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TESTIMONIALS

FIREMASTER® 4 GAUNTLETS (NFPA) - APRIL 2009

Three years ago at FDIC we came across the Southcombe Brothers booth and the Firemaster gloves. We listened to the presentation about the gloves and thought everything that was said about them was too good to be true. Two years ago, again at FDIC we came across the Southcombe Brothers booth and heard the same information. Again we were skeptical, but one of our members was willing to give them a chance and purchased a pair of gloves. That night at the hotel he submersed the exterior of the gloves in the sink overnight! The next morning they were completely dry on the inside. I was sold from that point, and went and purchased a pair at the show the next day.

Over the next year, with these couple of pairs of gloves in service, they performed incredibly. Hands stayed dry, gloves did not get stiff over time, they were very comfortable to wear, and the lining of the fingers did not pull out. Needless to say word got around the department and soon everybody was wanting a pair. Over the last two years we have now outfitted most of our active personnel with the Firemaster gloves and will continue to purchase them long into the future. The KOVENEX® lining introduced this year is an addition which everyone appreciates as well.

These gloves have been in service longer than any other pair of gloves I have ever used. Thanks for providing such a great product for the fire service.

Craig J. Olson - Assistant Chief
Campbellsport Fire Department, Campbellsport, Wisconsin, USA 

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FIREMASTER® ULTRA WRISTLET (NFPA & EN659) - MARCH 2009

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FIREMASTER® ULTRA GAUNTLET (NFPA) - FEBRUARY 2009

A few years ago, a friend of mine relayed to me that he had tried on and bought a pair of Firemaster® Ultra Gauntlet gloves at the Fire Department Instructor's Conference (FDIC).  Several weeks later, he let me wear them at a training burn for a few minutes and I was sold.  The dexterity, fit, and feel are superior to any other fire glove I have tried.  Being involved in training in our area, I have let many people try this product and everyone is surprised that such a great fitting glove is NFPA approved.  The durability is excellent.  A pair of regular issue department gloves never lasted me more than a year.  I have two pairs of Firemasters, one is 2 and the other 3 years old and both sets are still going strong.  I have used them for fires, collapse and trench rescue training, and even vehicle extrication when conditions were too cold for my extrication gloves.  Initially, our Fire Chief thought that they were to expensive.  After trying them for himself and seeing how long they last compared to regular gloves, he allowed us to buy enough for our entire department.

Thanks for making such a great product!

Bob Gabbey - Assistant Chief
Whitewater Fire Department,Whitewater, Wisconsin, USA

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FIREMASTER® ULTRA GAUNTLET (NFPA) - APRIL 2008

Thanks for producing such a great product. Our Firefighters have seen a great increase in their ability to perform their job - while wearing your NFPA approved firefighting gloves. The Crosstech liner prevents contamination, and keeps our hands dry and warm. The cost of the gloves is slightly higher then other brands, but the cost savings due to the quality of construction and material used which allow them to last significantly longer then other brands makes up for it. Our department is finding that the gloves are lasting heavy use and multiple washings better then any other glove we have used. We are saving money, and we are able to provide a better firefighting force due to your gloves.

Thank you for your continued help and support, 

Lieutenant Mike Ray - Lieutenant
Bellingham Fire Department, Bellingham, Washington, USA 

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FIREMASTER® ULTRA GAUNTLET (NFPA) - MARCH 2008

Just wanted to let you know I purchased a pair of your gloves while at IAFC in Atlanta. They are absolutely the best structural glove I have ever had. Great protection unmatched dexterity and have not had wet hands, It feels like the gloves become a part of me. Thanks for producing such an awesome product.

Warren Adair - Engineer / Paramedic
City of Goose Creek Fire Department, Goose Creek, South Carolina, USA

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FIREMASTER® ULTRA WRISTLET (NFPA & EN659) - JUNE 2006

In the years that I have been involved in fire-fighter protective clothing, the biggest complaint from the fire-fighter has always been about the fire gloves and in my time, we have evaluated more gloves that any other item of PPE and have never quite managed to get a glove that would put a smile on the fire-fighters face. They complain that they can’t feel anything, they can’t handle equipment properly, they are too bulky, too stiff etc. So why do we issue them in the first place? Well we are trying to protect our fire-fighters. From what you ask? Heat, flames, compression burns, cuts, puncture injuries, viral infection(s) and the many other risks and hazards that they face carrying out their normal duties.

The first thing we must accept is that, one type of glove will not do. The risks faced by the fire-fighter at building or other close proximity fires are different than those faced at road traffic incidents and other technical rescues.

In 2002, a UK glove manufacturer contacted us, asking why we didn’t purchase their gloves. I explained that the reason was two fold:

• We made a decision that we would only buy gloves that complied with NFPA standards as we felt that the EN659 European standard was too low, and we wanted to ensure that our fire-fighters had the highest level of protection available.

• That the basic design of their gloves was no better than many of the other gloves that were currently produced.

Let’s face it, there are plenty of good glove manufacturers throughout the world, and most of them produce quality products. Will the gloves they make protect the fire-fighter? They sure will, but having talked to many fire-fighters, the glove, more than any other part of their PPE ensemble is the one that promotes most discussion.

I sent a copy of a report detailing what we felt needed to be done to produce a glove that would offer the fire-fighter the best protection; we also incorporated design features that would make the glove fire-fighter user friendly.

Surprisingly Southcombe Brothers made a decision to work with us, no strings attached, to design and manufacture a glove based on fire-fighters observations and protective requirements.

The development has taken three years, from the initial concept to the finished article. We carried out full and thorough evaluations over that time period, furnished our fire-fighters with an eighteen question questionnaire, asking them to rate the gloves on dexterity, grip, feel, comfort, waterproofness, donning and doffing, use with ladders and equipment and protection against heat and flame. When these questionnaires came back, fire-fighters identified that the Firemaster® Ultra glove was better than the one they were currently using by far.

In each case, every fire-fighter who used these gloves, loved them. The glove fitted beautifully, the quality was excellent, they were able to handle equipment with ease, keep the glove clean without the leather drying out and getting stiff and more importantly, the protection offered was superb. A few tweaks and amendments were identified and the manufacturer took care of these without any problems. And because of the quality of materials used in the Firemaster® Ultra, the whole life cost of the glove has been extended.

We ended up buying the Firemaster® Ultra NFPA compliant structural fire-fighting glove, which we would deem to be the best glove currently available in the world today.

Our fire-fighters think they are great; the best glove we have ever bought and that is the most important thing.

Ian Moses - Personal Protective Equipment Manager.
Grampian Fire Brigade, Aberdeen, Grampian, UK