full length leather gauntlets ?

[Buzzo]

hi
currently have a leather/canvas gauntlet , but get a few stings at the wrist where the canvas starts .

are there any full length leather gauntlets ? couldnt see any advertised.

Thanks.

B.

 

[JamezF]

Sounds like you might be better off replacing your queens than your gauntlets

I do wonder if the repeated stinging might be a response to alarm/other pheromones already present on the canvas though. Is it practical to wash that part without damaging the leather?

James

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

are there any full length leather gauntlets ?

there are specialist shops that may be able to assist.
I recall there being one opposite the Custom house at the Plymouth Barbican.
I think it was called 'outward bound'

 

[Hedgerow Honey]

hi
currently have a leather/canvas gauntlet , but get a few stings at the wrist where the canvas starts .

are there any full length leather gauntlets ? couldnt see any advertised.

Thanks.

B.

Don’t bother, use nitrile your experience with the bees will be so much better. If you do have a stroppy colony just double glove.
I use orange Nitrile from my local NAPA parts store with gaiters ive had for years over my wrists, or for something a little thicker the ones Gruff sells are very good.
I don’t throw them away after a use, they are washed & reused.

 

[ericbeaumont]

full length leather gauntlets

Agree with James: it's your bees that are the problem, not the gloves.

Where are you in Sussex? There's a beekeeper in West Sussex (Wisborough Green Division) who inspects without gloves, and has done so for years. Ask him how he keeps bees that allow him that freedom.

If not bare hands, long-cuff nitrile or Marigolds ought be enough, and that's to keep your hands clean and allow you to rinse between colonies in your bucket of washing soda mix.

At our training apiary leather gloves are forbidden, and I can't recall any beekeeper using them. Leather doesn't allow for delicate or flexible movement and leads more easily to crushed bees, and we know where that leads.

If you must:
https://www.niwaki.com/arm-covers/?...0X7X57PUWBbsgj9Z6rKKFOxmRoCfRcQAvD_BwE#P00071
https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/28563111...ar=587625961172&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY
https://www.bjsherriff.co.uk/product/gauntlets/
https://www.bbwear.co.uk/beekeepers-gauntlets-spats-ankle-protection

 

[Garry R]

Agree with James: it's your bees that are the problem, not the gloves.

Where are you in Sussex? There's a beekeeper in West Sussex (Wisborough Green Division) who inspects without gloves, and has done so for years. Ask him how he keeps bees that allow him that freedom.

If not bare hands, long-cuff nitrile or Marigolds ought be enough, and that's to keep your hands clean and allow you to rinse between colonies in your bucket of washing soda mix.

At our training apiary leather gloves are forbidden, and I can't recall any beekeeper using them. Leather doesn't allow for delicate or flexible movement and leads more easily to crushed bees, and we know where that leads.

If you must:

https://www.niwaki.com/arm-covers/?...0X7X57PUWBbsgj9Z6rKKFOxmRoCfRcQAvD_BwE#P00071

https://www.ebay.co.uk/itm/28563111...ar=587625961172&widget_ver=artemis&media=COPY

https://www.bjsherriff.co.uk/product/gauntlets/

https://www.bbwear.co.uk/beekeepers-gauntlets-spats-ankle-protection

And if you get stung with leather gloves the sting venom remains and can be a target for more bees Marigolds or I was lucky to get a job lot of Dickies which are pretty beeproof and easily cleaned.

 

[Curly green finger's]

I agree wear nitrile or marigolds, your dexterity will be a lot better and you can keep these type of gloves clean in between inspections.
At certain times I can inspect
Without gloves most of the time it’s when the bees are on a flow and when a lot of foragers are out of the hive.

Try the different glove type your inspections will be completely different.
Good luck

 

[Antipodes]

hi
currently have a leather/canvas gauntlet , but get a few stings at the wrist where the canvas starts .

are there any full length leather gauntlets ? couldnt see any advertised.

Thanks.

B.

They can't get your wrist with these because of that extra bit above the leather- protecting that area.

https://www.hornsby-beekeeping.com/ventilated-leather-gloves/

 

[ericbeaumont]

leather

Bear in mind that bees associate the smell of animal with theft and threat, and will act accordingly. Once the glove or that area has received a few stings, the pheromone (predominantly isoamyl acetate) will remain to alert other bees.

get stung with leather gloves the sting venom remains and can be a target for more bees

Once that has happened, your day of peaceful beekeeping is over. How do you clean the gloves, but wash them? Result of that is rigid gloves and even less effective handling. Don't wash them? Transfer of bacteria & virus between colonies is guaranteed.

 

[drex]

I will not allow anybody to wear leather gloves in association apiary. They collect alarm pheromone and make handling of frames unwieldy. They cannot be easily cleaned.
They could be the reason your bees are so defensive. Rough handling or bad queens also.
I use marigolds with home made gauntlet sleeves to go over the cuffs.

 

[madasafish]

No leather gloves allowed in local association apiary.
I keep glove free - vinyls for horrors. Avon Skin So Soft original deters most bees.
My bees are largely docile: I requeen nasties.
But as a trainer and mentor, I do deal with some real horrors..
With sting counts averaging c 120 pa, my body is immune to bee venom unless I get multiple stings from older bees in soft tissue.
(Stings still hurt of course but only for 30 minutes or so)

 

[drdrday]

I use long cuff nitrile gloves - keeps my hands clean of propolis, but allows me to feel that tell-tale flutter of a bee close to my hand and in danger of getting accidentally squished. The long cuffs mean that I can put these over the top of the elasticated cuffs of my suit.
I've never been stung on my wrists (the bunched up cuff under the glove is way too thick for that) or my forearms, so I've never seen a need for gauntlets at all. Plus, if I do get stung on the hand the glove and sting (along with any alarm pheromones) are quickly removed and replaced with a fresh glove.
I also don't put up with overly defensive bees - 2 stings so far this year, and both my fault. One to the finger when I did squish a bee during an inspection, and the other well away from the hives when I accidentally trod on a bee in the clover whilst barefoot in the back garden.

 

[BigAshW]

Yep. Marigolds for me as well changed years ago and never looked back. I rarely get stung now unless I'm clumsy. If I have a colony that goes on the attack then that queen is marked for a rapid demise asap. I will also remove the drone brood if I have time to reduce those genetics heading out into the population.

 

[Buzby]

Disinfect your gloves with Naptha and then apply heat with a blowtorch. Pop down to your agricultural merchant for some long cuff nitriles.

 

[Barry Moore]

hi
currently have a leather/canvas gauntlet , but get a few stings at the wrist where the canvas starts .

are there any full length leather gauntlets ? couldnt see any advertised.

Thanks.

B.

I had long gauntlet gloves and they did stop my hands and wrists getting stung but as they were so thick and clumsy I always ended up squishing bees during inspection. I believe that this was creating an aggressive response from the hives. Torpedos hitting my vale and following me 30-40m from the hive....

I have changed to Long Cuff Latex HD Pro.Tect gloves and as they are strong but much finer I don't agitate (squish) the bees and they have calmed from 8/10 to 2/10 in terms of aggressiveness.

This was a game changer on my beekeeping learning curve.

 

[ericbeaumont]

apply heat with a blowtorch

Until charred?

 

[judy12]

I used to save a very tough pair of leather gauntlets for a highly defensive colony - I didn't get stung but still worked in a cloud of cross bees - until I was told that bees associate leather smells with intruding animals which of course upsets them. Nitrile or Marigolds don't smell of anything. I now use long cuff nitrile gloves with 10mm thickness and dip them in washing soda between hives - the pheromone from the previous colony will also upset a defensive colony. The defensive colony is much calmer and I can manipulate them more slowly and carefully - and enjoyably.

 

[jenkinsbrynmair]

I now use long cuff nitrile gloves with 10mm thickness

10mm thickness!! those are electricity linesman's gloves

 

[TonyC]

May I suggest that you have a look at the gloves sold by Old Castle Hives using 3D material on the backs. The same as their excellent suits.

This mantra that you need to have bare hands or only nitrile gloves to be a proper beekeeper really needs to be challenged. I fell for this when I started and ended up after a few years with a serious venom allergy.

Certainly many of the stings that lead to my allergy were due to inexperience, but that's what happens when you are new to beekeeping. It is really unfair for experienced beekeepers to "glove shame" newbies and the same goes for associations. If a beek needs/wants to wear leather gloves the solution is simple - a pair of latex gloves over the top.

I wear XL latex gloves over my leather gloves and change them between colonies (currently 6). I also change my hive tool btw.

Despite being allergic, I have not stopped keeping bees, but completed 3 years of bee venom immunotherapy a couple of years ago - allergy level is down to 9x normal from 150x normal.

I would also add that any loss of dexterity is more than made up by added confidence and the ability to concentrate without being concerned about stings. I can pick up queens for clipping or marking without damaging them. I do not squash bees with my gloves.

Tony

 

[BeeKeyPlayer]

Sounds like you might be better off replacing your queens than your gauntlets

I'm sure that's good advice but the solution sometimes takes time, a bit like soil improvement in the garden.

In the meantime, as others have said, Marigolds (especially black ones) can do the job. Sometimes I wear very tight fitting leather gloves with latex inside to protect the leather from moisture, and nitriles on the outside so that I can wash them as usual between each inspection. The secret is to source 'compact' leather gloves/gauntlets; it's surprising how much fine control you can still have.