Helmet fit - changes over time?

[Ansonwolfe 0]

Hi,

I just started with ice hockey last October and picked up a Bauer HH5000 helmet at the time. The fit was fine at the store and before game. I could adjust it to fit snugly both along the sides and front/back so there is no negative space around. The problem is, after about 15-20 minutes of use on the ice, the helmet starts to press down painfully either on both sides of the temple or else on two sides towards the back of the head. Is the cold changing the shape of the helmet or is my head expanding? What can I do to make it comfortable throughout a game? I do wear a bandanna under the helmet and that helps relieve a bit of the pressure.

Thanks.

[SouthpawTRK 1]

Hi,

I just started with ice hockey last October and picked up a Bauer HH5000 helmet at the time. The fit was fine at the store and before game. I could adjust it to fit snugly both along the sides and front/back so there is no negative space around. The problem is, after about 15-20 minutes of use on the ice, the helmet starts to press down painfully either on both sides of the temple or else on two sides towards the back of the head. Is the cold changing the shape of the helmet or is my head expanding? What can I do to make it comfortable throughout a game? I do wear a bandanna under the helmet and that helps relieve a bit of the pressure.

Thanks.

This is totally speculative; but perhaps as your body warms up (blood flow increases) in conjunction with the coldness of the rink is causing pressure on your temple area? The bandanna may be adding pressure when it gets absorbed with perspiration?

I've tried on a few different Bauer helmets, but went with an RBK instead. The Bauer helmets always seemed to have a bit more pressure on the temple area when trying them on at my LHS.

[Thepandamancan 0]

This is counter intuitive, but it happens to me too. I wear a skull cap underneath as well and I think what is happening is the bandana/cap is expanding due to sweat.

The helmet foams should actually get looser as the game goes on, not the other way around.

I always wring out my skull cap every couple of shifts and it also keeps me a bit cooler throughout the game.

[number21 3]

I want to say your head does swell a little bit while doing strenuous activities (not 100% sure if that's true). So that may be a part of it.

Was the helmet brand new? I had a similar problem with the 5100 but after a few weeks it broke in. Of course the 5100 has softer padding inside than the 5000. The 5000, which has that hard EPP foam with the comfort pads so if it fit snugly at the store there might not be room for expansion.

I guess I would give it some time to see if it breaks in. Otherwise you may want to try something with VN (soft) foam padding which also might need some break in time.

This is all info I picked up here. I am no expert.

EDIT: Oh, you've been playing since Oct. That probably is beyond the break-in time. I would say try some other helmets on.

[CapsFan 5]

I have a similar issue with my 9500. Fits well at the start of the game, but gets painful as time goes on. I've found that if you take it off between periods, it alleviates the pain.

[Machinehead2k5 32]

My helmet would start off tight (RBK 9k) but then once i started sweating it would move around more. My guess is that once the blood gets pumping to your head, it expands as does most objects when they gain heat.

[NYK93 0]

this happens to me with my rbk 8k

what i figured out was the the screws holding the J-clips in place were too long, and they were pushing into the side of my head, or my temple...so i just removed the screws and j-clips (i wear a cage) and the problem went away

hope this helps

cheers

[number21 3]

or you could take out the ear guards, thus voiding any certification or change any long screws/posts to short screws/post like NYK93 mentioned. I forgot about that option.

[17D1998 1]

Its probably your cage that's too heavy. I have more or less the same problem with my 4500 helmet. At first it doesn't hurt but after a while I'm starting to feel some pressure on the back of my head.

[Ansonwolfe 0]

Its probably your cage that's too heavy. I have more or less the same problem with my 4500 helmet. At first it doesn't hurt but after a while I'm starting to feel some pressure on the back of my head.

I guess at this point, my only options are to stick with it (and take it off during games) until it expires then I will get a new helmet. The only plausible explanation fitting is perhaps that my head DOES swell with exercise as do the veins in my arm. My bandanna stays perfectly dry as I rarely do sweat. And I'm actually using an Oakley VC920 combo since July but the problem had been around since the of using the helmet with a full cage.

Someone had told me to try stretching out the helmet laterally to expand it a bit. That seems to work for a little before requiring another 'stretch' during game.

Thanks for all the responses.