Wilson Charcoal and Extra pants question

[The Short Umpire]

12 hours ago, wolfe_man said:

Someone on here did try this lightweight Adams CP and said it wasn't worth the funds.  I believe his comment was that the padding is very thin and he wouldn't trust for anything above kiddie-ball.   I have no dog in this fight, but if it were me, I'd find a used Douglas.  I found one with the gap coverage and t-hooks used for around $140 and they're out there, especially this time of year.

That's good to know. I won't spend the time on it if that is the case. I'm liking the idea of the Douglas so I think I will go down that route. Used would for sure be the way to go. Thanks for the input. 

[wolfe_man]

6 hours ago, The Short Umpire said:

That's good to know. I won't spend the time on it if that is the case. I'm liking the idea of the Douglas so I think I will go down that route. Used would for sure be the way to go. Thanks for the input. 

I've had most of the CP's (Wilson Gold & Platinum, AA, Champion, All Star CPU4000, Douglas 13" & 15", Schutt, Adams, etc.) and I think Douglas is the best all-around CP out there if you can get the t-hooks and gap coverage.  I'd not wear a Douglas without gap coverage as it hurts a lot when you take a shot off the gap without that plate being there. 

I love the Gold protection and fit, but I look huge in it and I'm already 240 so not a good look.   The All Star fits very well and is surprisingly lower profile than you'd think also.  Schutt/Adams has best breathability out there, but I hate the cheap Velcro being used.  I'd love to see a Wilson Gold with D3O foam... or a Douglas with it, but I doubt this will ever happen and now that I'm out of the game, I don't have the motivation to do it myself.

Best of luck!

[spiffdawg7]

7 hours ago, The Short Umpire said:

That's good to know. I won't spend the time on it if that is the case. I'm liking the idea of the Douglas so I think I will go down that route. Used would for sure be the way to go. Thanks for the input. 

I still have the Douglas that is in the Buy, Sell, Trade forum.  Let me know if you are interested.  

[AL-Ump]

On 9/9/2019 at 6:24 PM, MadMax said:

The Adams ULP-CP, @The Short Umpire, is one I have been actually considering trying, just to test it out and evaluate it. I parallel it to a (Wilson) DaviShield. I do question the thickness and durability of those plastic(?) carapace panels, and it looks like they are stitched right to the outer lattice mesh encasing the foam vest. That foam vest, though, is what intrigues me. Smack me silly, but that's D3O – the modern, magic foam that Schutt contracted to put into their football helmets, shoulder pads, and introduced into the XV. Now, why doesn't it say that? D3O was engineered by an English company, and likely has a whole pile of trade and licensing restrictions on it. Schutt may have initially licensed its use on football helmets, and is likely limited –formally – to that only. Additionally, Schutt likely cannot (easily) transfer that license to Adams, their partner/subsidiary. As it is, Adams has "assumed" production of the umpire gear, as I believe that has something to do with Schutt's increased production of football gear and the trade limitations on importing so much from overseas manufacturers. By ascribing it to a partner/subsidiary, this gear falls under a different fees, taxes, tariffs structure...

Anyway, back to the item itself... It looks decent enough. I trust my XV on MLB/MiLB speeds (yes, I faced down 101mph this past spring), and most of that is the magic of the D3O foam. I'd estimate (and don't take this as gospel, yet) that the ULP would be sufficient for 18U speeds. I'll probably have to do a MadMod on it to accommodate a Flex-style harness.

Was goofing around on the site and went down a rabbit hole - found this.  @The Short Umpire Just going to throw my $.02 in......

This is the CP that I currently use for Softball.  I bought it on Epic Sports for $40 and spent several months modifying it.  Had to take it half apart so that it would accept an Umplife harness (or any other harness).  The stock harness and clasps to the CP are trash and had to be replaced.  I also removed the extra side rib protectors, removed the throat foam thing, changed out the shoulder pads to my old Honig's (cause it looks better) and removed the gap protection.  Took a long time, several trips to the fabric store and me learning how to sew through plastic by hand.  Pretty big pain in the ass, but I wanted something that was cool (live in Alabama) and offered more protection than what I had:

I just got a promotion to Power 5 non conference and those girls are hitting low 70s.  Don't want to break a rib.  The CP looks good on, breaths well and I feel protected.

But.......

For Baseball??  I would be REALLY careful.  I don't think it offers good protection for the ball speeds you see.  Wouldn't recommend it for more than lower levels of HS and without spending time/money to modify it and get it to fit, you'd probably get frustrated and toss it.  I know I wanted to a couple times, but in the end I got the 3DO foam that @MadMax loves and some plastic plates for extra protection.

Hope this helps

[MadMax]

7 hours ago, AL-Ump said:

Took a long time, several trips to the fabric store and me learning how to sew through plastic by hand.

Could you post a photo or two of the finished rig?

[The Short Umpire]

@AL-Ump your mods look really well done. I’m currently finishing my last semester of college... well, I’m technically currently procrastinating... but as soon as the semester is done I might be asking you some questions on how your methods. I’m currently using a douglas that is doing really well, but I want to finish my mods on a +POS Kobra. I’ve had it for sometime but I had to take all of my side projects down into the basement when the semester started... modifications make a great excuse to put off homework! hahaha Thanks for you input though!

[AL-Ump]

On 12/5/2019 at 4:02 AM, MadMax said:

Could you post a photo or two of the finished rig?

Additionally, I used a hairdryer to form the shoulders and make it fit better.

Thanks for the inspiration @MadMax - without looking at your posts on your mods I wouldn't have tried doing tricks to mine!

[The Short Umpire]

7 minutes ago, AL-Ump said:

Additionally, I used a hairdryer to form the shoulders and make it fit better.

Thanks for the inspiration @MadMax - without looking at your posts on your mods I wouldn't have tried doing tricks to mine!

That looks awesome! Makes me want to get my mods started back up on my stuff. That actually gives me a few ideas and makes me glad that to see someone make this work. It seems like it would be super light weight and breathable.

[Stk004]

I'm impressed we made it this far without suggesting the Champion CP. 

@The Short Umpire, IMO, the Champion CP is comparable to a Douglas. I'm not saying it's the same, because I currently wear a Douglas and love it. I'm saying it offers very good protection with a similar profile at a fraction of the price. 

You mentioned you don't like the Schutt XV. I feel the same way (Sorry @MadMax). I think it would be a very good CP if there was padding in the shoulder cap and if the shoulder cap actually sat, ya know, on your shoulder. The Adams HDX, which is the new version of the Schutt XV, appears to have added padding in the shoulder pauldron. 

Anyway, I believe the Champion is the best bang for your buck. It's been discussed many many many times on this website, so feel free to roam the equipment forum. 

https://www.amazon.com/Champion-Sports-Umpire-Chest-Protector/dp/B0029W1VHS/ref=sr_1_1?dchild=1&keywords=champion%2Bhard%2Bshell%2Bchest%2Bprotector&qid=1575758920&sr=8-1&th=1&psc=1

[Young_Ump]

3 hours ago, Stk004 said:

Anyway, I believe the Champion is the best bang for your buck.

I'll back that up. Surprisingly low-profile and effective.

[The Short Umpire]

@Stk004 & @Young_Ump I might just order one on amazon and try it out. There seems to be a lot of good reviews of it on the forum. I could at least order it and try it on to see if I like the feel and look of it.