Gloves made for welding are heavy duty, usually made from leather, and sometimes lined to add additional protection from heat. Welding gloves are designed to resist heat and flame to protect your hands, wrists, and forearms from molten metal and sparks as well as the heat created on the object being welded. Most of them are leather welding gloves. The leather used varies but common types include cow, goat, pig and deer leather. The thickness and type of leather varies because, while some people prefer the heaviest leather available, some prefer thinner, more pliable leather, especially when being used in mig and tig applications, where molten metal is not as likely to fly up and land on their hands and arms.
Since stick welding is the most likely to produce sparks, and have molten metal spatter, they require the most heat resistance. This means sacrificing pliability and dexterity for thicker leather for additional protection. Cow leather is most commonly used in these welding gloves because it is thicker, and will resist burning and heat the best. Tig welding uses the lowest heat. It concentrates the flame in a very precise area, resulting in minimal sparks and spatter. For this reason, Tig welding gloves can be thinner, made from top grain leather, and are designed to give the user the maximum pliability and dexterity, and allow the user to “feel” their project better through these gloves. The most popular leather used in tig welding gloves comes from pig skin, although deerskin and goat skin are also popular. Mig welding is the most popular form of welding today, and is used in a wide variety of industries, and is also very commonly found in the metal shops of many hobbyists. Mig welding gloves are thinner than stick welding gloves, but still a bit thicker than the Tig welding gloves. Mig welding gloves are often made from the same leather as tig welding gloves, but may be thicker and/or lined to provide additional heat protection.
Tillman Welding Gloves
When reading welding glove reviews, I have found that many believe Tillman to be the best welding gloves. They have a reputation of being the best fitting, and some think the best made welding gloves on the market today. Tillman is committed to creating quality, and paying attention to every detail when creating their gloves, and have been doing it for over 80 years.
Miller Welding Gloves
Miller produces high-quality leather welding gloves, and is known to use multiple leathers to provide a balance between protection and flexibility. Their mig welding gloves have a cowhide leather palm that is thick and resists heat when holding a project, while the back is made from pig leather that is breathable, and lighter, but provides excellent protection. The inside is lined with cotton fleece that is flame resistant. Miller has integrated channeled foam to provide the greatest heat protection yet allows air flow to keep your hands from sweating or overheating while working. The index finger even has an additional patch to help it last as you use the trigger on your mig welder. They have even gone an additional step in using Kevlar thread for longevity and security of all the seams. You will have a hard time finding a better set of leather welding gloves on the market for mig welding.
The Miller tig welding gloves are equally high quality. Made from deerskin for maximum flexibility and “feel” of your project, they sport the same interior lining, a reinforced palm for added support and durability, as well as the Kevlar thread for solid seams that will hold up to years of use.
White Welding Gloves
Although I do not personally understand why you would want to weld with white gloves, there are a number of manufacturers that produce white leather gloves with the same quality and workmanship as the darker colors. From what I understand, the leather is turned white through bleaching, which also softens the leather and makes it more pliable. At the same time, this process breaks down the leather, which means that it will also not last as long.
Women’s Welding Gloves
Since we all know that women can do almost anything a man can do, several manufacturers are producing gloves in small and extra small, and there is even a line of gloves called “The Small Hands Welder” specifically designed as women’s welding gloves. These gloves not only have smaller fingers, but the width of the palm is smaller, ensuring a better fit for women welders with petite hands. I have also found that several women have purchased these gloves to use in the kitchen, or in handling animals, particularly fowl. They work particularly well in gardens to protect from thorns, according to some reviewers.
Amazon.com Products
The most popular welding gloves sold on Amazon.com are made by US Forge. They are model 403. At 18”, they are considered long welding gloves. They sell for only $17.57, but are rated at a high 4.8 out of 5 stars. They are soft, and made of top-grain leather. They are supple and pliable, making them easy to work with, particularly when working with smaller items where dexterity is important. They are lined, offering additional protection and comfort, and also reinforced in the most common frictional areas to add additional durability.
People who bought and reviewed these gloves use them for not only welding gloves, but in occasions when their hands and forearms need protection. They highly recommend them. They rave about the pliability and how they are able to use them to grab and grip without feeling they have to “fight” the gloves. Despite the flexibility, they agree that they do very well in protecting against heat.
The next gloves found on Amazon.com that I wish to tell you about are white welding gloves made by Forney Industries. They are the model 32360 Welding Gloves, and sell for only $7.95. At 13 ½” long, they will protect your hands as well as your wrists ad forearms. They are lined inside for additional protection against heat.
Customers who have reviewed these gloves did not use them for welding, but for costumes, and state that they are closer to gray than white.
The last set of welding gloves I will tell you about today is the Steiner model 21923. They are brown, split cowhide, and foam lined to protect against heat. They are an amazing 23” long, protecting your hands all the way up to the shoulders. These gloves are reviewed at 4.7 out of 5 stars, and sell for only $19.15 despite their heavy-duty, long, and extremely durable design. For over thirty years, Steiner has created quality products and has become known as one of the premier manufacturers and suppliers of protective clothing, gloves, and welding safety products.
The reviewers of these products have used them to pull thorny vines, and the thorns never penetrated the high-quality leather. They are pliable enough that they a grip and grab small items with no problem. None of the reviewers actually used them for welding.
Summary
When it comes to welding, you need to protect your hands and forearms. If your hands are burned, it will have a severe effect on your ability to work. Leather welding gloves are a necessary tool, and something that you definitely do not want to compromise on in quality or workmanship. Even if you are not a welder, you will find that these tough, heavy duty gloves will work in almost any situation where you need to protect your hands from burns, punctures and cuts.