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The Bottom Line: The perfect glove for ice climbing in moderate temperatures, with excellent grip, dexterity, and comfort. Waterproofing keeps your hands dry. They feel and look great and excel on the ice. At $80, the Terminator gloves are well worth the cost and will last several seasons if cared for.
The Terminator gloves are versatile and long-lasting when cared for properly. Ethan Rambacher.
The Black Diamond Terminator Gloves are ice/mixed climbing gloves aimed for use in 20- to 35-degree temperatures. They are excellent, comfortable gloves that offer fantastic grip for difficult routes. They offer much greater warmth than simple liner gloves but are too cold to belay in on colder days. Coming in at $80, they are a good value ice climbing glove offering excellent performance.
It's near impossible to create the best ice climbing glove—dexterity and warmth are inversely proportional—so pick one and sacrifice the other. The best ice climbing glove for you really depends on how you use it: If you're leading WI6 pitches, you probably need a highly dexterous glove; if you're consistently finding yourself on easier ice but in bitter-cold conditions, you probably want a warmer glove and might be willing to sacrifice a bit of dexterity in exchange for keeping your fingers attached.
The Terminator gloves strike a comfortable balance for all but the coldest days of ice climbing. They are designed for 20- to 35-degree temps, although while climbing on a sunny 35-degree day my hands were sweating. I tend to have cold hands, but I actually think the Terminator gloves are a bit warmer than Black Diamond says. These gloves are lightly insulated with 40-gram Thinsulate, which provides just enough warmth for a 15- to 20-degree day when climbing. However, you'll probably want to swap them for warmer gloves when belaying or standing around when it's below about 20 degrees. Just remember, as with all gloves, your mileage may vary in colder temps.
One of the most important features on an ice climbing glove is the grip, and the Terminators really excel here. The goat-leather palm has stellar grip, and the fingers are slightly pre-curved so you strain less when gripping hard. Because they are fairly thin and fit tightly, they also offer good dexterity—not quite what you'd get with simple liners on, but significantly better than other insulated gloves I've tried.
The Terminators feature a soft BD.Dry waterproof insert that works great. After a full day of climbing on very wet ice, my hands only got damp once I started sweating in my gloves. The waterproofing is excellent. It also provides great windproofing; I tested it out during a high-wind warning with some 50-mile-per-hour gusts and felt absolutely no wind getting through.
These gloves are very comfortable. Because technical gloves require a precise fit, some may find they are between sizes or do not get an ideal fit; however, I find that they have a tight but not restrictive fit. They have a hook-and-loop cuff closure that works well, although it is none too large. The (non-removable) inner liner is soft and comfortable to put on, although it can be annoying to take off if the gloves get wet or sweaty.
Overall, I absolutely love these gloves and can see myself using them for several seasons to come. Durable, dexterous, relatively warm, and incredibly comfortable, these are fantastic gloves and have become my go-to ice climbing glove.
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