THIS REVIEW HAS BEEN UPDATED FOR THE 2022 RANGE
CLIMBERS HAVE KNOWN ABOUT THE ‘TEMRES’ -60c GLOVES FROM SHOWA FOR YEARS NOW, THOUGH JAPANESE CLIMBERS HAVE WORN THEM FOR WELL OVER TWO DECADES, BUT MOST WESTERN CLIMBERS DON’T KNOW THERE’S SEVERAL OTHER GLOVES AVAILABLE TOO, WITH THE TEMRES BEING THE MOST MIDDLE OF THE ROAD.
WITH A SIGNIFICANT HISTORY RUNNING TRIPS TO JAPAN, WE’VE SEEN OTHER GLOVE OFFERINGS COMMONLY AVAILABLE AT JAPANESE HARDWARE STORES & HOME CENTRES, AND HAVE BEEN WEARING DIFFERENT VERSIONS FOR YEARS NOW. DESPITE THE TEMRES BEING WELL KNOWN AND HAVING AN OUTDOOR-ORIENTED VERSION, THERE ARE OTHERS WE’VE FOUND TO BE BETTER FOR CLIMBING.
AT THE DEXTROUS END OF THE SPECTRUM THERE ARE GLOVES BETTER SUITED TO ICE & TECHNICAL STUFF, WITH SHORT CUFFS AND MORE FITTED DESIGNS, ONE PAIR (THE ORANGE/BLACK ONES IN THE IMAGE) HAVE A SPECIAL STICKY PALM. BOTH ALSO HAVE A BETTER GRADE OF INSULATION BEING DENSER WEAVE & HIGHER QUALITY. THE GREY ONES WORK VERY WELL AS A GENERAL ALPINE GLOVE, AND THE ORANGE/BLACK ONES EXCEL FOR MIXED AND ANYTHING FIDDLY.
BEYOND THE TEMRES ARE THE ALL-ORANGE ONES, WITH A MUCH NICER, THICKER, PILE LINING THAT MAKES THEM SIGNIFICANTLY WARMER BUT LESS DEXTROUS. THESE ARE THE GO FOR ‘BULK ALPINE’ DAYS WHERE YOU WANT MORE DEXTERITY THAN A MITT, BUT ALSO FULL CONDITIONS PROTECTION. THE CLOSE UPS OF THE LININGS SHOW THE DIFFERENCE (CLICK THE IMAGE).
THESE GLOVES ARE RUGGED ENOUGH TO COPE WITH NORMAL DEGREES OF RAPPELLING, THOUGH IT DOES WEAR THE GRIT GRIP OFF A BIT, AND WILL TAKE NORMAL ABRAISION (THEY ARE MADE FOR CONSTRUCTION AFTER ALL) AND BEING USED BY TUNA FISHERMEN HAVE A GOOD DEGREE OF PUNCTURE PROOFNESS.
-60c? MAYBE. WE’VE WORN THEM AT ABOUT -35c WINDCHILL AND THEY WERE CERTAINLY UP TO IT, BEING NON-ABSORBENT AND TOTALLY WINDPROOF (TWO MAIN FACTORS IN HEAT-LOSS). THE RUBBER INSULATED WELL FROM COLD METAL, AND BREATHES ABOUT AS WELL AS A STANDARD CLIMBING GLOVE – NOT PARTICULARLY AMAZINGLY, BUT WORKABLE.
PRICE vs FUNCTION? THESE ARE NOT DISPOSABLE GLOVES LIKE THEY MAY APPEAR, YET THE MOST EXPENSIVE GLOVE HERE, ON THE SHELF IN JAPAN, COSTS ABOUT 15% WHAT THE EQUIVALENT FROM THE BIG COMPANIES DO. THEY WILL EASILY LAST ONE OR TWO SEASONS IF NOT MORE, BEING AT THEIR BEST AFTER ABOUT 40 DAYS USE. THEY DO NEED PROPER STORAGE BETWEEN SEASONS, BEING RUBBER.
CAN WE GET THEM? YES. CONTACT US
.
2021 / 22 WINTER UPDATE
THE RANGE OF OPTIONS HAS INCREASED WITH THE POPULAR TEMRES NOW IN A DARK OLIVE GREEN, THE SHORT CUFF DEXTROUS VERSION WITH A VELCRO TAB AND THE ORANGE BLACK SUPER DEXTROUS GLOVES HAVING A VERY SIMILAR SISTER WITH MORE BACK-OF-HAND COVERAGE AND A VELCRO TAB.
