Mask Review

My new mask came last night and it looks like it's as over-built as I was hoping for. The mesh on it is rated at 350N (of course), but the sides and top (the parts covered with leather) are rated at 1400N, so it should handle hacks (sorry, accidental percussive cuts) without a problem. It even has an internal suspension system, to keep me from eating the mask on hard thrusts (okay, I know most masks do nowadays, but my Santelli doesn't, so it's something new for me).

It is larger than my old mask, but I think that's because I actually measured my head to make sure I ordered the right size. I didn't do that with the Santelli, because then it was a matter of just going to the store and buying what they had in stock. That was the great thing about living in Butte. There's a cutlery store there that caters to the SCA and carries all the essentials for the budding fencer, from masks to blades and even the occasional bucker. Most of it's TCA, but if you can show her an item in a catalog, she can get it.

But I digress. Being larger than my old mask, it doesn't fit as snugly, of course, so there is a little more side-to-side wobble. But the thing that is going to take some getting used to is how I put it on. My old mask, I'd put my chin in and then pop it over the top of my head. I can't do that with this new one, without pushing the tang out of adjustment. So, I have to pop the mask on the top of my head and then slide it down over my face. That'll actually make it easier to keep my coif on while armoring up, but it will take a little getting used to.