That's some great advise, even accounting the ball local uses. Wow.. I'm impressed.ARZ136
Kip leather
Stiff, will need 2-4 weeks of break-in
Better quality internals
Better workmanship
ASR282
Cowhide
Game ready
Solid build for the price
Additionally, the ARZ136 will have a much longer useful life & retain its shape longer. My biggest fear for you is , based on what you're using now, are you willing to deal with a lengthy break-in period & do you know how to properly break in a glove? If your answer is, "Yes", the ARZ136 is well worth the price difference.
I would also add that if you're playing in NYC (which I strongly suspect, based on your name......), the ARZ136 could be considered a bit of overkill based on the ball primarily used here (Debeer Clincher F12). It's not out of place but it is more glove than you really need for that ball. The plus side is that it will last you for the remainder of your playing days.
ARZ136
Kip leather
Stiff, will need 2-4 weeks of break-in
Better quality internals
Better workmanship
ASR282
Cowhide
Game ready
Solid build for the price
Additionally, the ARZ136 will have a much longer useful life & retain its shape longer. My biggest fear for you is , based on what you're using now, are you willing to deal with a lengthy break-in period & do you know how to properly break in a glove? If your answer is, "Yes", the ARZ136 is well worth the price difference.
I would also add that if you're playing in NYC (which I strongly suspect, based on your name......), the ARZ136 could be considered a bit of overkill based on the ball primarily used here (Debeer Clincher F12). It's not out of place but it is more glove than you really need for that ball. The plus side is that it will last you for the remainder of your playing days.
Thanks for the detailed explanation Maverick. The NYC is my tag name and where I'm originally from, however I currently live in Houston TX. We currently use red stitched .52 core and 300 compression for men balls and 44 core 375 compression for women balls. With that being said, I was under the impression the KIP leather was easier to break in from what I have read but that is also good to know.
They do glove steaming here at a few places, would you recommend for a break in process that if I purchase the ARZ136?Where you live will also affect break-in. (I've been meaning to write more on that particular subject!) The regular 100 deg. temps. & high humidity of Houston will shorten the break-in period for sure. Break-in method will also shorten or lengthen the period. I always advocate for a slower, more natural method for breaking in a glove as I feel that it leads to better performance & a longer useful life.
Based on your location & conditions, the ARZ136 is the much better option.
Wow thanks man, you've been very helpful and informative in all your posts, its greatly appreciated.Well, it's not harmful as long as it's just done lightly but I would deem it unnecessary. Unless you need to have the glove game ready quickly, I'd say not to do it. What's interesting is that the one company that recommends & promotes steaming is Mizuno & the leather used in the ARZ136 sounds to be very similar, if not exactly the same, to what Mizuno uses in their high-end gloves. You should be okay if you decide to go the steaming route.
For the most part I am a minimalist when it comes to breaking in a glove. A little conditioner, a glove mallet & some elbow grease is all I will usually use. I break in the top & bottom of the web, the heel, shape the thumb, pinkie & fingers to my liking (prefer more of a bowl shape, thumb to pinkie) & work on forming a good pocket. When I have the glove about 80% to 85% ready, I take it to the field to finish the process. That's about it......
If I do have a glove that's proving to be particularly tough, I will:
What this does is to simulate a light steaming/dunking by introducing moist heat to the leather. It will usually cut a couple of weeks off of the break-in process. You can control the process by adjusting the amount of water you saturate the rags with. Just have a pair of tongs available to handle the rags with after being microwaved. They will be very hot!
- take a couple of dish rags
- lightly saturate them with water,
- microwave them for 1 minute
- stick one inside the glove & 1 in the pocket for a few minutes