Hi all, Does anybody have a recommendation for a glove that is suitable for occasional angle grinder use when fabricating mild steel? Our vehicle maintenance workshop has occasional need to trim welds or de-bur etc. As a rule they have good glove selection and availability for the various tasks found within the workshop such as handling oils to mechanical tasks to occasional welding. Recently I challenged one of the men for wearing nitrile disposable gloves when grinding giving the talk on all the obvious issues with such a selection of glove. I was then challenged to issue a suitable glove as the mechanics believe the welding gauntlets supplied (EN407) are to bulky to allow safe handling of the smaller angle grinders and do not provide tactile feedback. Our typical glove used for manual tasks (EN388) offer good mechanical protection but are to some degree an open weave where sparks can reach the skin (I realise the argument of good practice/guards should deflect sparks). Wondered if anybody has been down this route?

See your point Paul and know others will support the theory, hence my comment on suitable guards being fitted (both side cover for half the grinding wheel towards the grip handle), my key concerns are exposure to sparks, heat, general sharp edges, warm to hot surfaces. Considering your answer, perhaps the question should be modified to suitable gloves with a close fit? Or do the bulk of people think NO Gloves?

The single-use nitrile gloves will provide no real protection against sharp edges, red hot metal, etc. Indeed, due to the hyperhydration that will occur in the skin from this type of glove any damage due to glove failure could be significantly greater than had no glove been worn. My approach would be to source a thin glove manufactured from Dyneema, possibly with a PU coated palm and fingers to ensure good grip. These will provide a good level of physical protection and still give reasonable dexterity. My experience has been that these are generally well received by the workforce and perform well. Chris P.S. If you need some suggestions re suppliers of these PM me.

Thank you for your replies. Borisgiles, I agree, in my mind the risk of burns,cuts etc far out weigh the chance of a properly guarded machine and close fitting glove being a primary hazard. Going to try the TIG glove and the Dyneema as a trial. Will report back. Chris Packham, you have a PM - excellent point on hyperhydration, I see a safe system of work being created and issued for our mechanics! Clifden, we have just introduced use these for our jack hammer crews on site, planning on bringing them onto other tasks in a roll out programme: http://www.havcontrol.co...e2f20a8af7dd9140fb06840e