I'm looking for a good pair of shooting gloves that will double well as work gloves.  My job requires digging every now and again and I also feel it's smart to just have a good pair in the truck.  I'd like something that won't be too bulky when shooting, but will stand up to the occasional light labor tasks. What do you guys use? PIG, Mechanix, and OR are the brands I've been look into. Should I be looking elsewhere?

Thanks.

I don't know about for shooting, but I had a pair of Mechanix gloves rip about an hour after I put them on at work, but I got another pair of the Mechanix Fastfit gloves and they've been pretty good so far.

I use mechanix gloves. Shooting, working on the car/truck, yard work, etc. They are priced right, comfortable, and relatively durable. If you destroy them, they aren't that expensive to replace. I have so many pairs its hard to keep track. Definitely handy to keep a pair in the truck.

I've tried the M-PACTs or w/e, I'm not a fan. The regulars are great when you need something a bit thicker, but my favorites are the fast fits

double tap

Mechanix


Good shooting gloves have great dexterity, and are very fitting

Work gloves are buillt to last a long time, and don't have the best dexterity.

You can get gloves that do a good job at both, but aren't great at either

They won't double as work gloves (far too thin) but I have a pair of under armor gloves and they are awesome. Close to skin tight, grippy palms, I love them. But I wouldn't use them for anything requiring great durability. . .

Mechanix gloves are awesome. The other ones that I really like are the SKD pig gloves.

I prefer the SKD PIG for form fitting gloves. They just fit my hands better than Mechanix. But Mechanix (original and fastfit) last longer, particularly in the fingertips.

PIG are great for shooting but will not hold up to much "work".  I prefer the Mechanix for a good all around glove although they too will not hold up like a good pair of leather work gloves.

Thanks guys for all the feedback! Mechanix it is for now.  I may pick up some PIGs down the road.

I really like the PIG gloves I got but I've only used them twice very lightly at the range and a couple of the fingertips are unraveling a little

PIGs are good for shooting but be aware that they are sized to be very snug. I don't have especially big hands and I need a large in those gloves; medium is too small.

 

Yep, I go medium in Mechanix but large in PIG.

Have and use both Mechanix and the PIG gloves, and like them both. Id rather shoot in the PIGs because of the better dexterity, but they are very thin so I wouldn't do much else in them if I didn't have to. I like to wear gloves especially when running a shotgun, so loading shells in a hurry doesn't chew my thumb up if im not careful. My Mechanix have held up well to shooting, working on road & mountain bikes, jobs around the house, some wood working projects as well and pretty much everything else I need gloves for.

A tad off-topic maybe but I wish someone would make a full-dexterity glove with some warmth for shooting in cooler weather. I know it may be hard to get the warmth AND the form-fit, but a man can dream.

i've got Mechanix gloves, Camelbak Heat Grip CT gloves, and OR Suppressor gloves. For shooting, I prefer the Camelbak or OR gloves. I've kinda relegated the Mechanix gloves for oil changes and such.

I have a pair of both PIG and Mechanix.  I slightly favor the PIG gloves because they fit a little bit snugger and are a hair thinner giving more feeling to the touch.  If it were cold weather I would wear the Mechanix.

Which suppressor gloves do you prefer?

I, too, like Mechanix gloves, as well as the other clones of them out there. However, it should be said that real "work" gloves do not make great shooting gloves. Mechanix gloves are not made to last. They are made to provide a high level of "feel" (and dexterity) of your tools as you use them (which translates well to firearm use). Most "work" gloves are made to proved protection to your hands under heavy use (unlike Mechanix).
Your best bet is to use Mechanix and just prepare to replace them OFTEN (and don't expect them to provide any serious level of protection against sharps or abrasives. They are not made for that).
This often reminds me of motorcycle racing gloves. You can choose "feel" or "protection", you can not choose both. Happiness is finding the right compromise of each that you are comfortable living with.

I use pig. Theyve held up to a full season of 3 gun and weekly pistol matches. Loading hundreds of mags. Resetting steel and other tasks.

My pigs fell apart after less than 30 minutes of use (typing on a keyboard)

Get mechanix

Get a bunch of them

Dunno about using them as work gloves, but OR makes a glove called the Ironsight that's far and away my favorite shooting glove out there.

https://www.austinkayak.com/products/15820/Outdoor-Research-Ironsight-Gloves.html?utm_source=google&utm_medium=cpc&utm_campaign=Shopping:%20ACK%20PLA&scid=scplp1577456&gclid=Cj0KEQjwqZKxBRDBkNmLt9DejNgBEiQAq8XWPgLVkKy3WbA02gyCD5PWyvQtBO89AIUNcK1qcDW5sV0aAmgi8P8HAQ

Good shooting gloves tend to be thin. Good work gloves tend to be thicker. Mecanix has also started putting that weird index finger pad on their gloves and it catches my trigger and throws off my shots.

I had a brand new set of Mechanix and i destroyed them in a couple days doing my roof.  I wore right through the finger tips from the asphalt shingles.  To be fair, the same thing has happened with every other work glove of that style (like Firm Grip and Klein).  The close fitting work gloves just don't hold up compared to the bigger, floppy leather gloves; especially at the fingertips.  But I do like them.  One of my favorite pairs was the Firm Grip Tradesmen.  But the Mechanix had the plastic on the knuckles which I would suspect would hold up better if you are pivoting/balancing on your fist while in gravel during tactical training or some such.

From this experience I'm just gonna keep a couple sets of gloves around:
- For heavy gardening (digging holes, cutting trees, landscaping)  I'll probably use pig skin, deer skin, or suede gloves.
- For work on the car I'll continue to use latex/nitrile gloves (Mechanix just suck in the oil).
- For construction I'll probably continue to use the tight fitting style (Mechanix, Firm Grip, etc.); the suede gloves style above are just a little too cumbersome.  Although I'll probably switch tot he suede style when doing demo or just putting trash in a dumpster.
- For shooting, I think I'm gonna pick up some of those Camelbacks since my Mechanix failed.  They got really good reviews back when they came out and I think I'll try them out to see how they compare to the fitting construction gloves in terms of durability and heat shielding.  If they suck, then I'll go back to construction gloves when I wear the Camelbacks out.

Sometimes, you just gotta have the right equipment for the particular job at hand.  Almost no sense trying to use one glove for every activity.

Matel

i like the plain jane Nomex Summer Flyers gloves.  Cheap, comfortable and easily replaceable.

I've had about 5 sets of mechanix, they either rip the first day, or last forever, no in between. I used the PiG shooting gloves, for shooting you can't beat them IMO. For work they will fall apart very fast.

Mechanix 100%. I buy them from LAPoliceGear when they have 2 for 1 deals. I use them for everything, certainly not just shooting.

Old school Held gloves did both.  At $200/pr they were pretty expensive.  So are emergency room visits.

I'd give the Mechanix Material4X gloves a try.  Only when they go on sale though.

I keep two kinds of work gloves around - those that are for "real work" - like digging, swinging tools, and carrying big heavy/painful stuff. And then I keep other gloves around for power tools, hand tools, working on the car, and "light duty" stuff like putting up Christmas decorations. I DESPISE the feel of most heavy work gloves because they don't fit me well (I have big hands, and long fingers for my hand size). I love the comfort of the lighter duty gloves, but the bottom line is I have had more than a few pairs fail as soon as you even pretend to do real work with them on. The Mechanix are about the best. Another that I have had some luck with are the Nike cold-ish weather running gloves with touch-screen functionality in the finger tips. They are not overly rugged, but have a lot of feel left.

-shooter

I like the ranch glove.  Will purchase when they become available.



 

I like the Technical glove.  I will give them a try when they come out.

Well, to be different, I rode an MC for a while when I had to travel 20 miles each way to medical school and couldn't afford a car.  So, I bought some almost elbow length padded motorcycle gloves for the days it was really cold.

Really, I never leave for the field or range without them.  I'm right handed.  I use the right motorcycle glove for whacking the river bottom growth (cat claws and dewberry vines) when hunting and the left motorcycle glove for cushioning my left arm and hand when I sling up with the rifles.

I know it's out of the ordinary.  But I was surprised at how those gloves really did well in those jobs.  Again, I don't leave for the field or range without them.

Best,

LF

I am still searching.  The velcro on the original mexchanix gloves is garbage..  Mine has lost all stick and its not even dirty, didnt even wear them for only a few days while replacing guards and teeth on the swather.  I had an old pair of Motocross gloves that held up really good to work.  I split many a cords of wood and rode many miles and they finally gave out 2 years ago.  I cut the worn finger tips off and have fingerless mountain bike/shooting gloves.

Mechanix Fastfit for shooting and Mechanix Impact for manual labor. I helped lay 400m of triple strand C wire this summer and didn't destroy my Impact gloves. I love them and I'll be buying extras.

How about a fitted type glove that can grip a hot suppressor off the end of a barrel?  I also keep a set of old school leather gloves for real work, then a set or two for cool tasks like shooting, loading magazines, etc.

Most or all the form fitting shooting gloves don't seem  OK for really hot metal. There's a lot of synthetic materials and/or thin palm material(s) on shooting gloves (the leather palms on nomex flight gloves may not be thick enough for gripping 500 degrees or more).

SKD PIG

IMHO, Held is over rated/over priced. Just my .02

I bought mine in 97/98 before they changed their manufacturing.  The ones I had were kangaroo hide made in Germany.  I hit the track three times in them and once on the street, no hand injuries.  The palm side kangaroo hide was amazing, never wore through and better feel than the Mechanix gloves I have.  I think the current line is not made by the same people.