Another place where the friction gloves are a game changer is if it is cold and wet and impossible to dry your disc. Recently I played a tournament in a super wet snow where everybody's towels got drenched and there was no way to dry them off. I wore a friction glove and while it was a "different" feel, it was better than having your disc slip out everytime. Compared with everyone else, I did great in that tournament.
That was a well-controlled experiment, after seeing Eagle's comment and your data it certainly looks like something that just won't work well for some folks. I imagine if I wasn't throwing fan grip with an injured finger they wouldn't be of such benefit to me. Interesting that I was still at 1,500rpm with them on vs. off though, I wonder if it's individual differences in how we are using our hands and grips that made that result so different. P.S. that camera angle for the throws was sick
I used them for a couple weeks over colder and rainy conditions. I think they’re nice, because it allows me to not have to worry about my hand much, I don’t need chalk or drying off discs if it’s wet, and it keeps my hand warmer in the cold which affects me a lot with throwing, and surprisingly, I was actually putting very well with them for a while (possibly above average for as of recent). One concern I’ve had, is I haven’t used them that much, and the pads for my pointer and middle finger are already wearing down quite badly, worried all the grip will go away on them..
My experience using one all last winter was the only benefit was for my hand, not the disc. Depending on the temp I’ve also used normal winter gloves to throw until my hand warms up, and then just take the glove off to throw. But I also like the friction glove for keeping mud off my hand lol.
I grabbed a pair of the warmer, insulated Friction Gloves (order a size up from normal if you do) and can say my hands maintained a normal temp in 15-30 degree weather. If you are just trying to stay comfortable in the cold for a casual winter round with friends, I recommend those over the regular. As they will keep your hands comfortable and pain-free. I think the standard issues gloves are more for rainy/slick conditions above all else. But yeah, you're going to notice a drop in spin/speed either way, if you're doing it for training. Just depends on your goals.
I use friction gloves very frequently even when it's not cold. I use them to stop getting blisters on my fingers. Never had any issues with them even when putting. Just wish they didn't leave black streaks on my discs
Wonder if it's similar to climbing where on smaller cracks / grooves, if I tape up my finger tips, it prevents the skin from folding around the edge which helps a surprising amount. I remember sending this climb outside, the crux was a medium sized flat edge on an overhang, but on the flat edge there was a small crack and you would put your fingertips on the crack seam so and the skin would slightly curve into the seam and gave just enough grip to not slip. I sent it pretty convincingly after finding the right finger position, but it was still a challenge for the fingers to not slip on the crux. Usually after a send like this it becomes way easier to repeat the route and I wanted to repeat it after a rest, but my finger tips were raw, so I taped them up. The crux felt impossible to hold onto after taping up the fingers because the tape prevented the skin on the finger tips from folding around the edge of this small crack seam that was what made the difference for being able to hold onto the crux with the overhang angle. Maybe there's a similar effect with where your skin curves around the under lip of the rim and gives some added security (and pain) but maybe the gloves get in the way of this (the tape I used in climbing was pretty thin and still had a big impact).
I don't know how much of a difference it makes in practical terms, but, cold air is more dense than warmer air, so it's slightly harder for the disc to move through. That should take away some distance and speed.
I used to use them for rainy rounds; however, with an umbrella you should be able to have 4-5 towels last you a full round. As long as you are drying your discs under the umbrella it’s fine. The glove does affect my putting, but was pretty negligible on throwing and if anything more slippery in the thumb. I have stopped using it tbh
I always do the hand warmer in my pocket... Durring sessions like this might be hard because no downtime, but on the course inbetween holes i am grabbing the hamd warmer instantly
I've been using regular thermal "five finger" winter gloves for years. While I can't say that it helps me throw farther, I can grip and throw as well as I could were it mid-summer without gloves. Granted, I'm a recreational player, so I can't say what a "high level" player would experience under similar circumstances.
Another place where the friction gloves are a game changer is if it is cold and wet and impossible to dry your disc.
Recently I played a tournament in a super wet snow where everybody's towels got drenched and there was no way to dry them off. I wore a friction glove and while it was a "different" feel, it was better than having your disc slip out everytime. Compared with everyone else, I did great in that tournament.
Great breakdown! The only thing that I found the friction gloves good for me personally is practice putting in sub 30° temperatures.
That was a well-controlled experiment, after seeing Eagle's comment and your data it certainly looks like something that just won't work well for some folks. I imagine if I wasn't throwing fan grip with an injured finger they wouldn't be of such benefit to me.
Interesting that I was still at 1,500rpm with them on vs. off though, I wonder if it's individual differences in how we are using our hands and grips that made that result so different.
P.S. that camera angle for the throws was sick
I used them for a couple weeks over colder and rainy conditions. I think they’re nice, because it allows me to not have to worry about my hand much, I don’t need chalk or drying off discs if it’s wet, and it keeps my hand warmer in the cold which affects me a lot with throwing, and surprisingly, I was actually putting very well with them for a while (possibly above average for as of recent). One concern I’ve had, is I haven’t used them that much, and the pads for my pointer and middle finger are already wearing down quite badly, worried all the grip will go away on them..
I've used cheap rubber gardening gloves and they work pretty well in cool, wet conditions.
My experience using one all last winter was the only benefit was for my hand, not the disc. Depending on the temp I’ve also used normal winter gloves to throw until my hand warms up, and then just take the glove off to throw. But I also like the friction glove for keeping mud off my hand lol.
I found they helped me in the rain more than the cold. The disc marking is worse if it's wet.
I grabbed a pair of the warmer, insulated Friction Gloves (order a size up from normal if you do) and can say my hands maintained a normal temp in 15-30 degree weather. If you are just trying to stay comfortable in the cold for a casual winter round with friends, I recommend those over the regular. As they will keep your hands comfortable and pain-free. I think the standard issues gloves are more for rainy/slick conditions above all else. But yeah, you're going to notice a drop in spin/speed either way, if you're doing it for training. Just depends on your goals.
I use friction gloves very frequently even when it's not cold. I use them to stop getting blisters on my fingers. Never had any issues with them even when putting. Just wish they didn't leave black streaks on my discs
I like mine for throwing in the snow so I don’t have to try to dry the disc, but my caution is that as the glove gets wet, your hand gets really cold.
The old man grunts😂
Wonder if it's similar to climbing where on smaller cracks / grooves, if I tape up my finger tips, it prevents the skin from folding around the edge which helps a surprising amount.
I remember sending this climb outside, the crux was a medium sized flat edge on an overhang, but on the flat edge there was a small crack and you would put your fingertips on the crack seam so and the skin would slightly curve into the seam and gave just enough grip to not slip.
I sent it pretty convincingly after finding the right finger position, but it was still a challenge for the fingers to not slip on the crux. Usually after a send like this it becomes way easier to repeat the route and I wanted to repeat it after a rest, but my finger tips were raw, so I taped them up.
The crux felt impossible to hold onto after taping up the fingers because the tape prevented the skin on the finger tips from folding around the edge of this small crack seam that was what made the difference for being able to hold onto the crux with the overhang angle. Maybe there's a similar effect with where your skin curves around the under lip of the rim and gives some added security (and pain) but maybe the gloves get in the way of this (the tape I used in climbing was pretty thin and still had a big impact).
I don't know how much of a difference it makes in practical terms, but, cold air is more dense than warmer air, so it's slightly harder for the disc to move through. That should take away some distance and speed.
I used to use them for rainy rounds; however, with an umbrella you should be able to have 4-5 towels last you a full round. As long as you are drying your discs under the umbrella it’s fine. The glove does affect my putting, but was pretty negligible on throwing and if anything more slippery in the thumb. I have stopped using it tbh
I always do the hand warmer in my pocket... Durring sessions like this might be hard because no downtime, but on the course inbetween holes i am grabbing the hamd warmer instantly
I've been using regular thermal "five finger" winter gloves for years. While I can't say that it helps me throw farther, I can grip and throw as well as I could were it mid-summer without gloves. Granted, I'm a recreational player, so I can't say what a "high level" player would experience under similar circumstances.
Great review. Even if the rest of us humans aren't throwing fast enough to melt the glove onto our disc
I do just fine with an electric hand warmer that I hold between shots. My hands don’t hurt when I do this.
I'm a hand warmer guy myself, just didn't want to conflate the results by adding another factor!
I suspect that you just have an extremely strong grip, where as someone with half the grip strength may see benefits.
I don’t think they are meant to throw farther, are they? It’s just to throw more comfortably during colder seasons.
I just keep hand warmers in my pockets when I play in the cold.