Backcountry.com copywriter Andy Anderson stoked to have a good tape job on the 155-foot-long Lite Not Solid (5.10d)
The difference between a good tape glove for crack climbing and a bad one can be fairly minor … or it can cost you a send. Good tape gloves save your hands and let you get away with a bit of thrutching when things get desperate. Bad tape gloves can be worse than wearing nothing at all. I’ve had tape gloves ball up and keep me from putting my hands in a crack, I’ve had them come off on the fifth pitch of an 18-pitch route, and I’ve even seen a friend who went with the old-school full-wrap method accidentally clip his tape glove (with his hand in it) to a piece of gear. Needless to say, that one took some doing to get out of.
A good tape glove should be thin enough that it doesn’t really change your hand size, it should be durable enough to last 20+ pitches, and it should leave your palm completely clear of any tape. There are several “perfect” tape gloves out there, but this one is my favorite.
Before you start: Use good tape. It makes building the tape glove much easier and lasts a lot longer. I recommend either Johnson & Johnson or Metolius climbing tape. For this tape glove, I use 1.5-inch tape. If you’re planning on climbing wide cracks, you should tape up your thumb as well. Do this before you build the rest of the tape glove.
Step 1: Cover the back of your hand with a double layer of tape.
- Tear five pieces that just barely span the width of your knuckles
- Place two of these pieces over your knuckles.
- Place the other three down the back of your hand so they overlap each other slightly until your entire back of hand is covered.
Step 2: Wrap Your Pinky Finger
- Tear off a piece about a foot-and-a-half long
- Stick one end in the crook of your wrist behind your thumb so the tape will stick to the outside of your hand
- Stretch it out diagonally across the back of your hand so the edge on the finger side just barely touches the knuckle on your little finger (see first image below)
- Wrap that piece around the outside edge of your hand and up between your little finger and your ring finger, making sure there aren’t chafe-inducing folds in the tape
- Make a fist, and then pull it tight along the back side of your hand, sticking the tape up your wrist until it ends
Step 3: Wrap Your Index Finger and Wrist
- Stretch some tape off of the roll, but don’t tear it.
- Stick the end to the crook in your wrist opposite your thumb so the tape will stick to the back side of your hand
- Pull the tape across your hand diagonally toward your index finger
- Wrap it around the outside edge and up between your index and middle fingers
- Make a fist, and then pull it tight along your hand down the thumb side.
- When you get to the crook of your wrist behind your thumb, wrap it around your wrist twice.
- When you tear it, make sure the tape ends are in the crook of your wrist behind your thumb, which keeps the tape from getting peeled off while you climb.
Then just tear off any excess tape, and enjoy the cracks!
Finished Tape Glove
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Tags: climbing, crack climbing, tape gloves, trad climbing