Vintage Baseball Glove Forum

Just curious what is your pet peeve or the kiss of death that stops you from purchasing or acquiring a glove? I know many of us probably look past some of these blemishes/imperfections, but what is your main one?

a. Stiffness in the leather
b. Rough/torn liner
c. Missing label
d. Ink or writing
e. Missing button
f. faint endorsement
e. holes
f. surface cracking
g. odor
h. Heavily oiled
h. Other please state


I think the last straw for me is ink on the face of the glove. Don't get me wrong, I can overlook a tastefully done name on the strap or back of the thumb, but the heel and the front? Come on now! All the others issues for me can be replaced or covered up, but something about 2-3 names on the front just kills it for me. I think I saw one at a thrift store one time that looked like a yearbook with all the writing on it.

Neat post and question!
Ink really bothers me. Now, I understand putting one's name on the glove. Yep, I did that. But to decorate it with ink and putting one's name four or five times, really irks me. Plus any other doodles.
I've not had much trouble with odor, cigarette smoke has been a peeve but I've not encountered that often.
My biggest disappointment: I have to admit, "not finding any money stuffed into the fingers of the glove like that glove in Kansas."
Which reminds that's another peeve, something in the night that has crawled into a finger channel. Ugh!

For me, it's a missing tag - that is a deal breaker for me.

For me if its missing the label or button.I can handle ink as long as its on the back of glove.

Dave S

Ink or marker on the front of the glove definitely ends the deal for me. I can live with a little bit on the back, but that's even enough to keep my bid low on ebay. Cracking leather or a missing tag usually means a pass for me, too, esp. if it's a post 1940s glove. I've made exceptions for earlier gloves with missing tags. Every time I pick one up, though, I always think "Man, if only it had the tag..." Good topic, Ricky!

I love a glove with a name and an address. OUt of fun I sometimes send a postcard to the address and tell them I have found their glove. I think in all the years I got a positive response from 3 people who i sent their glove back to them

Cigarette Smoke small is a no for me

softball66 wrote:My biggest disappointment: I have to admit, "not finding any money stuffed into the fingers of the glove like that glove in Kansas."
Which reminds that's another peeve, something in the night that has crawled into a finger channel. Ugh!

I did find money in a glove one time! Not exactly enough to retire on, but it was unusual. While cleaning a 30's vintage fielder's glove, there seemed to be something jammed up in the pinky stall. I couldn't quite reach it, so I turned the glove over and shook it. Out fell a nice shiny Mercury dime!

Found some creepy crawlies, too! I bought a box of gloves at an auction and they really looked like they had been stored in barn for several decades. They had a good coating of dirt and even a bird dropping or two! It wasn't until I had got them home and they were sitting in my basement that I discovered they were also infested with spiders!

I think that an overly, or improperly, oiled glove would be the kiss of death for me. Just about everything else can be fixed. A bad oil job is there forever.

Ink is a funny one with me. I'm attracted to a glove that has a nicely written name or notation. If the person has bad handwriting then I can't stand to look at it. I only collect up the '20's so fortunately I haven't crossed paths with too many gloves with big sharpie names.

Infestation would definitely be a turn off! Yikes.

Ink on the pocket side of the glove is my deal breaker, however, any glove with a musty odor or stink is not allowed in our home (per the wife) so I guess that makes odor a deal breaker also.

I never even gave a thought that something might be living in the glove. Thanks guys, you may have brought my glove collecting hobby to a screeching halt. Bugs really freak me out! I don't like gloves with broken laces or with heavy oil stains in the pocket. One thing that keeps me from acquiring better gloves is the price. My fixed income budget just cant afford the really good stuff. I'd love to own some of the rarer or minty gloves out there, but when the bidding hits a certain amount, I'm out. I'll have to rely on luck at flea markets or estate sales. (But now I'll think twice before sticking my hand into a dusty old glove!)

I would rather not own a glove that has excessive ink. However, odor is the worst. Although I have worked with a couple of stinkys and made them bearable. The biggest problem is that odor, not being visable, has surprised me on a couple of purchases. I have never smoked and the smoker sellers may not realize how bad they smell (benefit of the doubt). None lately. Mike Ellis

Although I am more of a looker than a sniffer when it comes to gloves, I do have a couple of musty ones that I would just as soon not sniff again. But I also have a 1940s Ted Williams and a Bill Doak that have kept that wonderful glove leather smell over the years. Plus a Heinie Manush that has the same wet concrete smell that I remember from the boat house at my Grandparents' cottage back when I was a kid. Love the way those gloves smell!

Stiff/cracked gloves don't even make it in the house ... I don't care what endorsement is on them. To a lesser degree ink on front, bad linings, and tears are gone soon. I think some oil, dirt, or fading "stains" add to the look and I usually can live with a neat name on back (especially if in fountain pen). Lefties used to be high on the list but I seem to have lightened up a lot recently in my older age (for some models). As for odors, I HATE them but seem to be willing to work with them for longer than I should to try various odor removal approaches.

Mold/mildew smell is my number one no-no. Ink is number two, but if it is only someone's uniform number, I can live with that. Torn leather, especially between the fingers, is number three.

Hi Guys,

I do not link ink anywhere on a glove! I am more forgiving of a poor liner than Rob. I too do not like smokey or musty smelling gloves.

Dave