Why You Should Always Wear Gloves Handling Grip Gear on Set

If you handle grip gear on set, wear gloves. Stands, flags, clamps, sandbags, cable and pipe are heavy, sharp in places, and full of pinch points, and on an Australian shoot the sun turns bare metal into a burn risk on top of all that. A good pair of Setwear gloves protects your hands, speeds up your work and keeps small injuries from ending your day. Here is why gloves matter for grip work, and why the heat-resistant Hot Hand is the pick for gear that has been sitting out in the sun.

What grip gear does to bare hands

Grip equipment is built to be strong, not gentle. Over a long day, bare hands take a beating from the same few things again and again.

• Pinch points. C-stand knuckles, grip heads and folding legs are notorious for catching fingers. A glove will not stop you being careless, but it adds a layer between your skin and the metal.
• Sharp edges and burrs. Stand legs, baby pins, clamps and worn hardware develop rough edges and metal burrs that slice bare skin.
• Sandbags and cable. Hauling sandbags all day, coiling heavy cable and pulling rope wears through skin fast and raises blisters.
• Splinters and rust. Timber wedges, apple boxes and older painted stands throw splinters and flakes of rust that are easy to pick up bare-handed.
• Hot and cold metal. Metal that has sat in the sun or the cold takes on that temperature, and you feel it the moment you grab it.

None of these end a career, but any of them can end your day, and on a set a crew member who cannot work is a problem for everyone. Gloves are the cheapest insurance you can buy.

Why gloves are a professional standard, not just protection

Experienced grips do not wear gloves only to avoid injury. They wear them because gloves let you work faster and with more confidence. You grab a hot stand without hesitating, you haul a sandbag without babying your hands, and you keep a firm grip on a load when your palms would otherwise be slick with sweat. A glove like the padded, machine-washable EZ-Fit gives you protection with the dexterity to still tie off a knot or thread a clamp, which is why it is the everyday default on so many sets. Turning up with your own gloves also signals that you take the work and your own safety seriously, and that gets noticed.

Why hardware-store gloves let you down

It is tempting to grab a cheap pair of leather or leatherette gloves from the hardware store and call it done. They are fine for a weekend in the garden, but they are not built for the demands of set work, and it shows quickly. Most budget gloves use split leather, bonded leather or synthetic leatherette rather than full-grain hide. Those materials look the part on day one, but under repeated flexing, sweat and sun they dry out, stiffen and crack, and once leather has gone hard it loses the grip and dexterity that made it useful in the first place.

Fit and construction are the other problem. Generic gloves are cut for general use, not for the way you actually work on set: gripping stands, threading clamps, coiling cable and hauling sandbags all day. Seams give way, fingertips wear through, and any padding or reinforcement lands in the wrong places or is not there at all. You end up replacing them every few weeks, which costs more over a season than one good pair, and a glove that has gone stiff or split is worse than no glove when you need a secure grip on a heavy load.

Purpose-built gloves like the Setwear range use better materials and are cut and reinforced for exactly this kind of work, with a second layer of leather on the palm, thumb and index finger where gloves wear out first. They stay supple, hold their shape and last, which is why they are the standard on professional sets rather than a throwaway hardware-store pair.

The Australian sun turns grip gear into a burn risk

Here is the part that catches new crew out. On a hot, sunny day, metal left in direct sun does not stay at air temperature, it climbs far higher. Research from Western Sydney University, reported by Statewide Mutual, measured outdoor surfaces reaching well above 80°C on days when the air was only around 30°C to 37°C, with some surfaces recorded above 100°C. Dark, painted or anodised metal, exactly what a lot of stands, pipe and grip hardware are made of, soaks up that heat and holds it.

For context, human skin can be burned by prolonged contact with surfaces from roughly 50°C, and contact burns happen quickly once a surface is above about 60°C. I believe those thresholds are widely cited but you should treat the exact figures as approximate. The practical point is simple: a C-stand, a length of pipe or a clamp that has been baking in the Australian sun can easily get hot enough to hurt, and grabbing it bare-handed at the wrong moment is a genuine burn risk. Reaching for a stand that has sat in full sun for an hour is not the same as picking one out of the shade.

Why the Hot Hand is perfect for sun-baked stands and piping

This is exactly what the Setwear Hot Hand is built for. It is made from 100 percent heat-resistant leather with a reinforced second layer on the palm and key areas, and Setwear rates it to Contact Heat Level 2 at 250°C. Sun-heated metal sits well below that rating, so a stand or a length of pipe that is too hot to hold bare-handed is no problem at all in a Hot Hand. The same glove that lets a gaffer handle hot fixtures and gel frames lets a grip grab sun-baked hardware without flinching, which means you keep working through the hottest part of the day instead of waiting for gear to cool down.

It is worth being clear about what the glove does and does not do: it protects your hands from the heat so you can handle the gear, but it does not cool the equipment down, and you should still follow the manufacturer's guidance on heat and use common sense with anything genuinely scorching. For the sun-baked stands, pipe and clamps that are part of a normal Australian shoot, though, the Hot Hand is the specialist that shrugs it off.

Choosing the right glove for grip work

Many grips carry two pairs: a durable leather glove such as the Pro Leather for heavy handling, and the Hot Hand for anything hot, including gear the sun has cooked. For a full model-by-model breakdown, see our Setwear glove comparison guide and our guide to the best gloves for handling equipment.

Simple habits that save your hands

Gloves do most of the work, but a few habits help. Keep a pair clipped to your belt or on the cart so you always have them to hand. Size them snug so you keep your grip and dexterity. Where you can, stage stands and pipe in the shade or under a flag so they do not bake in the first place, and give sun-hot gear a moment before you move it. On a long, hot day, rotate two pairs so a sweaty glove can dry out. For more on building a personal kit, see our guide to the gear you need starting out in film and TV.

Frequently asked questions

Why should you wear gloves when handling grip gear on set?

Grip gear is heavy and full of pinch points, sharp edges, burrs and splinters, and it can be hot or cold to the touch. Gloves protect your hands from cuts, blisters and burns, let you grip and work faster with confidence, and stop small injuries from taking you off the job. They are the cheapest safety gear a grip can own.

How hot can metal stands and piping get in the Australian sun?

Very hot. Australian research has measured outdoor surfaces climbing well above 80°C, and some above 100°C, on days when the air temperature was only around 30°C to 37°C. Dark or metal grip hardware left in direct sun absorbs and holds that heat, which is more than enough to cause a contact burn on bare skin.

Why is the Setwear Hot Hand good for sun-heated gear?

The Hot Hand is 100 percent heat-resistant leather rated by Setwear to Contact Heat Level 2 at 250°C. Sun-baked stands and pipe sit well below that, so the glove lets you handle metal that is too hot to hold bare-handed. It is the same glove used for hot lighting fixtures and gel frames. Always follow the manufacturer's guidance on heat.

Which Setwear glove is best for grip work?

For heavy rigging, rope and cable, the full-leather Pro Leather is the durable choice. For anything hot, including sun-baked gear, choose the Hot Hand. The EZ-Fit and EZ-Fit Extreme cover general grip work with more dexterity and breathability. Many grips carry a leather glove and a heat glove together.

Do I really need heat-resistant gloves, or will normal gloves do?

Any good glove protects against sun-hot metal because the temperatures involved are well within what leather handles. A heat-resistant glove like the Hot Hand simply gives you the most margin and is the right tool if you also work around genuinely hot fixtures. If you only handle general grip gear, a leather glove such as the Pro Leather is a sound all-rounder.

Are cheap hardware-store gloves good enough for grip work?

For occasional light use they are fine, but budget gloves are usually made from split, bonded or synthetic leather that dries out, stiffens and cracks under the flexing, sweat and sun of set work. Once leather goes hard it loses grip and dexterity, and worn seams and thin padding make it unreliable for heavy handling. A purpose-built glove such as a Setwear pair uses better materials and reinforcement, stays supple and lasts far longer, so it works out cheaper over a busy season.

Where to buy in Australia

Black Flag Distribution is the official Australian distributor of Setwear. We supply an Australia-wide network of authorised retailers and stockists rather than selling direct to the public, so there is a local dealer who can help wherever you are. To check pricing and availability and to buy, use the Black Flag Distribution store finder to find an authorised retailer or stockist near you. Search our store finder to locate your nearest Australian stockist and purchase from an authorised dealer.