that when it comes to gloves, Hestra knows what they are doing.

The gloves I have tested for this review are the Hestra Ergo Grip Outdry Dexterity short gloves.

SIZING & FIT

Before you purchase any Hestra gloves, you go on their website and put in your hand measurements, and they come up with the correct size glove (only applicable to their gloves).  A service I have not yet come across.  In the past for me it has just been a case of trying them on in the shop.  Or guessing what would fit from an online order.

I wore the Ergo Grip Dexterity short gloves over a period of 2 months.  Using them on all scrambling type terrain, hillwalking days, and even some easy climbing routes.  From the moment you put them on, you can feel the quality and the workmanship that has gone into these gloves.

These are a snug fit, and a fairly thin glove, so when climbing the rock feels sensitive to touch, so you can feel what you are doing.  It also makes placing protection much easier, and managing the rope.  One of the reasons I am sometimes reluctant to wear gloves is that it can take away the sensitivity and the feel of what you are doing.  Not in the case of the Hestra Ergo Grip Dexterity short glove.

PERFORMANCE

Although it is a thin glove, it does not compromise on warmth.  The Outdry technology allows a thinner material to be used to give great heat retaining properties.  The Outdry technology also provides a waterproof and breathable membrane, yet highly elastic.  This guarantees the absolute fitting of the glove no matter how your hand is positioned.  As a result, my hands stayed warm and dry in all types of weather Wales could throw at it.

FEATURES

The Hestra Ergo Grip Dexterity short glove has several brilliant well-thought of features:

1. Already curved fingers – which creates less unused space/air pockets in the gloves, which make it feel like a warmer and stronger glove.
2. Reinforcements in the right places – when belaying, pulling rope in, feeding rope out or short-roping, the reinforcements protect the integral design of the glove, and provide it with longevity.
3. Leather around most of the finger – all four fingers have leather most of the way around, protecting the insides from excessive wear.

Don’t feel these gloves have any bad points.  But if I were to be very critical it would be the price.  The quality of the gloves would outlast so many other gloves on the market.  One minor issue, that many gloves present is that the back part of the thumb is generally made of a soft material.

When doing lots of mountaineering/climbing with these gloves, you cannot help it coming into contact with the rock (an abrasive material).  I can see that where the soft material and the leather meet may be a weak point.  That’s where it would wear quicker than the rest of the glove.

Apart from that, it is an incredible glove.  The Hestra Ergo Grip Dexterity Outdry short gloves fit from the word go, and does not need wearing in.   Some gloves need to be worn in before they are comfortable.  Not the Hestra Ergo Grip gloves.

CONCLUSION

We recommend the Hestra Ergo Grip Dexterity Outdry short gloves for all round mountaineering (hillwalking, scrambling and easy climbing routes).  These would even come into their own on summer Alpine routes.  They are waterproof, windproof, tough and beautifully designed.

Please visit the link below to find a UK distributor near you:

https://www.hestragloves.uk