The Final word on Gloves?

[Jason Taylor]

Kind of what I figured. I'm in the same boat myself most times....

Aye, but the RBK 9k's are also 90 dollars. This is a question of budget as well, hence the quest for DIY equipment.

[Anonymous]

Talking about gloves, well, this is very cool for the protection of your hands.

[C.Scott Relleve]

Anyone tried using MMA gloves? It doesn't offer as much protection as lacrosse or motocross gloves, but seeing as it's cheaper (as far as I know), it's a decent alternative, as I personally prefer fingerless gloves so that I can grip better (since I'm just using a simple wooden sword, with no wrappings or grips).

[Mike Denton]

MMA gloves don't normally have thumb padding on them. I sprain my thumb with them once every couple months with foam SLO's.

[Phil Valot]

Does anyone use Kendo gloves (Kote), I know they are designed for full contact competition, I have seen them for around $80.

[Jayson May]

Does anyone use Kendo gloves (Kote), I know they are designed for full contact competition, I have seen them for around $80.

I have always found the mitten style kendo gloves to be too bulky and makes it a bit harder to get proper grips on the sword.

[Phil Valot]

Does anyone use Kendo gloves (Kote), I know they are designed for full contact competition, I have seen them for around $80.

I have always found the mitten style kendo gloves to be too bulky and makes it a bit harder to get proper grips on the sword.

Very interesting...by the way I have a Generation 2 Templar sword that I will be duplicating as a hardwood waster as I research the techniques used with this sword. Would someone educate me as to the style (long sword, one hand, hand and 1/2 , etc.) and recommend the manuals that would benefit me the most for research. Thank you in advance.

[Jonathan Newhall]

I may as well update this since my purchase a few months ago.

It seems in my experience that any reasonably padded set of lacrosse gloves affords sufficient protection for sparring with wood and likely by extension steel (I've no steel to try it with at the moment unfortunately, though I've heard it's more forgiving than wood from its slight flex).

They allow for REASONABLE dexterity, though if you spar with them on for any length of time and then remove them the difference is incredibly obvious for my particular model. I've a feeling that more expensive sets would afford superior dexterity, though how much more I do not know.

All in all, definitely a relatively cheap and available option for beginners afraid of getting their hand whacked, or even veterans afraid of getting their hand whacked on a budget

(As a side note: it is definitely possible to feel when you are hit through these kinds of gloves if you are struck properly in a "hold on two minute time-out" kind of way if hit at full force, but there will be no lasting damage or generally even bruising. Being literally hit at full force is pretty much the worst case scenario when it comes to hand-hits, and it's happened to me, so I can definitely say that these gloves offer sufficient protection and any more protection than these are strictly unnecessary, such as the oft-recommended steel gauntlets or steel mittens. They're frankly overkill on the protection front, though I'd imagine they would offer slightly better dexterity at a much steeper price. It should also be noted as your skills improve that you should DECREASE the level of protection as you will cease to need so much, so lacrosse gloves are a good BEGINNER option, or for those who cannot afford to be hit in the hand such as professional musicians).