Bauer 5100 Helmet Adjustment Tab Issue

[Burning Bear 76]

Well, I bought a Bauer 5100 helmet about a month ago to replace an old, weathered Reebok 4K that I've been wearing for about 4 years or so. The transition's been good and the helmet's much more comfortable... until yesterday, when I was pulling a double header and I noticed by the second game that my helmet became just a little too comfortable. That's when I pulled up the adjustment tabs to look for anything suspicious. Here's what I discovered:

Good side (left)...

Uh... yeah, not quite as good as the other side (right).

Anyway, what this means now is that I have an almost new helmet that locks into place properly on one side and moves almost completely freely on the other. I take good care of my helmets, always storing them in their own bag and promptly placing them atop my equipment drying rack once I get home, and I didn't endure any harsh hits to the head yesterday, so I have no idea how this even happened.

Since you guys seem to be a generally pretty bright bunch, I was wondering if any of you had occurrences like this and if there's anything that can be done about it. I haven't tried to remove the prongs that have broken off inside the adjustment slots since I really don't want to try anything cute to fix the helmet unless I know what I'm doing. I thought about whimsically filling it up with hot glue, although I'm pretty confident that it will do nothing but compound the problem and ruin the helmet, and even if by some chance it did work, how safe would using a helmet being held in place with hot glue be? My guess? Not very.

I wish there was some way I could get a hold of a replacement tab, although I've never heard of anyone selling such a thing. I'd just hate to see 80 bucks go to waste and then go out and pull the trigger on another. Maybe this is just some sort of punishment for buying a goofy color like mustard yellow? Who knows, but if any of you guys have some sound advice to pass on to me, I'd greatly appreciate it.

[Chadd 916]

Submit a warranty claim to Bauer if you bought it a month ago. I'm sorry but we can not endorse any suggested self modification suggestions and will delete them to prevent anyone from doing something dangerous.

[Burning Bear 76]

Well, I'm definitely not learned in the ways of hockey equipment repair, that's for sure. I just thought that a local hockey shop or even an online retailer might have some sort of tools or replacement parts that could've been used. I wasn't looking to turn my helmet into an arts and crafts project or anything, and I certainly wouldn't do anything that would result in total ruination of the helmet.

If it's a simple warranty issue, then I'll get in touch with Bauer and see what can be done. Cheers.

[AIREAYE 248]

I've seen that once and I'm thinking that it either could be you slamming that clip into place, thus breaking the tabs or that you've sustained an impact on the front/back of the helmet. Do those possibilities ring any bells? If not, then it definitely looks to be a warranty issue like Chadd said.

[Burning Bear 76]

That's what mystifies me. Some sort of force obviously had to cause the prongs to snap off like that, but I'm pretty sure I don't ever forcefully close the tab and I don't recall sustaining any hits on the right side. I think it was even adjusting just fine prior to my second game. Strange...

I guess I was just kind of hoping that there might be some sort of simple fix or a part I could buy. It's not like the whole helmet's a total loss and needs to be completely replaced. Anyway, I'll keep you guys posted on what happens so you know what to expect if something similar ever happens to you.

[mhkehoe 1]

To me, it looks like the two plastic pieces could be removed from the slots, and the cover could be replaced. But I've never seen the covers sold alone, and I'd be surprised if they were sold seperately as it might make Bauer liable for any injuries suffered in a Frankenstein helmet.

[sharks25 9]

The tabs would only be compatible with a Bauer helmet, since they wouldn't fit in any other, so either way they could be liable.

[JR Boucicaut 3804]

Helmet is still under warranty; just go back to your LHS and get it swapped. There is absolutely ZERO reason for a consumer to call Bauer directly for a non-stick warranty situation.

However, you can remove the entire mechanism and replace it with standard-fare helmet screws. Under all of it, it is just like any other helmet, but the mechanism has been riveted into the helmet slots.

It involves removing the padding from the helmet, breaking the mechanism off, putting screws in place then reinstalling padding. You will also have to remove the flip cover as well. After that, it's just like any other helmet.

[Chadd 916]

Helmet is still under warranty; just go back to your LHS and get it swapped. There is absolutely ZERO reason for a consumer to call Bauer directly for a non-stick warranty situation.

Thanks for the clarification, I wasn't sure what the Bauer warranty policy was.

[Burning Bear 76]

I apologize for the bump, but I thought I'd let everyone know how things turned out.

JR was spot on. I ended up sending the helmet back to the retailer once they had opened a warranty claim with Bauer and a replacement was sent back to me. So if anything like this happens to you, go to the retailer/LHS where you bought the helmet and they will know what to do from there. Thanks again for all of your help, everyone.