Have a Firm Grip on Your Knowledge of Glove Texture

If you’re new to disposable gloves, there can be a bit of a learning curve involved. When it comes to finding just the glove you need, there are four primary variables—material, thickness, texture, and value—that go a long way in helping you make the right choice. This post is about texture, an important consideration because it determines grip or lack thereof.

Gloves may be textured on the entire surface, the fingers, the fingertips, the inner palm and fingers, or both sides of the glove. Textured surfaces typically make a difference for working with tools, machinery, and other potentially slippery surfaces.

Zoomget sells gloves with three types of texture: smooth, for vinyl gloves; textured (once known as micro-roughened), most common with nitrile and latex gloves; and aggressive, in the case of Raised Diamond Texture (RDT), which is offered on two of our heavy-duty nitrile gloves from 1^st Choice.

Smooth: These are gloves that do not have any texture, and most are vinyl. Smooth gloves are suitable for such applications as janitorial, salon & beauty, and food service, where a precise grip is not essential. Some vinyl gloves, despite a smooth texture, have more tack, or stickiness, that aids grip.

Try these: For countless light-duty applications, X3 Clear Vinyl (GPX3) are a great solution. At 3 mils, they offer tremendous value and are suited for tasks requiring frequent glove changes. Alternatives include Gloveworks Clear Vinyl (IVPF) and Gloveworks Blue Vinyl (IVBPF), the latter made of high-visibility vinyl for working with food.

Textured: Used mostly for nitrile and latex gloves. In fact, a substantial percentage of nitrile gloves are textured. These gloves have a surface that appears to be lightly sanded. They are well-suited for both medical and industrial applications because they typically provide a better grip for holding tools and small objects.

In some cases, manufacturers alter the chlorination process for latex gloves to produce a higher surface tack, which also enhances grip.

Try these: At 3 mils, X3 Black Nitrile (BX3) fit the bill for lightweight tasks that require a stronger (and more comfortable) material than vinyl. For medium-duty jobs involving tools, 1^st Choice 5 mil. Black Nitrile (1BN) is one of our best-sellers and long trusted by countless end users.

Aggressively textured: The most intense level of texture. The 1^st Choice Premium 6 mil. Orange Nitrile (1ON) and Premium 6 mil. Green Nitrile (1GN), for example, have Raised Diamond Texture, which is particularly useful for gripping tools, fasteners, nuts, and bolts when the glove is slippery. This texture has channels between each diamond that allow liquids to pass through, enhancing grip.

1^st Choice gloves with aggressive texture are thicker and offer more protection. They are best for automotive, manufacturing, food processing, and other heavy-duty industrial applications.