Mammut Spok Glove

I thought this would be the answer to my winter glove problems... but the search goes on. Where it excels (warmth, design, materials) it's great, but where it fails (construction) it fails badly ~ so I gave it a 3.

I wanted a nice warm glove for winter use that still offered some dexterity. I like the single finger design on this glove that is reminiscent of older military shooting mittens (i.e. the trigger finger is apart from the other digits). This offers an acceptable compromise between warmth and dexterity. I also like the materials selected which are gore-tex over most of the glove, except for the palm and finger wear areas, which are a nice soft quality leather. There is also a lot of insulation in this mit which serves to keep your hands nice and toasty.

Next, the finger design is to be applauded, at least in theory: inside the mitten portion, the fingers are actually separated. It's kind of like having a glove in a mitten. So, inside the mit, there are soft fleecy pockets for your fingers.

The failings: The finger-in-a-mit also becomes the shortfall due to construction. What made me crazy was trying to get this glove on because the fleece lining inside the finger holes (and thumb) are not 'attached inside'. They are capable of pulling inside out, but only so far that they obstruct you from getting the glove on easily. Combine that with the insulation seeming to shift a bit... but only so far as to also obstruct you from getting these gloves on easily. Now, if your hands are dry, the holes are aligned and the insulation is in place, the gloves pop on presto-chango. If, however, your hand is wet (which causes to fleece to drag) or if the finger holes are not aligned or if the insulation has shifted just enough, you could spend several frustrating minutes trying to get these puppies on. I finally figured out that I could align the finger holes and realign the insulation by holding the cuff and beating the glove a few times on a solid surface. It also serves to work out the frustrations of not getting them on easily.

Lastly, the wrist strap is elastic with velcro which makes me think these gloves won't be around for the long haul (i.e. when the elastic stretches out, these gloves will shift too much to be useful); and finally the gauntlet closure is not as easy as it could be. I've seen a technique used on other gloves to allow one handed opening and closing of the gauntlet, so why mammut didn't employ that here I'll never know. Seems like they were cutting corners.

All in all, it's a sharp looking glove but not a hands down winner. Like I said, where it excels it's great, but where it fails it does so badly ~ therefore: 3 stars.