Cut Resistant Stainless Steel Wire Mesh Gloves (Pair)

One slip with a boning knife ends your week.

The knife does not slip while you are watching it. It slips at the end of the shift, when the meat is cold and greasy and your hands have stopped listening — or when an oyster shifts under the blade and the point comes off the shell with nothing in its way.

What happens next is the part people underestimate. A deep cut to the holding hand is stitches, then a fortnight with no grip, then somebody else covering your work while you heal. It is one of the most common serious injuries in any job that involves a blade and a bare hand, and it is one of the easiest to design out.

This is a stainless steel wire mesh glove: fine steel wire knitted into a flexible fabric, worn on the hand that holds the work, not the hand that holds the knife. A blade dragged across it skates over the wire instead of into you. It is not armour, and the Limits tab sets out plainly what it will not do and what we have not been able to verify.

It ships as a pair — two gloves. One of the supplier's own photographs in the gallery says you get a single glove. That photograph is wrong. We have checked, and you get two.

What It Does

• Boning at the end of a shift: cold fat, a sharp knife and tired hands. The glove goes on the holding hand, so a slip skates across the wire instead of opening your palm.
• Working through a bag of oysters: the shell is as much of a hazard as the knife. The mesh takes the blade when it jumps off a stubborn hinge, which it will do eventually.
• Filleting on the back deck: a wet fish, a moving boat and a fillet knife is the worst combination going. Rinse the glove over the side and carry on.
• Pruning and hand sawing: the hand steadying the branch is the one that cops it. Wear it on that side and keep your saw hand free for feel.
• Shed and camp kitchen: whoever is on the mandoline or breaking down a carcass wears the glove, and nobody has to argue about who is careful enough.

Key Features

• Knitted wire mesh: fine stainless wire knitted into a flat, flexible fabric, so the glove folds with your hand rather than fighting it.
• Adjustable metal buckle: a webbing wrist strap on a metal buckle, so it holds on a narrow wrist and does not slide off when everything is wet.
• Sold as a pair: two gloves, one for each hand.
• Five sizes: S, M, L, XL and XXL. The supplier's chart is measured across the palm and along the hand — the figures are in the Specs tab.
• Nothing to fray or peel: bare wire mesh, with no coating and no fabric shell to wear through.
• Washes and dries: the supplier states it can go through a washing machine or be washed by hand with a little soap or detergent, then left to dry.
• Bound cuff edge: the mesh finishes in a soft bound cuff below the strap instead of a raw wire edge against your wrist.

Limits

No test certificate has been sighted, and that matters more than the number. The supplier's own image captions this glove "Level 9 cut protection". We are passing that on as the supplier's description and nothing more — no EN 388 or ANSI/ISEA 105 test certificate has been provided to us for it. A cut level means nothing without the standard behind it, and the two common standards do not share a scale: EN 388 grades cut resistance from A to F, so a "level 9" is not an EN 388 figure at all. Treat it as a supplier description, not a rating, and if you need a certified glove for a documented site or food-safety system, buy one that arrives with its certificate.

The knife-drag photographs are a demonstration, not a test. They were staged for a camera by the supplier. Nobody measured the blade, the load or the number of passes, so they prove the mesh exists — not how it performs.

It resists slashes far better than stabs. Mesh is built to stop a blade dragged across it. A point driven straight at the glove can push between the strands. Nothing here makes your hand stab-proof, and you should not work as though it does.

This is knitted wire mesh, not riveted chainmail. Look closely at the weave photograph and you will see fine wire knitted into a fabric, not the linked steel rings of a traditional butcher's chainmail glove. Knitted mesh is lighter and far more comfortable to wear all day. Riveted chainmail is heavier and is what large abattoirs generally specify. Pick on the work you actually do, and know which one you are buying.

Not for powered blades. Band saws, angle grinders, chainsaws and circular saws will go straight through steel mesh, and a mesh glove near a moving blade can snag and drag your hand in. That is a different hazard and it needs different equipment.

No food-contact certification has been supplied. One of the supplier's graphics on this listing makes an absolute food-safety claim. No LFGB, FDA or EU food-contact certificate or mark has been provided to us, so we are not repeating that claim as fact. If you are working under an audited food-safety system, ask your auditor what documentation they require before you rely on it.

The steel grade is the supplier's word. One of their panels states 316L stainless steel wire. We have been given nothing that confirms the grade, so we are not stating it as verified.

There are no published measurements for XXL. The supplier's size chart covers S, M, L and XL only. We sell XXL because the supplier lists it, but its dimensions are not specified by supplier and we are not going to estimate them. If you are between sizes at the top of the range, that is a real risk and you should know about it before you order.

It is metal, so it conducts. Heat and cold go straight through it to your hand. It is not an oven mitt, it is not insulated, and it offers no protection from a hot pan or a freezer.

It is not a puncture or chemical glove. No rating is claimed or implied for needles, wire, splinters, chemicals, electricity or impact, because none applies.

Q & A

Do I get one glove or two?

Two — it is a pair. One supplier image in the gallery is captioned to say you get a single glove. That caption is wrong, we have confirmed it, and we would rather answer it here than leave you guessing at the checkout.

Which hand do I wear it on?

The hand holding the work, not the hand holding the knife. That is the hand that gets cut. Since you are getting a pair, you can glove both if the job calls for it — though most people find they want bare fingers on the blade hand for feel.

Will it stop a knife going through my hand?

No, and do not treat it as though it will. It is built for a blade sliding across the back or palm of the glove. A stab driven at the mesh can find its way between the strands. It changes a bad slip into a bruise or a graze; it does not make your hand invincible.

How do I pick a size?

Open your hand flat and measure straight across the widest part of the palm, then from the base of the palm to the tip of your middle finger. Match those to the size table in the Specs tab. The chart runs S to XL only — there are no published figures for XXL.

Can I wash it?

The supplier states it can go in a washing machine or be hand washed with a little soap or detergent, then dried. It is steel, so let it dry properly rather than putting it away damp.

Is this the right glove for chainsaw or grinder work?

No. For powered blades you want the glove made for that tool, and for general site work a cut-resistant fibre glove will suit you better than mesh. Mesh earns its place on hand-blade work — boning, shucking, filleting, trimming — where the hazard is a knife you are holding yourself.

How long will it take to get here?

10 to 14 days from the day you order, and we would say allow up to three weeks. Regional and remote addresses take longer again. Delivery is free to Australia and New Zealand.

Specs

Size Chart

Taken from the supplier's own chart. Measure with your hand open and flat, as shown on the hand diagram in the product images. The supplier publishes no measurements for XXL.