Anyone have experience with the new BD crack gloves?

Are these things any good? Wondering if I should just continue to use Euro-tape or spend a few bucks more at BD (to get free shipping) and try them out.

New to crack climbing.  After hating taping up a couple of times, I bought some, but they have not arrived yet.  

I got them based on this review.  They were back ordered and a not a lot of places are selling them at the time. 

http://www.bricepollock.com/ultimate-crack-glove-review-ocun-or-black-diamond/

I have to say - any review that starts out saying the Ocuns were the first crack gloves needs to be read with a few grains of salt.

The only consistent complaint I can find about them is that the wrist strap breaks easily. Other than that, I only hear good things about them. 

I'm looking into buying a pair myself, but I want to wait and see what clack gloves the wideboyz are coming out with soon

I like mine.  Have the ocuns as well.  Tend to prefer the BD's in thinner hand cracks or finger/off finger size when the thumb protection is good to have.  The white color also seems to help on hot sunny days.  Downside is they seem less durable than the BD but cant confirm that yet.

they're great at first, but do not last. My velcro no longer sticks and the rubber is delaminating

Jordan Cannon just used them up on Golden Gate and loved them. 

I just bought a pair for a valley trip I took last week.  I thought they were the best crack glove I've used yet. I've also tried the OR gloves and a really crappy version from ClimbX (as well as traditional taping).  I'm a big fan of the thumb coverage on the BD gloves.  I added some tape to the base of my index finger if I was going to climb a finger crack to try and preserve the loop around the index finger. I climbed the Nutcracker, the Central Pillar of Frenzy, The Voyager, and The Rostrum with them and they were great. 

I bought a pair last month when my OR jammies blew out.  After about 10 days at Indian Creek their days are numbered (rubber delaminating from back of hands, Velcro separating, synthetic suede ripping).  Sizing runs small, I’m a s/m in OR and XL in BD fit me reasonably well. I’d just buy more tape if I were you.

 
Supposedly Ocun is coming out with a light version of their glove, if that’s the case my guess is that will become the go to for most since the current model is more durable but too thick for many of us.

I bought a pair the first week they came out. They were great while they lasted but eventually failed at the wrist strap after about 100 pitches. 

I’ve been using a pair for a little less than a year. I like them. They aren’t all that durable, but have lasted as long as I’d expect a shoe to last. I’d guess the cost/climb ended up being less than tape, and they’re more convenient and functional than tape.
my only complaint is that they leave  the skin between the forefinger and thumb exposed which is a major contact area in fist cracks, so still end up needing a little tape. Despite that, I like them well enough that I ordered another pair for when the first fully blows out. 

I’ve used the Ocun and Ocun Lights and own the BD. I got the BD’s as soon as they were released.

Ocun Lights are really just the 2.0 version of the original with some minor iterations to improve on them. I can’t really recommend the original version anymore.

The BD gloves are much thinner than the Ocuns, so they feel much closer to tape gloves. The Ocuns are almost too thick in that some tight hands are now fingers, but they are grippier. The BD’s have much better thumb coverage which works great for fists and hands. My straps on the BD’s have lasted longer than the original Ocuns (we’ll see about the Lights), though the Velcro is starting to get less sticky. The Velcro straps on the BD are much thinner in profile so they are less bulky at the wrist. So far, the BD are looking really dirty but otherwise have held out and are still in one piece. Some parts near the fingers are looking a little worn.

Overall, pretty impressed and I think I like them more overall than either Ocuns.

I bought the BD gloves after getting frustrated with the fit of the OR gloves. On my hands, the OR glove thumb loop is too baggy and I have accidentally clipped it into gear twice - really not fun to get out of. The BD gloves come in more sizes and fit my hands better. The BD gloves are a bit more of a pain to take on/off because of the tight fit of the thumb and the fussiness of flipping the finger loops the right way before putting them back on again. You don't want to be taking these on/off to belay - better to get belay gloves sized to fit over them if you must. I climbed about 20 pitches in them last weekend and they are holding up fine. I did end up with some tenderness on one knuckle, which I've not experienced in 150+ pitches on two pairs of the OR gloves. This may be exacerbated by the tight fit of the finger loops, which puts pressure on the back of the hand when cupping.

As this seems to be the most presently active post on this topic, I'll reiterate my question here:

Has anyone find these stretch a bit?  I was right on the border between small and medium size, so I sized down in the hopes of having a closer fit, but I'm finding they're really hard to get off the thumb and the velcro around the wrist is maxed out.  I guess I could return them for a larger size, but I'm not sure it's worth it if those might be too loose, and there's a 3 week backorder again on the medium size.

El Duderino wrote:

As this seems to be the most presently active post on this topic, I'll reiterate my question here:

Has anyone find these stretch a bit?  I was right on the border between small and medium size, so I sized down in the hopes of having a closer fit, but I'm finding they're really hard to get off the thumb and the velcro around the wrist is maxed out.  I guess I could return them for a larger size, but I'm not sure it's worth it if those might be too loose, and there's a 3 week backorder again on the medium size.

all fingers/thumb on mine stretched quite a bit after using them a handful of times. I haven't noticed as much stretch around the wrist

I used a pair of BD gloves all summer and the loop that the Velcro is threaded through ripped on both gloves. I love them though, just bought another pair

I managed to nearly tear a thumb off a brand new BD glove after trying it on at home. Seemed to fit otherwise. My advice: if you have enlarged knuckles (i.e. if you're a crack climber), be very gentle when removing them. The faux suede material is quite delicate.

To be fair, I tested the remaining glove out on a very difficult jam last weekend, and got better friction than I do with skin or tape. Felt like aid climbing to me, but to each their own. 

Peter Thomas wrote:

all fingers/thumb on mine stretched quite a bit after using them a handful of times. I haven't noticed as much stretch around the wrist

I have experienced the same. Buying them a tad tight is a good idea. 

As for the velcro issues, just curious if folks experiencing this keep them closed/attached while stored? Ive had mine since spring 20 and while i use them intermittently, have jad no issue with velcro. 

Agree tjat having belay gloves that fit over the crack gloves is a good idea or you will see additional wear.

Logan Peterson wrote:

I managed to nearly tear a thumb off a brand new BD glove after trying it on at home. Seemed to fit otherwise. My advice: if you have enlarged knuckles (i.e. if you're a crack climber), be very gentle when removing them. The faux suede material is quite delicate.

To be fair, I tested the remaining glove out on a very difficult jam last weekend, and got better friction than I do with skin or tape. Felt like aid climbing to me, but to each their own. 

In semi-serious good fun: We could all climb barefoot... does that make sticky rubber shoes aid?

The gloves: I just purchased a pair and let me say... the sizing is very difficult to nail down. I stretched out and beat to hell a pair of Large OR splitters and was considering a size medium in OR before I found out about the BD gloves. I finally found a retail store that sold it, so I went to try on a size large and nearly busted them apart trying to close my hand. So I ordered a size XL from somewhere in Spain and STILL THEY ARE TIGHT. I am nearly maxing out the velcro strap. Again, I think my ideal OR splitter size is a medium.

My assessment: They need to make the length of the thumb portion between the velcro loop and the base of the thumb loop longer. That is by far the tightest part and seems to be the cause of the strap digging into the inside of my wrist. Even if the loop (that accepts the velcro strap) were 0.5-1 cm lower, there would be far less discomfort. I'm hoping that they stretch out because an XXL is a little ridiculous and will likely be too baggy in the rest of the glove in order to accomodate my (apparently) large wrist/thumb base.

If you size up and tape the wrist they are the best I've used so far! Great for thin hand jams

I wear size 8 gloves and the mediums fit me perfectly. The holes were tight at first, but they’ve stretched decently and are much easier to get on and off. The thumb loop rolls inwards like a shirt sleeve when I take it off. I find it easier than trying to pull it off.