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Gear Review: Messiah Gloves by Brine Lacrosse

With lacrosse season at full throttle, we wanted to make sure you’d have the scoop on all the newest equipment, so we teamed up with Lacrosse Panda, Warrior Lacrosse and Brine Lacrosse to bring you a great line-up of Gear Reviews over the next two months!

Today our resident Idaho Lax Reporter Mikey B drops by the Sweet Sweet Lax office to test out the new Messiah gloves by Brine Lacrosse. 

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Company: Brine LacrosseProduct: Messiah GlovesPrice: $134.99

Hail, comrades!  On this day of days, I’ll be throwing down my opinion on a nifty set of gloves, the Brine Messiah.  I’ll spare you the drama and tell you up front: I like these things for the most part.  They’re good gloves.  I figured that out quick.

In fact, there was something about them that just felt… right.  I couldn’t put my finger on it… until I set them next to my beloved King IIIs.  At that point, I realized that they’re basically the same glove.

Messiah and King III Comparison
The Messiah is very similar to the King III in construction, size, and shape.

Appearance… +5.0

What sets the King III above the Messiah, for me, are the aesthetics.  I don’t really dig the post-modern look of the Messiah, the chrome chevrons, etc.  The “Gemini” composite texture has lots of potential though, so I thought maybe I could turn my frown upside down with a trip to the Brine Customizer.   Unfortunately, when I got there I found out that you can’t customize the Messiah.  Bummer.  Thankfully the stock options appear to be in white, black, red, or green.

Lots of people like the Messiah though, so I’m willing to concede that I’m being a bit hypercritical.

Brine Messiah Close-up
Brine thought up something unique with the chrome accents.

Comfort… +10.0

I tell ya, these things feel great.

The thumb, despite its many joints, is a bit stiff but I suspect that’s just a product of not having time to break in.  The inner seems are nice and smooth and the fit is snug but not restrictive.

The best feature is the palm, which, again, is similar to the King III.  The patented nash palm is a leather/mesh combo that breaths well and grips even better.  In fact, the grip was pretty darn pleasing with little or no break-in period.

I simply have no complaints in this area.

Brine Messiah Palms
Mesh and leather give the Messiah a nice feel for the stick.

Protection… +10.0

I put these mitts to work with Shaw and a few other regulars at our weekly indoor Chumash league.  Things can get pretty brutal in there, and the quarters are tight so it’s a decent lab to test a glove’s protection.

Again, no complaints.  The individual padding sections are all pretty stiff and the Gemini material seems to be nice and tough.  After three hours of play, my hands were one of the very few body parts still in my possession that didn’t hurt.

One of the Messiah’s biggest distinctions from the King III is the redesigned thumb, which has twice as many joints.  I have a history of breaking my right thumb so this concerned me just a little.  I was happy to find that my concerns were unfounded.  The redesigned thumb, when broken in, should be very flexible while still offering sufficient protection.

Messiah thumbs
Check out those thumbs!

Durability… +7.5

It’s pretty hard to rate durability in such a brief review period, but here’s where the King III comparison comes in handy.  As you should be able to tell these pictures, the construction of the Messiah and the King III is nearly identical.  I’ve had my King IIIs for the better part of a year and they seem to be holding up very nicely.  I’m going to give the Messiahs the benefit of the doubt and assume that they’re just as durable.

Messiah palms compared to King III Palms
The best of both worlds.

Value… +7.5

Here’s the biggest difference from the King III.  The Messiah costs a good $50 less and comes in at $134.99.  For such a high quality glove, this is a good price point, and if I could rate this section at a 2.5, I would.

Overall… +7.8/10

The Messiah offers Cadillac quality at a Pontiac price.  You can quote me on that (after paying a modest royalty).

This glove protects like a mama bear protecting her cub.  And also the mama bear is a robot who has been programmed to protect the cub at all costs to save the future.  The cub is not a robot, but its name is John Connor.

The Messiah is as comfortable as a blanket made from the fur of baby penguins who were not slain to make the blanket but instead voluntarily donated their fur to benefit people who like blankets but can’t deal with the guilt of wrapping up in murdered baby penguins.  That’s physical AND emotional comfort.  Priceless.

I’m making some assumptions on durability here, but this glove appears to be as durable as my love for ridiculous similes and Shaw’s love for man butts.

The bottom line is that if the styling is up your alley then you’ve really no reason not to run out and pick up a set of these right this instant.  Go.  Go right now.  Do it.

Holdin' a stick
Action pose!

Have some gear you wish we would review? Hit us up and let us know what you think we should review next.