Gear Reports - FREESTONE® HALF-FINGER GLOVE
Manufacturer: Simms Fishing Products
Product: FREESTONE® HALF-FINGER GLOVE
Retail Price: $19.95
Tester: Joshua Cook - Trout's Shop Sponsored Angler
Rating: 5 / 5 - A Must Have
Date Tested: Jan. 01, 2009 - Apr. 14, 2009
Test Area: Colorado River, St Vrain at Lyons, Clear Creek at Golden
What they say:
"Economically priced protection"
What we say:
Being comfortable fishing in January is pretty difficult in Colorado & I have gone through a lot of gloves trying to find ones that can keep my hands warm and dry quickly. I started in the 80’s with a pair of leather driving gloves I cut the fingers out of so I could tie, they kept the wind off & allowed me to feel rods, net handles etc – they were also damn cold. Later tried ragwool, cold weather flip-over’s and glomits but don’t have much good to say about the results & am sold on the fingerless style.
I picked up a pair of Freestone fingerless fleece gloves in January; they are thinner fleece and somewhat windproof. There’s no nap & little bulk to them as compared to the thicker fleece gloves out there. I like that because I can actually feel a net handle behind me & not loose focus on the fish. I’ve fished with them several times this winter and so far have no complaints. They always get wet and are quick to dry. If I remove and wring out most of the water they actually still keep my hands warm. I got a size smaller expecting them to stretch & open up at the finger openings but they haven’t.
I’d definitely recommend these gloves, they keep me warm when wet, allow me to fish better in the cold and stay out longer then I could with lesser gloves.
Last minute thoughts:
Warm, Quick Dry and Fingerless