What’s the best Material for Firefighting Gloves – textile or leather? The innovation driver ESKA has been on the market for over 100 years and continues to delight its customers with high-quality fire-fighting gloves. Now the experts from Upper Austria reveal the latest material trends and discuss what’s the best Material for Firefighting Gloves.
“Some firefighters swear by textiles and some by leather. And those who value quality will gladly turn to our gloves in both cases,” emphasises ESKA Managing Director Paul Loos. The market is changing and producing more modern textile materials. These must be weighed against leather. Because both materials have their advantages and disadvantages.
Advantages of textile fire-fighting gloves
Textile fire-fighting gloves can be washed at high temperatures and are suitable for LCO2 cleaning, where the gloves are guaranteed to be 100% clean. This does not happen when wet and is a special procedure. “Washability at 60 degrees is increasingly required for tenders,” says ESKA® Sales Manager Raimund Sekyra. Textile gloves are usually lighter than leather models and allow better water repellency, preventing earlier water absorption.
The textile fire-fighting glove Siga PBI Plus by ESKA is one of the flagship models on the international market. A unique feature is the patented, anatomically shaped, fire and impact resistant shell knuckle protector made from a material that has been specially developed by ESKA, which provides additional protection against impacts, knocks and extreme heat. Thanks to the GORE-TEX insert, the glove is wind and waterproof, breathable, and achieves the highest performance level according to EN 659:2003 + A1:2008 in terms of cut resistance, abrasion and tear resistance.
What speaks in favour of the leather fire-fighting glove
The original fire-fighting gloves are leather models. These have proven themselves time and again through the invention of innumerable materials. “Today, there are countries that mainly prefer textile fire-fighting gloves, but in Central Europe, the leather fire-fighting glove still sells well,” Loos is pleased. The leather used by ESKA has a very high insulation value and is also characterised by the highest heat protection values and the best grip. ESKA is the only manufacturer to make its fire-fighting gloves from a special, tear-resistant calfskin.
This is expertly aligned in the ESKA leather factory. “This gives the leather fire-fighting glove absolute maximum values when it comes to abrasion and shrinkage of 0.0%. The leather is highly fire-resistant and repellent to water, dirt, oil and petrol. When buying, you should pay attention to a three-dimensional cut for the purposes of optimal tactility, which is already incorporated in the ESKA® entry-level model, the MARS 2. All linings and processed value-only materials are adapted to the latest standard of textile fire-fighting gloves. The Super Mars model with the brand-new Kevlar® cut protection lining, including steel fibreglass and silver threads, guarantees top-level safety to emergency forces even in extreme situations.
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