Design your perfect glove?

[MaverickAH]

So...as you know both of my DD's have used Vinci gloves and Mitt's in the past. The BV1929-L was used by my DD in the circle and pretty much everywhere else on the field. My Catcher DD used a Vinci JCV-VM behind the dish for quite a few years and after a relace/recon it still has a lot of life left. This DD also plays a lot of 3B (and it wasn't unusual to see her pop up at just about everywhere else on the field) when not catching so when the time came to upgrade her fielders glove we looked to the Vinci brand again.

What we came up with was basically what AD has described above. It's the basic BV1929 pattern with an H-web built with their Optimus leather. It is listed as a 12.5" but feels and plays smaller. The laces left a little to be desired ;-) but actually held up better than expected and I'm sure when it gets relaced the glove will be even better than new. The hand stall and fingers have been perfect for her, I'd say she has average (medium/large) hands. The Optimus leather is 6.5 oz Kip in a walnut color that at first I wasn't crazy about but it has grown on me and has definitely held up well (I should add that the Optimus leather wasn't part of my original build request but Casedawg (DFP member and Vinci Rep) went the extra mile for us. The padding and stiffness is perfect. It does NOT have a velcro wrist closure so there's none of that nonsense to deal with. The glove was a beast to break in but isn't that part of the fun?

I'm a big fan of Vinci gloves. It's usually my first recommendation for FP players especially if they're pre-college. I really like the 22/PC Series because the leather is solid, the weight is good, they're durable & the price isn't crazy. They're a very good value! They're tough enough for a travel player but they're still able to be broken in by the player themselves. That's something I'm a big advocate of. The main reason players have an ill fitting glove is because they never learned to break in a glove properly by themselves.

I don't think that I would recommend an Optimus Series glove for the majority of female players. Weight is an issue with them. Heck, I have a 12.5" Custom Optimus myself in black & although I can handle it, it's weight is felt so I can't imagine it for a young lady.

Vinci has a lot of different patterns. Some play true to size. Some play smaller. Some play bigger. When you're ordering a custom from them, in addition to the size, it's advisable to also specify which model you want your glove to be based off of. I know that it can be tough if you're not familiar with all of their model so that's why it's always best to call them & talk to a customer rep. I know that Pete went about & beyond for me when I had an idea. They made my dream glove for me & it's one of a kind!

Now I know that the topic of this thread is designing a dream glove but truth be told, a dream glove is not going to make you a better fielder if you haven't put in the work! Very often the money for a custom dream glove might be better spent on getting proper instruction.

 

[BrianTx01]

A lot going on with this post! Good morning Brian

I absolutely agree, the perfect glove is position specific! I started this post pointing out what I think is missing, a rugged, durable,
well thought out 3B / utility glove for the girl, and specifically the parents who don't want to purchase multiple gloves for multiple positions!

And you're right, at her age (12), if anyone picks up her pitch grip it'll likely be the opposing 3B coach.

Pitchers gloves, usually 12" just about ALL come with a closed web, whether it be a basket web, Two-piece, or vertical dual hinge, they'll all play deeper and wider than her modified trap. I say they all will, at least that's how they're designed to be!

Your last sentence about not liking the similar trap glove.......are you talking about a Six-finger Trap-Eze web? Other than the Rawlings Pro12TC that I have, like the one Ozzie Smith used, or the Wilson OTIF, 99.9% of all Six-finger traps are going to be used in the outfield. They won't wear out any faster then any other glove.....but they'll form the best pocket of any other glove out there!

The pro12tC is what I am talking about. It might be nothing for those that can relace their own gloves but that seems like those places could easily break.

 

[BrianTx01]

One more thing, my DD absolutely hates any pink on the glove. She is not a tomboy at all but she doesn't want any pink on her glove, bat, or helmet.

 

[Tatonka]

I don't think that I would recommend an Optimus Series glove for the majority of female players. Weight is an issue with them. Heck, I have a 12.5" Custom Optimus myself in black & although I can handle it, it's weight is felt so I can't imagine it for a young lady.

I should have mentioned that on both the JVC-VM Catchers Mitt and on the Optimus hybrid BV1929 we opted for the mesh backing primarily to reduce weight. DD originally had it on her catchers mitt and it held up extremely well so when the Optimus build started and it came up as an option we had no hesitation. Regarding price, well we got a deal we couldn't refuse!

 

[ANNASDAD]

I should have mentioned that on both the JVC-VM Catchers Mitt and on the Optimus hybrid BV1929 we opted for the mesh backing primarily to reduce weight. DD originally had it on her catchers mitt and it held up extremely well so when the Optimus build started and it came up as an option we had no hesitation. Regarding price, well we got a deal we couldn't refuse!

You know I honestly haven’t bragged on Vinci gloves in some time other than really liking the RV1961 pattern, but I will say, Vinci’s mesh is really really good!

 

[JRedfearn]

You know I honestly haven’t bragged on Vinci gloves in some time other than really liking the RV1961 pattern, but I will say, Vinci’s mesh is really really good!

I will second the mesh! Two of my DD Vinci’s are the mesh series. Her new glove is all leather, not much heavier.

 

[Schmick's Gloves]

I have about 6 gloves in my collection that I would say are pretty close to perfect. Here's 5 of them
The all blonde Pro Preferred may be a bit small for fastpitch though.

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[Schmick's Gloves]

There's no reason for velcro, this is an adjustable wrist.

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[Schmick's Gloves]

One of the dozen or so gloves my kid has that she never uses. This is a Wilson A2000 FPH 12. It's a 12" glove, more narrow hand well and wrist than the men's gloves, even the Pedroia fit gloves, and would work great at 3rd, middles, even pitcher.... though she was convinced she needed a solid web to pitch from a pitching coach in the organization.

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[ANNASDAD]

though she was convinced she needed a solid web to pitch from a pitching coach in the organization.

One of my pitchers on our 18U Fall team used a custom Wilson 1786 11.5” I-web baseball glove! It was very small!

She had just committed to a D2 school, she said her Dad was going to order her a new glove for college.......an 11.75”