Mittens for really cold hands

[DougPaul]

Originally Posted by Chip

I'm going to order a couple pair for the winter packs.

"Dachstein Wool Mittens

$29.00

100% Wool Mittens in a weave so dense they're almost waterproof. We've actually held them under the faucet for a minute without any water getting through. Of course, like everything we sell, if you're not satisfied we'll refund your money. Made in Austria"

FWIW, I used to use (real) Dachsteins when ice climbing. When my knuckles were pressed against ice with water dripping down, the mittens and my hands got wet and chilly. But my hands were warm and dry a few minutes later. There were ice pellets frozen to the wool fuzz, but they too disappeared before very long.

Doug

[Chip]

Originally Posted by DougPaul

FWIW, I used to use (real) Dachsteins when ice climbing. When my knuckles were pressed against ice with water dripping down, the mittens and my hands got wet and chilly. But my hands were warm and dry a few minutes later. There were ice pellets frozen to the wool fuzz, but they too disappeared before very long.

Doug

Excellent ! I have a pair of Charlet Moser Cascade gloves that are very dense wool with little rubber grippy nodules incorporated that I use. Sadly I have not been able to locate these again for sale in the past few years.

[MadRiver]

Originally Posted by TEO

Chip linked to these wool mittens. Are they the famed Dachstein mittens? A) Made in Austria; B) "so dense a weave that they're almost waterproof; C) long cuff (rolled over); D) fuzzy. I think they are.

Edit to add: I just called Sweaters International and they say that these are Dachstein wool.

I just received mine in the mail. I’m not impressed, at least not for $30.00. They appear to be your standard wool mittens, nothing more. Since they run a tad large, I am tempted to try a felting process to see if I can tighten up the knit.

[Chip]

That's too bad, I feel a bit responsible. What size are they ? Maybe I'll buy them from you.

FWIW: Not that you aren't familiar with rag wool mittens, but I've never been impressed by the way they looked (sort of like not Grandma's best effort) but I have been very impressed by the way they performed.

[Maddy]

The ones I have seen are just not the same as they used to be.

Grandma would be really disappointed. Oops...I'm grandma now and I am very disappointed. Stopped buying those a number of year ago.

I may speak with my knitting instructor about making a good solid pair of old fashion Dachstein mittens. Maybe I will make that my next project if she can come up with something really good.

EDIT: Best pic I can find of how they used to look way back when. I searched the net and came up with nothing resembling this to buy.
http://lazytcrochet.blogspot.com/200...n-mittens.html

[Chip]

okay, here's a little more info on Dachstein mitts and a link to the UK site referenced.

[Maddy]

Good web site and authentic looking mitts.

I like the ortovox arctic mitt.

I might try to duplicate these. I will still have to use hand warmers but I would really like a pair if for no other reason than fond memories!

[MadRiver]

Originally Posted by Chip

okay, here's a little more info on Dachstein mitts and a link to the UK site referenced.

Maybe I was expecting something different, but the mittens I received look exactly like the ones in the photo. Since I plan to wear them inside a pair of over mittens, they might just be fine. I guess I was expecting the knit to be tight enough to stop a bullet. My bad.

[Maddy]

Originally Posted by MadRiver

Maybe I was expecting something different, but the mittens I received look exactly like the ones in the photo. Since I plan to wear them inside a pair of over mittens, they might just be fine. I guess I was expecting the knit to be tight enough to stop a bullet. My bad.

Are yours thick or thin?
I have seen them in recent years and they were visibly quite thin, no real substance I thought.
The real ones are fairly "thick", a little "heavy" in you will.
They are mittens of substance.

[MadRiver]

Originally Posted by Maddy

Are yours thick or thin?
I have seen them in recent years and they were visibly quite thin, no real substance I thought.
The real ones are fairly "thick", a little "heavy" in you will.
They are mittens of substance.

About as thick as my ragg socks. A friend of mine had a nice thick pair she bought several years ago that are thick enough to wear alone. These work will in my over mittens, so it is best they are not too thick. I plan to use them as my warming mittens. Meaning, once I reach the summit and changed my top layer to a dry heavier thermal and changed my wet gloves to a nice pair of warm (hand warmer will already be inside) mittens, I should be fine. I do, however, understand you point. It seems like everything nowadays is made with less materials than in prior years.

[DougPaul]

If it will help to distinguish "real" from light-weight Dachsteins, a pair of my Dachstein mittens (size medium) weighs 5.1 oz (145 gm). In contrast, a pair of my ragg wool mittens weighs 2.8 oz (80 gm).

Doug

[TEO]

I hope that the mittens from Sweaters International are at my house when I return today. For what it is worth, regardless of their thickness--and I'd be disappointed if they aren't the same thickness as my current Dachsteins--the ones that SI sells, which Chip & I linked to, are real Dachsteins, that is, they are made in the Dachstein region of Austria. The Ortovox Arctic Mitten, while perhaps a warm mitten, is not a Dachstein mitten, since it is made in Germany.

[Hikes4fun]

Judy suffers from cold hands..I bought her these last winter and she no longer has cold hands..Expensive but she loves 'em and I'm a happy hiker
http://www.backcountry.com/outdoorge.../TNF1212M.html On super cold days I stick a heating pad inside before we hit the trail..

[TEO]

Just got home to find the Dachstein mittens from Sweaters International awaiting me. They're comparable to the closeout, 'Himalayan' pair that I bought a couple of years ago from Climb High. They may be marginally thinner, but without a caliper or kitchen scale, I can't tell. I'm not disappointed at all.

[daxs]

I found a local yarn shop (Cape May NJ) that will knit and felt a pair of mittens for me. They had several samples of felted products in the shop which were very heavy and substantial. I almost bought the fedora they had; it was gorgeous in shadesof teal with flecks of fuschia in it. The mitten pattern calls for knitting with 2 lengths of wool so the product is substantial before the felting process. They charge you .20 a yard for the knitting plus the costs of the wool and felting. I think I may go for it. I was hiking this past weekend in a local state park with the temps in the mid 30's and sunny and my hands were cold. I do have a pair of down mittens similar to Judy's. Got them fairly cheap as a close out on Campmor or STP several years ago. I use them for summit stops and when I backpack. They are usually too warm to hike with.