# How do I test a pair of cut-resistant gloves?
**URL:** https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-test-a-pair-of-cut-resistant-gloves/728205
**Category:** Cafe Society
**Created:** [August 18, 2015, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-test-a-pair-of-cut-resistant-gloves/728205 "2015-08-18T18:53:29Z")
**Posts on this page:** 7
**Page:** 1
### Author:  [@Rhythmdvl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhythmdvl)
#### Post date: [August 18, 2015, 6:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-test-a-pair-of-cut-resistant-gloves/728205/1 "2015-08-18T18:53:29Z")
I just received a pair of [cut-resistant gloves](http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/B00TU52EAK?psc=1&redirect=true&ref_=oh_aui_detailpage_o02_s00). I got them because I love my [mandolin](http://www.amazon.com/Swissmar-Borner-V-1001-V-Slicer-Mandoline/dp/B0000632QE/ref=sr_1_4?s=home-garden&ie=UTF8&qid=1439923850&sr=1-4&keywords=mandolin), but find its guard a bit too cumbersome to work with. I’m not planning on slamming my fingers against the blades, but I don’t want to find out via missing fingertip that ‘cut-resistant’ isn’t up to the task.
Stick a carrot in there and chop away? Find a hotdog and see what happens? Anyone have experience with these things and trust them?
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### Author:  [@Slithy\_Tove](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Slithy_Tove)
#### Post date: [August 18, 2015, 7:12pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-test-a-pair-of-cut-resistant-gloves/728205/2 "2015-08-18T19:12:04Z")
Cut level 5 is pretty good. Glass handlers use cut level 3 gloves.
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### Author:  [@August\_West](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/August_West)
#### Post date: [August 18, 2015, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-test-a-pair-of-cut-resistant-gloves/728205/3 "2015-08-18T19:18:47Z")
You need a tomadynamometer, some 100mm straight edge blades, some calibrated weights, and a copy of ASTM F-1790-05, Standard Test Method for Measuring Cut Resistance of Materials Used in Protective Clothing.
Or, get a skin-on hot dog and a cleaver.
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### Author:  [@Dinsdale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dinsdale)
#### Post date: [August 18, 2015, 7:55pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-test-a-pair-of-cut-resistant-gloves/728205/4 "2015-08-18T19:55:13Z")
Just gotta say, this bluegrass picker was momentarily thrown for a loop. 😕
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### Author:  [@Rhythmdvl](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Rhythmdvl)
#### Post date: [August 19, 2015, 7:01pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-test-a-pair-of-cut-resistant-gloves/728205/5 "2015-08-19T19:01:40Z")
Well that didn’t go as expected.
I wrapped a carrot in plastic, jammed it into one of the fingers, and made a modest cut with an 8" chef’s knife.
SHUNK
It went through the glove with nary a pause.
I tried a lighter touch, and it still sliced through the glove.
These aren’t super knives. They’re very sharp, but not surgically sharp. I wasn’t planning on hacking at my fingers (my main concern was accidentally smashing into one of the mandolin blades), but the product description made me think they’d have at least put up some effort against being cut like that.
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### Author:  [@JohnGalt](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/JohnGalt)
#### Post date: [August 20, 2015, 1:03am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-test-a-pair-of-cut-resistant-gloves/728205/6 "2015-08-20T01:03:35Z")
Gee, I was hoping it would work. It would have saved me the cost of going to the ER last weekend after using a (damned) mandolin to slice a cucumber. No “major” damage, just a tip of my right ring finger, but boy it still smarts.
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### Author:  [@Dorjan](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Dorjan)
#### Post date: [August 20, 2015, 3:17pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/how-do-i-test-a-pair-of-cut-resistant-gloves/728205/7 "2015-08-20T15:17:11Z")
Sounds like maybe you got a defective pair.