True Dynamic 9 Pro Helmet

[darkhors 88]

Old Helmet - Nike/Bauer 5500 Med, Bauer Re-akt 75 Med.

New Helmet - True Dynamic Pro 9 - White/Medium

Fit - I wear a medium in all brands. This helmet is supposed to fit both round and long shaped heads by using different thicknesses of padding in 3 areas, the back of the upper neck, and both temple areas. I have a more long front to back, than round. The stock padding is 5mm in the back, 6mm in the temples. For reference, the back padding options are: 5mm, 10mm, 15mm and the temples are: 2mm, 6mm, 10mm. After trying it on at home and wearing it around I went with the 10mm in the back and 6mm on the side. However, after playing 2 games back to back, I ended up changing to the 10mm on the sides and 15mm on the back. I've played another 4 games in it and the fit has been great. Also, I use a CCM FV1 fishbowl and that fits well on the helmet. The only issue you might run into is if you need to move the J-clips down. If you do, they could overlap the ear loops and cause the clips to push out a little.

The last thing I noticed compared to the Bauer is that this helmet breathes much better than my re-akt 75. I didn't really notice it much when wearing it, but now that I'm in the True, my head doesn't feel nearly as warm as it did before. In my previous review, I noted how the Re-akt was much better than my old 5500, but this thing is even better. I think it has a lot to do with it being a true one piece helmet. By that, I mean the foam that sits under the suspension system is actually molded directly to the shell. So there are not gaps between the shell and the initial foam. 10/10

Protection - So this is the first helmet with MIPS technology and when I first got it I wasn't sure how it was going to work. The way this works is that there's a section that's connected to the helmet on the inside that actually rotates (up to 15mm) separately from the helmet to absorb the initial contact. This is supposed to help rotation impact forces from going immediately to the head. I don't know if it's going to save me from a concussion, but MIPS is used in many other sports and motorcycles helmets for that reason. Hopefully I won't have to use it. Other than that, the helmet feels sturdy and being that it's one piece, I'm confident that it will stand up to pretty much anything. NA

Weight - This helmet is crazy light. I know the E700's were light, but I never wore one so I can't compare. However, I tried on this helmet, the Warrior Alpha One (and One Pro) and the Re-akt 200 and the True was definitely the lightest of them all. I didn't get a chance to weight it because I had a game when I got it and I need to put my shield on, but it is much lighter than my 75 and just the helmet alone felt lighter than the ones mentioned above. 10/10

Durability - This is where I'll be interested to see how this holds up. Because the internal base layer moves independently it'll be interesting to see if this comes loose over time. I'm confident that the shell of the helmet will hold up just fine. I'm not going to give this a grade for the overall score, but if I did the preliminary score would probably be 10/10 because the shell seems very well done and there aren't any moving parts to adjust like in the Bauers or Warriors. N/A

Intangibles - I like that you can swap out the padding. Over time if it gets too mushy, you should be able to buy replacements and make it feel like a brand new helmet again very easily. Also, the fact that the first layer of foam is molded directly to the helmet means that you don't have to worry about gaps in the protection or glue coming off. This is one of those things that you don't think about until it happens. The other thing that is actually really nice for those that use them is that the ear guards only screw in on the front side. They developed them to slide into a groove on the back of the ear, eliminating having to line up the face mask button or screw to keep the ear guard in. So those that use a visor or nothing don't have to undo that screw just to take it out. I know that sounds silly but it's the little things like that in design that are nice to see. 10/10

Conclusion - I was debating between this helmet and the Alpha One after trying on a few different ones and settled on the True. Truth be told, I got this for the same price I would have paid for the Alpha One and after comparing the two in the store I liked how light the helmet was and how I didn't need to worry about the adjustment mechanism moving during games or in my bag. The ventilation is also really great and my shield fits well on it which was a must for me. So far I have about 6 or 7 games in it and it feels like I've been wearing it for a long time.

Overall Score: 29/30- 97%

Edited February 19, 2020 by darkhors