Cold weather gloves

Need some new cold weather gloves. Sz large alti gloves are too big for me. What's everyone using for cold weather alpine climbing? Need enough dexterity to place pro, but warm enough for 15-20 belowI'm leaning to or alpine alibi gloves

a search will give you a thousand responses. I use BD punishers or some variant of that model.

My experience has been that fit is the most important factor.

Different companies cut their gloves differently. I have wide palms, short fingers. Some gloves fit me well, others not so much. Dexterity for plugging in pro is a matter of fit more than anything.

Every big company makes gloves that will work, provided they fit. Try a bunch on, and see what fits.

15 - 20 below and placing gear? Alibi gloves won't keep you warm at that temperature.

15-20 below = mittens.

15 - 20 below = my a$$ at home. Yes I admit I'm a wimp.

Warmest gloves I've ever used (or seen) are the Outdoor Research Firebrand gloves.

Super warm, and enough dexterity that you can climb in them.

They are not cheap, however:

military.outdoorresearch.co…

-15 to -20F is COLD. Doable, but cold. At those temps, I use mitts for everything possible, including following and even easy leads if possible. Hand warmers in the mitts/gloves are also a nice touch. However, if I really need the dexterity of a glove, I swap for the BD Specialist when I can't use my mitts. I haven't gotten to use them yet, but I'm really excited about the BD Enforcer as well. Honestly, though, at -20F, unless I'm working, I'm probably staying home. And if I'm working, I'll probably try to reschedule just so the client doesn't get frostbite.

The reality is that at those temps, ice is typically quite brittle and can make the climbing that much more challenging, arduous, and time-consuming. If you're snow climbing, then mitts will probably be fine. And if you're trying to rock/mixed climb, I'd recommend going on a day when temps are nicer. You'll find that proper nutrition, hydration, timing and duration of movement, and layering will have as much or more impact on keeping your hands warm than your gloves.

At those temps it's best to have two pairs - one that's dexterous enough to climb in and a warmer pair to swap into at the belays. A glove or mitt that's warm enough for belays will have you sweating if you try to climb in them, and then the perspiration inevitably starts to freeze from the outside in when you stop. Goretex or other high-tech fabrics won't solve this issue.

Just to explain the temps, what keeps other guys warm at well below zero, keeps me warm to 10 or so, I have horrible hands and feet. I can be over heating, but hands and feet will be freezing. Even at 25 degrees I'm rocking buruntses on my feet, while others will be fine in LS silver bullets

Wear enough layers on your torso to stay warm from your movement climbing, and don't bother with those crazy thick gloves (and stick with something like the Alibi). Or switch to mittens. If your hands get cold like you say they do, then thick-ass gloves are the worst of both worlds: No bonus finger-next-to-finger heating from mittens, but crap dexterity.

Danomcq wrote:I have horrible hands and feet. I can be over heating, but hands and feet will be freezing.

I've got similar issues. In addition to swapping out gloves at belays here are some other tactics:
- Arcteryx Phase liners. Kind of expensive but thin enough to fit inside almost any glove without having to upsize. Pretty durable but don't expect miracles. I go through a couple of pairs each season.
- Chemical hand warmers.
- Whenever you remove a glove stuff it down your jacket front the moment you take it off.

FWIW I use BD Prodigy gloves when it's cold. BD rates them as -15 F. Not as dexterous as thinner gloves but I'm normally able to place gear without removing them.

Martin le Roux wrote: - Whenever you remove a glove stuff it down your jacket front the moment you take it off.

+1 This is super important. In extreme cold, gloves should be warm when you put them on.

You might consider flip mitts; you have the mitt part for the warmth, then you can fold the mitt over to get to your fingers.
There's some good brands out there,I think MH even makes them.

I use Paramo( Scottish) brand myself.
Mario

Danomcq wrote:Just to explain the temps, what keeps other guys warm at well below zero, keeps me warm to 10 or so, I have horrible hands and feet. I can be over heating, but hands and feet will be freezing. Even at 25 degrees I'm rocking buruntses on my feet, while others will be fine in LS silver bullets

Dude I'm the same way. I bought La Sportiva's Olympus Mons Evo boot just for -20° on Rainier. That said, a pair of North Face etip liner gloves and ME Fitzroy mitts (which the gear shop swore were warmer than BD Altis, which they also sold) with hand warmers still left my hands cold most of the time. :( I recently bought a pair of OR Firebrand mitts with liners and some OR PL400 liner mitts, and I'm curious to see if that system will work better. If not, I might even throw in another pair of Firebrand liners.

Mitts don't do much for your dexterity problem, though.