Helmet/Visor combo

[jcdammeyer]

So today I bought one of these for both chainsaw and weed whacking work.

https://www.princessauto.com/en/helmet-visor-combo/product/PA0008588352

The only way it stays on my head is with the muffs on my ears. The back part that's adjustable for head size slides up since it's just hard plastic against what little hair I have there. Is this true for all of these types of helmets?

My regular plastic face shield can adjust the top that rests on the top of my head. Same with my welding helmet.

This one has two diagonal straps that aren't adjustable along with a horizontal strap that goes from ear to ear but is too long so is useless. Thinking I might return it to PA.

 

[Susquatch]

The only way it stays on my head is with the muffs on my ears. The back part that's adjustable for head size slides up since it's just hard plastic against what little hair I have there. Is this true for all of these types of helmets?

If there is any science or even folk lore about hat fit, I don't know it. What I do know is that nothing fits my head properly.

If you do find anything meaningful, please share.

 

[Chicken lights]

The ones I wore adjust like a normal hard hat, you shouldn't need the earmuffs to hold it on. YMMV

 

[jcdammeyer]

Perhaps it's because my head is shaped to fit this sort of hat.

 

[trevj]

John, you can go in to almost any saw shop, or safety supply place, and buy a replacement headgear for most of those combo helmets. I have in the past, added Moleskin padding (drug store, bandages aisle) to various helmet straps to add a level of comfort. You know they would only sell one size hat, if we all were built the same, eh?

Good start for saw safety. Get a set of chaps too! Femoral bleeders are fast bleeders!

For weed whacking, I prefer this style of head mount visor...

Uvex Bionic Face Shield w/Clear Visor

A face shield designed for rugged jobs. Extremely lightweight and highly adjustable for all day comfort, it's perfect for worker's exposed to impact, chemical splash and airborne debris. The S8500 features a clear polycarbonate, uncoated visor with anti

www.kmstools.com

...and even more so, one with a bit of an extension back in towards the chin. Pretty sure th eone I got through work was a 3M Brand unit. Lots of vis, great coverage from all sides. And I still wear safety glasses under one, as weedwhacking especially, is prone to kick stuff towards your face from down low, as you are often looking at other than the place you are cutting. Nothing like taking a Mach speed rock on the lens of the safety glasses to make ya a believer!

 

[jcdammeyer]

John, you can go in to almost any saw shop, or safety supply place, and buy a replacement headgear for most of those combo helmets. I have in the past, added Moleskin padding (drug store, bandages aisle) to various helmet straps to add a level of comfort. You know they would only sell one size hat, if we all were built the same, eh?

Good start for saw safety. Get a set of chaps too! Femoral bleeders are fast bleeders!

For weed whacking, I prefer this style of head mount visor...

Uvex Bionic Face Shield w/Clear Visor

A face shield designed for rugged jobs. Extremely lightweight and highly adjustable for all day comfort, it's perfect for worker's exposed to impact, chemical splash and airborne debris. The S8500 features a clear polycarbonate, uncoated visor with anti

www.kmstools.com

...and even more so, one with a bit of an extension back in towards the chin. Pretty sure th eone I got through work was a 3M Brand unit. Lots of vis, great coverage from all sides. And I still wear safety glasses under one, as weedwhacking especially, is prone to kick stuff towards your face from down low, as you are often looking at other than the place you are cutting. Nothing like taking a Mach speed rock on the lens of the safety glasses to make ya a believer!

Thanks. Next time I drive by KMS and have time to stop I'll take a look.

 

[DavidR8]

Thanks. Next time I drive by KMS and have time to stop I'll take a look.

I have that Uvex shield for wood turning. Works well for me.

 

[trevj]

Thanks. Next time I drive by KMS and have time to stop I'll take a look.

I went looking for the 3M unit I had, and don't see it, although this one sure would have been a contender when I was doing a lot of wire wheel work on the 'pig onna post' project, back in Cold Lake! Picked a few wires out of my face, despite the shielding!

https://www.3mcanada.ca/3M/en_CA/p/d/v000252345/

A much older, much wiser guy than I was at the time told me that "God may love ya, but he's not handing out extra eyes!"

 

[PaulL]

"God may love ya, but he's not handing out extra eyes!"

Yep. Recently had the dreaded metal shard in the eye experience; got in behind my (non-shop) glasses while sweeping up a bench. 2 trips to emergency, 2 ophthalmology visits. Tiny little bugger was embedded behind my eyelid and scrathing up my cornea.
Eventually cleared.
I now wear my safety glasses in the shop. Plus a full-face shield when making chips.

 

[trevj]

Yep. Recently had the dreaded metal shard in the eye experience; got in behind my (non-shop) glasses while sweeping up a bench. 2 trips to emergency, 2 ophthalmology visits. Tiny little bugger was embedded behind my eyelid and scrathing up my cornea.
Eventually cleared.
I now wear my safety glasses in the shop. Plus a full-face shield when making chips.

Went through a period where I was spending a LOT of time on deck in an MRI Clinic. Dunno how many high resolution X-Rays of my head that accounted for! Was working as an Aircraft Metalworker and Welding Shop monkey at the times, so I pretty much automatically got sent for a precautionary screening every trip in.

Really, I was not near as afraid of the MRI's, as I became of the odd wire ricocheting around the safety gear we were wearing while using a wire wheel on the angle grinder!

Scratched eyeballs suck! Pretty glad to have had all the gear on, when I really needed it though! The 'work' stuff cost me nothing but the effort to make sure it fit properly, but it sure changed how I looked at what the stuff cost when i had to buy my own. CHEAP! No matter HOW many tanks of gas that could have bought!

Besides that, if it's comfortable and convenient, you will wear it!

 

[jcdammeyer]

Besides that, if it's comfortable and convenient, you will wear it!

That really says it all. I'm torn between returning the helmet or redoing the straps so it sits on my head better. Nice thing about PA is they are nice about returns. Especially if there is an issue.

 

[trevj]

That really says it all. I'm torn between returning the helmet or redoing the straps so it sits on my head better. Nice thing about PA is they are nice about returns. Especially if there is an issue.

Nothing wrong with the Oregon stuff for a home-gamer, and a Pro level outfit is going to cost you a LOT more. But yeah, I know what you are saying...
I suggest that you treat it a little like filling the tank on the car. Don't spend too much time looking at what it costs, it still beats walking, eh? If you can find somethng comfortable that fits, just swallow hard and grab it!

The husband of one of my cousins, is a Faller by Trade, and I occasionally am the recipient of some of his cast offs, mainly saws. Comfort means a lot when you HAVE to wear it as part of both your own well being, AND as part of your job conditions! Stuff like helmets almost amounts to a consumable, and folks develop their own preferences for Brand and Fit.

The design of these rigs is really oriented towards a sawyer, who will generally be watching the cut pretty closely, so not a lot of peripheral protection.
The helmet is because all manner of things can and do fall from trees as they begin to move, or just experience the right vibration... They call the stuff Widowmakers for good cause!

If you find them comfortable, the soft foam disposable earplugs from KMS are also a pretty good pick-up. More comfortable in warm weather, than the earmuffs, AND can be worn inside the muffs to stack a little extra protection on... Typically they go on sale for around $25 for a dispenser box full. Cheap protection!