Rock Bottom

Please see the pic below - is wrapping the strap around the middle bar the way to install the harness for the All-Star FM4000 magnesium? That's the way I got if from Ump Attire, but the harness strap seems too short this way (I hate the AS traditional harness - I wish this came with the Delta-Flex, which is far better to use with the All-Star Cobalt Skull Cap. For the cost you should get a choice, very frustrating.) Anyway, has anyone used the UmpLife harness with the 4000 mag, and do you wrap the bar like it shows in the pic, and is it long enough? Thanks all!!!

Good to know - thanks! I was tempted to buy one before reading this - figured it would speed up the brushing, but sounds like that's not the case.

They are "crap" because of the questionable value of the Kevlar? Let's say you're right and it does nothing - that doesn't mean they are crap. Have you used them? I've taken 85 mph shots to them and they were perfect; many on this board with extensive experience consider them the best, or one of the best, shin guards out there. I'm all for sharing opinions, but when you make such a strong statement you should back it up with something about their performance. Even if the Kevlar is worthless for shin guards, it's not like these are overly expensive compared to other similar quality options.

Great - points, thanks! I have the AS mag pads that I use with my AS FM4000 steel, but I got a slight bend (I'm not sure if it's even enough to worry about), so I've been investigating getting a new mask. I'm STRONGLY leaning towards the AS FM400 magnesium, but just want to cover my bases.

Anyone one use both also have a recommendation? From what I can gather the All Star has the clearly better (and lighter) frame, and the EvoShield has at least somewhat better pads, but I haven't heard as much about them as I'd expect, or maybe few are using them.

MadMax, Does that caution against using Lysol apply to the OEM pads on the All-Star System 7 (CPU4000)? I've been using Lysol for years on them and now I'm wondering if I'm causing some long term deterioration (although I haven't noticed any).

I think it likely depends on which skullcap you use. I use the All-Star Cobalt skull cap, which I love, but I do wish they didn't have the sandpaper finish - while the purpose is to make it grippier (I think), the neoprene-type harnesses seem to slip more on it than they would on a standard glossy finish, at least in my experience. That said, I still think the AS Cobalt is the best skull cap there is. I've used both the AS Delta-Flex (all black) and as great as it is, I like the Ump-Life version 2 mask harness better, but both work great.

Most of what I'd say has already been addressed above, but while I do agree the All-Star skull cap might not be the best looking (and I wish it didn't have the sandpaper finish, and also wish it had the foam under the brim - or throughout the entire helmet), it's got the best padding I've found in a skull-cap bar none. Unless others have been updated, they are all the old school think strip around -- the AS has modern padding - that's REMOVABLE - you can swap out drenched padding for a fresh set. Plus you can mix and match sizes to get a better fit because there are two different sized parts (the third part is the top padding and I didn't see a discernible difference in size). I have a large set of pads and a medium set, and I mix them up for a perfect M/L fit. If someone knows of another brand with good padding let me know - but again, the AS padding is top notch!!!

So, if you have an RLI violation while at the same time F1 is obstructing first base (standing on the base without the ball) - which call takes precedent? NFHS rule set, if that makes a difference. (Sorry if this was already addressed - I searched but didn't find anything exactly on-point, but I admittedly didn't search that long as it was a long day today.) THANKS!

Are you doing it primarily for something slimmer, or just for new pads, because All-Star replacement pads are available: https://www.baseballmonkey.com/all-star-umpire-equipment-cpu4000-rp-s7-chest-protector-replacement-padding.html

Great comparison! Do you find the Cobalt pads to be much/any better than the S7, or worse? I have the S7 and love it - I don't really care about the profile - I just want the most protection, but if the Cobalt is significantly better I'd consider switching.

I'm not interested in additional colors or spending more money on new shirts. I'm happy with the standard black shirt when I'm solo - and I have too many varied partners to be able to coordinate unique shirts. I think I have something like 15-20 shirts already; no need for more. (Although I'm sure for some guys that's a drop in the bucket.)

Can people stop including pictures of their bare feet in these threads?

I thought the Adams/Schutt XV HDX had pretty good bicep protection - it's the one thing I really miss when I switched to the All-Start CPU4000 (although I haven't gotten hit too bad since the switch, I know I just jinxed it).

THANK YOU so much for this information!!! I contacted Ump-Attire today because I had the same two-row version; they had me send a pic and are sending me a new one. Great customer service from them as always; I hope they aren't getting stuck with the loss on this.

You also have to solve the value proposition of why your replacement padding is better than other replacement padding. To complicate it further, what's "better" to me may be more or less important to someone else. For example, somehow who umps a lot in 95+ heat might value breathability and light weight at the expense of a little protection, vs. someone who primarily umps in colder climates, etc. Then you have to overcome the reputation issue - even top line companies give free equipment out to ump influencers. For example, All Star involved some on the board (not me) in both designing and testing/evaluating their Cobalt CP. If you really want to make this a true long term business you likely will need to do something like that.

While some federal contracts are still low bid, many, maybe even most - especially for more complex buys, are best value decisions where price, quality, and other factors can be traded off.

There's a huge difference between a retrofit pad, and a brand new model of chest protector. And how does Ray have "control of the market" when he isn't (yet) selling a product in that market? (The market in this case being the new chest protector market.) I don't see anything replacing my All-Star CPU4000 unless it's significantly better - and I have both replacement pads and a unused CPU4000 backup - so I have no dog in the fight, but to say it's "not a good look" for Ray just doesn't make sense to me, especially with what you're comparing it to.

That flat black looks awesome - did Tony at Mask-It do it? Never mind - I see you answered that above (for some reason I can't delete this post).

I an earlier post you said, paraphrasing, to "cut you some slack, I'm just a kid." Are you the same kid, or did a parent take over the account? Not that kids can't start businesses, I was just wondering. (Plus I'm not sure what age "just a kid" was meant to imply.)

I don't think it was the design that made TW retrofits so special, it was the quality and properties of their implementation of their high-tech/military focused Zorbium pads. (I'm no expert in this area - so I could be wrong or others may have more to add/change.) All-Star is awesome since their CPs allow for incredibly easy replacement of pads, in addition to be great quality to begin with. I haven't seen neoprene pads in any CP, so I'm not sure how that would be - I've only used All-Star and Schutt/Adams. Light, breathable, and protective - that's the key, and obviously everything is a tradeoff.

Without knowing specifics about the padding it's impossible to say what it's worth - "looking" like TW is meaningless to me - it would have to perform well - personally I couldn't care less what the chest protector padding looks like as long as it keeps me safe and comfortable. I have two AllStar CPU4000s, and that padding is really good - and wears incredibly well. I have probably 500 games on mine and it looks almost brand new, and have a set of replacement pads from AS waiting to be installed when needed. I just don't know if this is a big market.

I know these are the white but I got a grey set from UmpAttire and they also had the black fabric on the inside.

What kind of foam is it? That's not actually Team Wendy foam, is it?

New All-Star mag pads for my FM4000 steel - went with the grey this time because UmpAttire had them on sale for just $50 (last one in stock)! I had the black pads before, but I think these look pretty sweet, and also go with pretty much every color shirt, maybe even better than black does. (I also got a new UmpLife mask harness, not pictured - I cut off the two side straps on that - anyone else do that? It seems like they aren't needed.)