I have been trying a few configurations of my SiTech Antares system over the last few months, trying to find the right balance of warmth and dexterity. Of course it doesn’t matter how much dexterity a glove has on the surface, if your hands get too cold you lost it all anyway! These are the results of my experiments.

Option 1

Showa 660 size 9 with silk glove liners. I tried these on several dives in water between 7-9℃. This was a pretty good solution, the gloves are surprisingly warm considering how thin they are, with the size 9 gloves they fit my hands closely. The big disadvantage of this option is that the gloves are delicate, basically one touch of velcro will destroy them, so care must be taken in the order of kitting up and de-kitting. On longer dives in colder water tho’ I was starting to feel numb.

Option 2

Same size drygloves, but with Fourth Element Wrist Warmers instead of gloves, similar temperature water. I also tried them in combination with the glove liners. Warmer but the same disadvantage with the delicate silk. Too cold in 5℃.

Option 3

Swapped the size 9 Showas for size 10, and tried using a pair of Thinsulate
gloves, that I originally bought for running in the winter. This solution is bulkier and costs some dexterity, but is the by far warmest of the three tried so far, in water of 5℃ for 3× 40-minute dives today I was quite comfortable (also wearing: merino baselayer, BZ400, 7mm hood). I have a small leak in the right glove, I think it’s probably in the ring rather than the glove itself (as it happened with the last pair too) and the Thinsulate kept my hand fairly warm anyway. The extra bulk of the underglove fills out the dryglove so there’s no loose material, it is just like wearing a pair of thick gloves.

Option 4

Perhaps next winter I will try Santi heated gloves!

Another lesson is, the warmth of your hands makes a significant difference to your overall comfort. With option 3, I was far more comfortable for longer than with option 2, with all other kit being the same. I will need to swap out the rings to try to fix the slow leak before doing any more serious cold water diving tho’… I much prefer diving without gloves at all.