Searching for the Perfect Pair of Motorcycle Gloves

I’m having a problem finding a pair of motorcycle gloves. All of the pairs I’ve tried have one problem or another, and it is getting irritating, not to mention costing me a small fortune.

I don’t think I’m asking for too much. Yes, I have piano player fingers (long), and my hands have been stamped on more times than I can count (rugby player). Nonetheless, they are a standard pair of hands, which I’d like to cover and protect with a pair of motorcycle gloves and not have the palms of the gloves crease up while riding.

Palms of Motorcycle Gloves

Like us all, I start each ride with the intention of reaching the end without any dramas, mishaps or problems. So far, I’m doing quite well. That said – and while touching wood – things can happen.

The palm of my hand is the part I need to protect the most. It is an automatic reaction when falling to extend our arms, palms out to cushion our fall. I’ll leave any thoughts about having the presence of mind to pull my arms in while travelling through the air to MotoGP riders.

My hands are most likely to contact the ground first, so I need a motorcycle glove with a durable palm covering and hard scaphoid protection, not a scaphoid pad covered in the same material that covers the rest of the palm. We wear knee sliders, so why not scaphoid sliders?

The scaphoid protection needs to slide when it hits the ground to prevent my hands from slowing while the rest of my body continues at the original speed. Unfortunately, this is how many motorcyclists break their wrists.

Hard scaphoid protection has even been shown to prevent collar bones from breaking. Keis have the right idea on the palms of my Keis 701 heated motorcycle gloves, but as the name suggests, they are for colder weather.

On the Back

Knuckle protection is something I’m looking for. Knuckles stick out, and there are no muscles to absorb any knocks or bangs, so it makes excellent sense to protect them with armour in the gloves.

I’ve seen external finger protection, the Knox Handroid gloves are perhaps the most well known, and whereas I’m sure it is good, the minimum I’m looking for from my summer gloves is to have the two outside fingers stitched together.

It is the same thing rugby players do, except we used tape, and it helps prevent your small finger from getting abused.

Textile or Leather?

I have both in my collection of motorcycle gloves. I’ve never tried nylon-based motorcycle gloves for all the same reasons as nylon based motorcycle jeans should be avoided. Nylon has a bad habit of melting when it heats up sliding along the road. (See Motorcycle Jeans).

Another consideration is to avoid wiping your visor with some fabric gloves. To achieve the level of durability we look for in motorcycle gloves, some of the fabrics used are hard enough to scratch your visor, so choose wisely.

The upside to fabric motorcycle gloves is that they allow more airflow and typically include some stretch material to help them retain their shape and fit.

Leather comes in different forms, not just bovine. I’ve tried genuine leather, goat skin and kangaroo leather in my search for the perfect pair of motorcycle gloves. All met my need for durable palm protection, and beyond that, I was hard-pressed to spot the difference.

I also found motorcycle gloves made from what was described as faux leather. All the look and the feel of genuine leather, but made from I’ve no idea what, and so have avoided them.

Fabric motorcycle gloves have a lower manufacturing cost, and if made from a suitable material, offer excellent abrasion resistance. However, despite the gains made by fabric motorcycle gloves, leather remains the most popular choice.

My leather gloves have lasted longer than the fabric ones, but they require regular cleaning and “feeding” to keep them in good condition. Fabric motorcycle gloves are easier to live with and go in the washing machine with some S100 Fabric Wash. Simples.

So why not both?

Combining leather and fabric can have significant advantages.

Perhaps the closest I’ve come to finding the perfect pair of motorcycle gloves are my Dane Tyril gloves, which are a mix of leather, Gore-tex and have a fabric section on the back of the glove to improve cooling.

Sadly, the scaphoid protection is a padded section rather than a hard slider, and there is not that much finger protection, so my search continues.

Costs and Creases

I can find several pairs of motorcycle gloves that come close to this specification, but none that tick all the boxes without going bankrupt buying a pair.

The last pair I bought (yes, bought with my own cash money) was a pair of Five RS3 gloves at SportsBikeShop. They were a close match to my needs and wants, but after a few weeks of wearing them, the palm keeps creasing (folding) up, especially under my throttle hand.

As a result, I keep flexing my hand or smoothing the palm out on the throttle, which is annoying when the objective is to enjoy riding the bends.

And now, for the bit that really hurts, the cost. I fully understand that a decent pair of motorcycle gloves will cost money. It is a simple equation – Quality Costs Money. I found one pair at a single penny under £400. That is the same as I paid for my Schuberth C4 helmet.

Cost is a factor, but buying the perfect pair of motorcycle gloves once is cheaper than buying numerous pairs.

Here is the question

I’m looking for a pair of motorcycle gloves with hard scaphoid and knuckle protection, protection for the fingers and a palm that doesn’t crease up with use.

I can find lots of motorcycle gloves that fit those requirements on paper, but I’d like to know how the claims hold up after 1,000 miles of real-world riding.