GK Gloves

Found some pics of some of the gloves i cleaned. came out almost like new except some of the wear. I used one cap full for both gloves. Pretty efficient stuff. A weekly cleaning would keep gloves in good shape. As mentioned above, you can by ECOS in bulk at Costco. You can find it everywhere, but not in the big ECONO size. The stuff works on just about everything. My kid is not the best with keeping his stuff clean, but this stuff still takes all the monthly/season funk and grime out. yep, pretty gross.
ecos-glove-clean-before-after-turf-web.jpg ecos-glove-dirty and clean.jpg ecos glove clean 2.jpg
 
Found some pics of some of the gloves i cleaned. came out almost like new except some of the wear. I used one cap full for both gloves. Pretty efficient stuff. A weekly cleaning would keep gloves in good shape. My kid is not the best with keeping his stuff clean, but this stuff still takes all the funk and grime out.
For the youngers, there aren't a whole lot of great choices and there never are any at the soccer stores (always have to buy online and you never know with online sizing). My son uses Reusch...good enough for his purposes but they don't last very long (on already 2nd pair of the year)...more a default from limited choices...for the littlest keepers there's not a ton of stuff out there.

Anyone have an opinion on the finger saver v. non finger saver? I've made him use finger saver because slender fingers can be easily broken at this age and he sometimes plays against players 1-2 years older in futsal. He's been complaining though now that he's started to punch/clear that they make punching much harder. His trainer kicks hard though and I'm sure at least twice the finger savers have stopped a broken finger just from practice.

aviata makes small gloves. you only get 1 or 2 choices but better than the flat cheap adidas, vazari or adidas.
 
Found some pics of some of the gloves i cleaned. came out almost like new except some of the wear. I used one cap full for both gloves. Pretty efficient stuff. A weekly cleaning would keep gloves in good shape. As mentioned above, you can by ECOS in bulk at Costco. You can find it everywhere, but not in the big ECONO size. The stuff works on just about everything. My kid is not the best with keeping his stuff clean, but this stuff still takes all the monthly/season funk and grime out. yep, pretty gross.
View attachment 2438 View attachment 2439 View attachment 2440
I've used liquid palmolive dish soap and gotten very similar results. It's not abrasive, doesn't seem to hurt the latex surface and gets the black oily turf residue out quite well. I'll have to check out the ECOS.
 
I've used liquid palmolive dish soap and gotten very similar results. It's not abrasive, doesn't seem to hurt the latex surface and gets the black oily turf residue out quite well. I'll have to check out the ECOS.

i use to do a tide (or whatever detergent i had handy) and palmolive combo. It seems like i could not get the stench out by using one sole product. Seriously, my kid has some wicked smelling sweat. Combine that with the grime on the turf field, nothing would work short of using half the bottle of palmolive, caps of detergent and hands numb from all the scrubbing. They sell smaller bottles of ECOS at most stores. Good way to see if it works for you. Costco has something new that looks similar with all the same marketing words under their own brand name. I might pull the trigger on a bottle and see if it works the same.
 
Don’t laugh but my 05 daughter loves the adidas fingersave jr gloves. She doesn’t like change, and feels these gloves give her the best feel for the ball. She has tried a few but many are too bulky. She plays basketball and her hands and touch mean a lot to her. The problem is she is up to their largest size a #8. They don’t hold up that long sadly.
mainstream brands seem to have all the $ tied up in marketing and not quality. adidas and nike dont last more than a good month of regular use. My kid is also an 8. That size tends to go fast on sites like Aviata and places that sell Elite Gloves. Some other kids like WC gloves. At the prices, experimentation on cuts/materials/foam thickness isnt expensive and can narrow down what your keeper likes. Also, kids today are all into the looks of gloves. Mainstream brands dont focus on these things except with cleats. Not important to me, but have had cleats stay on the shelf due to something as small as an orange band on the cleats due to color INSIDE the shoe. Lucky im a smart shopper. Seen kids put their gloves through the ringer (usually by not wetting them) in order to get new gloves. You can search on Reddit Goalkeeping and find a ton of info on gloves - especially from frugal players.
 
My kid has been wearing WC gloves for 4-5 years. We are super happy with the quality, fit, price, and customer service. We go through probably 3 pairs a year, but they’re replaced before they wear out as game gloves are rotated into practice gloves at the start of Fall/HS/Spring. My husband washes her gloves frequently. He has set up a bad habit, IMO, by always doing that for her as she’ll be off at college in 2 years and it won’t be part of her routine. But, it’s a little way he can show his love and care for her as she gets older, and I can appreciate that.
 
My kid has been wearing WC gloves for 4-5 years. We are super happy with the quality, fit, price, and customer service. We go through probably 3 pairs a year, but they’re replaced before they wear out as game gloves are rotated into practice gloves at the start of Fall/HS/Spring. My husband washes her gloves frequently. He has set up a bad habit, IMO, by always doing that for her as she’ll be off at college in 2 years and it won’t be part of her routine. But, it’s a little way he can show his love and care for her as she gets older, and I can appreciate that.

Lol, sometimes we cant help with the bad habits. On this end its a matter of health. My kid has had a couple bouts of ring worm on his wrists and shins due to not sanitizing his gear regularly. Part of the issue is practices tend to be one turf 95% of the year. Turf isnt as sanitary as grass.
 
My kid just uses the Storelli and Reusch. She likes the finger savers. I thought we went through about 4 pairs a year until I realized we had more than we needed. I prefer she rotate the gloves and take them out of the backpack to keep the smell down. She has started throwing in the silica gel packets to absorb moisture. Seems to work so don't want to push her to try something else.
 
Side note or call it another tip:
Once your DD is committed (obviously older/in high school)-- pay attention to what gloves the goalkeepers at her college are using...those will be the ones she will be using (and yes getting for FREE- yippee!!) much easier to transition into them maybe a year or so earlier to get used to the difference of what she's been using -- especially if they are a different brand/style/etc...(part of reason why we are in the Nike ones...)
 
He has set up a bad habit, IMO, by always doing that for her as she’ll be off at college in 2 years and it won’t be part of her routine. But, it’s a little way he can show his love and care for her as she gets older, and I can appreciate that.
LOL...yeah that's me, too. But for me it's also about not wanting to have to buy 4-5 pairs of $60 gloves per year. I found that washing her "game" gloves religiously after each game would preserve them for over 6 months, even playing a heavy load of games. At 6 months, we'd buy a new pair to be the gamers and demote the old game gloves to practice ones. We wash the practice gloves once a week, and they will still last quite a while (Aviata brand).
 
West Coast for sure. I use them as well. They hold up for me in indoor. My son has used them for 4 or 5 yrs now. He likes the feel of the Bio-Hybrid Cut and digs the styles. He removes the finger saves and they wash well. We buy two pairs and rotate them for games. As a pair gets a rip or bare spots, they become practice gloves.
 
Hi All, I'll chime in on a couple of topics....

Gloves: When DD first started in goal part-time we went with Reusch - Finger Saves. I went with them because back in the day all we had were Reusch, Uhlsport,and Adidas as the options. Then started researching other brands to find a less expensive option and she tried a bunch J4K, HO, Aviata, and finally West Coast. She ended up landing on West Coast as her favorite, although her GK coach recommends Aviata. As others have mentioned, within WCG there a few different styles and cuts. It took us trial and error to find what DD liked. I agree with the OP...great service by WCG. Only thing now is that they are slowly raising their price point. Still can get a deal, as they occasionally have sales/discounts.

Finger Saves: She has to have finger protectors. She has recently got a pair of expensive Reusch Gloves (we got them free), and she refuses to try them, no finger protectors. The new Nike Gloves (https://news.nike.com/news/nike-mercurial-touch-elite-goalkeeper-glove) don't appear have them, and showed them to my daughter and she is not a fan of the design. They look like dish gloves. Plus these are super expensive $140+. I am going to ask her Keeper Coach what he thinks about the protectors. That was a good idea.

Glove Washing: I have been doing that job (glad I was not alone, I thought I was...), but she just started taking it over(Yes!). I felt like an equipment manager for way too long. We use the glove wash from WCG, or Reusch, garage rags from Home Depot/Lowes, warm water and a 5-Gallon bucket, and then air dry outside out of direct sunlight. This is done weekly. We have been lucky, no odors. Shoes however, that is another story. Will try some of the suggestions for different soaps.

College Gloves: Good to know about the colleges and mandating the gloves the keepers wear. I did not know that. I get the Uniforms, but shoes and gloves??? Free is good, but preference and what feels/fits best on your hands and feet are better IMO. I know back in the day players would remove the competing logo from the shoe, or black it out to mask the brand (when everyone wore black shoes). Keepers wore the gloves they wanted, either what the school gave them or their own gloves. The gear contracts I am sure are very prescriptive these days on what the kids can and can not wear in practice and games.

We have spent a pretty penny on gloves and gear to find the "right" ones. It was expensive getting there. Now we know what she likes so it is much easier these days. I guess at the end of the day whatever gear (Gloves, Pads, Shoes, shorts, pants, sliders, etc.) they find comfortable and feel good in will be what works for them. That said I am still surprised and can't believe it when I see these keepers on turf wearing short-shorts, and short sleeve keeper jerseys...I know the turf is hot, but the raspberry/turf burn is far worse IMO.
 
I am still surprised and can't believe it when I see these keepers on turf wearing short-shorts, and short sleeve keeper jerseys...I know the turf is hot, but the raspberry/turf burn is far worse IMO.
That is my daughter! I almost can't get her to wear GK pants or sleeves anymore. She was all about protection in the younger years, now I think she's more concerned with how she looks! Her keeper coach is constantly nagging her about it...but her approach is if she looks good, she feels good, if she feels good, she plays good. :rolleyes:
 
That is my daughter! I almost can't get her to wear GK pants or sleeves anymore. She was all about protection in the younger years, now I think she's more concerned with how she looks! Her keeper coach is constantly nagging her about it...but her approach is if she looks good, she feels good, if she feels good, she plays good. :rolleyes:
Only protection I can get my DD to wear is the Storelli Keeper Sliders and Shorts, both with a decent amount of padding for the key areas. Other than that she loves her keeper scars and her knees and elbows each have scars with stories she loves to tell. Bonus is she's not afraid to rock a dress and glam it up with those scars in tow.

Keepers are a rare breed and their personality tends to match!
 
My DD is a keeper and my oldest DD's teammate we carpool with is one as well. Someone open a window when those girls take their gloves off after practice!

The best thing you can do is create good habits for washing their gloves, as if that will ever happen...

With my DD I've actually been able to find some excellent hand wash she has to use before getting in the car. Remembering the days of getting under the hood of the car with my pops, I immediately turned to the auto repair aisle of my local store and have tried several heavy duty hand washes that I empty into a travel size shampoo / lotion dispenser with a pop lid.

Goop - Orange / Cherry / Grape / Etc.
Gojo - Orange / Cherry / Grape / Etc.
Fast Orange
Cherry Boom

My DD currently uses a grape scented wash and it does the trick. The travel bottle is conveniently small and we've bought her one that can be clipped onto her backpack as well.
Received it today and tried it out! It does the trick! I am a believer! Thanks for sharing!
 
I too am the one responsible for keeping the gloves clean. I look at it as a return on my investment. Keeping them in good working condition will help make them last longer and save me some money so I stay on top of it.
I have a carabiner hooked onto the outside of her gear bag. Her gloves get hooked on there after training or after games to keep them ventilated.
I use the WC glove wash. Works great. Buy extra bottles sometimes if it'll put me over the mark for free shipping knowing it's gonna get used.
I stuff her gloves with paper towels to help draw moisture out. 5-6 hours later I take them out and just let the gloves air dry on their own. I keep telling her she's gonna have to learn to wash them on her own at some point.
"Take care of your gear..gear'll take care of you."
 
As far as finger savers go..they only thing they really help with is to protect the hand if it gets stepped on. They won't do anything to help when you catch a stinger on the fingertip. Her old coach said no finger saves..work on good catching technique..finger saves give a false sense of security. Her current coach doesn't care..player preference. Although she says the finger savers on the WC seem to be more flexible than other brands she tried in the past she just leaves them in there. As long as they aren't laying all over the place around the house it don't matter to me. :)
 
My daughter has the same style of Reusch gloves for the last few years, really likes them. She also has a couple pairs of Nike gloves that she got from ID2 camp and uses those for training's. She tried WC but didn't care for that at all. She used finger savers for the first few years but went away from that around the u11 age.
 
Back
Top