Function of the Wing Tip

[r205maple]

Anyone know what the Wing Tip on the glove is supposed to do.

I love the way they look & consider it a plus & all, as its different & cool, but is there purpose or function to the wing tip design or is it all aesthetics?

P.S. Only wished that the 2009 two-tone Pro Pref 17IC, Brown & Camel Wing Tips had camel or grey welting to really show & offset the wingtip work.

[candlestick]

What a great question. And the fact that 40 people (now 41) have looked at this and cannot come up with an answer tells me a whole lot of other folks dont know either!

[Cowboy7130]

This is just a SEMI-educated guess, but here goes ...

I had a similar glove many years ago by Franklin called the Slingback. Not exactly a Wingtip, but ... the reason for the Slingback was "increased flexibility in the back of the glove without sacrificing sturdiness," or some such advertising jargon on the label. In other words, the Slingback design was intended to allow the glove to flex across the back of the knuckles a little more freely than the more traditional, straight finger back style.

Now as for the Wingback, I would think that a players knuckles, as they fold under the leather as the glove closes on a ball, would not be constricted by a sewn and welted finger stall on the back of the glove. I don't know for sure, but that's what it looks like would happen if I had my big paw in one!

[rmiller]

Occasionally I will look on the following blog:

http://allthingsgloves.blogspot.com/200 ... 9439798061

The dudes name is Bob Clevenhagen, and according to the blog, he is a long-time Rawlings Master Glove Craftsman.

It’s a pretty interesting blog, and you can submit questions to the guy- they may be able to answer your wing tip question.

I would assume that Kenny Jenkins can answer your question as well.

I’m interested to know what you find out. Man, what a great question! Please update the thread if you have any luck with it. You’ve got me very curious.

[Musashi]

Mr. Bob Clevenhagen, aka "docglov" (or, as we as affectionately and reverently refer to as just "doc") is one of our forum's most respected members.

While I don't recall doc ever discussing the wingtip design, you should look up his old posts - they're fascinating! In one of his last posts, he put up a diagram showing us the lacing pattern of a Pro-H web!

[Hrking4675]

I am not 100% on this, but I believe the wing tip is to help the glove close better or more efficiently. Think about the break across the back of the fingers, one piece of leather versus individual fingers that do not always work together.

[bs]

My guess on the wing tip is they were trying to get the welted seams off the fingers so the gloves were more comfortable. Glove makers have been trying to get the welted seems away from your hands for comfort reasons for years. Below are a couple examples.

Rawlings has J-thumbs on some gloves were the welt curves away from the thumb. The Primo has the hand sewn part on the thumb & pinkie to get rid of the welt on the back of the thumb & little.finger.

Wilson has dual welt so your fingers sit in the middle of the welted seams.

Mizuno has the soft hands were they welt the glove inside out. The unfinished side is actually on the outside of the glove to give more room on the fingers and this makes the welted seems feel better.

I am really surprised about the enthusiasm for the wing tip gloves on this board. Did they ever sell that well?

[r205maple]

Great feedback, especially the one about the welts......I need to tape up my left ring finger from time to time as my middle knuckle gets cut & blistered from the welts, especially with new gloves.....come to think of it, I don't ever remember feeling pain/seeing blood when using the W.T.

[mudman]

Kenny and I had a conversation about wingtips a few years back. He mentioned that they were a really great design and held up better than non wingtip models. He said he had repaired so many gloves where the stitching had worn on the welt where people put their finger on the outside of the glove.