Guys,
Everyone knows of my desire to find the perfect CA.
I have owned many. Most recently, I own the ******* 993 and the Battram.
Well, like the ******* the Brown came at price to good to be true so, i decided to test drive it.
I have no reason to change the *******. But as i said it was a great deal on the Brown.
Also because i try not to be too much of a gear whore the Battram is sold pending payment as well as the Pro return pants, if they fail thru; then they will go in the classifieds.
Now on to the details.
Is the stock Brown 2200 CA with out the collar option. Size Large.
Out of the box, it has a wow factor,of a legendary Brown product, the nice yellow accents and the blue material on the inside.
First thing i noticed is the weight. Its heavy compared to the 993, it weight about the same as the Battram.
Also, the way its made is different than most CA in the fact that the backpad has and needs no adjustment.
It is attached to the Chest and Arms permanently.
So no adjustment is needed/possible for raising or lowering the neckline or the way the CA sits.
This is actually a good thing. You put the CA on and it fits. No major adjustments are needed. Simply adjust the tightness of the arms to your own liking.
Now, out of the box this thing is stiff, that has been mentioned before that breaking in a new Brown CA is a task.
Well, this one is no different. It fails the beer test. you cant really touch your face too well. The arms really need to be worked in.
It sits well on the body.
And i like how the chest is longer in the front. This feature was also on my TPS R8 and I like the extra few rows of blocks in the lower belly area..
Also, one major issue for me is shoulder protection; for double pad slides and this CA has nice shoulder cups with alot of padding behind it. so i don't foresee a problem but only time will tell.
So some not so meaningful ratings
Quality 10
Out of box very stiff will need break in time.
Ease of Adjustment 10
I will update the review as time goes on.
For reference i am 5-10" and 165lbs and the size Large fits me like a glove.
Here are few pics
Cheers
Jim