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2010 LAS/412 Gear Review: Reebok 10K Gloves

The 10K glove is Reebok’s most streamlined lacrosse glove so far.  They are noticeably smaller than the beefier 7K and 9K gloves that Reebok released in the last couple of years but they still manage to provide the same excellent protection.  I took a number of solid checks to the hands last weekend when I wore them for a whole tournament and barely felt a thing.  Reebok is definitely building something good.

Let’s get started with another installment…

The smaller profile of the 10k is a step up and I believe most people prefer a more compact glove instead of a bulky one.  It’s also noticeable in terms of how the gloves hug your hand, particularly on the backside.  At first, when I put the gloves on I almost thought I had received a 12″ pair of gloves instead of the 13″ gloves I actually got.

I checked and yup, 13″.

As I wore the gloves and they broke in a bit, the tightness disappeared and the gloves fit my hands snug but comfortably.

Chasing down a Dpole in the Reebok 10Ks.
They work just as well with a modern stick as they do with a woodie.

Once I used them for real in the Shootout, they felt like they had molded to my hands and I was very impressed with the feel.  Reebok went away from conventional practice and used leather palms on the gloves.  Goat leather to be precise.  However, this is not the same 1-piece leather palm of lacrosse days past.  Although I was a little concerned that the leather palms and the lack of ventilation holes would make the gloves really hot, I never felt like my hands were unusually sweaty even though the temperature was in the mid to high 80s.

The 3DGel allows for movement and max flexibility while providing protection.

Now, the leather palms are possibly the gloves’ highlight point.  The leather is thin, soft and seems really durable.  There is a thicker, more durable outer leather and a softer inner leather where your palms touch the stick.  It provides a great contact point with the stick and allows for a good feel very quickly after breaking them in initially.  The snug fit, combined with the leather palms, really does make it feel like you’re playing lacrosse without gloves on.

The other truly innovative feature is the wrist and lower forearm pads.  The wrist guard is very thin and floats nicely so it protects your wrist at all times but doesn’t get in the way of bending at the joint.  The lower forearm pads are split in a wider V and are made up of a 3 piece system, which overlaps enough to protect you but not so much that movement is at all limited.  The lower arm cuff is also removable for enhanced customization, which is perfect for the box game.  Nice that Reebok knows its customers may modify their product and responds to the need.

The only drawback is that custom orders aren’t available for teams outside of the NLL.  Reebok has said that until they can turn around custom orders in a matter of weeks and can do it seemlessly, they are going to focus on their product quality.  They have definitely done so here and the Reebok 10Ks are some of the best gloves I have ever tried out.  To make up for the no custom orders, Reebok is offering the gloves in almost every major color so the vast majority of the teams out there could still use them.

The gloves will retail for a Manufacturer’s Suggester Retail Price of around $175 and the only knock I have on them is that they can’t be customized at all.

For this effort, Reebok gets a nice 8.5 out of 10 (highest I’ve ranked a pair of gloves yet!) and until I find something better, and even for the price, the 10Ks are my new glove of choice.

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About the Author: Connor is a life-long lacrosse player who doesn’t know when to give up on the game. He played and coached at Wesleyan University and now plays for the Southampton LC in NYC. Connor lives with his fiance in Brooklyn and thanks her for allowing him to keep the dream alive.

Contact him at connor@lacrosseallstars.com.