BrokenNose
Orange Belt
- Joined
- Sep 30, 2009
- Messages
- 306
- Reaction score
- 0
First off, these are NOT recommended for sparring. Ringside and Fairtex blatantly state this off in their description; the padding is just too dense. Combatsports International does not do this, and they go as far as renaming them as SPARRING gloves. I went into a whole deal with them about it, because when I ordered the 18oz, I got over-sized training/bag gloves. I went and exchanged them for 12oz, which I intend to use as training/bag gloves exclusively. This review will tackle the gloves as 12oz training/bag gloves, not sparring gloves.
DESCRIPTION (ala. www.fairtex.com):
High density, compressed training gloves for heavy pounding on bags, pads, and focus mitts. Not recommended for sparring. Efficiently balanced for an extra-tight fit. Extended, triple-ribbed sleeve with laces provides maximum support without restriction of movement. Locked pre-curved thumb helps prevent eye and thumb injuries. Dual-layered latex foam core delivers protection with solid force-feedback.
Features:
-Available in 12oz, 14oz and 16oz.
-Handmade in Thailand.
-Top grain leather shell.
-Two-layer high-impact latex foam core.
-Contoured hand compartment and pre-curved thumb.
(Ringside and CSI sell these in 12oz, 14oz, and 18oz in red/black only. Fairtex sells them in 12oz, 14oz, 16oz, in both black/white AND red/black)
Here is a picture of the black/white version:
FIRST IMPRESSION: A+
Sexy red, semi-glossy, and just pure rape.
FIT: B
These gloves are tight. Here are some factors to consider:
The areas that are tight are the second row of the knuckles, the fingertips, and the meaty thumb area. The palm of the hand also cannot open up unless if you do it from outside of the glove. It can get pretty uncomfortable at times, almost claustrophobic.
However, these gloves do make a good fist, especially with the curved thumb. Since these are, as far as I can recall, hand sewn, there are generally stiff and tight off the bat. Fairtex is known for this, and also takes time to break in. I can imagine that the padding will eventually conform to my hands, and the thumb seam is already starting to stretch a bit.
They started out fairly uncomfortable and stiff, but they broke in within a few months, and are now wonderful.
CONSTRUCTION: A-
There are no palm vents. There are, however, five thumb vents. The opening hole is also quite large. Solid stitching on both gloves.
The seam at the fingertips is also very distinguished ("thick"), so it feels like there's an additional fingertip bar along with the grip bar. This can be a pro to some, con to others.
The fingertip seam is neutral, because of preference, but I rated construction A- because of the lack of palm vents. However, they do not feel hot in the gloves at all.
FUNCTION: A+
Padding is indeed very dense. These will take a beating and more. Aside from the super tight fit, it feels good to punch, and so far, I haven't found them very problematic at all. The curved thumb helps prevent jamming the dumb thing if I hit it stupidly, and wrist support is still good even with elastic lacing. I don't have to worry about hurting myself really because of the padding, thumb design, and wrist support. After a while, the padding has softened up a little bit, but still feels great to punch with, and absorbs shock very well. I can hit as hard as I want, so long as I'm not hitting a concrete wall, and feel good about it.
Sometimes I like to pull on my shirt or scratch my nose. The thumb attachment is at the very tip, so I can't grab anything with my thumb. I put on the velcro attachment, so I have to use my fingers and palm to put the velcro on.
OVERALL: A
The first impressions were great, and construction is essentially perfect. The fit is uncomfortable at first, but they have broken in very nicely.
SUMMARY:
Best part, these are being sold at $39.99. I threw in the coupon code and paid about $31 for them without shipping (shipping was like $10). List price is $109.99.
Onward, to pictures...
DESCRIPTION (ala. www.fairtex.com):
High density, compressed training gloves for heavy pounding on bags, pads, and focus mitts. Not recommended for sparring. Efficiently balanced for an extra-tight fit. Extended, triple-ribbed sleeve with laces provides maximum support without restriction of movement. Locked pre-curved thumb helps prevent eye and thumb injuries. Dual-layered latex foam core delivers protection with solid force-feedback.
Features:
-Available in 12oz, 14oz and 16oz.
-Handmade in Thailand.
-Top grain leather shell.
-Two-layer high-impact latex foam core.
-Contoured hand compartment and pre-curved thumb.
(Ringside and CSI sell these in 12oz, 14oz, and 18oz in red/black only. Fairtex sells them in 12oz, 14oz, 16oz, in both black/white AND red/black)
Here is a picture of the black/white version:
FIRST IMPRESSION: A+
Sexy red, semi-glossy, and just pure rape.
FIT: B
These gloves are tight. Here are some factors to consider:
-The padding inside the hand compartment is not perfectly curved, in fact, it's almost like it just folds in sharp angles, like so (from side view): >
-The seam for the thumb is very tight, and can even cramp the meaty part of the thumb at times.
-The grip bar is very stiff, partly because the stitching on both sides are also very stiff; it looks like so (also from side view): -o-
-The seam at the fingertips is also very distinguished ("thick"), so it feels like there's an additional fingertip bar along with the grip bar.
The areas that are tight are the second row of the knuckles, the fingertips, and the meaty thumb area. The palm of the hand also cannot open up unless if you do it from outside of the glove. It can get pretty uncomfortable at times, almost claustrophobic.
However, these gloves do make a good fist, especially with the curved thumb. Since these are, as far as I can recall, hand sewn, there are generally stiff and tight off the bat. Fairtex is known for this, and also takes time to break in. I can imagine that the padding will eventually conform to my hands, and the thumb seam is already starting to stretch a bit.
They started out fairly uncomfortable and stiff, but they broke in within a few months, and are now wonderful.
CONSTRUCTION: A-
There are no palm vents. There are, however, five thumb vents. The opening hole is also quite large. Solid stitching on both gloves.
The seam at the fingertips is also very distinguished ("thick"), so it feels like there's an additional fingertip bar along with the grip bar. This can be a pro to some, con to others.
The fingertip seam is neutral, because of preference, but I rated construction A- because of the lack of palm vents. However, they do not feel hot in the gloves at all.
FUNCTION: A+
Padding is indeed very dense. These will take a beating and more. Aside from the super tight fit, it feels good to punch, and so far, I haven't found them very problematic at all. The curved thumb helps prevent jamming the dumb thing if I hit it stupidly, and wrist support is still good even with elastic lacing. I don't have to worry about hurting myself really because of the padding, thumb design, and wrist support. After a while, the padding has softened up a little bit, but still feels great to punch with, and absorbs shock very well. I can hit as hard as I want, so long as I'm not hitting a concrete wall, and feel good about it.
Sometimes I like to pull on my shirt or scratch my nose. The thumb attachment is at the very tip, so I can't grab anything with my thumb. I put on the velcro attachment, so I have to use my fingers and palm to put the velcro on.
OVERALL: A
The first impressions were great, and construction is essentially perfect. The fit is uncomfortable at first, but they have broken in very nicely.
SUMMARY:
-Great aesthetics
-Essentially perfect construction
-Claustrophobic fit at first
-Very good protection
-Solid pair of gloves once broken in
-Essentially perfect construction
-Claustrophobic fit at first
-Very good protection
-Solid pair of gloves once broken in
Best part, these are being sold at $39.99. I threw in the coupon code and paid about $31 for them without shipping (shipping was like $10). List price is $109.99.
Onward, to pictures...
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