Recommended gloves for erg?
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- Paddler
- Posts: 6
- Joined: February 9th, 2020, 3:59 pm
Recommended gloves for erg?
Is there a pair of gloves people can recommend for the erg to avoid blisters? Yeah I know some of you think it is awesome to have blisters, but I don't.
Height: 5'10.5"
Age: 37ish
Sex: Male
Weight: 167lbs
Est. Body Fat %: 23%
Type of Job/Life: Very Sedentary
Age: 37ish
Sex: Male
Weight: 167lbs
Est. Body Fat %: 23%
Type of Job/Life: Very Sedentary
- Citroen
- SpamTeam
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- Joined: March 16th, 2006, 3:28 pm
- Location: A small cave in deepest darkest Basingstoke, UK
Re: Recommended gloves for erg?
Why do you think you need gloves? They'll make you sweat and that will cause blisters.
Just let your hands harden up.
Just let your hands harden up.
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- Half Marathon Poster
- Posts: 3640
- Joined: June 23rd, 2013, 3:32 am
- Location: Sydney, Australia
Re: Recommended gloves for erg?
there is a lot of discussion on the forum both for and against gloves and what type.
I guess the majority are of the "gloves not helping" or "gloves makes blisters worse" schools
I have tried but found them counter productive too
I guess the majority are of the "gloves not helping" or "gloves makes blisters worse" schools
I have tried but found them counter productive too
Lindsay
73yo 93kg
Sydney Australia
Forum Flyer
PBs (65y+) 1 min 349m, 500m 1:29.8, 1k 3:11.7 2k 6:47.4, 5km 18:07.9, 30' 7928m, 10k 37:57.2, 60' 15368m
73yo 93kg
Sydney Australia
Forum Flyer
PBs (65y+) 1 min 349m, 500m 1:29.8, 1k 3:11.7 2k 6:47.4, 5km 18:07.9, 30' 7928m, 10k 37:57.2, 60' 15368m
Re: Recommended gloves for erg?
I'm in the "use gloves" camp. I generally use baseball batting gloves. I recently found a pair of "tactical gloves" in the military PX. They are thin, high quality sheepskin leather palm and fingers with a breathable spandex back. (the brand is 5.11 Tactical, model is Taclite 3. You can find them on Amazon in the USA). Work really well and my hands don't sweat.
The only time I don't wear gloves is in 2K competitions, where I want as solid a connection as I can get. No blisters in that short effort. I don't wear gloves when I'm rowing on the water either, no real problem with blisters in that case.
As mentioned, your mileage may very, browse the forum.
The only time I don't wear gloves is in 2K competitions, where I want as solid a connection as I can get. No blisters in that short effort. I don't wear gloves when I'm rowing on the water either, no real problem with blisters in that case.
As mentioned, your mileage may very, browse the forum.
Mark Underwood. Rower first, cyclist too.
Re: Recommended gloves for erg?
About 18 months ago I bought a pair of these: http://www.thecrewstop.com/rowinggloves.html
They work well (I got them to improve my grip when I sweat) and they don't cause my hands to sweat more, nor do they cause blisters.
Only down side is that they aren't cheap. Also, they aren't as dorky in person as they appear to be in the pictures.
They work well (I got them to improve my grip when I sweat) and they don't cause my hands to sweat more, nor do they cause blisters.
Only down side is that they aren't cheap. Also, they aren't as dorky in person as they appear to be in the pictures.
- jimmyshand
- 2k Poster
- Posts: 478
- Joined: April 2nd, 2017, 3:53 pm
Re: Recommended gloves for erg?
When I began erging three years ago or so I got bad blisters and wore my old weights gloves for a while but only until my blisters healed and hardened and only for a few weeks. I also think sculling gloves are probably worth a look - there are a couple of examples on the Amazon uk site where the pic shows users wearing them holding the C2 handle.dontmindsarno wrote: ↑February 29th, 2020, 8:34 pmIs there a pair of gloves people can recommend for the erg to avoid blisters? Yeah I know some of you think it is awesome to have blisters, but I don't.
44 years old - 198cm/6'6" - England
PBs - 1k 3:15.4 (Jun 2020) | 2k 6:51.4 (Feb 2019) | 5k 18:16.9 (Oct 2019) | 30min 8,016m (Apr 2019) | 10k 37:53.6 (May 2019) | 60min 15,254m (Apr 2019) | HM 1:25:38.4 (Apr 2019)
Rowing since March 2017. Real name is Alasdair.
PBs - 1k 3:15.4 (Jun 2020) | 2k 6:51.4 (Feb 2019) | 5k 18:16.9 (Oct 2019) | 30min 8,016m (Apr 2019) | 10k 37:53.6 (May 2019) | 60min 15,254m (Apr 2019) | HM 1:25:38.4 (Apr 2019)
Rowing since March 2017. Real name is Alasdair.
Re: Recommended gloves for erg?
I wear nike dryfit training gloves. I've also got callouses and I still get (minor) blisters. However they're not nearly as bad as when I didn't wear them which I tried (again) once the callouses first came. That can get very painful so gloves it is for me...
Mike - 67 HWT 183
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Re: Recommended gloves for erg?
I wear weightlifting gloves... moreso for the nice grip/feel on the C2 plastic handle than anything else.
They also seem to keep the finger blisters at bay, and i can't say i have ever noticed any sweat build up issues either.
Bottom line, they work well
They also seem to keep the finger blisters at bay, and i can't say i have ever noticed any sweat build up issues either.
Bottom line, they work well

46 yo male 5'10 88kg (Rowing since june 9th 2016) PB's 5k 19:22 30min 7518m
- lancecampeau
- 6k Poster
- Posts: 644
- Joined: July 23rd, 2017, 9:48 pm
Re: Recommended gloves for erg?
For anything under 90 min I go barehanded... anything over 90 min I use these welding gloves...
https://www.weldasusa.com/10-2670
I've put at least a million meters on this set and used them for my 100k... padded goatskin, very comfortable/flexible but because they are welding gloves it can be a bit more tricky to find a vendor online.
Here is a US supplier (March 2020)
https://www.sentrysafetysupply.com/Weld ... 0-2680.htm
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https://www.weldasusa.com/10-2670
I've put at least a million meters on this set and used them for my 100k... padded goatskin, very comfortable/flexible but because they are welding gloves it can be a bit more tricky to find a vendor online.
Here is a US supplier (March 2020)
https://www.sentrysafetysupply.com/Weld ... 0-2680.htm
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Male, 48, 6ft / 240 lbs, 183cm / 108 kg / Started erging in Jan 2017
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Re: Recommended gloves for erg?
I use these as they are completely open. 
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- GreggMack54
- Paddler
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- Joined: March 6th, 2019, 6:40 pm
- Location: Austin, TX
- Contact:
Re: Recommended gloves for erg?
When I first started rowing, I also suffered from blisters on the palm of my hands right below the base of my fingers. I bought a pair of these rowing gloves, which allowed me to continue to row while my hands healed up.
https://www.scullinggear.com/rowing-scu ... of-gloves/
After a couple of weeks, I learned not to grip the handle tightly, and to simply "hang" on it with my curled fingers. Once my blisters had healed up, I tried rowing without the gloves, did not suffer from any new blisters, and without the gloves I have never experienced any blisters since then. My normal row is for 9000 - 10,000 m, so I still have those gloves in case I ever attempt to drastically increase the time/distance on a whim some day.
https://www.scullinggear.com/rowing-scu ... of-gloves/
After a couple of weeks, I learned not to grip the handle tightly, and to simply "hang" on it with my curled fingers. Once my blisters had healed up, I tried rowing without the gloves, did not suffer from any new blisters, and without the gloves I have never experienced any blisters since then. My normal row is for 9000 - 10,000 m, so I still have those gloves in case I ever attempt to drastically increase the time/distance on a whim some day.
Re: Recommended gloves for erg?
Other than holding too hard, for me it seems to be sweat that causes issues. So I've simply started to row using a pair of solid sweat bands, which seems to have solved the problem for me. They stop sweat from my arms going on my hands, and if my hands starts to get too sweaty, during a pair of recovery strokes I can let go with one hand and dry it on the sweat band on my other arm, and then continue rowing with mostly dry hands again.
Re: Recommended gloves for erg?
I use Mechanix original and they work great. Don't know if they are protecting against blisters, but I've found that I prefer gloves. I've even used purple nitrile gloves and both are better than no gloves for me.
I actually bought a pair of Crew Stop Sculler rowing gloves and they went back quickly. For me, they did not work out.
I actually bought a pair of Crew Stop Sculler rowing gloves and they went back quickly. For me, they did not work out.