Engearment

BlackStrap makes some very functional and stylish gear for keeping your skin cool while you get after your adventure.

If you are an avid fisher or outdoors person, you know how important sun protection is. Sunscreen can be nice, but it also wears off and can be messy.  Enter BlackStrap sun sleeves, gloves and tubes.  UV protection from the elements. 

USA made

All of their gear is made in the USA, including the milling of fabrics as well as cut and sewn.  I love supporting US companies that make their gear in-house.  Especially when the gear is actually great quality.  So you can feel good about that.

Sun sleeves – keeping your arms from burning 

Sun sleeves are a great tool for keeping your forearms from UV exposure.  They can also offer some cooling effect if you dip them in water.  I used the Daily Sleeve for hiking above tree line, mitigating hiking trails and tanker fly fishing.  The sleeves I tested were one size, yet fit my arms just fine.  For reference, I have medium to large forearms and upper arms.  The sleeves stayed in place without issue.  The elastic on some other brand’s sleeves often looseness up after time (at least in my experience).  The BlackStraps Daily Sleeve did not loosen up, even after hours of hard work doing trail maintenance.  MSRP $29

Daily Tube – Sun Mask and much more

I tested the Daily Tube out during the same events.  I used it as a neck gator most of the time.  I anticipate that I will use it to cover more area once I get into the splitboarding season.  Usually over the hat to cover ears, neck, and back of the head. The fabric is lightweight and breathable.  It can also double as a lens cloth.  In fact, I store my hiking shades in the Daily Tube, in a top pocket of my backpack.  That way I always have both and can keep the sunglasses clean. MSRP $20

Guide Glove – Fingerless Sun-gloves

Guide Gloves are fingerless in design and have some reinforcement in the plan of the hand.  They also have leather grip palm that works well when wet.  These actually do come in different sizes: XS/S – 7-8”, M/L – 8-9” and L/XL – 10-11”.  I tested the L/XL and actually found them to be a little tight.  I don’t have huge hands, but these were on the cusp of fitting.  Maybe I needed to break them in a little longer?  Regardless, they were handy when fly fishing.  The leather palm was a nice touch. MSRP $35

Overall impressions on BlackStrap Sun Products

The fact that these are made in Oregon, can be machine washed, look good and function, as advertised, has me a big fan of the company.  If you are sick of messy sunscreen, this kit is the way to go.  I keep all of this in my backpack so I am always ready for adventure.  Plus they work great for cleaning sunglasses (and I assume they will work well for ski goggles) and keeping cool in the sun (dunk them in water for added effect).