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I find I am using these more and more in finishing work. I would like to find a trusted source for a quality glove. I want to buy in 100's. Thoughts?

Mike

well, I don't know what you mean by 'trusted', but when the recent discussion that started with epoxy fumes, branched to CA fumes, then ended talking about overall chemical safety I dug up the following link and considered it the best of those I had found.

http://www.ammex.com/prodpg.php?prod=332

I have bought these a a harbor freight store. I have had no problems with them and they are cheap.
http://www.harborfreight.com/cpi/ctaf/displayitem.taf?Itemnumber=37051

I buy the gloves I use (at work and in my shop) at a local NAPA (auto parts) store.

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I didn't mean to say it, but I meant what I said.
http://www.brackettinstruments.com/

You should find boxes of them at any hardware store or pharmacy.

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Eschew obfuscation, espouse elucidation.

Trusted means not "bob's gloves and sock emporium.com"

Thanks all.

Mike

Costco carries them in 300 packs for 12-15 dollars, I can't really remember how much, it is about that.
They even have different sizes.

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http://www.booneguitars.com
https://www.facebook.com/pages/Stephen-Boone-guitar-builder/488208541257210

Mike O and Mike P,
Here's another good source for the Black Nitrile gloves. These are only $8.45 per box of 100 and are the Medical/Industrial grade. In the safety conversations with Mike P he convinced me to search for a tough grade of the nitrile gloves so I can use them for finishing applications. I am convinced the Nitriles are best for finishing as they don't pick up and transfer contaminates easily like the latex does. Not only that, they don't rip the hair out of my arms or off my face when rubbing an itch like the latex does. It took the persistance of a fellow Texan to help me get the latex outta my brain. I'm in a latex recovery program now.

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Bill Hodge


One does not simply, own enough guitars!

those look like quality gloves Bill...for all intensive purposes the same as the ones I listed (after converting from mm to mils the numbers are very similar)...

they are definitely thicker than anything one finds at the Borg or similar....

I apologise for naming my source for gloves. I assumed gloves worn by thousands of auto painters and body techs who deal with chemicals and toxins in amounts many times those seen in luthirie would be sufficient. Next time you ask a question I'll just keep working instead of taking off my dis-honest gloves and typing a response.

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I didn't mean to say it, but I meant what I said.
http://www.brackettinstruments.com/

surprisingly enough (please see last comment before insult is taken) woody b's Napa source has very thick nitrile gloves....8 mil, which is probably 2x as thick as the ones @ the borg and 50% thicker than the ones I linked to...of course that just might be too thick to retain tactile senses, but when I'm dealing with chemicals and such I rarely have need for that, rather desire flexibility so that my fingers can move decently

he makes a good point about the use they are meant for, though to be honest from what I'm used to seeing in the box stores my first reaction was that they would be similar..nope, way better....

Hmmmm, I didn't even see Woody's post earlier. Guess I better brew that pot of coffee after all and maybe put on my contacts so I can see better. I'll have to check the NAPA gloves out also. The tougher the glove the better as far as I'm concerned. I'm pretty rough on them as it is.

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Bill Hodge


One does not simply, own enough guitars!

Unless your allergic to latex, I would really recommend latex, textured, no powder. Got mine at McMaster's. I've had nitrile gloves disintegrate with lacquer thinner. Latex will just swell.

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Randy Muth
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check the MDS of products you use...some of the lacquer I've been known to use does indeed have MEK in it, but not the thinners I use....nitrile is not recommended for ketones, so if your thinners contain that then don't use nitrile....

as far as the actual lacquer...well, oh well....I don't stick my hands in the stuff like I do the thinner, so I am not super worried about it, and the only lacquer I use that has MEK I very rarely use as it costs $200/gallon...

Randy,

I've been using Latex Gloves for years and will continue to do so. However, after a very informative back and forth with Mike P in a different thread, I've determined that I'll use both depending upon which is needed for that particular job. Both have pro's and cons and in fact compliment each other. Where one is beneficial because the other won't hold up, the other is superior, and vice versa. In doing a lot of research to prove one better than the other, I found that I would benefit best from using both. I'm no longer a one glove type man. I might even find myself one day with latex on one hand and nitrile on the other.

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Bill Hodge


One does not simply, own enough guitars!

Mike,

I didn't check the MSDS of the lacquer thinner i was using but I already assumed it contained MEK, since I think most lacquer thinners do. Nitrile is also poor against toluene, which is in many lacquer thinners. I also use acetone, which is also a ketone. What I didn't do is check the chart to see what nitrile gloves are and aren't resistant to. Having checked the chart, I see that latex holds up well across the board. Personally I don't bath in any of the chemicals I use in the shop and would prefer to just use an all around decent disposable glove. I think latex fits the bill unless you are allergic. It certainly held up where the nitrile fell down. I admit as a PhD. in organic chemistry, I am not as paranoid about chemicals as some here are. Personally I think fine dust is much more of a hazard. By the way, the gloves I used when I worked in the lab were neoprene coated latex.

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Randy Muth
RS Muth Guitars Website
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funny thing...having been a woodworker for the last 25 years I'm not all that worried about dust!....yeah, I know, there are issues....my lack of 'worry' is actually just the realization that there is not much I can really do but totally change my career...I do my best to mitigate things with procedures such as fans blowing dust away from me, dust masks (I really hate full respirators, so don't use that for woodworking) and blowing myself off repeatedly with 120 psi of air and especially before I go home....

I'm from that crossroads era of when I was in HS MEK was used by chemists to wash everything...then as a freshman in college was informed it had just been determined to be a cancer causing agent....the point being I am not too afraid to wash my hands in lacquer thinner every now and again, though I do try to use gloves when they are needed...

I figure I'm a tradesman and will most likely suffer the consequences of it, oh well...

what is far more dangerous than wood dust is the dust from bone/shell products....and as a tradesman cement/tile/etc dust....those cause silicosis of the lungs which is irreversible...I'm sure MDF dust ranks right up there also (god I hate that cr@p)

Carbon fiber dust is pretty bad too, if you use that.

Mike, I'm surprised that you used so much MEK. Acetone was pretty much standard for washing glassware in the lab in the 1980's. I do remember that in the late 70's and early 80's benzene was used fairly freely. Benzene is a nasty carcinogen while toluene is not. It all has to do with the body's ability to oxidize these compounds into metabolites it can readily get rid of. I'm pretty sure MEK is NOT a carcinogen, but it does have CNS effects. These are acute however, so you shouldn't bathe in it or inhale too much of it. Basically, if you start getting dizzy, take a break and get some fresh air. The body can readily oxidize simple ketones. MEK does have teratogenic effects in rats at ridiculously high doses. So I guess I wouldn't pour it over my head if I was pregnant. Then again, broccoli and about half the items in the produce section don't pass the Ames test, so a lot of our food is technically carcinogenic. I'm not sure, but I believe this is the test California goes by in its rigorous labeling practices.

I'm not trying to downplay the hazards too much, but it helps to be able to interpret the toxicological data. I have worked with some truly nasty stuff with all precautions in place. I also worked in the pharmaceutical industry for a number of years and worked with toxicologists on project teams on almost a daily basis. As Paracelsus, the father of toxicology wrote, "Everything is poison, there is poison in everything. Only the dose makes a thing not a poison." And believe me, the toxicologists will find that dose, no matter how high. In fact that is their job. By the way, it is virtually impossible to get a drug approved that doesn't pass the Ames test. That means you won't find broccoli being prescribed. Aspirin wouldn't make it in this day and age either. Bruce Ames stated that he wished he never came up with that test. He never intended it to be used the way it is being used. Just to let you know, I am actually critical of the pharmaceutical industry, but for other reasons.

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Randy Muth
RS Muth Guitars Website
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Woody, sorry if I said something that offended you. I appreciate all help. My post was meant tongue-in-cheek. However, I am really confused... in that I am unable to determine what bad I said.

Mike

hmmmm....I am probably totally mistaken on the subject of MEK, and you may very well be correct that the chemical I mean was benzene....that was a LONG time ago (I graduated from HS in '81)...I do have a very distinct memory when a former neighbor and I were discussing spraying techniques/hazards 6 years ago....he painted his race car and I was using automotive lacquer on a bar for a restaurant...he made the statement about MEK (which is in the auto lacquer I use for certain pieces of wood work) being a cancer causing agent and I guess I associated that with what I dimly remember on the first day of chem lab in college

a little Googling shows that MEK is not listed anywhere as a cancer causing agent so that makes me think my 'memory' is wrong and most likely the teacher had said benzene as you make the statement that it was used as a cleaning agent for glassware during that period of time...

yup, probably benzene. Used to have 5 gallon carboys of it in the labs for cleaning. I think they got rid of it right around '81. I was in college at the time. Just to make you feel better I graduated HS in '78, but I know there are a lot of people on this forum that could make me feel better.

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Randy Muth
RS Muth Guitars Website
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Am I mistaken? Don't they sell MEK at Lowe's in the solvent section?

Mike

They probably do. That's my point.

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Randy Muth
RS Muth Guitars Website
RS Muth Guitars Blog
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I want to thank you all for great answers. I know it was a sort of "dud" topic...but as always, OLFers are there to supply great advice. And I learned a lot!

Mike

Here ya go! They have " Your trusted glove manufacture that cares" on their web page. they sell nitile if you look at their products.
http://hycare-int.com/hi_speed/oem.php