Cold Weather Layering Part 5: Tactical Gloves for Extreme Cold Conditions

In this video, Kevin delves into the world of tactical winter gloves. Learn how to stay warm while maintaining dexterity from mild cold conditions, to extremely harsh winter environments.
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0:00 Intro
1:02 Shooting Gloves
3:04 Fingerless Wool Gloves
5:48 Waterproof Gloves
7:29 Mid-Weight Fleece Gloves
9:21 The Mitt
11:30 The Glomitt
13:44 Extreme Cold Weather
18:21 Other Glove Options
19:43 Softshell Gloves
26:43 Items to Avoid (Kevin’s Opinion)
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• Cold Weather Layering:...
• Cold Weather Layering:...
• Cold Weather Layering ...
• Cold Weather Layering ...
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[@jgt07]

Im not gunna lie, the main reason I trust this channel so much is because of this mans mustache.

[@alexmatecki6021]

Idk, homeboy looks like he has some experience tying damsels to railroad tracks.

[@2009timothykelly]

Next week they’re releasing an episode on how to keep your face warm… It’s just 45 minutes of him, standing directly in front of the camera, smiling at you while twirling his mustache.

[@austinsuter328]

Only Spiritus can make a video on hand warmth, and it be 30 min long... so much info. Thanks guys!

[@Arwin-gh2jw]

The next video should be about footwear for cold weather. What type of shoes/socks to choose. How to keep your feet warm when it's minus 15 degrees and 2-3 ft of snow in the field/forest, and you need to walk a lot like 7-8miles, then when you are sweating, you reach your place and need to observe for a few hours. You are wet, without moving, you'll start to freeze. I think a lot of people need to know what to do in such a conditions

[@wafflebunny123]

Dont think they went in depth but they touched upon on it , it was a video of adam and garand thumb on garand thumbs channel

[@xc8487]

Check out BensBackwoods mesh insoles. As for socks, nothing beats Darn Tough tactical wool.

[@hokkienlanggaming8556]

Every SNCO right now fuming when the E4 putting his hands in that muff: "It's not a pocket, it's a tactical muff. It's not against regs"

[@oldblindy5625]

The 1949 glove leash works best if you run it over the shoulders and through your jacket sleeves. Very hard to lose and hangs like the outdoor research mittens.

[@reallyhappenings5597]

It's a handul for sure

[@clintivy623]

To all the haters, sometimes good gear is not cheap. And extreme weather is not the place to pinch pennies. If you spend extended periods in that weather you'll learn what's worth it and what's not

[@billgrant6175]

I dropped my coffee and had flashbacks of even thinking of putting my hands into my pockets with an NCO around!! Glad common sense if more prevalent in the military. In Canada our service rifles have the swing open trigger guard to fire the rifle and I have fired with mitts. Great videos. Awesome you guys are putting out this info to better your viewers. Please keep making these information videos.

[@TopDrek]

Glad this video came out, I've been experimenting with different gloves since my hands are the first part of my body to get cold, what I've learned is: 1) You should try and layer with gloves in a similar fashion to how you'd layer your body with the exception of a moisture wicking laying. 2) Moisture wicking isn't as big of a concern, your first layer if wool will act both to to keep you warm and wick moisture away from your hand. 3) Your outer layer should be a shell to block wind and be water resistant that you need to size up on, too constricting of a glove will constrict your blood flow and make your hands just as cold as if you weren't wearing any gloves. 4) Have mittens on hand for when you are stationary or don't need to use your weapon system, one hand in the mitten at a time even if it's super cold otherwise you won't get enough air flow and you'll begin to sweat. I haven't watched the video yet but just thought I'd post my experience with layering gloves in the cold. Also, just as a sidenote this is meant for snowy below freezing conditions not freezing rain/wet winters.

[@Valorius]

Nomex flight gloves are the year round go to. In cold weather I put a pair of fleece fingerless flip over mittens on over the nomex flight gloves. That combo, for me, is good to about 0 degrees for extended periods. You can spray both the flight gloves and the fleece mittens with camping water repellent spray to greatly increase their usefulness in wet weather. Doesn't make them water proof, but it really helps. For a third layer, in extreme cold, the big US ECWCS arctic mittens go over top of that.

[@calebw7177]

Spiritus is doing gods work. Thank you for bringing the information to the people! The video series is top notch! Definitely going to be buying more of your products in the future just because you make this high quality information available to us!

[@bendye9496]

Coming from a guy with raynauds I thank you. My hands are always cold. Even inside in normal temps. This vid helped a ton.

[@heaintgonnajumpnomore]

My first trip across the pond was to Afghanistan in 2002. I was a SAW gunner and couldn’t use the black leather shells with the wool inserts so I got a pair of NOMEX flight gloves (which we used all the time anyway) and paired it with the wool liners. It was absolutely money and wasn’t bulky like with the black leather glove/liner combo. Great video guys! Keep them coming.

[@nonegiven5295]

Just found your channel last night,10 ish, and this one caught my eye. Great work! Lots of very good info. Being the cheap bastard that I am I wanted to suggest, for the base glove, the Home Depot FG utility gloves. A 3 pack of the base glove costs just $20. or so, no cammo colors (sorry), and they do have "higher end" types as well. I've never had a problem handeling nails or deck screws along with my driver so they should work fine for this application. I have also found that if you need a NON DURABLE temporary "gripping", they do have a palm material of some kind, just spray the palm and inner fingers with spray on Dip-It. No it will not last for years but will suffice for a job or two then just peel it off, reapply, continue. Just a thought. Keep up the great work. Be well. Robert.

[@joshlittle3613]

Those OR firebrand mits kept me warm on many a late night guard shift. Even with just them by themselves you can pretty comfortably go down to the 20’s.

[@genehanna3977]

I need this niche stuff! Like packing a ruck, "mission essentials" etc. The deeper reasons as to why before I can adapt a style or skillet

[@_Helgie]

It's amazing how outdoor research just so happens to have created the best product ever for every issue you could ever face!!!

[@kevinmcdowell3446]

OR is heavy in the glove game and has been a supplier of gloves for the military for a very long time. They are one of the few granola outdoor brands that have a military/tactical glove line. I wouldn’t say they are all perfect. They are generally a good product but vary in model to model. The shooting gloves are solid and have been my favorite style for the last 15 years.

[@FarmerDrew]

Hunts in the dark hours of early morning in the snow of late winter have taught me that no matter what, KEEP A FEW PACKS OF HANDWARMERS

[@wyattterrell]

I sewed a fleece hand warmer to a Chicom chest rig and it’s been the best rig.With hot hands it can be below zero and my hands are toasty 🤚🏻 🔥 ✋🏻

[@laynesellers]

My extra wool socks are my backup for mitts also.

[@reallyhappenings5597]

Smart

[@ahole5407]

This is the way

[@Osprey1994]

God I love this series.

[@skydivingcomrade1648]

Love the options and layering mindset.

[@craigrobertson6082]

Great info. Having had frostbite many times on my finger tips, keeping the hands warm is a must.

[@reallyhappenings5597]

This is really a fantastic discussion. Humbling! Appreciate the categorization and theory of application.

[@HCrum87]

Fantastic video Kevin. Love that you guys put so much thought and care into these series.

[@journeyman7189]

Knocking it out of the park as always Kevin. Used something similar this past deer season but I forgot to bring spare fleece gloves to switch into while the primary were drying out and kicked myself for leaving my waist strapped hand warmer on my gear pile at home. Those will fingerless gloves have been a staple for a decade now. Thanks Nate

[@kylealancampbell]

These videos are why I keep coming back to this channel.

[@grant6245]

Absolutely love that ya’ll put out these kind of videos. Keep up the awesome work. These videos are so incredibly useful.

[@jamesbell1082]

Good class probably something that should be taught to al the ARCTIC units USMC and ARMY, while they have classes to deal with the weather and adapt some units are only transient there. Also you guys mention surplus Mil grade gear in a few videos. how about a class on what (other than the taps) a surplus gear would look like with Spiritus mods. More along the lines of surplus gear and how spiritus mods can make them more effective if someone is on a budget (building you G-Force). Great class appreciate your time doing these.

[@slik560]

great information. So many things that I never would have considered. Thanks

[@bfed2831]

Thank you! Great content

[@austinwebbcreative]

Awesome content guys, keep it coming!! Very relevant to me in northern Montana

[@moxtr]

Really comprehensive. You got another subscriber.

[@boejiden1942]

Great idea with the fingerless gloves!

[@misteroneautumnleaf7374]

I've been wondering this for a while. Thanks

[@Mr.Plight]

Something that I don't think was mentioned but having spares incase of them getting wet is a good idea, and if you are handling fuel in freezing cold temps, please wear a glove that is waterproof and insulated. We were doing our mountain comms package and the instructors told us about a Marine who handled fuel that was cold and it got onto both of his hands with wool gloves and received contact frostbite. He had to have about half his fingers removed on both hands.

[@kevinmcdowell3446]

It was one of the last points mentioned, to have spares.

[@reallyhappenings5597]

Yeah brake parts cleaner has the same effect. Coldest my hands ever felt was cleaning parts outside in winter with just a nitrile glove, evaporated the heat right off my fingers really bad

[@therock809]

Sheesh I’m going to mountain comms in a few days looking forward to it.

[@joshlittle3613]

27:12 I always carry 2 handwarmers in my side plate pouches and a few more in my ruck and assault pack. But like he said they’re only for emergencies. I’ve used them when it dropped below 10 and my used and abused issued sleep system wasn’t cutting it. I threw them in the bottom of my sleep system one night after I woke up and couldn’t feel my toes. You can also use them to dry off your gloves or socks if they get soaked. Just stuff them inside and let it run its course for an hour or so.

[@kevinmcdowell3446]

Definitely useful to have, I just see way too many people start to rip one open once it gets a little cold.

[@michaelhoewisch7355]

Up in Alaska we'd drop the trigger guard down for our arctic training.

[@reallyhappenings5597]

Trousers too?

[@michaelhoewisch7355]

@@reallyhappenings5597 on occasion lol

[@TheWatchMker]

This is awesome, couldn’t have timed this one better.

[@bricketdabrown9607]

Our MN winter was 3 weeks long.. looking forward to applying this next year

[@m26xb]

This series has been Hella helpful. Would love to see some videos about gaiters and other cold weather leg gear. Often got issued and wasn't used because no one knew what they were for.

[@camron1501]

Thank you.

[@cwp86]

I was super stoked when I saw this coming. I had asked a while ago for this video as I have Raynaud's disease which makes it quickly painful in "cold" climates. I've taken your advice and test drove a layering glove system, having previously lived in the lackluster "middleweight" glove world including heated gloves which quickly failed me in terms of preventing my symptoms. I have improved but need more advice. TL;DR: layering system failed thus far - I need to add third layer and not sure how I should treat "extreme weather" given my specific requirements (defeating Raynaud's). This past weekend for a night shoot I took out the upstate stock fingerless over the stone glacier fleece. I quickly determined I needed chemical assistance to survive, but even that failed me. Before the safety brief was even complete my fingers were bone white from the second knuckle up in ~20 degrees. Admittedly, "Ignik" hand and feet warmers apparently suck so I am switching brands, but still seeking to eliminate a chemical answer so that I might be able to finally attempt a multi-day sub-freezing hike/camp unassisted. I had to seek an indoor heat source and about 20-30 minutes before circulation and color returned to my fingers alongside the "pins and needles". Unhealthy levels of cold, full numb - no dexterity and quite painful. I'm first adding a PC/chest rig mounted lined handwarmer, but wanted to ask if my next steps in layering based on this video and my current progress or lack thereof. It seems like there is two directions I should consider for next step in my current layering system when going with a mitt - shell or down. I'm also looking at retaining maximum dexterity. The Stone Glacier Altimeter you recommended comes in both fingered and mitt versions. Outside of the specific gloves you recommended, how might the 3rd layer shell approach work with a shell that is a convertible mitt? Does the "convertible" aspect of the mitt defeat the heat retention that I'm seeking? I see Defense Mechanisms makes a made to order shell/liner glove with customizable lining density, so I might be able to go with a real thin density or none at all. Or based on my experience, do I need to skip the shell approach and go straight to a down mitt to maximize my heat and donn/doff the mitt as I need dexterity or have my hands in the hand warmer on the PC/chest rig?

[@NicholasJonesCreative]

Awesome video dudes. Good stuff! Got my wish list now lol

[@coldhardtruth8518]

Ultra thin liners for when you have to remove gloves. Another AMAZING option for wet/cold is neoprene diving gloves. 3 mil to 5 mil.

[@EWOKakaDOOM]

Thanks for these vids

[@cory1655]

Outdoor Research appreciates the endless plugs.

[@kevinmcdowell3446]

I wish they loved us back.

[@bushcraftbasics2036]

Very well done video

[@jay-by1se]

where I live it gets to -20 and we still go out and do work in the forest and I will tell you the biggest problem with all of this is that they don’t make mittens that go big enough. they need a trigger finger mitten where the trigger finger is poking out of the palm of the hand. if it extremely cold, taking off your gloves, only gets you a few seconds until you have a problem.

[@brenthayes1671]

Good stuff thanks!

[@Ghosthouse777]

can you guys make a video of your gear lockers that are behind you? Do you guys have some build out plans you could share?

[@kevo278]

Include the dimensions or publish blueprints!

[@kinnertubbyson]

I see the AZ shape, and my Copper State heart fills up. damn fine hat, sir.

[@WorldwideBushcraftSurvival]

My philosophy regarding gloves when I used to backpack was to layer your hands as you would your body. I'm still a fan of wool inner gloves, but they do not have the grip needed to do many tasks and they do not like flame. 😁

[@mdog1615]

best layering combination i like for canadian winters is caf mortar gloves with wool fingerless gloves over top and then a trigger finger chopper mitt over that if required. works pretty good down to about minus 30 when active , set of raber arctic mitts in the ruck for static duty.

[@Bill-jw3ph]

Got a couple of pair of the nomex outdoor research gloves for $25 from the outlet sidewalk sale.

[@stormofsteel6980]

Outdoor Research stonks 📈

[@petter5721]

In extreme cold conditions you need mittens, no finger gloves as external layer. A three finger glove is the best closest to your skin so that you use your weapon. Or a mitten with a hole for the pointer finger. Greetings from northern Sweden.

[@CitadelDefense1]

A little different than how I run it. I like the layering combo of combat gloves and wool fingerless gloves.

[@patagucci8482]

I have moved ky trigger gaurd to shoot with mittens, good pointers. Wish i had this video years ago instead of finding out the hard way

[@neilunion9140]

I like these videos on clothing with cold and wet weather. I will admit, I’m wearing my heated M12 sweatshirt. 100% correct on the consumable battery life. Weight and storage is an issue

[@reallyhappenings5597]

Yeah that's for the jobsite only lol

[@ysoangri]

I appreciate the effort put into this video. Though I wonder if these information are combat tested. In theory, yes you hit all the points in keeping your hands warm, though combat is another beast. All the layering concepts make sense, but it's overkill. Personally, I'd have a shooting glove plus muff. Then toss a couple of hot hands in the muff. That's it.

[@kevinmcdowell3446]

You can't fire a weapon if you can't feel your fingers and lose dexterity. Like I said in the video, hot hands are a consumable item and you can't rely on them. You will eventually run out and would only keep them for emergency situations. You also can't walk around with your hands in a muff. You need to be able to to hold your weapon while you walk. The layering approach gives you maximum amount of dexterity for the longest amount of time, especially if conditions and activity level change constantly.

[@ThePickledPlatypus7]

Canadian here, use caution when using the back of the mitt as snot rag. It works great the first time but I've seen them freeze and draw blood on consecutive uses

[@Wreckr68]

Definitely interested in those altimeter gloves! I was stationed at Wainwright, used the OR suppressor and Convoy gloves, and the firebrand mittens without the insert for all temps above -30. Great combo. Best part of OR products are the warranty. Can't recommend them ebough.

[@CombatBanana]

Showa Temres 282-02 is a great rain layer that will never soak through like a membrane glove will. I have small hands and I have to order XL from them to have room for layering.

[@SolidnaTransformacjazTrenerem]

I LOLed at that weatherproof goretex sheel wich is wider then jacket, so all rain will be gathered there. But you have great water collector system 😂

[@christiane5984]

Thanks for making these videos. This is the best info on youtube I've seen.

[@joshlittle3613]

If you’re active duty and are stationed in a cold place chances are if you get the chance to raid supply you may be able to snag a few pairs of various OR gloves and mits.

[@brandonl5247]

I've been think of this all year I use the army flight gloves from the PX there, great, but you'll need another thicker shell Overton of them.

[@pyeitme508]

Wow 😳

[@user-hs5ju3bj1p]

Great video and very informative. But most importantly where is the marpat puffy from?

[@volsanslimit]

It's simple, your first tools are your hands. If you beat them up, good luck doing anything in the "wild". "Operating" without gloves can't go well over a long period of time.

[@jackgladish6821]

Many pairs of merino glove liners and many pairs of merino socks are strongly advised in Wet and Cold WX environments 6 is a reasonable number to me, cross-loaded throughout the tiers of kit, like anything else you wish to retain. SealSkins has em for cheap. A Seal Skins waterproof glove reigns supreme for cold weather protection in the PNW. Grid fleece hat, neck gaiter, and spares are pretty much mandatory for me and my body type with any kind of movement. 🎶Meet me down by the railroad track track.🎶

[@kevinmcdowell3446]

Not a fan of Seal Skinz. They make your hands sweaty.

[@Wreckr68]

Had the same experience with seal skins, hands would sweat. For me, it defeats the purpose of being waterproof.

[@JohnJones-op8uf]

Shitton of good information here.... Thanks brother

[@Sentii2]

Thanks for this video, I was actually wondering about glove layering when the temperature started to drop here. The wool fingerless over a shooting glove is an excellent idea, I had never thought to layer over it, but instead under it. One question I have about all of these gloves is actually whether or not the stitching is on the inside or the outside of the glove as that can be a fairly large factor for long-term comfort.

[@kevinmcdowell3446]

Most gloves have inside stitching for dexterity, some models do have seams on the outside though for comfort. Some gloves handle the inside seams better than others by trimming up the excess material properly.

[@drvgxn4719]

You should do sock layering.

[@charalamposandrikopoulos6788]

You guys should look for the mammut astro guide glove it's an excellent glove

[@laytonaschauer3675]

I’ve always ran wool liners inside oversized shooting gloves, I’m going to have to try that wool over shooter combo!! Also just an observation on the firebrands, I run the tensioner on the leash on the other side of my wrist so the leash is actually semi tight around my wrist and they won’t fall off during movement. Not sure if you ran them loose like that just for the video but they way you had them I can totally see those being lost.

[@kevinmcdowell3446]

Layering the wool over the shooting gloves definitely gives you more dexterity.

[@skizzarz]

11:34 wearing glomitt claw mitts on the vomit comet

[@hunthunt9268]

HEAT 3 SMART gloves from Austrian and Germany army...very good gloves

[@PumpkinDefender]

Goddamn, the random cut to Mrs. Harrison made me spit out my whiskey/coke all over the floor. Lol

[@nathaniels8371]

What are y’all’s thoughts on the hand warmer that you dangle from the front of the plate carrier/gunbelt?

[@jasonwood9520]

would love to see a product list

[@ddsrealtree19]

For the outdoor research firebrand mitten do you need to size up or are they true to size? Looking at a set I usually wear a large in normal gloves

[@nombr]

Good video man, I really appreciate the in depth review of each glove followed by price points. I run cold at all times (fingers are cold sitting on my couch watching this video) so I have had to use hand warmers. But as you say they are consumables that add weight/bulk. Any tips for me? I do find rubbing my hands together and then quickly popping them back into my ‘mid’ layer gloves works

[@kevinmcdowell3446]

Keeping your core warm is a big part of keeping your fingers warm, so either putting on a warming layer for your torso or warming up by moving can help. The fleece and wool glove combo is a pretty effective glove combo.

[@nombr]

@@kevinmcdowell3446 thanks for the reply, I do have alpaca base layers for my torso and legs. That is a good point, however I find when it’s -30C even if my body is sweating from work my hands/fingers don’t really receive any of that heat. I will try the fleece combo out, thanks !

[@omardijnfeun1898]

He’s rocking an Arizona hat. He must know all about cold weather… lol just some fun ribbing from a native Arizonan that now lives in a cold hell.

[@kevinmcdowell3446]

Some of the coldest Ive been is in the winter in the Mojave with those deep cutting winds. You’re usually not prepared for as cold as it can get there once the windchill factor comes into play.

[@prestoneasley3959]

Try putting a nitrile glove as the first layer to keep hands dry.

[@Mcb259]

holy jesus where did u get a marpat happy suit top

[@donpittock8540]

I am up in Canada and have used the artic trigger only on the static range during training. I did not like how unprotected the trigger was when in use.

[@corporaterobotslave400]

Wow I didn't know Mister Pringles works for you guys.

[@phillipgardner3297]

Hey SpiritusSystems any chance you could point some nods at those stone glacier altimeter gloves and see if they glow? Trying to decide if i need to go with the firebrand glove instead. Also i understand the OR Poseidon gloves are an uninsulated goretex shell also any chance you can confirm this?

[@danielhurst8863]

I have all kinds of gloves, many very expensive, and I'm often in sub 0 Fahrenheit in the winter, not including windchill,. As a pair of backup gloves, I have some thicker wool military surplus I got from Sportsman's Guide more than a decade ago. It was something ridiculous, like 5 pair for $20. I end up ditching my expensive gloves for the cheap thick wool ones, as they are both warmer and more dexterity. It is almost silly. I've ended up ditching my glassing gloves for my cheap wool gloves, and M49 mittens. I will have to try the fingerless wool gloves over shooting gloves. I avoid fingerless gloves, because I have distal arthritis and my fingers getting cold is very painful, but the shooting gloves will cover the distal joint, and the fingerless wool provide some extra warmth.

[@kevinmcdowell3446]

You should be able to source some USGI fingerless wool gloves for pretty cheap as well. I think those Fox River Ragg wool gloves are an upgrade from the USGI ones but still pretty inexpensive.

[@unfi6798]

Cowabunga!

[@dragonusmc0311]

👍👍👊

[@phillipgardner3297]

Curious if the stone glacier altimeter gloves are nir?

[@elpancho7465]

Hows that primary arms scope working for you all?

[@tatianatub]

those chemical hand warmers can be safely discarded with your normal trash its just paper sand and iron

[@kevinmcdowell3446]

The point was that you can’t just leave them on the ground. You have to keep them on you and discard them when you get back.

[@theracer1117]

What are everyone’s opinions on mechanics gloves. I use them for airsoft,(not old enough for real war yet) so I like the rubber on the outside, and they work with cell phones, which is very useful.

[@ianmurray4081]

The only thing you need to keep your hands warm is Adam🥸🥸🥸🍺🫵🤟🇨🇦🫡🇺🇸🤟🫵🍺

[@JP-ei2qj]

Which glove gets the love?.... asking for a friend

[@petergoogins5615]

Lost it at monkey fish frog. Was not expecting the South Park stitch…

[@gruntgearreview6490]

I had the pig FR gloves. They lasted for a few months. Then after a machine gun range, a cut appeared that looked like it had been caused by heat. I repaired it on a sewing machine, and since then they just continued to fall apart. Very disappointed.