Reviews > Clothing > Gloves and Mittens > Gordini Fever Gloves > Test Report by Kathleen Waters

GORDINI FEVER GLOVES
TEST SERIES BY KATHLEEN WATERS
LONG-TERM REPORT
April 09, 2009

CLICK HERE TO SKIP TO THE FIELD REPORT
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TESTER INFORMATION

I started hiking in 1998 after an eye-opening climb up Hahn's Peak in Colorado. Hooked, I return to Colorado often. I've hiked/snowshoed glaciers, rain forests, mountains and deserts in domestic and exotic locations, including Iceland, Costa Rica, Slovenia and Death Valley. At home, I plan for 2-3 hikes of 6-8 mi (10-13 km) weekly and one weekend hike monthly. Weekday hikes take place in Pontiac Lake Recreation Area, a mixture of heavily-wooded moderate hills and flat terrain. Weekend hike locations vary. My hiking style is comfortable, aiming for lightweight. Current pack averages 25 lb (11 kg) including food and water

INITIAL REPORT

PRODUCT INFORMATION & SPECIFICATIONS

Manufacturer: Gordini, Inc. Year of Manufacture: 2008 Manufacturer's Website: http://www.gordini.com MSRP: $50 USD Listed Weight: N/A Measured Weight: 5.25 oz (149 g) Sizes Available: S, M, L (men's and women's sizes) Size Tested: Large (women's) Colors Available: Black and Dark Chocolate Color Tested: Black Construction Features: (from Gordini, Inc.) Shell: 100% polyester Trim: 85% polyester, 9% wool, 6% nylon Palm: 100% genuine leather Lining: 90% polyester, 10% wool Interlining: 65% polyolefin, 35% polyester Insert: 96% polyurethane, 4% other Padding: Polyurethane foam Adjustable VELCRO® brand closure cuffs Made in China

Front Side of Gordini Gloves Palm Side of Gordini Fever Gloves

INITIAL IMPRESSIONS - Dec 08

Finger Tips of Gordini Fever Gloves

Since the Gordini Fever Gloves are so new they aren't even featured on the Gordini website, I had no idea what they would look like. My first impression was "they look nice, not at all like technical gloves." The gloves I received are black in color with just a bit of color in the small "Gordini" logo embroidered across half the back of the hand and a funky sort of grey arrow embroidered across the Velcro wrist strap closure. The main body of the glove is polyester shell material with accents of leather. The leather covers the tips of each finger with corresponding "grips" under each finger. There is additional leather on the palm of the glove. Gordini says the Fever Gloves are "waterproof, windproof, breathable" and made with their "Lavawool moisture management system with Recycled Thinsulate and a Recycled 3 layer thermal soft shell fabric shell."

The interior of the glove is a soft, fleece or flannel-feeling material with a nicely padded insulation. According to Gordini, this is their Aqua-Bloc insert which "assures extra breath-ability and maximum protection from humidity from the outside as well as inside the glove." There is an adjustable Velcro wrist strap closure which tightens the wrist opening against cold and snow at the very top of the glove's cuff. When the strap is not fastened, I can see a "V-ed" stretchy inset which will allow the cuff to expand while donning and doffing the glove. Once the glove is on, the strap can be secured to my comfort level. The gloves arrived fastened together via a small toggle clip on sides of the gloves. An added safety measure against loss of the gloves are the interior sewn hand loops (think little kids' mittens with strings) which appear to be possibly "glow-in-the-dark" on one side.

Gordini Fever Velcro Strap Closure

READING THE INSTRUCTIONS

Try as I might, I could not find any washing or care instructions for the Gordini Fever Gloves. I checked the website, hangtags and the sewn-in-the-glove tags without any luck.

While pursuing the tags, I did find a white one sewn into the cuff of the right glove proclaiming "CAUTION"! "When removing gloves pull each finger individually holding outer glove and lining. Remove slowly. Your weatherproof liner can not be sewn to outer glove. If you remove your hand quickly, the lining may be inverted and will be difficult to replace." The warning was repeated in French on the reverse side.

TRYING IT OUT

The Gordini Fever Gloves are new to the Gordini line. So new, in fact, that at the time of this report, Gordini had no information posted on their website about the Fever gloves. In addition, on the website, there is no sizing information. Normally, I wear a women's small glove, but to be on the safe side, I called Gordini customer service to ask about the sizes. A very nice rep instructed me to measure around the widest part of my hand (just about the knuckles) and my resultant 7.5 in (19 cm) would require a women's medium.

When I received the gloves, I was surprised to find them too small. I could have possibly endured the tightness in the hand, but was reluctant to chance it as I know from experience tight gloves exaggerate the cold. But the deal-breaker was the length of the fingers. My hand length is 7.5 in (19 cm) from wrist bone to the end of my longest finger and the gloves were way too short. I could not force my fingers into a position where I felt comfortable. I measured the difference between the length of my pinkie and the length of the corresponding glove finger and it was almost 0.5 in (1.2 cm).

So, I called Gordini customer service to find out their exchange procedure. Since Gordini does not sell direct to end-users, I was first, very politely, instructed to return the gloves to the store. Once I identified myself as a BackpackGearTest.org tester, the rep checked with a supervisor for the proper protocol and I was given a return authorization number. In less than two weeks, the exchange was completed. A thoroughly satisfactory transaction with Gordini customer service, I might add.

Between the times it took to exchange my medium gloves for the large size gloves, I had the misfortune of breaking my right wrist! I will only need to wear a removable wrist cast. So, for the next four weeks, I will not be pulling any glove onto my right hand at all, just a mitten. That means for the near term, I will be testing only the left glove.

Now that I have the large size women's gloves, I have to say, I don't see a very big difference. The glove is most noticeably less tight in the palm through the wrist, but the finger length is negligible. I really have to pull on the cuff of the glove to force my fingers to the tips of the glove fingers. If the bands of woven fabric on each finger are supposed be protecting my finger joints, they won't be as they fall just between the two finger joints.

Making a fist feels really clumsy and I will be looking to see if I have enough comfortable finger movement to perform normal outdoor tasks. Then, too, maybe the gloves will stretch a bit with use.

The inside of the glove feels wonderfully soft and definitely warm. Other than the aforementioned tightness, my hand glided right into the glove. There feels to be enough padding in it to protect me from blows to the hand as well as the cold.

The elasticized wrist rests right on my wrist bone rather than above the bone. Fortunately, it is not a very tight closure, so I don't think it will be a problem. The Velcro wrist strap closure appears to have enough "play" in it to accommodate layering the glove over some of my thinner sleeved tops or under my heavier ones. Nice! The top of the cuff of the gloves is 2 in (5 cm) above my wrist.

I'm not a big fan of tags or anything that could rub my skin inside my clothing. The left Gordini glove sports only a tiny logo tag at the cuff as well as a nicely-soft-covered safety loop to wrap around my wrist so as not to lose the glove. The right glove, however, has two additional (to the safety loop) rather large, tags. I will not be able to evaluate the irritation factor for a bit though.

Following the instructions from Gordini on the caution tag, I removed the gloves slowly holding each of my gloved fingers in turn while gently extracting my fingers from the gloves. I had no trouble at all, despite the tightness of the fingers. I can see though how after getting sweaty, the lining could be inverted.

All in all, I am looking forward to testing these neat gloves!

SUMMARY

It's just starting to get wintery here in southern Colorado. We had our second measurable snowfall last night and I can't wait to get out in the snow and snowshoe. Since I broke my right wrist 10 days ago, I'll be a little bit handicapped, but that won't stop me! And for the next 4 weeks, I'll give the left Fever Glove a workout. It will be interesting to compare how the Fever protects my left hand while my poor right hand will be limited to mittens! By mid-January, I should be able to add the right glove to the test.

This concludes the Initial Report of my Gordini Fever Gloves. Please see below to read the results of my first two months of testing.

FIELD REPORT

FIELD LOCATIONS/CONDITIONS - Feb 09

I have worn the Gordini Fever Gloves every chance I got for the last two months of this test. It was the only pair of gloves I used

In casual settings, I've encountered sunshine, mist, snow flurries, blinding blizzard and wind, lots of wind. Temperatures have been anywhere from 0 F to 70 F (-18 C to 21 C).

Wearing the gloves, I've also hiked on several day hike/snowshoe trips - one on Mt. Evans, December 27 and two on the Rainbow Trail in the Sangre de Cristo mountains on January 7 and January 14, come to mind. And just last weekend, I wore the gloves on a night snowshoe at the Tennessee Pass near Leadville with a day hike there the next day.

Mt. Evans was bitterly cold and windy. Normally, I would have preferred to stay home in front of a fire that day, but this is a family Christmas tradition (albeit, a bit late this year). The temperature was a frigid 1 F (-17 C) when we set out. Ferocious winds took the wind chill to -25 F (-32 C). Our famous Colorado blue skies were no where to be seen.

Because of the wind, in clearings, the newly-fallen, blowing snow was blinding. We stuck to the pine forest as much as we could. Estimated snow base was 30 in (0.8 m) and the terrain was fairly gently sloped. My pack weight was about 20 lb (9 kg). This trip was cut short as the weather was just too brutal for our 7 year-old granddaughter (We want her to LIKE snowshoeing!).

Both trips in January were on brilliantly sunny days with no wind at all, temps in the mid 30s F (-1 C) and estimated snow base of 25 - 36 in (0.6 - 0.9 m). We were stymied by unplowed roads and so had to hike over 1 mi (2 km) to even get to the trail heads. No worry, though, the trips were well worth it. Total mileage was approximately 7 mi (11 km). Pack weights on both these trips were barely 15 lb (7 kg), mostly liquids and snacks.

At night, the trail at the Tennessee Pass was a very pleasant 28 F (-2 C) when we started and a still pleasant 14 F (-10 C) when we stopped. Clear skies, little or no humidity and no wind at all made it a gorgeous trek. We started at an elevation of 10,500 ft (3200 m) and had a slight, but constant elevation gain to 10,800 ft (3292 m). The trail was hard-packed and meandered through a tall growth pine forest.
The next day, we were on the same trails, but it was sunny and 32 F (0 C). Still, no wind and very little humidity were present.

PERFORMANCE IN THE FIELD

I suspect I have probably already experienced the coldest part of our Colorado winters. My snowshoe trek at Mt. Evans will likely be the lowest temperature I'll be out in. Since I was only able to wear the left Gordini Fever Glove on that hike, I was able to directly compare it with a Thinsulate-lined fleece mitten which I wore on my right hand (in the cast). Both hand coverings kept me more or less comfortable. Allover warmth was more noticeable in the Fever Glove, while the prize for individual finger comfort went to the mitten. That did not surprise me as mittens generally provide more skin to skin contact, so, in my opinion, are generally warmer. I also attribute some of the lack of warmth in the Fever Gloved fingers to the tightness of the glove.

Since that first real test of the Gordini gloves, I think the gloves have stretched out a bit and/or the lining has compressed a bit. While the gloves are still a bit too short in the fingers for my liking, they are less tight.

On all other occasions, the gloves have kept my hands toasty, but not overly sweaty. There have been times where I felt my hands were hot and I have removed the gloves temporarily. At these times, I have not felt the interior of the gloves to be wet. Usually, a few minutes of airing out my digits is sufficient and I quickly pull the gloves right back on. So far, I would have to say the gloves have lived up to the manufacturer's claims of being "breathable".

Gordini Gloves at "rest".

When I don't need the gloves on or if I need to complete a task in the field which requires more dexterity than gloved fingers can provide, I just slip the gloves off. It is recommended by the manufacturer to remove the gloves finger-by-finger to prevent the lining from separating from the outer glove and pulling out of the fingers. I have not found this to be any sort of problem. I simply hold the tips of one gloved hand with my other hand and pull my hand out. I've yet to cause the lining to pull out, although I can see how that might happen if I'm careless. It looks like it would be tedious to have to re-align the lining into the corresponding fingers. Thanks to the soft rubbery wrist straps, I have not had to worry about where my gloves are when I have removed them. The gloves just hang from my wrists ready for duty. This, I've found, is a great feature when I snowshoe. I will need to tend to my pack or something and I will take off the gloves for a minute or two, but I don't want to stop or stash the gloves in my pack. With the wrist straps, I know where the gloves are at all times and I can quickly put them back on. No "little kittens losing their mittens" for me! (OK, I know that was lame, but it gets the point across!)

It has been my experience during the last two months that the Fever Gloves do not cover my wrists sufficiently. Again, I attribute this lack of coverage to the shortness in the fingers. I have been mostly able to counteract this flaw by using thumb loops on my base layers to hold my base layer cuffs low down onto my hands. With the thumb loops in place, I can totally cover my hand/wrist with the gloves. If I don't do this, I end up with my wrist exposed to the cold. While the cuffs of the gloves can be tucked into my jacket, I don't get a tight enough closure. The wide gathered cuff of the gloves forces my jacket sleeve to be opened a bit more than is necessary for total wrist/arm coverage.

SUMMARY

I'm getting somewhat attached (no pun intended) to the Gordini Fever Gloves. It has taken me a while to get used to the thickness of the gloves, but they do keep me warm and that's my main concern in a glove. Even though it is getting warmer here in south central Colorado, I still will be needing gloves on the high mountains for several weeks yet. The Fever Gloves will continue to be a part of my clothing repertoire during the next two months, no doubt.

Please see below for the conclusion of my testing and my Long Term Report.

LONG-TERM REPORT

LONG-TERM TEST LOCATIONS AND CONDITIONS

During the last two months I wore the Gordini Fever Gloves as often as possible casually at home and around town. I also have worn them on various day hikes and overnights, two of which are listed below.

February 20-21: Ridgway State Park and Reservoir, including the Uncompahgre River trails. Elevation started at 6880 ft (2097 m) and rose to 7000 ft (2134 m). Temperatures were from a low of 33 F (0.6 C) at night to 54 F (12 C) in the bright afternoon sunshine. There was, at most, just a light occasional breeze. Terrain varied from sandy beach shore to medium size rocks to very large rocks at the reservoir's edge, then changed to dry hard packed dirt to mud to icy snow patches in the offshore higher treed sections of the trail. The mileage for the entire east side trail was 7.5 mi (12 km).

Wearing (or not!) Fever Gloves

March 3-5: Hike and camp in the Bureau of Land Management properties in the Royal Gorge area of Colorado (Cooper Mountain range, included). Elevation started at 5400 ft (1600 m) and gained about 200 ft (61 m). Daytime temperatures were a pleasant 50 to 67 F (10 to19 C) and nighttime temperatures hovered from 18 to 34 F (-8 to 1 C) from Tuesday to Thursday respectively. A pretty steady wind of 10 to 15 mph (16 to 24 kph) was present most of Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday. Wind gusts were plentiful and blew as high as 35 mph (56 kph). The terrain was very dry. We were (and still are) under "red flag" warnings for forest fires. Vegetation was sparse juniper and pinon pine eking out a barren existence on powdery dirt to granite slabs. Desolate, but very beautiful against the brilliant blue sky!

Even though the weather has been unseasonably warm, I'd estimate I wore the Fever Gloves another 5-6 times in the last two months.

PERFORMANCE IN THE FIELD

With the unseasonably warm winter we've been experiencing, I was hard pressed to find occasions to test out the Gordini Fever Gloves. I wore them every chance I could casually to supplement my backpacking wearings. These casual wearings were primarily to see if the gloves would suffer any degradation over time. Most of my wearing time took place at night; the only time it was cold enough to warrant gloves.

The Fever Gloves performed very well in keeping my hands warm. Over the testing period, I had no complaints with them when I needed my hands covered from the elements. While they were not exposed to extreme temperatures these last two months, I was happy with their performance and I am comfortable with knowing (from the previous two months) the gloves' capabilities.

On my Ridgway hike, I started out the day with the gloves on. As the day progressed, it quickly became obvious gloves were unnecessary and in fact, uncomfortable. My hands heated up to the point I was feeling sweaty and the gloves came off. I was pleasantly surprised to find my skin was not wet even though I felt hot. The gloves had wicked the sweat from my hands very efficiently. The inside of the gloves did feel a bit damp to the touch at first, but within minutes, were dry. Nice!

Outside moisture in the form of snow did not penetrate the Fever Gloves. I deliberately held a handful of snow until it melted and found no trace of wetness inside the gloves as a result. Plunging my hand momentarily into an ice-cold lake also had no adverse affect. The water-resistance/proofness of the gloves held perfectly. I'm not saying I would try hand-fishing in a glacial lake, but for my purposes, the Fever Gloves work great in protecting me from the kinds of wetness I might normally encounter!

Thank goodness for the hand loops! The Fever Gloves spent more time off my hands than on them these past weeks. With the hand loops, I was able to have the gloves handy (no pun intended) at all times without taking up space in my pockets or backpacks. When I wanted the gloves, I needn't look for them; since they were just hanging around my wrist, I was able to just pull them on. This saved me time and frustration and the gloves did not cause me any discomfort while they were dangling. I did have a couple of minor tangles when the gloves caught on an errant branch or two while bushwhacking through the junipers, but the hang loops stretched out without snapping and I was able to get free without incident.

I have to say, the quality of the Fever Gloves is excellent! They have been wetted, muddied and scratched by vegetation but haven't shown any signs of cosmetic or structural breakdown. The seams are all still tight with no breaks. The liner is still securely positioned inside the fingers. The Velcro wrist closures are still able to close properly. There are no noticeable scratches or surface-scoffs on the gloves, either. Appearance-wise, the gloves could almost pass for new.

As for the aforementioned "tightness" I experienced; for me, the Fever Gloves are not ideally fitted. I think my fingers must just be a bit too long for them. While I've gotten used to the shortness of the fingers and I certainly have the dexterity to do all the things I usually can do with gloves on, the Fever Gloves just aren't as comfortable as I wish they were. If Gordini were to add just a half-inch (1 cm) to the fingers, they would be great!

SUMMARY

At first, I wasn't too sure about the Fever Gloves. They are a bit too tight and short for my fingers. After a short bit, I got used to them however, and I found them to be excellent at keeping my hands warm. After four months of testing, they show no signs of adverse wear and that's after a lot of abrasive action from falling on ice and rocks, brushing up against juniper and pine and just plain careless use on my part. The gloves are very good quality. While the season for gloves is pretty much done, I think, for this year, I most likely will carry them in my pack in May when I spend the week at Rocky Mountain National Park, just in case. And I certainly will have them at the ready next season.

Thank you to Gordini and BackpackGearTest.org for the opportunity to test this neat product.

Kathleen (Kathy) Waters

Reviews > Clothing > Gloves and Mittens > Gordini Fever Gloves > Test Report by Kathleen Waters