Helmet Armour Thread

[align=center][/align]

Just noticed that this forum, good as it is, lacks a helmet armour thread.

Something that isn't mentioned much is armour. Pretty essential, especially for your head, afterall you don't want your head getting clawed, bitten or bumped about in the rough-tumble of close combat
Yes survival is about avoiding fighting where possible (usually) but sometimes some toe-to-toe is the done thing..



Ok this one is an open-face style means a wearer has great spatial awareness and visibility to see and look, with protection to his vulnerable bone-dome

So I did some tests with a friends bike helmet who had no need of it anymore. It's not a combat helm but it did mean I could test it to destruction to see what it was capable of resisting. As it was a civilian-market-made product these will be readily available come a SitX etc.

this is what you need

www.by-the-sword.com...

reply to post by WatchRider


this helmet will not save you in a gun fight there fore it is worthless as armor unless you live in the UK where pistols are not allowed. I suggest you buy a USA army helmet and test it out because it has Kevlar. If your just talking about helmets in general then you shouldn't use the term armor as it is a term used for battle.

I think it's worthy of discussion. I was thinking about this last night. Now, I don't believe that if there was a form of collapse that we'd all be allowed to roam around nilly dilly without being rounded up, but nevertheless in the event that it was the case, you would want something. The thought I had last night was that given the opportunity between having my head bare or having even a por-tec helmet or something of the sort, you can bet your ass I'd wear the thing.

Originally posted by pcrobotwolf
reply to post by WatchRider

 

this helmet will not save you in a gun fight there fore it is worthless as armor unless you live in the UK where pistols are not allowed. I suggest you buy a USA army helmet and test it out because it has Kevlar. If your just talking about helmets in general then you shouldn't use the term armor as it is a term used for battle.

I guess if you're afraid of ambush or sniper fire it might be relevant. Otherwise, I would assume your gun fights would be face to face and your armor would be useless...unless you're are aiming at body mass and not looking for the head shot, which of course we always do :-)

Some good reply's here along with some utter drivel.

People who think every conflict will be with guns are sorely mistaken, what happens when ammo runs thin on the ground?
What happens when hand-to-hand and melee weapons return as the trend of fighting?
I'd rather have a light and tough motorbike helmet than a heavy and bulky battle helmet.
What's this dross about not mentioning it as armour as it's a word used for battle?
What are you smoking?
People have worn armour for dress and recreation and day to day business since antiquity!
Armour is what you wear for protection!
It's not a term OWNED by the military industrial complex being churned up in the world!
Nor is it something exclusive for soldiers either...

A little day dreamy, and off topic as far as helmet comparisons, but since I was little I've always coveted the idea of a bladed or spiked helmet. Extra headbutt weapon, anyone?

You want a helmet more like the ones worn by the spartans and some other midevil groups, it should have a nose peice and protection on the cheeks, but should also be fairly simple, minimal moving parts. You want to minimise vulnerability, without giving up to much visibility, like the helmet above. With a bladed weapon and open face peice means that the blade will have relatively easy access at the eyes which should be prevented.
However these helmets are vulnerable to blunt force trama, so your situation could change the helmet choice, if they have clubs, use the motercycle helmet.

Kevlar full face with bayonet Mohawk design on top! Hell, throw a few spikes on the shoulders, and the sheer intimidation would be enough to if not turn back the foe, decimate him or her!

Originally posted by JDBlack
You want a helmet more like the ones worn by the spartans and some other midevil groups, it should have a nose peice and protection on the cheeks, but should also be fairly simple, minimal moving parts. You want to minimise vulnerability, without giving up to much visibility, like the helmet above. With a bladed weapon and open face peice means that the blade will have relatively easy access at the eyes which should be prevented.

True but if you watch the video again you'll see that with a visor, the eyes and face are more than well protected.

Some new helmet designs now have a complete, see-through face shield that drops down, so you have the benefit of visibility, with the protection of the visor

reply to post by WatchRider


That helmet was easy to break, a couple of hits from a light baton and the helmet started to break. Imagine a bladed weapon, or heavier club used with more force hitting that helmet. That helmet would be destroyed in seconds under a stronger attack, with one or two blows incapacitating the owner. He destroyed that helmet pretty quickly with a non purpose built item. If he had used a hammer, hatchet, baseball bat, or crowbar (and so on and so on) he would have destroyed it in one or two hits, not just damaged it.

reply to post by JDBlack


Meant to add that those helmets are designed to withstand one strong blow, like from an accident.

reply to post by ZombieWoof


lol try shooting someone in the head in real life . This dude plays way to many video games And to the poster of the topic yeah if guns are not around hell yeah that thing would be awesome but i don't see the clear glass visor protecting anything as it would most likely break after being hit once or twice.

Originally posted by JDBlack
reply to post by WatchRider

 

That helmet was easy to break, a couple of hits from a light baton and the helmet started to break. Imagine a bladed weapon, or heavier club used with more force hitting that helmet. That helmet would be destroyed in seconds under a stronger attack, with one or two blows incapacitating the owner. He destroyed that helmet pretty quickly with a non purpose built item. If he had used a hammer, hatchet, baseball bat, or crowbar (and so on and so on) he would have destroyed it in one or two hits, not just damaged it.

Ok, the helmet certainly did take some licks, HOWEVER you have to understand that a bike helmet is designed in the 'shell principle' of having up to 3 or 4 layers of material to shield the skull from trauma.
I'd say vs a baseball bat or an edged weapon UNLESS they were direct hits (not so easy if the defender is moving and weaving) this would more than show you a surprise

Originally posted by JDBlack
reply to post by JDBlack

 

Meant to add that those helmets are designed to withstand one strong blow, like from an accident.

Define 'one strong blow' please as that's an empirical question

The manufacturer's certainly like to claim this is the case, but I can tell you that the helmet being tested had already sustained damage and it's integrity has been more than proved in the subsequent testing

I'd put my life on a helmet that could take more than a few violent blows. Having people brainwashed into the 'one blow and throw' is what makes the corpocracy more money instead of educating people on structural integrity and what is acceptable and what isn't

Originally posted by pcrobotwolf
reply to post by ZombieWoof

 

lol try shooting someone in the head in real life . This dude plays way to many video games

And to the poster of the topic yeah if guns are not around hell yeah that thing would be awesome but i don't see the clear glass visor protecting anything as it would most likely break after being hit once or twice.

So you'd advocate not wearing a helmet soley because of the visor?
Glass visor's? Get your facts right kid the visors are polycarbon, plastic-based and aren't likely to shatter to easily. Also, I'd rather be hit with a helmet and no visor than no helmet at all

reply to post by WatchRider

My bro was wearing a helmet a lot like that one, except brand new, and a microwave fell on his head (fell like a foot) smashed the helmet up, he was fine, but the helmet wouldn't have stopped a simmilar blow again, and i can hit that hard with a crowbar or ax. (took a bat [aluminum] to an old helmet like that once and put a big dent into it with one good swing, second swing the helmet was done for.

Those helmets are excellent for keeping you safe in a crash and would help in a fight, but not so much so for the long term. Not saying having a helmet wouldn't help, just pointing out a potential con to the helmet.

Originally posted by JDBlack
My bro was wearing a helmet a lot like that one, except brand new, and a microwave fell on his head (fell like a foot) smashed the helmet up, he was fine, but the helmet wouldn't have stopped a simmilar blow again, and i can hit that hard with a crowbar or ax. (took a bat [aluminum] to an old helmet like that once and put a big dent into it with one good swing, second swing the helmet was done for.

Those helmets are excellent for keeping you safe in a crash and would help in a fight, but not so much so for the long term. Not saying having a helmet wouldn't help, just pointing out a potential con to the helmet.

edit on 14-2-2011 by JDBlack because: typo

edit on 14-2-2011 by JDBlack because: add oppinoin

Well yeah man you're always going to run into the problem of damage over time.
If a tank get's pounded by a missile or shell, it's not going to last another one in exactly the same place either

Also guys, something that no one has mentioned (or at least I haven't seen it mentioned) is Blunt Force. Hit someone hard enough on the head and the head would not be the main point of absorption of impact - your cervical spine would. Motorcycle helmets as explained above or disposable items that protect our head from the trauma and initial impact of an accident. I would never wear one for any form of combat. Military helmets on the other hand are designed for Combat, not in the gladiator way of fighting of cause but a lot of design/money and effort has gone into these to ensure they do what they are intended to do. Ever tried fitting NV to a motorcycle crash helmet lol

Some idea's I have been looking at are:

[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/c49cc9265109.jpg[/atsimg]

[atsimg]http://files.abovetopsecret.com/images/member/aa65e5a9de4a.jpg[/atsimg]

My point is get tools that are designed for the job. These type of helmets are designed for a specific purpose and are readily available from the many surplus stores as well as the Bay. Hell I can buy these from UK Ebay so I am sure the US Ebay will have plenty to choose from for cheap.

Of course you need to bare in mind that if you look like the enemy you are the enemy. A point raised in the wearing camo thread.

While a motorcycle will take one or two hits, its not going to last very long.