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11-03-2017, 07:41 AM jimmy12345678  

1,166 posts, read 722,288 times

Reputation: 1884

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I used to be of the mindset that you didn't need gloves to work on a car, that wearing gloves made you "less of a man" or "not a real tech" or some nonsense like that. My attitude quickly changed after a couple months of wrenching professionally, as doing it day in and day out is much different that just being a DIYer. I got so tired of having to scrub my hands 15-20+ times a day just so I could go on a test drive or pull a car out of my bay, plus all that soap really started drying out my hands and making them cracked and sore. And no matter how much I washed them, I could never seem to get all the grease out.

So I started wearing rubber gloves and it made life so much easier and better. Now when I'm done working, I just take my gloves off, wash the sweat off my hands and dry them off. Sure, my arms still get dirty, but everything I touch doesn't get dirty now because there's ingrained grease stuck in my hands. Also, it's much easier if something gets stuck in my eye, I have to go take a leak, answer my phone, or whatever the case might be, to just take off my gloves and take care of it, rather than having to go scrub my hands first. It's gotten to the point now that I feel naked working on something WITHOUT wearing gloves, it's really saved my hands from being dried and cracked and having a bunch of little cuts and scrapes all over them, because if I catch it on something it usually rips the glove instead of my hand.

I've heard lots of guys tell me that "I can't feel anything when I wear gloves" and I'll agree with that when it comes to mechanics gloves. They do have there place, like for doing tires and stuff like that, but for the most part I can't stand them either. Rubber gloves do get in the way sometimes, like when you're screwing in a bolt and the rubber gets caught in the threads, but IMO the benefits outweigh the drawbacks.

So fellow techs and DIYers, do you wear gloves when working on a vehicle, and what are your thoughts on wearing gloves when working in general?

 

11-03-2017, 07:44 AM rbohm  

33,411 posts, read 31,969,908 times

Reputation: 19960

i have tried wearing gloves, but i havent found any yet that give me the fine control i need when working on cars, especially race cars.

 

11-03-2017, 07:47 AM Tiffer E38  

Location: Pikesville, MD

2,983 posts, read 2,425,313 times

Reputation: 4552

I've got a set of Mechanix gloves for the bigger stuff and latex gloves for fine work (so I can still feel what I'm doing).

 

11-03-2017, 08:04 AM Brian_M  

4,690 posts, read 9,407,681 times

Reputation: 14831

Another pro mechanic here, and I quickly learned to love gloves when the cleaners tore my hands to shreds the first week of my first job (suspension mechanic for roadrace motorcycles).

There's a pretty big variance in glove quality, and too many people wear a size (or more) too big of a glove ~ both of which contribute to the "can't feel" complaint. And then there's simply getting used to the feel. I can do everything from picking up a 2.5mm shim (about the size of one piece of oatmeal, but thinner) on up with gloves on. The best gloves for tactile feel and grip that I've used were latex, but they don't hold up the way I want so I tend towards nitrile gloves. Again, quality matters and my Favorite glove brand I can get a few days worth of use out of, with many dozen on/off cycles. I just bought a different/newer brand and they snag/tear almost if you look at them funny, obviously not wasting my money on those again.

 

11-03-2017, 08:19 AM headingtoDenver  

5,443 posts, read 6,210,659 times

Reputation: 15120

Not a pro, but I do have a box of black tattoo gloves that I use when working on my vehicles. The rubber gives you a nice little bit of grip on bolts and such, plus when you are done, you just rip them off and you have clean hands. Win Win if you ask me.

 

11-03-2017, 08:51 AM Stonepa  

Location: San Ramon, Seattle, Anchorage, Reykjavik

2,255 posts, read 1,856,802 times

Reputation: 3200

I use nitrile, powdered surgical gloves, which give me the fine finger control that I need and keep my hands clean. I have no need to feel like a man with greasy hands. If they tear I toss them and put on another one. I can buy a box of 1500 which lasts a long time.

 

11-03-2017, 09:30 AM clutchrider  

2,652 posts, read 3,790,771 times

Reputation: 1951

I use the purple latex gloves when doing some work on the car but 99% of the time I go bare. I don't work that often that the lava soap bothers me and I enjoy having my finger grip. I'm not working on a car enough to justify spending $$$ on a pair of high quality gloves.

 

11-03-2017, 10:56 AM Hemlock140  

Location: East of Seattle since 1992, originally from SF Bay Area

38,786 posts, read 69,769,323 times

Reputation: 46534

I tried it but don't like it. A few bruises and cuts are just one of the little annoyances of working on cars. I don't do it that often that my dirty hands last long, and with a good hand cleaner it's only a few places that it won't come off.

 

11-03-2017, 11:36 AM mclasser  

505 posts, read 694,092 times

Reputation: 1177

I'm a weekend DIYer, but I always wear gloves. When I'm done working, it's nice just ripping off the dirty gloves and having clean hands to back my car out of the garage without getting the interior dirty.

 

11-03-2017, 12:27 PM gunslinger256  

Location: North West Arkansas (zone 6b)

2,779 posts, read 2,814,161 times

Reputation: 3899

my dad never wore gloves when he worked as a mechanic. I recall watching him wash his hands in gasoline in the parts cleaner but he always had black grimy hands that were calloused all over from all the hand washing.

many years after he retired I noticed my mechanic wearing light blue surgical gloves and then I started buying them from harbor freight. These days I wear the medium duty dark blue surgical gloves and I find they last a little longer.

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