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Buff Fishing, Sun Protection and Water Gloves Review

Full body fishing sun protection on Flat Mountain Pond - hat, sunglasses, neck buff, fishing gloves, long sleeve shirt and long pants
Full body fishing sun protection on Flat Mountain Pond – hat, sunglasses, neck buff, fishing gloves, long sleeve shirt and long pants

“Do you wear sun protection?” That was the first question my doctor asked me when I told her I’d taken up fly fishing. Indeed I do.

I wear a floppy hat, fishing gloves, a neck buff, long shirt, and long pants when I fish because I don’t want to experience the multiple basal cell carcinoma surgical procedures my dad experienced in the final years of his life. He grew up in the sun worshipping decades after WWII when a healthy tan was equated with good health and vitality, going to extreme measures, such as sitting in the backyard with an aluminized sun reflector to get a tan on his face.

Buff's Sports Series Gloves are extra long to help cover your wrists up to the cuff of your fishing shirt
Buff’s Sports Series Gloves are extra long to help cover your wrists up to the cuff of your fishing shirt

A key element of my sun protective clothing are my Buff Sports Series Water Gloves, which provide 50+ UPF Ultra-Violet protection against the sun’s rays that cause sunburn. UPF measures the amount of UV radiation that penetrates a fabric and reaches your skin. A fabric rated with a UPF of 50 will allow only 1/50th of the sun’s UV rays to pas through. In other words, it blocks 49/50-ths or 98% of the UV radiation. UPF 50+ is the highest possible rating.

Buff's Sports Gloves have an silcone imprinted palm that like rubber helps maintain the slime on fish skin that protects them from infections
Buff’s Sports Gloves have an silcone imprinted palm that like rubber helps maintain the slime on fish skin that protects them from infections.

Made with 95% nylon and 5% Lycra, they’re fast-drying, stretchy gloves with exposed finger tips for improved dexterity, an absolute requirement for a sport that requires knot tying. The palms are covered with a silicone print that is good for gripping slippery fish when I need to remove a barb-less hook. Silicone and rubber coated gloves and nets do less damage to skin, scales and the protective slime layer of fish and are recommended for catch-and-release style fishing. (Because they have a silicone grip, the Buff’s Sports Series Water Gloves gloves are better for catch and release fish than Buff’s Pro Series Angler 2 Gloves which have a leather grip.)

While Buffs Sports Series Gloves are Good for Fishing, they're also good for kayaking and other water sports where you need a good grip and blister protection
While Buffs Sports Series Gloves are Good for Fishing, they’re also good for kayaking and other water sports where you need a good grip and blister protection.

These gloves are great and I keep store them with my fishing tackle (lines and flies) so they’re always handy when I want to go fishing. Truth is, I hate touching fish, so I’m highly motivated to wear these gloves, which give me a good grip if I need to hold a fish to remove a hook, while providing much needed sun protection.

Disclosure: The author purchased this product with his own funds. 

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16 comments

  1. Never really considered protecting my hands but your point is well made. Do you also wear hand protection when hiking in open country? If yes – is this sunscreen or gloves?

    • Most of my hiking in heavy forest, but I do put in sunscreen on my hands, face, and neck when I go above treeline. The rest of me is covered. I do wear gloves when hiking off trail but mainly for insect and puncture protection.

      On the water, the effects of solar radiation are magnified, I guess because it’s probably reflected by the water and the fact that there’s nowhere to hide.

      • Hi Philip!
        What gloves do you wear for insect protection in summer while hiking? I haven’t had good luck with clothing treated with Permethrin, so ideally I’d like to use gloves that are tightly woven enough that they act as a physical barrier to being bitten by mosquitoes. Any suggestions? I’ve been bitten by mosquitoes right through the thickest synthetic socks that Darn Tough makes that I had sent to InsectShield, through a knit ExOfficio sun hoody that I had also sent to InsectShield, as well as through Rail Rider Eco Mesh pants that came already treated with Permethrin. Mainly I think I’m getting bitten through these garments when I’m not moving much and when the fabric is stretched tightly against my body. If I’m hiking, I seem to get bitten much less often.

  2. How are these with hiking poles, if you have used them for that purpose? I’ve been using cheap cross training gloves I found at REI for over a year now. It has been one of my favorite accessory purchases for gripping poles, preventing blisters, little fear of grabbing rocks, branches, vines, etc. I wear them when I don’t use poles because they feel great with lots of scrambling and bushwhacking. However they look shorter both on the fingers and wrists compared to these Buff gloves. I’m interested in more protection.
    https://www.rei.com/product/808646/gofit-cross-x-trainer-gloves

  3. I find gloves of any kind horribly uncomfortable in hot or even warm weather. Unless it’s cold enough for my fingers to get numb, I prefer not to wear gloves because they make my body temp too warm. On the other hand, even one day above timberline with exposed hands can lead to at least a second degree burn! I therefore bought a pair of these handguards: https://www.sunprecautions.com/product/31300
    After spending the money, I realized that these could easily be made at home by anyone with minimal sewing skills, if you can find a good SPF 30 or above fabric.

  4. Although I like to do a different kind of “buff fishing” this is excellent info. For me its SPF 50, broad straw golf hat, and a prayer that my Irish genetics don’t give me melanoma.

  5. Nice review! I wear Buff gloves with leather palms for fishing (yay Tenkara!), hiking and paddling. I love them. If it’s hot and I get them wet, they actually help keep me cool. They protect from the sun and the hazards of the trail/river access/too-ocasional falls!

  6. My wife is a stage 4 melanoma cancer survivor. This is an excellent article and one I wish more people would read & heed.

  7. New Zealand had a large hole in the ozone layer so we are well versed in carcinomas caused by the suns rays. 30 plus sun protection is the norm and some go as high as 50 yet most folk still do not cover up! Fly fishers wear wide brim hats (a must for sight fishing in our crystal clear water) often with mesh crowns to keep cool, shirts are worn with sleeves rolled up and I have yet to see gloves worn except in winter. If one comes across a fisher wearing long sleeves, face cloth, gloves etc 10 to 1 they are American, Failing that they must be a poacher. I guess we are just plain stupid. vain and think we are bomb proof.
    Sorry Philip.

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