Ergodyne
The St. Paul outfit that started with one back support in 1983, named its own category — Tenacious Work Gear — and has answered to Klein Tools since 2018.
Mechanix Wear
Valencia, California, 1991 — the glove that came out of a pit lane, and a company that tells you in its own words that the wrong glove creates a false sense of protection.
The Original glove was born in 1991 and championed by mechanics and pit crews at that year's Daytona 500 — an unusually specific origin for a category that mostly has none. Gryphon Investors announced a significant investment in 2019 alongside then-owner and CEO Michael Hale, who retained a stake. What makes the brand worth a page beyond the pit-lane story is the education: Mechanix publishes clear explanations of ANSI/ISEA 105 cut levels A1 to A9 and EN 388 markings, and states plainly that the wrong glove can create a false sense of protection. That is the correct thing for a PPE company to say and most do not say it.
- 1991The Original glove, and the Daytona 500 pit crews that adopted it
- A1–A9The ANSI/ISEA 105 cut-level scale Mechanix explains on its own site
- 2019Gryphon Investors announces a significant investment
What we'd reach for
- The OriginalThe 1991 glove, still the reference point. Dexterity first, protection second — which is a choice, not an oversight.
- M-PactTPR knuckle and finger guards for impact. The line most people mean by a "work glove" now.
- SpeedKnitThe knitted range where the cut ratings live. Check the ANSI level against your hazard assessment, not against the price.
- FastFitThe elasticated slip-on, for people taking gloves on and off all day.
- Welding and heat linesA separate hazard with separate ratings — heat and flame performance is never a brandwide property.
- Cut-resistant sleevesThe forearm half of the problem, and the part usually left uncovered.
More in Work at height
All brands →The nearest neighbors on the shelf — same categories first, same department after that.
Radians
Memphis PPE house with its own eyewear, hearing and glove lines sitting beside licensed DEWALT and Ducks Unlimited shelves — and two of its own about pages giving two different ages and no founding year.
Beal
Vienne, France, 1951 — the family rope-maker whose Unicore bond means a cut sheath doesn't have to mean a lost rope.
Black Diamond
Salt Lake City, since 1989 — the company its own employees bought out of a bankruptcy caused by lawsuits over climbing gear.