Kevlar Hot Gloves

[knots]

Tried to call and e-mail Carolina Glove to place an order - no response. Have they closed up shop ?

I still need some kevlar gloves. The ones I have been getting lately form my welding supply are not holding up well and so I am looking for a good source of gloves that are high quality industrial weight. What brand gloves should I be looking for and where ? Preferably Made in the USA.

[knots]

About a week ago I posted a topic in the Every Thing Else Forum . The topic related to my search for a source of Kevlar hot gloves . Specifically Carolina Glove - "Econo Guard" trademark glove. No responses were offered, likely due to my choice of forums.

Since the original posting I have continued my on line research and the following information is the result : Indications are that Carolina Glove is no longer in business. Their gloves featured a Kevlar mid-weight outer shell with double 100% cotton inner liners. The cost was less than $18 per pair. They were tough gloves.

Kevlar and Nomex are the du Pont trade names for heat and flame resistant Arimid fibers. Aramid fibers are cut resistant as well as being heat and flame resistant , and are used in unlined knit gloves for worker protection against cuts ad abrasions . According to one source there are four companies that manufacture these fibers. Refer to Wickipedia for a list of applications. The combination of cut and heat resistance makes this fiber ideal for use in working with hot metal.

One of my goals now is to find an American company that has double lined hot work gloves with an Aramid fiber outer shell at an affordable price .

One American company, Galeton, has a non heat rated knit Aramid fiber shell glove with a single cotton liner. The link for this glove is posted below. The cost is only $5.00 / pair. I plan to order up several pairs for general work. However I am still looking for a replacement for the " ConoGuard" gloves which I have used for years. Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.

Most of the multi layered hot mill gloves offered are 100% cotton. Using that example I purchased bulk cotton knit gloves and simply placed one glove into another for some degree of heat protection. One benefit of is that as the outer glove wears they can be reversed to place the inner glove to the outside with the wear damaged glove damaged side side up. This will result in a serviceable glove for the opposite hand. Perhaps the single layer kevlar knit gloves could be used the same way ! I have yet to try that but will likely do that soon.

Happy Forging



https://www.galeton.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/ProductDisplay?productId=13591&storeId=10601&catalogId=10101&langId=-1

[Nakedanvil - Grant Sarver]

They do seem really cool, but they just seem to be a really great solution looking for a problem.

When/where/why do you need them?

[knots]

They do seem really cool, but they just seem to be a really great solution looking for a problem.

When/where/why do you need them?

I use them mainly on my hand that holds the work piece, or tongs holding the work piece being forged. The Kevlar is tough and wears well. It protects the hands against effects of sharp edges, and It also gives giving moderate protection against burns .

I bought my first pair over 20 years ago and have experienced only benefits, no problems. However , as working with any glove while forging, you must keep them dry.

What problems would you anticipate?

[Nakedanvil - Grant Sarver]

I guess it just depends on what work you're doing, I don't see any problems if they last long enough to justify the cost. And you seem to have found pretty cheap ones. I might have to give them a try. I'm more interested in the wear resistance than heat resistance. Thanks for the information!

[bigfootnampa]

I have some but no source as I bought them at a tailgate sale. I like them (mine are just single lined). I once was a firefighter though and firefighters use them so you might try firefighting suppliers also.

[jimbob]

the blacksmith Depot has some http://www.blacksmithsdepot.com/Templates/cart_templates/cart-detail.php?theLocation=/Resources/Products/Supplies/Safety_Equipment/Gloves is this what your looking for?

[eric sprado]

Look in local Yellow Pages under "Safety Supplies" Most safety supply outfits have nice,low priced Kevlar blend gloves. They give me one more heat before having to go to tongs....

[ciladog]

I have tried all kinds of gloves for forge and welding work over the years. Some cost a little and some cost a lot. I have never worn out a pair of gloves before the seams come apart. I find that if the gloves are not specifically made for hot work (and even some that are) the seams are usually sown with some synthetic thread like polypropylene or nylon. So when you are punching or whatever some hot metal, the thread shrinks or melts and the seams open up.

I started using Miller Mig gloves and they really hold up. They are sown together with Kevlar thread and not too bulky. Cost under $20 depending where you buy them.

Miller Mig Gloves

[Randy]

WARNING!!! Kevlar gloves are very dangerous. Low heat is fine, but I received one of my worst burns in 38 years of forging by using a kevlar glove. While forge welding the scale and flux came back on my hand and the kevlar melted onto my skin! Not good for high temps so why risk it?

[dks119]

WARNING!!! Kevlar gloves are very dangerous. Low heat is fine, but I received one of my worst burns in 38 years of forging by using a kevlar glove. While forge welding the scale and flux came back on my hand and the kevlar melted onto my skin! Not good for high temps so why risk it?

same happened to me. like playing with burning plastic when i was a kid. stick and burn.

[knots]

WARNING!!! Kevlar gloves are very dangerous. Low heat is fine, but I received one of my worst burns in 38 years of forging by using a kevlar glove. While forge welding the scale and flux came back on my hand and the kevlar melted onto my skin! Not good for high temps so why risk it?

Were the gloves you using, when burned, lined ? The Econo-Guard gloves had a double cotton liner. I have experienced pin point burn through of the kevlar outer shell bur never through the double cotton liner. I don't use them for welding.

[Steve Sells]

funny I do have a pair, I rarely use them, and even then for very sharp blades while sharpening. When I need forge gloves for welding, Harbor Freight has great canvas and leather gloves for less than $2 a pair. I buy them by the bulk package.

[ptree]

I buy all sorts of gloves at the factory where I am the safety guy. I usually buy from Hagemeyer, they can be found on the web. I buy several varieties of Kevlar gloves, mostly for the cut resistance.
When I forge, I use a leather palm, canvas backed and cuffed glove, bought by the dozen for something like $0.85 per pair. Since I normally use only a left when forging, I use the rights when I chainsaw since I wear the rights out much faster than the left in that use. All in all it almost balances:)

[knots]

Randy and dsk119 have highlighted an important limitation of the Aramid fiber gloves. Welding with Aramid fiber gloves is a misapplication. Don't wear Kevlar or other Aramid fiber gloves for welding or for other applications where protection from high temperatures a is needed. Aramid fibers have no melting point. Rather than melting they "decompose" at 752 degrees fahrenheit . From Randy's experience I think you can likely read "decompose" as VAPORIZE. One interesting observation is that these fibers have not been used in any welding glove that I have researched on line. This is a good example to follow.

The following reference features the a description of the chemical structure and manufacture process of Aramid fibers. Some pretty nasty stuff is used to produce these fibers. http://www.bbc.co.uk/dna/h2g2/A791291

Having considered all of this, I still believe that there are useful applications for gloves made of this material where abrasion and cut resistance are needed and contact temperatures do not exceed recommended limits. For unlined gloves the recommended applications appear to set the use at or near room temperature.

My experience has been with a Kevlar shell over two layers of cotton liner. The highest recommended temperature for any Aramid fiber glove, that I have found, is 450 degrees F. Those were triple lined with cotton jersey fabric. I use these gloves as a safety net . That is - I do not pick up or handle any thing that i know is hot. As the work piece heats up, at the first indication of heat through the glove, I cool the work piece, and let it dry with the residual heat in the work piece. For forging I use only the left hand glove . Also I Do Not use them when welding. I learned very quickly that sparks will easily burn through them . I basically use them only where ever I would feel comfortable using cotton.

As with any glove when forging you must keep the glove dry or run the risk that you will pick up something hot and steam clean your hand. For me this sets the practical limit of their use.

The advantages of Kevlar are that it is a good insulator, It has good good heat resistance at moderate temperatures, it has good wear resistance, and the gloves made from the Aramid fibers are not as bulky as other gloves.

Since the lined gloves are well insulated I also use them for shoveling snow.