How long should I expect leg guards to last?

DD is a high school senior who plays year round. She destroys leg guards. We've had one set each of Louisville, Mizuno, Wilson, and multiple sets of Rawlings (bought for a ridiculous clearance price of $12/set,) and none of them have lasted more than a year before one of the knees are cracked. We currently have a Schutt set with about six months of use on them.

The school she's going to next year doesn't appear to supply team catching gear, so I may be in the market to buy a new set in the team colors. She tried on some All Star System 7 Axis leg guards, which she loved, but they are pricey.

Does one get what they pay for? Are more expensive leg guards going to last for multiple seasons? Should I just be proud that DD is so eager to drop and block and resign myself to a yearly purchase?

I am in the same boat. TB team provides catcher's gear which she hates and her HS teams provides gear. I had to purchase(donate) an upgraded set of All Star leg guards. When she goes to college she will not have any gear. DD needs to contact the coaches and ask if the team gear will be available during the fall for bullpen sessions and "captain's" practices.

Orange Socks, how are those All Star legs holding up?

My DD has only had All-Star legs since the age of 10, and they've held up pretty well. That said, she's on her 3rd set in that time period. She outgrew her first AS legs at 11, and passed them to a friend. That friend has been using them for 2 nearly years, and they are now worn to the point of cracking knee caps and some tearing seams. My DD's second set of AS legs were used for a little over a year. The knee caps are well-scuffed, but structurally, everything is still in good shape. Her 3rd set (color change) is pretty new. Until she plays with a team that mandates something else, I expect she will stay with AS.

DD has had AllStar System 7 leg guards that have lasted well. She’s on year 4 for the high school set and year 3 for her TB set. There’s a crack in the middle of the shin, not the knee, on all 4 of them that is from the way she packs them into her bag but doesn’t affect how they protect her. The TB set has taken the biggest beating because they’ve been used far more and they’ve held up really well. I inspect them about every 3 months to be sure and haven’t seen anything to make me buy replacements yet. She also had a set of Diamond iX5 gear last year and said she liked those legs better than the AllStar but her new team isn’t red. Luckily her college will buy her whatever she wants next year, and she already said she wants Diamond, so there ya have it.


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Another thumbs up for All Star guards durability. 12U DD's new S7's just arrived today to replace her current S7's. Bought the old pair three years ago but they are still holding up very well, she just outgrew them. $118 all in was the lowest I could find.

Thanks for the replies. DD's mitt and HS helmet are All Star, both of which we're sold on, so if we have to buy some new legs down the line, that's where we'll probably go.

#10 said:

Should I just be proud that DD is so eager to drop and block and resign myself to a yearly purchase?

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Or maybe find a team with better pitchers?


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My daughter has used almost all brands of leg guards and the last couple years she has went with All Stars. The S7 Axis Adult Pro leg guard work well in college due to the straps behind the knee. She gets a lot less binding behind the knee and make long bull pen sessions during practice more tolerable. As for longevity of the leg guards, it depends on your style of catching, blocking and how good your pitchers are at keeping the ball out of the dirt. In my daughters case, she gets between 12 to 14 months out of a pair of leg guards. The strapping that holds the D rings ware out and break and any part that moves will probably ware out and break. My daughter is a sophomore in college playing D2 softball as a catcher. In her opinion, the All Star S7 Axis leg guards are the best she has ever used for comfort and protection, but all brands seem to last about the same amount of time.

She also had a set of Diamond iX5 gear last year and said she liked those legs better than the AllStar

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I get the impression these are pretty underrated ! Diamond doesn't seem to be marketed as much as the other brands.