Hi,
I managed to snaffle a pair of Selsport Absorb AQ which I have used in a couple of games so thought I'd pen a brief review.
These retail for approx £39.99 and use the Aqua 7 latex.
I gave them a pre-wash a couple of days before the first game which was a lovely sunny day on a dry pitch. The gloves did not seem at all tacky and actually slippery but I gave them a quick run under the tap and they became better. They performed well during the game, no problems dealing with any crosses and shots, everything seemed to be fine.
Next game was on a very wet pitch, had been raining quite hard for a while and showered on and off all through the game. The gloves did not perform at all well! In fact in warm-up I was thoroughly spooked by the lack of grip and nearly swopped gloves before the game but stuck with them as it was just a friendly. Lucky it was a quiet game for me, only a couple of long range efforts but one nearly squirmed through and a few crosses all though due to the gloves slipperyness I punched, the one i did catch again nearly slipped through!
Verdict- Not bad in dry, but not great... and awful in the wet which they are designed for!
PROS - good comfort, very light , excellant wrist enclosure
CONS - Poor grip in the wet, felt a bit flimsy, thin latexScores out of 10 Grip - Dry - 7 Wet - 3Comfort 8Design 5 - prefer the old school wrappa designAde
I think you are the 1st person i have heard of that hasn't got on with the aqua 7 latex!
Did you give them a through pre-wash like most Selsport require?
UEFA 'B' Licence Goalkeeper Coach
my aqua wrappa's from last season took 3 washes before i got the best out of them. after that they were amazing.
MactheCatNo1: I think you are the 1st person i have heard of that hasn't got on with the aqua 7 latex!
I'm hoping Dropkick doesn't see this thread!
It could just need more prewashing, or ade might have got unlucky with a substandard batch of latex. That happened to me just last year with a pair of HOs. The UCG latex had worked great for me on one glove, but on the next, the grip never came through at all.
Hi,I had washed them 3 times in total before the wet game, maybe just got unlucky.
Ade
Keep in mind that latex is a natural substance, so will have imperfections. I have even had an original pair of Selsport Wrappa's that did not perform well at all, as well as a pair of Nike Vapors. Sometimes, the latex is just 'dead' for lack of a better term. Unfortunatley it happens....
Also I have found that with some Selsport foams you really need to get the dampness of the palm right otherwise it just wont work.
You said that dry grip was fine but when you used them for wet it was awful. I found with UPG latex that if I had to much water in the palm it just didnt work. Same with Adhesion Ultra. It just would not hold onto nothing!
i find that no matter how many times i prewash a pair of gloves, they need to be used a couple times before they grip well. the aqua wrappas were a classic example - loads of washes didn't improve the grip, but after warming up in them a couple of times and washing them each time the grip came through. i really think using a glove a little is the best way to break it in, it's much more effective than just washing them.
in short, dont give up on them - keep using and washing them and the grip will come. or give them to me
ChewieGK1: Keep in mind that latex is a natural substance, so will have imperfections. I have even had an original pair of Selsport Wrappa's that did not perform well at all, as well as a pair of Nike Vapors. Sometimes, the latex is just 'dead' for lack of a better term. Unfortunatley it happens....
You raise a very interesting point Chewie about imperfections and some gloves just not kicking in, regardless of the brand. I think we can all say we've experienced this at some stage, be it a particular brand or model - in most cases that puts us off the glove for life.
It makes me wonder whether as keepers we should be able to have the gloves replaced. I know this could be somewhat contentious, but if they don't do what they were supposed to i.e. grip, then shouldn't keepers be entitled to another pair. If we compared the lack of functionality of non-gripping gloves to say boots, it would be the equivalent of the studs not working and I'm sure players would take their boots back if this was the case.
Intererested to hear your thoughts and to know whether glove manufaturers/retailers have replaced gloves for members who have experienced this problem...
haha
Ade how did you get on with those 06-7 Absorbs we traded? I felt the comfort of the new aqua absorb was better by a long way than those.
Hello, cheers for those ! I would say the comfort on the new ones are better but not so sure on the grip!I think i got dodgy latex... I've given them a couple more washes and will give thm another bash!