ISO: Old School Wilson Ti

[codizzle]

Does anyone have one of these they want to sell? PM me!

[codizzle]

Bump.

Also, I'm not interested if it's going to cost more than a brand new one. I know they're not made this way anymore, but still...

[umpstu]

On 7/29/2019 at 9:19 PM, codizzle said:

Does anyone have one of these they want to sell? PM me!

What is an old school Wilson Ti?

[codizzle]

[ChrisUrbz]

6 hours ago, codizzle said:

Low Profile?

[eagle_12]

My take on old school is the “squared off” ear wings and throat extension. The new titanium shape is more of a rounded off ear wing that mimics the look of the aluminum. 

[codizzle]

Yes, what @eagle_12 said.

[MadMax]

10 hours ago, umpstu said:

What is an old school Wilson Ti?

It is as @eagle_12 answered... the current Wilson Titanium is a member of the same family the DynaLite Aluminum established. That new planform has more rounded corners, especially at the earguards, and a fuller, half-sphere profile.

The previous Titanium is the one that caused so much headache for Wilson. It was introduced in conjunction with the WestVest Platinum, and as such, showcases an aggressively raked forward extended chin guard. It evokes a billy goat. This is to allow a dangling throat guard (Wilson-brand, of course) to be easily mounted and freely swing... where it would bounce against the billow cushion on the CP.

Yep, that billow bumper on the Platinum is a marketing gimmick!

Anyway, the Ti-Platinum mask was the chief rival to the Nike Icon Titanium. Remember, the Icon’s origins lay with catchers (Jorge Posada, specifically), and it was supplied to pro and collegiate catchers, not sold. Pro umpires of course became obsessed with how light and elegantly simple the Titanium was, and the benefits it afforded over the vinyl-dipped steel masks. Catchers did not want a dangling throat guard!

... but Umpires surely would still buy and use one. So the Ti-Platinum was marketed and sold to umpires in droves. It even inspired an actual Low Profile model (as if you couldn’t go any flatter!)! The underlying problem, though, is that if a Titanium takes an overwhelming impact, it will bend. In order to bend it back out, it takes an equivalent force applied with the same abruptness... or an industrial press. Well, if that’s the case, why did it affect Wilson more so than Nike? Because Nike only supplies them, there is no means of returning a bent or damaged unit. Conversely, Wilson sold their titaniums, and if one gets bent, there’s an expectation  that the manufacturer – Wilson – will remedy it. The lost revenue on customer returns and replacements nearly gutted Wilson.

The DynaLite Aluminum actually saved them. In fairness, Diamond and their iX3 actually saved Wilson, but that’s another story. Once the Aluminum started to get sold in sufficient quantities at a much more realistic price point (still too high in my opinion, but that’s me), and satisfied the desire for a lightweight mask that won’t bend, then Wilson re-introduced Titanium to the lineup, albeit in the new family planform.

 

 

[codizzle]

5 hours ago, MadMax said:

It is as @eagle_12 answered... the current Wilson Titanium is a member of the same family the DynaLite Aluminum established. That new planform has more rounded corners, especially at the earguards, and a fuller, half-sphere profile.

The previous Titanium is the one that caused so much headache for Wilson. It was introduced in conjunction with the WestVest Platinum, and as such, showcases an aggressively raked forward extended chin guard. It evokes a billy goat. This is to allow a dangling throat guard (Wilson-brand, of course) to be easily mounted and freely swing... where it would bounce against the billow cushion on the CP.

Yep, that billow bumper on the Platinum is a marketing gimmick!

Anyway, the Ti-Platinum mask was the chief rival to the Nike Icon Titanium. Remember, the Icon’s origins lay with catchers (Jorge Posada, specifically), and it was supplied to pro and collegiate catchers, not sold. Pro umpires of course became obsessed with how light and elegantly simple the Titanium was, and the benefits it afforded over the vinyl-dipped steel masks. Catchers did not want a dangling throat guard!

... but Umpires surely would still buy and use one. So the Ti-Platinum was marketed and sold to umpires in droves. It even inspired an actual Low Profile model (as if you couldn’t go any flatter!)! The underlying problem, though, is that if a Titanium takes an overwhelming impact, it will bend. In order to bend it back out, it takes an equivalent force applied with the same abruptness... or an industrial press. Well, if that’s the case, why did it affect Wilson more so than Nike? Because Nike only supplies them, there is no means of returning a bent or damaged unit. Conversely, Wilson sold their titaniums, and if one gets bent, there’s an expectation  that the manufacturer – Wilson – will remedy it. The lost revenue on customer returns and replacements nearly gutted Wilson.

The DynaLite Aluminum actually saved them. In fairness, Diamond and their iX3 actually saved Wilson, but that’s another story. Once the Aluminum started to get sold in sufficient quantities at a much more realistic price point (still too high in my opinion, but that’s me), and satisfied the desire for a lightweight mask that won’t bend, then Wilson re-introduced Titanium to the lineup, albeit in the new family planform.

 

 

I'm so honored to have @MadMax write one of his famous detailed explanations on one of my posts!

 

[codizzle]

@Thunderheads Could you lock this or delete it? I'm no longer looking to buy this type of mask.