Mitt size confusion

I want to buy oldest DD, who turns 12 next month, a new catcher's mitt, but I'm having a little anxiety about buying something without seeing it, which I have to unless I buy one of a few brands that are available locally (Mizuno, Rawlings, Wilson, Nokona). She currently uses a discontinued Wilson A500 . She's used it for two seasons and it's been great, especially since I bought it for $10 on clearance somewhere. The thing is her Wilson says it's a 31", but when I measure it with a string I think it's closer to 34"; it's certainly larger than the Nokona 32.5" inch mitts I see in the store. I bought her younger sister a Diamond F315, which was supposed to be 31.5" but is much smaller than the 31" Wilson. In fact when I measure it myself the most generous measurement I can reach is about 28". I'd like to entertain the idea of getting my older DD something a little flash and I've been corresponding with a Japanese custom glove maker Capire.

Custom Baseball Gloves & Custom Softball Gloves | Capire Glove (fun site to play around in).

They've been super helpful and great to deal with, but recommend a 32" mitt, which, if it's really 32" I think is too small. Anyway I'm just so confused and untrusting of every manufacturer's size claim.

All Star is another brand I've been considering. Her catcher's gear is All Star and I've found they have great customer service, but no one sells them locally.

Anyone have any insight into the sizing of one manufacturer to another?

Catchers mitts are all measured by circumference. Mitts are actually smaller that a lot of fielders glove, but are designed to have a deep pocket. The mitts will stretch around a softball with use. My daughter uses a Nokona banana tan 3250 and it's lights out. A really great mitt with a booking crack closed web. I was given a new Vinci JCV VM and it's really coming around. She's torn between the two. I like them both as well. I caught for 15 years, and Wilson treated me incredibly well, but their new A2000's are terrible. Akadema's are also dogs. They have a huge/strange bubble type pad behind the pocket

OP should contact DFP members casedawg and chazbz1 about Vinci mitts. IMO, the Vinci top end mitt is better than a Nokona - as durable, but a better padding design at a significantly lower cost. Vinci's new entry model sounds promising too. FWIW, I don't know any catcher who has switched after using a Vinci.

Greenmonsters said:

OP should contact DFP members casedawg and chazbz1 about Vinci mitts. IMO, the Vinci top end mitt is better than a Nokona - as durable, but a better padding design at a significantly lower cost. Vinci's new entry model sounds promising too. FWIW, I don't know any catcher who has switched after using a Vinci.

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My suggestion would be to contact Casedawg51 about a Vinci. He will get you a great deal and if for some reason your DD does not like it you can sell it on Ebay and get your money back. Just be aware that a Vinci takes 3-4X as long as a regular glove to break in, so it will be very stiff when you receive it. My suggestion would be to find a bucket dad on your team who would be willing to help you break it in.

Greenmonsters said:

OP should contact DFP members casedawg and chazbz1 about Vinci mitts. IMO, the Vinci top end mitt is better than a Nokona - as durable, but a better padding design at a significantly lower cost. Vinci's new entry model sounds promising too. FWIW, I don't know any catcher who has switched after using a Vinci.

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My DD. Because of the thickness of the padding (JCV-22), she was having trouble feeling the ball in the mitt, and would drop a LOT of pitches because of it. For some reason, the shape of the mitt and her hands were also incompatible, and she was getting quite a few balls bouncing off the edge. A switch to a Miz GKS92 solved the issue immediately. That said, the Vinci was a really well-built mitt, and it was a bummer that it didn't work out for my DD. It's now being well-loved by another DFP'ers DD. Vinci makes great stuff, the JCV-22 just wasn't the right mitt for my DD.

My top recommendations (not in order)...
- Vinci (any of them)
- All-Star CMW3000 or CMW4000
- Worth Liberty Advanced