Davis Shins

[OkieUmp17]

So I recently purchased a pair of the Wilson Davis Shins. I love the weight of them. Love the idea, but I can’t stand having to pull my plate pants out of the top knee after every time I stand up. 
 

has anyone figured out a hack to keep this from happening. I thought about wearing a pair of tights over them but seems like that’s just defeating the purpose. 

[DerekGDS]

This is my biggest gripe with the original version of the DaviShins.  While I don't have a simple solution, it is a big factor in the updated design we're working on.

[wolfe_man]

1 hour ago, OkieUmp17 said:

So I recently purchased a pair of the Wilson Davis Shins. I love the weight of them. Love the idea, but I can’t stand having to pull my plate pants out of the top knee after every time I stand up. 

I have the same issue with my F3's.  For some reason, only the left leg grabs my pants like that - but I know the feeling.  I've tried to grab my pants and pull up as I stand in one, smooth motion so they won't grab as easily, but it doesn't always work for me.

1 hour ago, OkieUmp17 said:

has anyone figured out a hack to keep this from happening. I thought about wearing a pair of tights over them but seems like that’s just defeating the purpose. 

The fix is to have a seamstress add about 4-5" of silk inside your plate pants at the knee.   Then, your shins won't grab your pants, they'll slide right on by.

[Velho]

If they were creased well enough that wouldn't happen.

[wolfe_man]

2 minutes ago, Velho said:

If they were creased well enough that wouldn't happen.

So, more starch is also a good answer here?

[OkieUmp17]

16 minutes ago, DerekGDS said:

This is my biggest gripe with the original version of the DaviShins.  While I don't have a simple solution, it is a big factor in the updated design we're working on.

Ya. I have worn them in 2 games and it’s just annoying. Because I didn’t think about just wearing them around the house before I wore them in a game so I can’t return them either. So now I’m stuck trying to figure out a possible solution 

[wolfe_man]

3 minutes ago, OkieUmp17 said:

Ya. I have worn them in 2 games and it’s just annoying. Because I didn’t think about just wearing them around the house before I wore them in a game so I can’t return them either. So now I’m stuck trying to figure out a possible solution 

A cheap option is to duct tape the top of the shins to your leg.  It's not practical, but it'd get the job done.

I have seriously thought of using a really large sock and cutting off the feet, then putting it around the top of my shin to keep it held tight to my leg.  Very similar idea to some guys wearing a compression shirt over the CP under a plate coat.

[Velho]

I haven't yet gotten my new GD plate pants hemmed. They are heavier than my Smitty's. Will be curious to see if that helps.

[UAME]

1 hour ago, wolfe_man said:

A cheap option is to duct tape the top of the shins to your leg.  It's not practical, but it'd get the job done.

I have seriously thought of using a really large sock and cutting off the feet, then putting it around the top of my shin to keep it held tight to my leg.  Very similar idea to some guys wearing a compression shirt over the CP under a plate coat.

I love my Davis Shins, with the exception of this issue.  It's now second nature to pull my pants out when they get clamped.

@wolfe_man based on your comments, I'm guessing you don't have firsthand experience specifically with the Davis design?  The DavisShins are essentially a rigid design from top to bottom.  Yes, there is a separate "knee cap" but it barely hinges at the joint.  The only straps are behind your calf; nothing above the bend of the knee.

When you squat, the shin guard (down the entire height) is fighting to be vertical (or on plane with your shin bone.)  This pulls the knee cover away from your quad as you squat; only the tension in your pantleg resists the rigid knee cap from standing straight up.  The gap created between the guard and the front of your thigh closes up when you stand from your stance, thus creating the "chomp" effect that gathers the pant material that was spanning the gap.

Any methods that might work on standard designed guards are pretty futile on the DavisShins.  Duct tape? Yes, if you can call balls and strikes with your knees locked completely straight!! 😆

[BLWizzRanger]

Drill two holes in the top knee piece, eighth of an inch(?) sixteenth (?)  in diameter perhaps, and them take some sturdy material and shape it to fit into the holes and extend above the top knee piece an inch or so.  I was imagining bending a 'C' shape of some sort into the material and using it like a spring to hole it into the holes and keep its shape.  Maybe the steel posts used to hold up the paper politicians signs could be bent to fit the shape.  Maybe it is only the size of a lawn motor throttle wire that can be used.  At worse you have two small holes in the knee piece.

**This is out of the box thinking learned from the MSU University.  I have no way on knowing if this works.  Maybe this will spur other thoughts on how to solve the issue. Otherwise, just stay in your stance the whole game.

[bluetick48]

1 hour ago, wolfe_man said:

I have the same issue with my F3's.  For some reason, only the left leg grabs my pants like that - but I know the feeling.  I've tried to grab my pants and pull up as I stand in one, smooth motion so they won't grab as easily, but it doesn't always work for me.

The fix is to have a seamstress add about 4-5" of silk inside your plate pants at the knee.   Then, your shins won't grab your pants, they'll slide right on by.

@wolfe_man on your F3’s remove the Velcro padding and move it up just a bit higher…. Problem solved. 

[wolfe_man]

15 hours ago, bluetick48 said:

@wolfe_man on your F3’s remove the Velcro padding and move it up just a bit higher…. Problem solved. 

Thanks man, I've thought of doing that so man times and just haven't taken the time to move it.

[wolfe_man]

15 hours ago, UAME said:

@wolfe_man based on your comments, I'm guessing you don't have firsthand experience specifically with the Davis design?  The DavisShins are essentially a rigid design from top to bottom.  Yes, there is a separate "knee cap" but it barely hinges at the joint.  The only straps are behind your calf; nothing above the bend of the knee.

When you squat, the shin guard (down the entire height) is fighting to be vertical (or on plane with your shin bone.)  This pulls the knee cover away from your quad as you squat; only the tension in your pantleg resists the rigid knee cap from standing straight up.  The gap created between the guard and the front of your thigh closes up when you stand from your stance, thus creating the "chomp" effect that gathers the pant material that was spanning the gap.

Any methods that might work on standard designed guards are pretty futile on the DavisShins.  Duct tape? Yes, if you can call balls and strikes with your knees locked completely straight!! 😆

My apologies, I'm very familiar with the older DaviShins, but not so much with the new ones.  It is entirely possible I applied the wrong logic for the wrong shins.  I should have asked for a pic or confirmed which version first before commenting.

I hope you find a good, workable solution.

[boyinr]

17 hours ago, UAME said:

I love my Davis Shins, with the exception of this issue.  It's now second nature to pull my pants out when they get clamped.

This is what I do when I wear mine.  I find this a small irritant compared to the combination of light weight, cooler, the two straps and relatively protective.  Being on the less tall side I would like them a little shorter (14-15").  

[BLWizzRanger]

19 hours ago, wolfe_man said:

I have the same issue with my F3's.  For some reason, only the left leg grabs my pants like that - but I know the feeling.  I've tried to grab my pants and pull up as I stand in one, smooth motion so they won't grab as easily, but it doesn't always work for me.

The fix is to have a seamstress add about 4-5" of silk inside your plate pants at the knee.   Then, your shins won't grab your pants, they'll slide right on by.

What if you put an ounce or two of material into the hem at the bottom of the pants? Would that pull the pants back over the knee?

[Velho]

1 hour ago, BLWizzRanger said:

What if you put an ounce or two of material into the hem at the bottom of the pants? Would that pull the pants back over the knee?

Don't know about you but I'm carrying extra weight as is. Looking to shed, not add 😂

[TheLovejoy]

Tighter pants.
I had this issue when I wore them very early this season. 
Then, my 15 year old wanted to start dabbling in the umpire world (the highest level of giddyness excitement that you can imagine, that was me) So, I went back to my Force 3's, and gave him the DaviShins. 
Well, he isn't going to work a 'ton' of games since he's also playing High School, so I just wanted one pair of combo pants. His combo pants are obviously a little tigher/form fitting than my Plate pants. 
He hasn't had this issue at all, one time. 

[MadMax]

5 hours ago, Velho said:

Looking to shed, not add 😂

Nourishment, hydration, and irony-of-ironies… timing. 
As in, utterly resist eating anything – anything – after 8pm. This is a diabolical challenge for us older umpires, because our games typically end at or after 8pm, and our minds equate energy depletion with hunger satiation. Ya can’t. You just can’t. By all means, hydrate. Do a protein shake if you absolutely must, but with a game completing after 8pm, it is best to get to sleep ASAP, and let your body repair itself fully… 

… instead of trying to metabolize the food you took in, which is typically complex (because our culture has equated dinner with complex, multi-course entries). 

Alcohol needs to be drastically reduced, if not eliminated. I’m not stating this by ethical or moral standards; I’m stating this strictly by the digestive / metabolic burden alcohol placed on your system. 

Get yourself in a routine of waking up and “gettin’ to it”, with some kind of activity and proper hydration first thing in the morning. Ingest plenty of appropriate* proteins, drastically reduce superfluous carbs. Hydrate whenever you have hunger pangs. The trick is to force your metabolism to change, adapt and operate by day, and do proper repairs at night. 
 

* - appropriate = animal, whey, or plant protein is fine, but try to avoid soy protein, or other synthesized proteins (such as “protein bars”, which are loaded with sugars, oils, and emulsifiers)

[Velho]

32 minutes ago, MadMax said:

Alcohol needs to be drastically reduced

I take it you haven't see @Richvee's thread. 😁

 

Seriously, great points. Biggest thing for me was grokking CICO (calories in, calories out) and sleep. Working out more at the cost of sleep or that there is a "free lunch" in no carb diet are traps. I'm down 30+ lbs and another 15 would be good. About time to refocus on that.