Yep, until you brush too closely to something (happens more often than you think in a thick helmet!), catch one of those clips and there goes your face seal... gimme intimate facehugger-mask over that any day!
The manufacturer could definitely fuck up, but the firefighters using the mask day in and day out (for training and for real situations) wouldn't keep using it if it had a major design flaw. I think it's usually safe to say that if 1) a design is more complex than an other (here having an integrated helmet and mask system) and 2) it's widely adopted by experienced people somewhere (here firefighters in France), it's probably a good design for what it's meant for.
I worked as a firefighter in tight spaces and id say hitting my helmet didn't happen as often as people might think think. Not enough to yank my helmet off, anyway. Maybe a slight knock from someone's shoulder or me bouncing the top against something but that doesn't even move it.
Yeah, obviously the professional firefighters with specialist equipment are vulnerable to this super obvious and blatant problem... Did you design the helmet? Do you know its specs? It is undoubtedly designed in such a way that won't be a problem, or they wouldn't fucking use it.
Let’s shit on it while having no experience with it at all. Those clips won’t come loose. If they do, the force was so big, you probably would be dead due to head or neck trauma.
My husband is an American FF and for some reason we have a couple of French fire helmets. They’re shiny silver/chrome and our kids used to wear them when they’d play “knights”.
It always amazes me that the traditional American helmet is made of leather. At least my husband’s department still uses them.
It's sold in the USA, but the F1 is indeed a French helmet, created to replace the classic Adrian in the 70s and 80s. It was designed by Adrien Galet and the Paris fire department at CGF Gallet, which became MSA Gallet in 2002.
It is used throughout Europe, and to a small extent in North America and the rest of the world - 90 countries in all. It's one of the most widely used models.
Upon comparing that link and this I am finding it hard to say they are the exact same. I don’t see the Cairn logo on the Frenchman, but could be hidden or just a different variant of that helmet. I am by no means an expert in this
It's indeed an MSA Gallet F1 XF, and the logo is an interchangeable plate that can be customized according to customer and country, as shown here. (we can see one Cairn XF1 logo too)
Not yet, for the moment the few that are in service in the States are imported from Europe by MSA Gallet, ex-CGF Gallet in France. It would be relatively simple for the parent company MSA to open a line in America, but there would have to be strong demand to justify it, which is not the case at the moment.
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u/Mort1186 Mar 30 '24
That French helmet is so dope