Tested: 100% Moto Glove Comparison 3

Moto gloves are just as important as moto boots. As two of five points of contact with the bike, what covers your hands affects how you ride. As motocross riders we have to do a lot with our hands - twist the throttle, feather the front brake, flick the clutch, turn the bars, and, most importantly, hold the ‘F’ on to the bike! 

Yet gloves can be an afterthought. Just get the matching gloves that go with your jersey and pant combo, right? Well yeah, and no. Some motocross gear sets have excellent matching gloves. Pretty much all of the top-of-the-line kits come with equally impressive gloves. But that isn’t the case with all gear combos, especially the mid-level kits. 

I’ve always been picky with my gloves and the thicker, bulkier and more hefty the glove, the less I feel I have a good feel of the controls on the bike. But that is just my personal preference. Lately, I’ve had some excellent sets of gear (FXR and Moose Sahara come to mind) that have great jerseys and pants that check all the boxes, yet the matching gloves seem like an afterthought. Sure, part of me would like to match for aesthetic reasons, but not enough for me to wear crappy gloves. 

So, this led me to this quick comparison of 100%’s glove lineup. 

1. SLING MX Gloves: MSRP $39.50

Starting with the most minimal glove of the bunch, the SLING MX is a no frills, just skills kind of glove. The feature that most sets it apart from other gloves is the super thin top material - it is as lightweight as you can go without wearing no gloves at all. The top material is very stretchy and it snug to you skin which allows moisture to wick away rapidly. I wore these on some very hot days and as soon as I started moving, I could feel the breeze cool down my hands. 

The palm material is a single layer, which I prefer, and has no bulk or bunching issues. There is silicone grip piping that is unnecessary in my opinion, but doesn’t hurt. I didn’t ride in any wet conditions where this would probably help a bit. 

Between the fingers, there is a very lightweight mesh and on the palm side of the fingers there are perforated holes. The cuff on the SLING is the least substantial out of all four gloves. There is no velcro strap and there is just a small section of neoprene-like material on the palm edge that has some grippy rubber to help pull them on. 

Cons

For me, the positives far outweigh the negatives on the SLING, but they can’t be perfect for everyone. They are not all-weather gloves, as any kind of chill in the air would make you reach for a thicker option. Second, there is no protection at all - roost, branches, and impact with the ground have direct access to your knuckles. Next, when wearing these off-road, scraggly flora can snag the laser-cut vent holes on the outside edge of the top material causing them to stretch out and tear if thoroughly caught. Lastly, some of the stitching is coming loose particularly from the tips of the fingers where the tech thread is located (tech thread is on the index finger and thumb of all four gloves and is touch screen compatible).

2. iTRACK Gloves: MSRP $29.50

Moving one step up in complexity is the iTRACK Gloves. This style has the most color options out of the 100% moto glove offerings. There is still no strap and the cuff is a pull on design, but the padded, stretchy, neoprene-like material is all the way around the wrist and has a very clever notch that protects the raised end of your ulna (wrist bump). 

The top material is a more typical perforated mesh-like polyester that is thick enough to be a most-weather glove. The temps are high in SoCal but you could wear these on a chilly morning without too much discomfort. Again, no protection or TPU sections on the top material. 

The palm is also just a single layer of the same material as the SLING, Clarino (a synthetic leather common among moto glove palms). This time, though, it only has silicone gripper material on the index and middle fingers and none on the palm. There are also a few vent holes on the palm as well. Lastly, there is a layer of Clarino that wraps around the thumb/palm intersection that helps with the dreaded Yama-thumb. 

Cons

They don’t wick moisture away as well as the SLING, but would be better for normal to chilly days. The tech threads are coming undone like all the gloves in this comparison. And that’s really it. They resist stretching out or snagging more than the SLING and are just as easy to slip on. Lastly, they are $10 cheaper. 

3. RIDEFIT Gloves: MSRP $29.50

Moving up a notch, the RIDEFIT are very similar to the iTRACK gloves but have a velcro strap cuff rather than the strapless design of the previous two pairs of gloves. But there are things that set this pair of gloves apart. The top material (also devoid of protection) is a slightly lighter weave of meshy material than the iTRACK which I like better because it feels a little softer and breathes better. 

The palm is different in two ways. It is still a single layer of Clarino, but has perforations on the fingers as well as most of the actual palm. It also has a splatter pattern of silicone gripper material across all five fingers and the palm. Also, the stretchy in-between-finger material isn’t the open mesh that is on the other two gloves. 

In reality, I’m not sure how much more venting I feel from the fully vented palm. In the past, with non-Clarino palms with full venting, I’ve had the holes covering the heel of my palm slowly start to stretch bigger and bigger. So far that hasn’t happened with these. 

Cons

Again, not really any cons to mention. The only thing is if you don’t want gripper material across the whole palm, go with a different glove. I’d say the ventilation is between the iTRACK and SLING. The strap is just another step to go riding but something we are all used to and takes 0.5 seconds to do. 

4. AIRMATIC Glove: MSRP $32.50

The final glove in the comparison is the AIRMATIC that is the most complex of all the gloves. It is sort of a mix of all three other gloves since it has four material panels that make up the top of the glove. There is an open mesh that is like the RIDEFIT as well as a super thin panel like the SLING and a different, thicker material on the thumb and a neoprene-like, strap cuff. 

Even though this glove has some protection in the way of TPU segments on the fingers, it is still a relatively minimalist glove with no knuckle protection. The finger protection is just enough to take the sting out of some roost or thin branches but wouldn’t do much with any major wacks. 

The two-layer Clarino palm has perforations throughout and while I genuinely prefer single-layer palms, they do a good job of adding some long-ride comfort without being bulky or bunching up. 

The fit of all the other gloves are identical and true to size while the AIRMATIC is just a notch smaller. It has a slightly tighter fit but isn’t uncomfortable when riding. 

Cons

Dual-layer palm might be a dealbreaker for some riders and it might not vent enough for super hot days. Again, like all the other gloves the tech thread is coming loose but it seems to be the most durable of all the other gloves. 

My Ranking

1. SLING

2. RIDEFIT

3. AIRMATIC

4. iTRACK

The glove I find myself using the most is the SLING. I like the non-strap cuff, the hyper-minimal design and super moisture wicking top material. Plus, they just look cool too, with the laser-cut vent holes and slick material. Next the RIDEFIT has a good mix of features while being paired down and still vents well. Next, the AIRMATIC would be my go-to for longer off-road rides. The iTrack is sort of just in the middle and unless there was a colorway that really matched my gear, I think the other three gloves solve problems in their own way better.