Wood carving gloves offer the first line of defense against a sharp knife in case of an accidental slip. Gloves can also help protect your hands from wood splits and make it comfortable for you to carve wood.
Whether you choose wood carving gloves, a thumb guard, or combine the two, you want to get the best protection and comfort when carving wood. In this post, we review the best gloves for wood carving that you can check out today. Enjoy.
Our Best Gloves Wood Carving Gloves
- Best Wood Carving Glove: NoCry Cut Resistant Reinforced
- Best Kevlar Wood Carving Glove: DEX FIT Level 5 Cut Resistant Gloves Cru553
- Best Steel Reinforced Wood Carving Glove: MCR Safety Kevlar/Stainless Steel
- Best Stainless Steel Mesh Metal Glove: Dowellife Level 9 Cut Resistant Glove
Best Wood Carving Glove
If you're looking for the best gloves for wood carving or whittling, the Nocry Cut Resistant Reinforced Gloves are your best bet to keep your fingers safe.
They are light weight and feature a mix of modern and light materials, which means you are not going to have issues with dexterity.
They also fit perfectly, and are neither too loose nor too tight. Unlike other Nocry Cut resistant gloves, these are reinforced in the three fingers, which are most vulnerable to cuts. So when you make a mistake when making a push or pull cut, you can be confident your fingers are safe.
The only negative about these gloves is that some shaving and splinters will attach to the fibers of the gloves. The good thing is that they are easily removable from the fiber.
Best Kevlar Wood Carving Glove
If you looking for kevlar wood carving gloves, the DEX FIT Cut Resistant Gloves CRU553 are the best you can get.
The fit of the glove is incredible. They are also very comfortable, and you can easily grip wood with no slippage because of the nitrile coating. The Cru553 DEX FIT gloves are cut-resistant but do not protect against accidental stabs.
Although they are durable and fit very well, one thing about the gloves is they can leave black marks on a piece. This is because the nitrile coating can wear out when handling rough wood and end up on the wood.
Best Steel Reinforced Wood Carving Glove
Stainless steel wood carving gloves are bulky and can limit the movement of your fingers when carving.
If you’re looking for something that will give you more dexterity, then the MCR Safety 9389L KS-5 is a good option. The glove is reinforced with steel which offers higher protection, as opposed to only Kevlar.
The fit is perfect, and they are well stitched for a comfortable feel. Latex coatings on the palm and fingers keep wood chippings from sticking onto the glove.
Best Stainless Steel Mesh Metal Glove
If you're starting in wood carving or whittling and want the best protection for your fingers, this is the glove for you.
The Dowellife Level 9 Cut resistant glove is a steel mesh that is both stab and cut-resistant. To make it comfortable, a secondary soft glove is included that is supposed to be worn underneath the main steel glove.
It is one of the best gloves when working your way into wood carving. However, it is also heavy, which can limit your hand movements especially when carving smaller pieces. If you’re looking for a glove that works out your arms while still protecting your fingers, this is it.
Choosing Wood Carving Gloves
Comfort and Grip
The comfort and grip of a wood carving glove are important and determine how well you can move your fingers when carving. For comfort, with a well-fitting glove, you can hold the tool securely and control it better. Check out this glove sizing guide from PalmFlex to help choose the right fitting glove for your gloves.
Apart from the comfort of the glove, the grip also matters. It is useless if a pair of gloves will not let you hold a piece of carving properly when working. The DEX FIT Cut Resistant Gloves on our list are a great example of good grip. Nitrile coating on the palm and fingers help reduce friction, which makes them less slippery.
Cut Resistant Gloves
From glass cutting and handling, sheet metal handling, food service working with sharp knives, and even wood carving, all these are tasks that involve inherent cut hazards. Your hands and fingers are the common injuries in these lines of work. You don’t want to get a nasty cut when wood carving. Wearing cut-resistant gloves is one of the ways to prevent these accidents.
Different cut-resistant materials offer different degrees of protection against cuts. Which is the best cut-resistant material? Well, Dyneema is the best for use and is up to 15 times stronger than steel. Kevlar is five stronger than steel and is widely used in cut-resistant gloves.
Cut-resistant gloves are categorized in different levels based on the toughness of the fabric used and its ability to withstand sharp blades, chemicals, or heat.
What is Cut Level & Which Level Do You Need?
A glove’s cut level is an industry-standard outlined in the US and Europe by the American National Standards Institute (ANSI) and European Commission (EN 388). When you need the highest level of cut protection, look for a higher cut resistant glove-like A5 or higher in the USA. In Europe, check for E to F (EN 388).
For wood carving, cut level 5 gloves and higher can be used. All the gloves included in this list feature a cut level 5 and more. This guarantees cut resistance in case of an accidental slip of the knife. Check out this guide by MCR Safety that explains the different cut-resistant glove levels.
Thumb Guards & Cut Resistant Tape
Many carvers use thumb guards and cut-resistant tapes when carving. These two types of protection are great for the thumb or index fingers when whittling. The push or pull stroke cuts both have the potential to harm fingers and require protection.
Thumb guards are worn on the thumb, while the cut-resistant or plasticized tape is wrapped around fingers to make a custom guard. Apart from these thumb and finger protection, most wood carvers also use duct tape to reinforce leather or rubber thumb protectors.
Don’t Sacrifice Dexterity
Properly moving your hand and fingers is essential in wood carving. Your gloves, thumb guard, and cut-resistant tape should offer proper protection while maintaining proper hand and finger movement. Choose a glove that is designed to move effortlessly when using it. Have a safe wood carving session.
