Royal Racing Signature Glove - Review
Royal Racing offers an extensive lineup of clothing that covers everything from full-on race kits to more casual riding attire, but it's their Signature glove that we're going to take a closer look at here. They feature a thin 2.2 polyester mesh upper that definitely puts them into the minimalist category, as well as a low profile slip-on cuff with a stretchy V-shaped panel that should make them more flexible when you're wearing them and easier to pull off when you're done. The palm is made with super thin 0.5mm thick Clarino leather. Nice touches like a microfiber thumb wipe and sticky silicon fingertips can also be found. The Signature glove is available in sizes from XS - XXL, and for 2014 include red/black and black/white colour options. MSRP: $29.99 www.royalracing.com
![Royal Racing Signature Gloves]()
![Royal Racing Signature Gloves]()
Pinkbike's Take:
Royal Racing's Signature glove provides a minimalist approach with their thin mesh upper and lightweight neoprene cuff. They are, however, not the most durable option out there.
Pinkbike's Take:
 | While riding gloveless certainly makes for a close connection with the bike, I am not prepared to risk having my knuckles or palms shredded to bits just because I don't want anything between the grips and my paws. Sweat is also an issue, especially now that we're heading into some warmer weather, and gloves help to keep your hands from slipping off of the grips on such days. It's for this reason that I've always been fond of minimalist gloves, with them doing just enough to protect my hands and keep the sweat from causing any slip ups. The Signature glove is barely noticeable once you've pulled them on, with a light feel that anyone who prefers barely-there-gloves is sure to be a fan of, and they have ended up being my go-to option when the temps go from long sleeve to short sleeve conditions. The downside to such a design is the lack of protection - they won't be saving your skin the next time you miscalculate the distance between two trees - and that the lightweight fabric material is more prone to being damaged should you have to do a bit of bushwhacking. This means that they likely aren't for anyone who is already going through gloves at a high rate, regardless of how hot your local riding spot gets. - Jordan Carr |
Author Info:
Member since Aug 7, 2013
Must Read This Week
[UPDATED] Final Elite XC Results & Overall Standings from the Mairiporã XC World Cup 2024
42122 views
42122 views
Sign Up for the Pinkbike Newsletter - All the Biggest, Most Interesting Stories in your Inbox
PB Newsletter Signup
very happy with them
Soft grips with big grooves such as the odi rogues or the oury do wonders. I sweat buckets too and sweaty grips has never been a problem with those. If you're not into big grips, I could see the foam grips XC guys use being a nice alternative but I never tried them, so don't quote me on that.
To be fair, the upside I could see to gloves would be added protection during high speed crashes but of lot of them are so paper thin that it makes hardly any difference in the end. Been going bare hands for over 2 years now (both XC and DH) and I never had a noticable hand injury.
Second best fitting pair of gloves I ever tried on. I've got quiet big hands but thin fingers. Got some in XL.
The best were 2014 ION Path. Got those two months ago and one of those scratch patches in the palm came loose after just one hour of riding, because they are glued in...sent them back immediately.
The upper material of the 100% gloves seems much more robust than that of the IONs. But it tends to pull out a few strings of nylon(?) when you touch some velcro. No real problem though.
No real protection and no pads but they're great for warm days and when you don't crash.
You would probably like the TLD Air gloves and Deft Family gloves as well, as they are very similar in fit and materials.
Pads on MTB gloves are pretty useless if you ask me. They just make them bulky and uncomfortable. It makes sense on MX gloves (flying rocks and gravel from another rider hurts like a MOTHERF#%@£$!!!), but doesn't do the job nearly as well as real hands guards anyway...