The right pair of shooters gloves is not only an decision that depends on individual preferences, but also on some factors dictated by common sense.
Those factors are of course dexterty and grip, but also at least some durability, easy donning and doffing and good moisture wicking properties. Its also important to know that dexterty kann only be achieved by using a thin fabric, but a fabric that is to thin tends to get catched up by the slide of your handgun or many of the other moving, mechanical parts a shooter can experience. So you need to be somewhere in the middle.
The FDT Delta gloves, made by PIG (Patrol Incident Gear) created a big buzz in the community years ago and I was curious if they could offer me a good alternative to my Mechanix or Velocity Systems Trigger gloves. So I got me a pair of PIG Delta gloves and tested them for a few weeks now.
FDT stands for Full Dexterty Tactical and shows what Patrol Incident Gear had in mind when designing those gloves. They wanted to close the gap between an utility/combat glove and a shooters glove, which is a pretty good idea that is – on the other hand, hard to achieve.
Pig used a beefy technical mesh material with a mechanical stretch as the main material for the FDT Delta glove, which covers the entire back of the hand. The mesh structure manages moisture, while also being thick enough to withstand some abrasion, the mechanical stretch helps keeping a snug fit.
The palm area is made out of a suede like material which also wicks moisture to a certain grade but adds some robustness to this area while keeping the dexterty.
Normally, the suede and the technical mesh would be sewn togetger at the fingers and the palms and the glove would be done.
But here is where the magic of the FDT glove kicks in. Between the two aforementioned materials is 1,5 cm wide layer of a loosesly knitted and extremely stretched mesh. This provides the gloves not only with extra breathability but also leads the seams around and not over the finger tip. This results in a smooth and direct contact of the finger with the trigger and whatever you touch. The only finger that hasnt been done using this constrcution method is the thumb, but the seams are extra flat anyways.
All fingers are also covered with a very thin non slip material. It does a good job when dry, but works even better when wet. The tip of the thumb and index finger feature touch screen compatible fabric, so its no problem to use your mobile device.
Last but not least, lets have a look at the wrists, the wrists dont feature a velcro or snap closure, but instead rely on a elasticized cuff, Iam really a fan of this concept, as i don’t like to add an additional step while putting my gloves on.
On the inner side of the wrist you also find a generous piece of paracord which not only serves as a great anchor point to stash the glove, but also act as a pull aid in putting it on. A well needed aid as the glove is very tight, especially in the first days. Speaking about fitting, those gloves are sized very small. So don’t be afraid to go one size up. I got very small hands and I normally have to use size small, but even I had to go for medium ones when trying on the PIG.
So are there any cons to the PIG FDT Delta gloves? Well, there is always room for improvement. First off, you find a large PIG logo on the back of the hand, right above the cuff, which is made of the non slip material that you also find on the fingers. When putting the gloves on quickly it may happen that they your wrist catches up on the non-slip surface which will result in getting stuck, its only a small con but I would like PIG to put the brand logo a little higher and away from the wrists. But this is everything I’d like to see changed.
All in all PIGs FDT Delta glove manages to fit the gap between utility and shooting glove and given the competitive price point you cant go wrong with getting a pair or two. Its amazing to see how much effort PIG put in its construction, utilizing at least 5 different fabrics and strategically using their individual properties.
The PIG FDT Delta Glove is available and in stock at our partner S4 Supplies.
If you liked this article we would be happy to see you follow us on Instagram.
