Anyone wear gloves to handle vacuum tubes?

I do not use gloves, but I do wipe the tubes off after installation before powering on. 
 

enjoy the music 

Michael.

I don’t use gloves but I touch the tubes once in their entire lifespan, when installing them I have no reason to I don’t much if any tube rolling so once they are in, that’s it

I think back to my first tube amp and how naive and ignorant I was.  I was afraid to touch them from the halogen era as well.  I quickly gained confidence and have never used gloves.  I still love my halogen pendant lights in the kitchen.  I have a set of 3 that I installed in my old house and when I moved, I took them with me.  I never turn them off and the OEM bulbs lasted about 13 years!  

I wear nitrile medical grade gloves, powder free, good grip and no oil from fingers.

@wownflutter +1 same here, don't tube roll and just test tubes every few years.

@larryi  Then the best thing to do is occasionally use a microfibre towel to dust and/or remove detris/oils on a tube, new and used.  I'm just not into that and my custom listening room is filtered from most dust-maybe once annual cleaning.

I do. Every time. 

I never ever used to, and I kind of wondered whether I should, and then I read a blurbs by tube dealers that said it wasn't required so I felt vindicated . . . but then I bought a preamp from Cary and it came with a single glove that they recommended for handling tubes so I started to wonder again . . . but the glove is way too small so now I just keep some "lens wipes" that I use for cleaning my glasses and after I've finished handling the tubes if I think about it I wipe them down.

I use a folded paper towel which is much easier find and quicker than searching for them and putting gloves on and off. 

Mostly because the tubes are too hot to the touch.

I use nitrile gloves. They're thin so dexterity is maintained, they offer excellent grip which reduces the likelihood of being dropped. As an added benefit, no body oil gets on the tubes, so they stay clean longer.

I use vintage tubes almost exclusively, and they almost always need to be cleaned gently with a soft, lightly moistened towel.

When I'm ready to insert the tube into the socket, on go the nitrile gloves!!! 

Some folks have more grease than others. I always wear a glove, nitrile or cotton.

Some folks have more grease than others.

Excess grease was gold back when film photography was alive and well. Got a scratch on a prized negative? Just swipe a finger across your nose, and rub that nose grease into the scratch. Grease fills the void perfectly, and closely matches the refractive index of acetate - hence the white scratch lines disappear from your enlargement prints, like magic :) Of course if the scratch went through the emulsion side (showing as black lines in enlargements) you’re still screwed. 

Nitrile gloves should be good for handling tubes. Nice grip. But I am totally against use of cotton gloves!

Just a tip:

Don't use pliers...

Just a tip:

Don't use pliers...

Right--because vice-grips will work much better.

Handling anything with fingers always adds oil artifacts; why would you want oil on tubes, light bulbs, etc. Oil attracts dust......I no longer use tube gear, but when I did, I used latex medical gloves....I still use these gloves when I open gear to do my mods.

I was at SWAF And was in  the ARC room. I noticed those guys weren’t using gloves and ask one of them about it. He said it was unnecessary and I would say those guys are experts

They say it's the oil on your fingers.But years ago they sold tube's for your tvs and radios in all the drug stores .There were no gloves...used then.

I was at SWAF And was in  the ARC room. I noticed those guys weren’t using gloves and ask one of them about it. He said it was unnecessary and I would say those guys are experts

+1, @limomangus , I think that's a safe bet.

Me I will wear finger condoms.

@texasblues1959 

I suspect not of the pre-lubed variety.

Regards,

barts

@barts That would be correct.

I always touch the tubes using a soft clean tissue. 

Even while powering on and off the gear, if  there is a clean tissue at hand I prefer to use it. 

LOL tube condoms...LOL

I just received a set of Takatsuki 300B tubes I bought in case there was an increase in price. $1K is plenty per tube. I read the instructions prior to swapping them in to make sure they worked. The instructions specifically say and show they should be handled with white gloves. 

On the other hand, they are tubes made in Japan. I lived there for a long time. As a people, they are incredibly fastidious and formal. I mean, the cab drivers wear white gloves. I am sure the idea of seeing a fingerprint on the tube would be considered horrible. So, it may more a cultural comment than strictly necessary for the life of the tube. But I wear white gloves when I handle them.