These ‘shorty’ gloves are a great winter option that won’t break the bank
Key features
- Kangaroo leather
- Carbon knuckle protector
- Aramid stitching
Price: £79.99
When the weather’s warmer, short gloves provide a great way of keeping cool. I’ve been testing RST’s Tractech Evo 4 Short leather gloves through summer into autumn for several thousand hours of riding to see if they’re any good.
They look smart, and fresh out of the pack feel premium, mostly made from cowhide leather but with a kangaroo leather section on the palm. There’s armour for the fingers and a substantial carbon knuckle protector, and the whole lot is stitched together with Aramid fibres, known for strength.
There’s a sturdy-feeling palm slider which is neatly embossed with the RST logo, and inside, there’s a Kevlar lining to protect the top of your hands. We also like the 3D-effect RST logos dotted around the gloves - neat touches that smarten the gloves up nicely.
As is commonly seen on motorcycle gloves, the little and ring fingers are conjoined to prevent the dreaded ‘finger roll’. The cuff is elasticated, but not tightly, with a velcro tab used to adjust the fit. The gloves provide CE Level 1 protection rather than Level 2, which is pretty normal at this price.
I tested a size large, which fit as expected, and the gloves are easy to get on and off. Even on longer journeys, comfort hasn’t been an issue, with no awkward joins or rough stitching causing soreness. Your range of motion doesn’t feel significantly constructed with the gloves on, making for easy operation of your bike’s controls.
While resolutely a summer glove that isn’t intended to give wet weather protection, the Tractec Evo 4s do last a decent length of time before moisture starts to come through when the heavens open, despite the use of perforated areas which do a decent job of improving airflow on hotter days. That said, on one particularly soggy ride, my hands did end up being tinged slightly grey after a bit of colour washed out of the leather, but with this soon came off the skin with some soapy water and a scrub.
Several months and a few thousand miles into the test, the gloves still look pretty much as they did when new, with no loose stitching or premature wear to the leather. The armour still looks fresh, too, despite the fact the gloves have been carelessly dropped a few times. There’s some very minor fraying at the edge of the little/ring finger join, but nothing serious enough to worry us.
The gloves thankfully haven’t experienced the ‘ultimate test’ of an accident, but the specs and the look and feel of the Evo 4s leaves us confident they’d perform well should the worst happen.
Should you buy RST Tractech Evo 4 Short gloves?
If you’re after a well-built and good-value glove for the summer and into the warmer part of autumn, we can recommend the RST Tractech Evo 4s. Short gloves aren’t for everyone, but once you’ve tried a pair and enjoyed the extra breeze of air up your sleeve, you might well be sold, and these RSTs are a reasonably inexpensive way to find out.
