The gloves don't take the slime off and they have just enough "mesh" on them to help hold the fish. I prefer to use grips but we didn't have any with us. The biggest discussion with various folks up there is how big of an issue the nets create in regard to slime and hurting the fish. i've always wondered what issue is created by guys who grip the tail so tight that it crushes the fish. With the warmer temps up there, the fish were very active and we hit a lot of fish in two days, steelhead, coho and browns. Having my own drift boat, actually an 11 foot pram designed to fly fish from, makes the game much more interesting by having to read the river, the currents, the new structure, water flow speed and having to navigate some very tight areas with reasonably strong currents over the course of a six or seven hour float.