Tester Information:
Name: Jason Boyle
Age: 27
Gender: Male
Height: 5' 6"/ 1.68 m
Weight: 170 lb/ 77 kg
Email address: c4jc@hotmail.com
City, State, Country: Waldorf, Maryland, U.S.
Backpacking Background:
I have been camping and backpacking for about 16 years. My introduction to the outdoors started with the Boy Scouts of America and has continued as an adult. I have hiked mostly in the Southeastern and Northeastern United States. I currently live near Washington D.C. and have made the mid-Atlantic mountains my playground. I used to carry everything and the kitchen sink, but I have become a lightweight hiker.
Product Information:
Manufacturer: Granite Gear
Model: Aptitude Glove
Size: Small, fits 7"-7.5" inches (18 - 19 cm)
Year of Manufacture: 2004
URL:www.granitegear.com
Listed weight: none provided
Measured weight: 3.0 oz (85 g) for the pair
*Disclaimer: the closest my scale will measure is in whole ounces**
MSRP: $49.00 US
Color: Black
Product Description:
For an in depth product description please visit my Initial report
Summary:
These are nice all around gloves for moderate winter temperatures (30 - 50 F/-1 - 10C). They are articulated enough to allow me to drive, grasp ski poles, even operate the zipper pulls on my tent and jacket. However, I have not been able to perform some tasks in camp like lighting my stove, lighting a lighter or matches, and other similar tasks that require dexterity. I have also found that below 20 F (-7 C) or in very windy situations that my hands got cold in the gloves.
Field Test Conditions:
So far I have used the gloves under a variety of conditions to include: waiting for the metro on chilly Washington DC mornings, an early December campout here in southern Maryland, in New Mexico while downhill skiing and a cold January weekend in Shenandoah National Park (SNP). Temperatures experienced ranged from 50s F (10 C) here in the early winter to 1 F (-17 C) over Martin Luther King Jr. weekend while hiking in SNP. I have worn the gloves in a light rain and in the snow. I have also worn the gloves in calm and windy conditions (15 mph/25 kmh).
Field Test Results:
Overall, I have been pleased with the gloves; they allow me to be fairly dexterous and are pretty warm. They have performed very well in temperatures between 30 - 50 F (-1 - 10 C), meaning that they kept my hands warm without any aerobic activity. Below 30 F (-1 C), they only kept my hands warm during aerobic activity and below 20 F (-7 C) they only kept my hands warm during high aerobic activity. For example, I consider the walking the dog, or regular dayhiking to be aerobic activity, and consider backpacking with major elevation changes to be high aerobic activity.
During my January hike in SNP, my hands were nice and warm while I was gaining elevation, but while descending my hands were freezing. I think that part of the reason they were cold, was the wind, which was blowing pretty hard in addition to the cold temperatures.
While skiing in New Mexico, the gloves did well right at the 30 F (-1 C) mark. My hands were a little cold on my first ride up on the lift, but after that they were nice and toasty from my downhill runs.
The gloves performed well in wet and snowy conditions. On my December trip, there was a persistent mist all day and my hands never felt wet inside of the gloves. The outside was damp, but not the inside. The gloves also did well in the snow, just like during the misty day, the outsides of the gloves were damp, but the insides were dry. Based on how damp the outside of the gloves got on my previous trips, I don't think I would use them in a downpour.
These gloves have also been very durable. The outer shell and fleece cuff of the gloves show no signs of wear and the black color doesn't show any dirt either. The Pittards WR100X Digital Armor-Tan palm is beginning to show wear in the high use parts: finger tips, and between the thumb and forefinger from where I hold hiking or ski poles, and by wear I mean the pattern is starting to become smooth instead of having texture.
I have been able to perform most tasks with the gloves on. I can easily get into my tent, open my jacket pockets, use my utensils to eat, turn on my Princeton Tec Aurora headlamp, etc… The problem I have found is doing anything that requires complete dexterity. I cannot light my Whisperlite or Coleman 533 stove for several reasons: I cannot operate the pump, and I am unable to light a lighter. I can also not operate my cell phone or GPS with gloves on.
Improvements:
One improvement I would like to see is a fleece lining on the forefinger. The outer fabric is fairly soft, but it doesn't feel good on a runny, chapped, and cold nose.
Testing Plan:
Winter has finally descended on the Mid-Atlantic States and these gloves will be worn most days for the next several months. I will continue to test the durability of the gloves, and I will also try wearing a pair of thin silk gloves as a base layer to see if that improves the temperature range of the gloves.
Thanks again to BackpackGearTest.org and Granite Gear for the opportunity to participate in this test.
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Read more gear reviews by Jason Boyle
