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Reviews > Clothing > Gloves and Mittens > Marmot Glide Softshell Gloves > Owner Review by Tim EarleyMarmot Men's Glide Softshell Gloves Owner Review Tim Earley January 20th, 2010 Tester Information: Name: Tim Earley Age: 26 Gender: Male Height: 6' 0"/ 1.80 m Weight: 185 lb/ 84 kg Email address: timothy.earley AT gmail.com City, State, Country: Yonkers, New York, USA Backpacking Background: My first exposure to backpacking was about seven years ago in the Army where I learned everything I needed to learn about being comfortable in the wilderness with little to no “comfort gear.” I primarily do day hikes now, with the occasional overnight jaunt thrown in whenever possible. I consider myself a lightweight packer, though not a minimalist. My favorite hikes are those that have significant elevation change as these provide the best views, most challenge and best reward. I am most comfortable in cool to cold weather as I tend to overheat in other seasons. Product Information: Manufacturer: Marmot Mountain Model: Glide Softshell Glove Sizes: Small, Medium, Large, X-Large; Medium reviewed Colors: Black, Raven Year of Manufacture: 2009 URL: http://www.marmot.com Listed weight: N/A Measured weight: Fabric Content: 88% Nylon, 12% Elastane; Marmot M2 softshell MSRP: $50.00 Country of Manufacture: China Product Description: The Marmot Glide Softshell Gloves are, not surprisingly, softshell gloves made by Marmot! The gloves are described by Marmot as water repellent, wind resistant, breathable and warm. They are made of a lightweight nylon softshell material that provides good warmth and great breathability while on the move and enough tactility to be useful as work gloves when not moving. The gloves feature hook and loop wrist closures (with material to keep wind out when closure is open), patches of silicon on the point and middle finger tips as well as the thumb, and a slim but not constricting fit. These patches of silicon have proven very effective in adding tactility and dexterity to these gloves. The gloves do stretch some, but are not in the same league as Lycra. There is also some stitching about one inch (2.5 cm) inward (towards the fingers) from the hook and loop wrist closure that acts as a draft collar to keep out snow and cold winds.   View of silicon patches on fingers and palm
Hook and loop undone showing wind flap
Field Conditions: I have used these gloves in temperatures ranging from 0 F (-18 C) to 40 F (5 C). I've worn them on about ten separate day trips of about 7 to 8 hours each and 2 overnight trips. They have seen prolonged moderate rain, dry and wet snow and sustained 50 mph (80 km/h) winds. They have proven to be impervious to all but prolonged rain and are surprisingly warm and windproof, especially when moving. Initial Impressions: I was looking for a good pair of softshell gloves to give me a balance of warmth, breathability, tactility, and weather resistance while on the move in cold weather. These gloves hit the mark. They seemed very well made and the softshell material looked like it would shed weather effectively. I was also impressed as the seams are placed such that they do not irritate my fingers. Some gloves have the seams in the worst places and can irritate the fingertips, palm, wrist, etc. The people at Marmot did a great job keeping the seams out of the way. I was interested in the effectiveness of the silicon patches on the fingertips and so took some money and credit cards out of my wallet with the gloves on (in hindsight, I probably looked pretty shady doing this in the store). I was able to do this with no problem and so was completely sold on the idea. I initially tried on a size large since I wear a large in just about every piece of clothing (including gloves) but found them a bit loose. It is important to remember I bought these gloves for tactility as well as warmth and so wanted them a little tighter than say, ski gloves. I bought the size medium and they fit perfectly for my intended use. Owner Review Review: Overall I think the gloves are great. As expected, they have shed all weather well. I have been especially impressed with their wind resistance. I took a day hike in December 2009 in weather with an ambient temperature of about 7 F (-14 C) with sustained winds of 35 mph (56 km/h) with gusts at 50 mph (80 km/h). Hey, you can't test wind resistance without wind! Plus I wanted to test out a new jacket I bought. These gloves absolutely blew me away with their wind resistance. I didn't feel the wind at all and my fingers were toasty warm the entire day. They provided plenty of breathability along with all this warmth and so my fingers and hands always felt just right. On the downside, the water-repellency of these gloves is mediocre. They will shed light to moderate rain but will absorb water if they come into contact with wet surfaces. On a hike in about 40 F (4 C) rainy weather, they completely soaked through in about 35 to 40 minutes. I was using rocks as handholds while scrambling and was pretty careful to limit my contact with the wet surfaces. The glove still soaked through in all areas. While I expected to get my gloves damp, I did not expect these gloves to soak through so quickly. They aren't sponges, but be aware that they do absorb significant amounts of water from surface contact. However, as stated previously, they do shed precipitation well. The durability of these gloves has proven to be good although I have noticed a small amount of pilling in the fingertips without silicon patches. I do not think it is anything significant, just a result of them being scraped on rocks during some trips. There do not seem to be any seams coming undone or areas of significant wear and tear. The hook and loop wrist closures are holding up well and show no signs of decreased performance. I have noticed that the index finger of the right gloves has twisted so the silicon patch is now facing towards the thumb. This is a minor annoyance and nothing more.  View of pilling on index finger
 View of twisted index finger
Summary:These gloves are exactly what I was looking for in a pair of softshell gloves. They provide all the warmth I need when on the move in cold weather. They also provide enough dexterity that I can do pretty much anything short of using a Ziploc bag with them on. They shed precipitation well and absolutely stonewall the wind while stretching just enough to be comfortable the whole time. I am pleased with the performance of these gloves, especially for their more than reasonable price tag. I will continue to use them in all situations where waterproof/breathable gloves or mittens would be too heavy. The Good: 1. Dexterity 2. Wind-resistance 3. Great overall fit and attention to detail. The Bad: 1. Absorb water through surface contact Read more gear reviews by Tim Earley Reviews > Clothing > Gloves and Mittens > Marmot Glide Softshell Gloves > Owner Review by Tim Earley | ||||