When we check the WeighMyRack database for the most wanted and owned crack gloves by WeighMyRack users we find the top 3 models in each category are…

Most Wanted Crack Gloves

  1. Wide Boys Crack Gloves
  2. Black Diamond Crack Gloves
  3. Ocún Crack Gloves

Also notable: Last year the #3 most wanted was the Ocún Crack Glove Lite, which was their latest glove at the time. It has since been replaced with the original design which is slightly thicker.

Most Owned Crack Gloves (available today)

  1. Black Diamond Crack Gloves
  2. Ocún Crack Gloves
  3. Wide Boys Crack Gloves

So it turns out that this year the top three gloves in both categories are the same, though a slightly different order. Below we dive into why these are the most wanted and owned crack gloves from WeighMyRack users.

Wide Boyz Crack Gloves – #1 Most Wanted, #3 Most Owned

Last year around this time we had JUST gotten our hands on a couple of pairs of WideBoyz Crack Gloves. Thanks to supply chain issues and a few manufacturing stumbles out of the gate, those cheeky British crack aficionados were having a tough time getting them out onto the hands of the climbing populace. Because of this, they were also last years most wanted glove. Fast forward a year and things have gotten smoothed over, their made-for-the-wide gloves have been on the fists and jams of tons of folks (including us); so much so that they have snuck onto the #3 most owned glove by WeighMyRack users.

Wide Boyz in Moab
An excited climber tries out the Wide Boyz Crack Glove during our recent visit to Wall Street in Moab, Utah on Diné Bikéyah (Navajo) and Núu-agha-tʉvʉ-pʉ̱ (Ute) ancestral lands. Photo: Jeff Jaramillo of WeighMyRack

Owing partially from their antics on Reel Rock and their Youtube and Instagram posts the Wide Boyz gloves have quite a bit of brand recognition, which likely helps them top this Most Wanted list. But there are a few key features where they still stand out from the crowd, namely their thickness and thumb coverage. Though we’re still working on writing a full review on the gloves after a year with them, we can say definitively that no glove out there has this much padding and coverage over so much of the glove. For those looking to build fat stacks, jam fists, or simply to add a ton of volume to their hand, these babies definitely seem to have a place on ‘the list’.

They have so far held up decently, though the rubber might be starting to thin out on the sizes we see get the most use when we demo, and some stitching is starting to get a bit threadbare, owing to the amount of wear they’ve gotten from folks we’ve run into who are excited to try them out. We still stand behind our statement from last year that the WideBoyz gloves DO seem to be best as one of the two pairs you own (along with a thinner set like from BD, Red Chili, or Ocún, or just tape in general) versus an all-arounder glove.

Where to buy Wide Boyz Crack Gloves

As of this writing, they appear to mostly be in stock on the Wide Boyz website.

Protip: They do run a bit small compared to the brand’s measurement recommendations. ex: I measure a 21.5mm– Wideboyz recommend a Medium, but I am most definitely a Large.

Black Diamond Crack Glove – #2 Most Wanted & #1 Most Owned

The #2 spot on the Most Wanted and #1 Most Owned crack gloves are still no surprise to us. Just like last year, the easiest to find and the most recognized climbing brand in the US continues to be in the conversation. Out of all the gloves we’ve tested we have consistently heard the same praise over and over for the Black Diamond Crack Gloves. Specifically, people seem to agree that they are some of the most comfortable gloves out there, and coupled with their thin rubber and low weight they are known to be the crack glove that most closely mimics tape (they even made them white for this reason).

Jamming with the Black Diamond Crack glove
Ty jamming with the Black Diamond Crack Glove in Vedauwoo, WY Ancestral lands of the Tséstho’e (Cheyenne), Očhéthi Šakówiŋ, and hinono’eino’ biito’owu’ (Arapaho) people. Photo: Jeff Jaramillo of WeighMyRack

Black Diamond spent a fair amount of time designing these gloves to fit closely and cover as much skin as possible without getting in the way. This appears to be a bigger deal to those who are already well-versed in crack jamming, but beginners also note that they quickly forget they are wearing them and focus on the jam at hand. Their low profile nature also lends them to perform well on the thinner end of the crack spectrum, making them a great supplemental glove for those looking for skin coverage without the bulk of other models.

Overall they are light, highly available in many shops and retailers, and have the most skin coverage out of every glove we’ve tested so far.

A thing to note: our findings show that Black Diamond’s sizing chart runs small. If you’re looking to pick up a pair of these gloves, we recommend measuring correctly and sizing up 1 size for most people. We’ve gotten a lot of reports from folks breaking the thumb loop or strap on this glove which we suspect is because BD’s size chart runs small.

It’s worth noting that these gloves were meant to fit close to the hand and be worn all-day. If you rip them on/off between climbs (versus gently taking them off at the end of the day) there is a higher likelihood to tear the thumb.

And a final tip (for more tips read our entire BD review), taping the strap is also common with these gloves.

Where to buy Black Diamond Crack Gloves

Ocún Crack Glove Lite – #3 Most Wanted

Rounding out the #3 slot in most wanted gloves among WeighMyRack users is the Crack Glove Lite from Ocún. (Pronounced like: Oat-Soon, btw.)

The Crack Glove Lite is actually the 3rd iteration of this particular glove in a long-running pedigree at Ocún. Though many in North America may not be familiar, folks have been climbing cracks in the Czech Republic for a long time, and Ocún has been there developing tools for crack climbing their delicate sandstone. In fact, the previous version from Ocún happens to sit tied at #2 on our most owned list.

As crack mania has swept over the globe, Ocún have definitely adapted the Lite version of these gloves to accommodate the way the rest of the world climbs– namely larger fingers, slightly more wrist coverage, wider thumb holes, and softer, stickier rubber. These changes have taken an already well-liked glove and made a stickier, less bulky, all-around glove for jamming splitters and stacks alike.

Chances are if you already have owned a pair of Ocún Crack Gloves, you have added this update to your Want It List, which we think is the best explanation for why we see it on this list.

Buying Options for the Ocún Crack Gloves Lite

Ocún Crack Glove – #3 Most Wanted & #2 Most Owned

Perhaps the biggest surprise this year is the movement of the Ocún Crack glove up both lists. This year they’ve replaced the newer Lite version from Ocún as the #3 Most Wanted, and moved from #3 to #2 Most Owned. The Lite model had a bit of buzz behind it as a thinner, larger finger holed, updated version of the already prolific Original glove, but that buzz seems to have relaxed a bit. We hear from lots of folks that they just really like how the Originals fit and pad their hands out.

It is also likely that the older models have been on sale a bit more to make room for the updated models, and of course climbers are always searching for a deal.

Just because they are an older design, doesn’t mean that the Ocún Crack Glove is outdated. One thing we’ve found in our testing is that they are great at building big, solid hand stacks. They perform quite well in offwidths and when worn slightly oversized, they handle a good amount of under-taping to supplement additional thumb and wrist coverage. (Our full review goes into all this deeper.)

Their balance of stiffness and flexibility makes them one of our particular favorites if you are looking for a single ‘one glove to rule them all’ scenario, though they can often be a bit too chunky for thinner jams, especially if you have thicker hands.

We should also mention that because their thumb and finger holes are smaller and closer together, they have been known to tear out a bit, especially if they are being wrenched on in stacks. Some extra care and even a bit of overtaping has become commonplace for those really putting them through it.

A bit of exciting news: We also did a great interview with Ocún about their newest version coming out in the spring, that seems to really be addressing every issue anyone has had with the both current models of from Ocún. They really seem to be from the future.

Bottom Line

There have suddenly been a lot of gloves to choose from in the past few years, which we think is great for climbers. Because they are all around the same price, the options that most people tend to go for are the gloves that are the easiest to find from brands they see the most in the wild. For those who have already tried a particular glove, we find the most wanted gloves are the ones that people already know and trust as a name like the offering from Ocún, or that are pointed at more specific uses with more wrist and thumb coverage which are found in both the Wide Boyz and Black Diamond models.

Want to See & Compare All Crack Gloves?

At WeighMyRack, we list every crack glove and give you filters to dial in the price, materials, size, coverage, and current (possibly on sale) prices.

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Jeff Jaramillo

Jeff Jaramillo

Jeff currently lives in the Midwest and spends most of his free time answering questions nobody asked. When not plugging gear on moderate warmups and calling it a day, he can be found whining about whipping on bolts in the gym or at the local pub waxing poetic about climbing saving humanity and the planet.

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