Hot take: Old Kirby Morgan hats beat the new fiberglass ones for comfort

I got my start back in 2003 on a bridge job in Seattle, and I wore an old KMB 18 band mask for years. That thing was heavy but it fit like a glove after you broke it in. A few years ago I tried one of the newer fiberglass KM helmets on a pipeline job in the Gulf, and man I just couldn't get comfortable with it. The weight distribution felt off, it rode high on my neck, and the seal never sat right for me. I swapped back to the old 18 after three days and my neck pain went away. Maybe it's just what I'm used to, but I've talked to a few old-timers who feel the same way. Has anyone else noticed the newer helmets feeling different, or is it just my weird shaped head?

2 comments

2 Comments

spencerfisher14d ago

Respectfully disagree - the fiberglass ones sit way better on my shoulders and don't kill my neck.

jason_stone14d ago

Totally felt the same way until I tried a hybrid one with a padded yoke, @spencerfisher - that combo finally solved the neck pain for me.