I’ve never been big into the whole sun glove wearing deal when it comes to fishing. I can’t really defend that position, however, as I’ve also never been a big sunscreen wearer and we all know that’s a rather ignorant stance to take at this point. I do see the need for protection from the sun though, especially as I’m starting to get a little age on me now. I’ve just often been too lazy with the sunscreen and the gloves I have tried were as slick as a peeled onion once they got wet.
Enter the Fish Monkey Stubby Guide Glove. I noticed a difference with these gloves right away and was impressed by them in several ways. So let’s take a closer look now.
Fit and sensitivity
I’ve had a really hard time finding any glove to wear for sun protection or fishing in the cold for that matter, that doesn’t cut down on sensitivity. And as soon as I notice that I’ve lost the feel for a bait, I usually peel the gloves right off and they never leave the storage compartment again. But the Stubby Guide Glove fits really well and stretches naturally with the motion of my hand.
If you want to see if a glove will have the right stretch for your hand to retain sensitivity, put the glove on, hold your hand out palm-up and move your fingers around and then open and close your fist and see if the glove gets an air pocket in the palm. If the material stays close to your palm throughout all of that, you know you’re not going to lose a bunch of the feel for your rod and reel. And having the fingers cut out obviously helps as well with the sensitivity versus a full glove.
Tacky… in a good way
Some of the gloves I tried early on would just be a slick, neoprene-type material throughout and the first time I’d get my hand wet, my rod would nearly slip out of my hand on each subsequent cast or hookset. These gloves from Fish Monkey have a nice sticky material on the palm that’s just tacky enough to give you a good grip without leaving any kind of residue or really sticking too hard to anything. And they keep that grip even when they get wet.
Both the monkey face logo and the little dots along the inside of the fingers are made out of this adhering material. This is a really nice addition to the gloves as it gives you a secure and confident grip on the rod and reel.
Sun protection
Again, I haven’t made as many efforts in this area as I should in the past, but I have paid more attention to it in recent years and the proven benefits of sun protection efforts are irrefutable when it comes to preventing cancer and slowing the aging process. I do often wear long sleeve sun shirts when I plan to spend a whole day fishing and these gloves compliment those efforts perfectly.
That last part of the arm that catches some of the hardest rays of the day, the back of the palm, is where you’ll often first start to see the signs of sun damage. Your fingers are in constant motion, curling in and out and taking less direct sun, for sustained periods of time at least. But the back of your hand gets torched throughout the day. With a rating of UPF50+, these Fish Monkey Gloves have you covered, literally.
Final thoughts
The Fish Monkey Stubby Guide Gloves are a durable, well-crafted pair of gloves that stretch in all the right ways to give you a great fit for fishing. No matter what you’re doing, you’ll have a sure grip with these gloves wet or dry. And when it comes to sun protection, any effort we can add is a great thing. With a UPF50+ rating, the sun doesn’t stand a chance.
So if you’re in the market for a pair of sun gloves or you at least know you should be like I did, I’d recommend you give these a try. A nice pair of gloves that do everything I like to see a pair of gloves do.
You can find the Fish Monkey Stubby Guide Gloves here.
