New Easton Helmet

Jen Schro recently posted a few pics of Easton gear she has a hand in designing. One of the most encouraging things I saw was the helmet. It looks like they will be making a couple of important changes from the current M-series helmets. The padding appears to be a departure from the rigid liner with a thin comfort layer, and will now be a material that allows more compression under impact, allowing for better impact absorption and dissipation. The other big change is that the rigid cage mounting points at the forehead have been eliminated, which means impact energy will be transferred to the ear and cheek mounting points. I would like to see some type of resilient mount, but this is already a big step up for Easton.



For comparison, the All-Star helmet already includes the design features indicated above, and includes some resiliency in the mounting of the cage. The Wilson Pro Stock eliminates the forehead mounts and has decent padding, but no resiliency in the cage mounting. Schutt's padding is good, but they use the forehead cage mounts. Mizuno's padding is reasonable, but also has the forehead cage mounts. The only helmet that might compare with the much-loved Wilson Shock FX2.0 for head protection might be the Force3. I'm still hoping to see one in person.

The new Easton gear is reportedly going to be available in Summer of '19.

Thanks for sharing the info on this Eric.

Schutt helmet

Made in USA. Enough Said....

WARRIORMIKE said:

Schutt helmet

Made in USA. Enough Said....

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Schutt's padding is very good, but they could improve even more by eliminating the rigid forehead cage mounts.

Eric F said:

Schutt's padding is very good, but they could improve even more by eliminating the rigid forehead cage mounts.

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Yes its the best

Never heard anything negative on the cage mounts for the 10 years I've worked here. First time....

WARRIORMIKE said:

Yes its the best

Never heard anything negative on the cage mounts for the 10 years I've worked here. First time....

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More manufacturers are moving away from the rigid cage mounts at the forehead in an effort to redirect impact forces and (theoretically) reduce the possibility of a concussion. Of the helmets currently on the market, All-Star and Wilson have already done this (although, Wilson took a step backwards with the Pro Stock helmet). The upcoming Easton will, also. For the most part, it's a detail that most people don't ever pay attention to, and the forehead mounting points have been the industry standard for a long time. Eliminating those points is an evolution in design. Hopefully Schutt will get on that train soon.

When it comes to the cage, I don't believe anyone (that I have seen) compares to what wilson did with the cage shock absorbers. When the cage is mounted directly to the mask, with no buffer, all that shock goes straight into the mask. I can't believe this design didn't take off. You can increase all the padding you want, but all you're doing is moving the impact to a different location. Why not concentrate on the cage AND the internal helmet padding?

I know this is anecdotal, but I spent many years road racing motorcycles. I spent all my hard earned money on suspension. My engines were tired and old, but I'd eat the guys with 30hp on me alive when we hit the brakes and corners. The ability to absorb every little bump and maintain control at the very knives edge of grip was huge when you're talking 10ths of a second. When your suspension was crappy, that shock would hit your body and mess up the entire balance of the motorcycle. I think this is the same with the human brain. The shock fx helmet absorbed SO MUCH impact that you almost didn't know you'd been hit in the mask. I even talked with an umpire that was wearing the highest end (titanium) model. It was a game changer. With all the talk about concussions, I can't believe other manufacturers haven't adopted some version of this.

justanotherguy said:

When it comes to the cage, I don't believe anyone (that I have seen) compares to what wilson did with the cage shock absorbers. When the cage is mounted directly to the mask, with no buffer, all that shock goes straight into the mask. I can't believe this design didn't take off. You can increase all the padding you want, but all you're doing is moving the impact to a different location. Why not concentrate on the cage AND the internal helmet padding?

I know this is anecdotal, but I spent many years road racing motorcycles. I spent all my hard earned money on suspension. My engines were tired and old, but I'd eat the guys with 30hp on me alive when we hit the brakes and corners. The ability to absorb every little bump and maintain control at the very knives edge of grip was huge when you're talking 10ths of a second. When your suspension was crappy, that shock would hit your body and mess up the entire balance of the motorcycle. I think this is the same with the human brain. The shock fx helmet absorbed SO MUCH impact that you almost didn't know you'd been hit in the mask. I even talked with an umpire that was wearing the highest end (titanium) model. It was a game changer. With all the talk about concussions, I can't believe other manufacturers haven't adopted some version of this.

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I agree 100% that the Wilson Shock FX2.0 had unequaled protection to anything else on the market. They really got it right with that helmet (with the exception of field of view). The new Force3 might be in the ballpark, but I want to see more of it.

I agree that resilience between the cage and shell is an important factor that is largely overlooked. All-Star's mask allows for a small amount of movement, which is better than most. Most helmets have padding that allows for travel between the shell and the skull during deceleration after impact. I think this is an important factor, and one that Easton has missed badly on with their current (M-series) designs. My point about the forehead cage mounting points is about moving where the impact forces are transferred to the shell to a point that is less direct to the front of the skull. The FX2.0's rubber mount at the forehead was a pretty good approach, too.

Curious if anyone (EricF ?) has any new info on the new Easton helmets....are they still projected to hit the market next year or does it look like they may do an early release? Any Easton reps out there in DFP land?

Tatonka said:

Curious if anyone (EricF ?) has any new info on the new Easton helmets....are they still projected to hit the market next year or does it look like they may do an early release? Any Easton reps out there in DFP land?

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I'm actually in the market for a new helmet for my DD (color change), and was planning to buy an Easton Mako II. In talking with an Easton retailer recently, it sounds like the Mako II is being discontinued. The new helmet will be the Pro X. Looking at the pics I posted at the beginning of this thread, the helmet is labeled as "Pro X", so I would assume it's going to look a lot like what we see here. I'm trying to find out about availability date, but haven't heard anything yet. If it's soon, I'll wait and get the Pro X, if not, I will need to pull the trigger on a Mako II.