Umpire Mask/Helmet

[Storm13]

Ok everyone...I hate to say it but I am so glad I didn't take everyone's advice.  I found a deal on an All-Star DeltaFlex harness and LOVE IT!!!!  I adjusted it to where the harness is just under my hat and the extra elastic stretch of the harness made it so much easier to get on and off without losing my hat.  I also just got in a HSM that i bought from a fellow ump on here.  I am liking they too.  So may end up trying both out during fall ball this year and then make a more solid decision.

 

[Man_In_Black]

Correct.

DO NOT get a "Delta Flex" for a traditional mask .... it won't work.  Brad from All-Star even said, ...a DF is striclty for a catcher, that's why all of their umpire masks on their site show them coming w/ the traditional harness FM2

^^^This^^^

Ok everyone...I hate to say it but I am so glad I didn't take everyone's advice.

Not to be a d!ck or anything, Storm13... but the above advice was given for a reason. I mean, when an All-Star rep himself advises against using it to umpire, there must be something to it. Otherwise, he'd be trying to get all of us to convert. The fact that All-Star doesn't equip their line of umpire masks with DF harnesses should tell you something.

Sure, you may find it easier for to take the mask off by hand, but it's not as easy for a pitch to take it off. Without a helmet, the DF-harness does a fairly good job of keeping the mask on your head in situations where you'd actually want it to come off (being hit by a pitch or a foul ball). Instead of being carried away with the pitch (and much of the energy being carried away with it) the mask is more likely to stay put resulting in all of the energy being transferred to your skull. Of course, it behaves differently for catchers. The smooth, hard surface of a catcher's helmet allows it to come off easier when the mask is hit.

I wear a 6-stitch cap under my mask and have never had a problem getting my mask off with a conventional harness. If you can't remove your mask without taking your cap with it, then you need to practice doing it until it becomes automatic. You may need to adjust the harness to facilitate easier removal based on the cap and pads your wear. If your harness is properly adjusted, you should have no problem getting it off in any situation. To me, sacrificing safety for "ease of removal" is a bad trade-off. But hey, it's your noggin.

[Thunderheads]

^^^This^^^

Not to be a d!ck or anything, Storm13... but the above advice was given for a reason. I mean, when an All-Star rep himself advises against using it to umpire, there must be something to it. Otherwise, he'd be trying to get all of us to convert. The fact that All-Star doesn't equip their line of umpire masks with DF harnesses should tell you something.

Sure, you may find it easier for to take the mask off by hand, but it's not as easy for a pitch to take it off. Without a helmet, the DF-harness does a fairly good job of keeping the mask on your head in situations where you'd actually want it to come off (being hit by a pitch or a foul ball). Instead of being carried away with the pitch (and much of the energy being carried away with it) the mask is more likely to stay put resulting in all of the energy being transferred to your skull. Of course, it behaves differently for catchers. The smooth, hard surface of a catcher's helmet allows it to come off easier when the mask is hit.

I wear a 6-stitch cap under my mask and have never had a problem getting my mask off with a conventional harness. If you can't remove your mask without taking your cap with it, then you need to practice doing it until it becomes automatic. You may need to adjust the harness to facilitate easier removal based on the cap and pads your wear. If your harness is properly adjusted, you should have no problem getting it off in any situation. To me, sacrificing safety for "ease of removal" is a bad trade-off. But hey, it's your noggin.

agree 10000%

We didn't say don't get a Delta Flex because you wouldn't like it ........

[Storm13]

Thanks...I may just use the HSM I got from a fellow ump on here and save myself the worry...the All-Star is the only harness I have found that feels decent but I also don't need to get my lights turned off by a foul ball or wild pitch.   

[JaxRolo]

Seems like HSM popularity has decrease over time.