Itech 1400... Widowmaker?

[WI_stinger39]

no offense but using the argument "plastic helmets are certified and so are kevlar and fibreglass therefore the quality is the same" is absolutely ridiculous.

plastic helmets are certified for ice hockey, but they probably meet the bare minimum required criterion for the certification (using your argument, sure it will stop 10 shots at 100mph, but what about the next 10? or the ten after that?) whereas the kevlar/fibreglass helmets probably exceed the bare minimum standards and have been proven as a longer lasting and more protective product.

i'm using a koho gf570, and i've never had any protection issues, but prior to that i had also used a itech 1000, going from one to the other is like day and night, let alone the comfort and padding the protection off the head shots created less vibrations and reassured me a little more. even after almost 2 years the helmet is in near perfect condition.

[keeper21]

Originally Posted by Sprawl

and soulpathc. not all of us can afford 1000 masks when our old ones are broke. my budget dictated the price. i can't go outside that. I tried to pick the best mask in that price range and if i picked wrong i'd like to know why.

The mask that soulpatch (and many other people) use is only $289 USD for a brnad new one. I think that would be in your price range.

[Sprawl]

hehe. lars. the concussions wheren't from goalie.

1st was a bike accident where i flipped my bike and landed on my noggin. was wearin my helmet, which cracked and shattered and took most of the impact however i still did get a concussion from the force... thankfully. the doc said if it werent for the helmet i'd be dead.

2nd was when i was defence. I did a diving play (Kknow I know stupid) and went sprawling past the net. I knocked the puck outa play and saved an open goal net. i had slid behind the net and as I was getting up and was on one kneed and on my skate a disgruntled aponent decided to skate through me at full speed even after the play. i took his knee right in the back of my head. I wasn't wearing a motuh guard and the shock sent my brain rattling. the LONGEST skate of my life was the skate to the bench where i fell over. he was banned from the league.

3rd. Skiing. my cousin "dared" me to do a jump. i hadn't jumped in a few years. I miss judged the landing. landed on my skiis but with my weight too far back so i fell backwards and smacked the back of my head against the compacted snow. the force was strong enough that i was launched back onto my feet and my goggles / toque flew about 20ft away. was throwing up for days

[Carnivale]

Well, since everyone else is cutting down sprawl here I'm going to be the devil's advocate and say that I totally agree with him. He's asking for facts and actual experiences, not heresay and opinions. Many people have chimed in with "useful" advice amounting to more or less "don't buy that, dude", but no one has shared any actual experiences of injury or problems with this mask. The guy's not trying to pick a fight, he's just looking for factual information and experiences with this mask rather than unsubstantiated opinion and heresay.

[rpringle@grants]

Here's an easy empirical test you can do on your own (I did this 10 days ago at a Weekend Warriors camp in Buffalo with an Itech 1400 and my own Sportmask Ricochet).

Take the Itech and grab one side of the bucket in each hand and push and pull it - the Itech 1400 has a plastic shell that deforms quite markedly with little effort. I could easily get a deflection of several inches with little pressure. Then try it with a higher quality mask - the shell of the better mask will deform very little, even with quite a bit of pressure applied. The plastic and design of the the Itech lacks structural rigidity.

Now imagine a puck (or a stick or a knee or an elbow or a goal post) striking the side of the Itech. Without structural rigidity, the shell will deform and pass the force onto your skull. Probably outcome: concussion or fracture. This is something you can see with your own eyes and not rely on someone else's opinion.

Suggestion: stop looking for definitive, peer-reviewed evidence that this particular model of Itech is inadequate and invest your time and energy in finding and purchasing a good quality mask that will protect your noggin.

[Sprawl]

rpingle. i see what you mean. I feel the flex and i didnt think much of it before. i will admit the helmet breaths like **** compred the first one i had (some bauer, cant remmber the name).

so i'm thinkin of taking the old bauers i have, the new itech and my old cooper reactor 4s to Play it again smorts and trade them in for a new Olli or something.....

too much negativity for me to ignore.

now comes the "what do you recommend"

thinkin about those ****in concsussions i had... is giving me a headache and i'm in no mood to relive those

[shootertutor]

ive had a 1400 for a year and i can tell you its the biggest piece of crap you can put on your head. just spend the extra cash and get a real helmet.

[soulpatch]

I would not base everything on the flex of the shell. It is the breaking point and such of the shell that is the issue. My NXi flexes quite a bit but it is meant to do so. I have never had a crack or any deformity happen as of yet and I have played against all ranges of players. Some masks are meant to flex some.

Another thing - I removed the rigid foam in my mask and now play with the Maltese gel on foam spacers as well. This absorbs even more impact.




Sprawl - I have had numerous concussions from Lacrosse. If you are in the same boat as myself than you should not skimp out on your noggin. I was going to buy an even more expensive mask but did my research with the NXi. I PMed numerous people who had the mask as to their experiences and such.

People on this board PM each other for reviews all the time and mosat of us will post up reviews of our gear. If you look on this board there are tons of negative remarks about the ITech masks. That says something. Says even more when people note personal experiences witht he mask failing and such. You will get better info here than finding a particular stat online somewhere.

I mean come on. COmpanies and such throw all kinds of stats and numbers around. This drink tastes better, DSl is faster than cable, this car handles better, ect. In most cases those stats and numbers are done by the company itself and are not realistic of general uses.

[soulpatch]

Originally Posted by keeper21

The mask that soulpatch (and many other people) use is only $289 USD for a brnad new one. I think that would be in your price range.

That is for the newest model. I wear the older version of the Phantom which I believe Steve Badger (owner of NXi) still has laying around. I think Soritong just got one for like 199 or somthing like that.

[Carnivale]

Someone should suggest this one to the Mythbusters

[Reinhold]

Originally Posted by Carnivale

He's asking for facts and actual experiences, not heresay and opinions.

I think the reason why he's geting more of a spattering of loose detail and a couple honest 1st hand opinions here is that we have all put out a couple times this week already on this very subject... not hearsay... not rumor... not mob rule... but simple experience and non-biased (as non-biased as broken noses, cut open faces and concussions and such can be)... so ya... this is yet another thread on an issue that was VERY well addressed only a couple days ago in this very same forum...

If you don't care what anyone here has to say... why did you ask? why didn't you read the other thread from 2 days ago (I think that was the last post)... stop egging and start reading it'll get you better answers...

Originally Posted by Sprawl

hehe. lars. the concussions wheren't from goalie.

1st was a bike accident ...
2nd was when i was defence...
3rd. Skiing...

Coming soon to a rink near you...

4th was a goaltender playing low C level hockey...

[VisionQuest]

I think this thread sucks.
Its a well-worn topic around here, what to protect your dome piece with.
Fortunately, most of us realize that anything less than the Olie/NXI level of mask simply wont cut it when protecting our dome pieces.
It's your ****ing brain. If you have to AT ALL question your current level of protection, its time to dump it and move on.
I for one have a sportmask razor vx. I like it a great deal, but even with that said, its likely my next mask will be aramid.
ok back to watching Spain/Tunisia now.

[c0nquistad0rian]

Note: If you're considering an Olie, the MA9900 is their low end, plastic equivalent of the Itech 1200. The Olie MA2000 is their high end Carbon/Kevlar mask. It's relatively cheap compared to other masks made of the same materials. and from what I hear (not as in "dude this is an awesome mask" but rather "this mask has less returns at my hockey shop than similarly constructed masks by other companies") It is a very good mask. It was on the top of my list before I struck a deal here on the BB. Goodluck with your non-widowmaker search.

And I can say that I empathize with your plight as I similarly have been wearing an Olie MA9900 until I stumbled across this board.

[Rockhell]

Im currently using a 1400 - and taken plenty of pucks and sticks off the noggin and so far have been ok. I am waiting for my friggen PS3 to come though...

but yeh - so far no problems.

[soulpatch]

Originally Posted by Rockhell

Im currently using a 1400 - and taken plenty of pucks and sticks off the noggin and so far have been ok. I am waiting for my friggen PS3 to come though...

but yeh - so far no problems.

Many people drove the Ford Explorer with no issues during the whole Ford/Firestone thing but that didnt mean that teh setup was safe.