Why does the paint on our helmets always seem to chip every game? It's not really a big deal, but the hit with Tony Jones Jr got me thinking about it. I don't ever see other teams helmets doing that.
Helmets
- Thread starter NotreDomer1
- Start date
That is actually the first time I've seen that since they made the switch from painting them every week about five years ago. The old helmets chipped most likely because of changes in time over both the plastic and types of paint being used. They switched to the new helmets to prevent that chipping.
Yes and no. Don't think that all the teams you see helmets are in fact that type of color all the way through as they're molded that way.
What happens is and it happens more than you think the companies run out of certain colors. They have to feed pro, college, high school, jr High, pee wee. So say if team X was short on some size mediums or large bevayse this year team has many more large head players then they'll emergency order some. Let's say there are no white remaining this week. But other colors. They take what they need from other colors and paint them white or whatever color is requested.
Shutt, riddell do this practice all the time.
Then the funky colors you see teams wear on certain weeks are all specially painted.
Do they still even have the actual gold in the paint? I thought that went out when they ended the weekly painting ritual.
They never had this problem with leather helmets. Of course, the concussion rate had to be sky high. They just didn't know it at the time.
I remember watching a replay of the ND-Alabama Sugar Bowl. An Alabama player got knocked out cold and the announcers brushed it off like he had stubbed his toe. It's incredible how unaware we all were when it comes to head injuries.
Agree and disagree.
Maybe for a "one off" helmet worn for a special game or some of the alternate uni's out there - MAYBE they paint them.
But teams standard helmets, and as a rule - they are not painted. Alabama's red helmets are molded red. They are not white helmets painted red. Florida's orange helmets, same thing. Penn State, Clemson, Michigan.
MSU's alternate white helmets are not their extra green helmets painted white. Big time college football doesn't skimp on equipment. They have the budgets to get whatever they want.
As for the running out of sizes - I think this is unrealistic. College football is a billion dollar industry. Pro football is the same. I don't think teams are low on inventory. They have more than they need, if anything. I think HS and Pee Wee are whole separate issues as most don't have the budgets to offer multiple options on colors, styles etc. They use what they have, if they need something else, they modify it to suit their needs.
Yes they do try and calculate how many they need way far in advance however it's not always so easy. They can have's run of players that require X large, or small...seldom can you predict the accuracy of head size. So if Bama ordered in crimson Helmets yes they try to get the ones already molded in that color...hiwever emergency orders, etc happen all the time. What happens then is they get painted. Nearly all times nobody knows that bevayse they do a great job of painting them.What do you think happens when they get reconditioned? They get cleaned, pads checked, structure is checked. Then painted. Even if same color as the molded shell but yrs there are helmets not of molded color always that have to be painted to match.
Emergencies are one thing, I'll give you that.
But in this day and age of astronomical athletic budgets and safety concerns - do you really think football helmets' are being "reconditioned", painted and being reused? I doubt it. Again, high school helmets are one thing. Those may be used for years before they get replaced. But pros and college?? No way. Those helmets get replaced quite often.
My wife's brother played for TCU. He got to keep his normal helmet and a special helmet they used for their bowl game his senior year. I don't think colleges reuse helmets over and over again. It's not like Brandon Wimbush is wearing Everett Golson's helmet now. They also seem to come out with new designs every year in hopes of improving safety.
I think the helmets (not ours) are molded as the color itself or the paint is baked onto the shell. It's probably why our helmets from a few years ago looked more mustard like than gold. Gold would be a difficult color to mold. I assume that ours are painted and that's why they chip more often.
Yes they are. High school may or may not ever year but pro onward very much gets reconditioned. While they may have big budgets don't kid yourself with them being foolish.
Don't believe it. With safety concerns at an all-time high none of these big-time college programs, and certainly not the NFL, are reusing helmets. The risk is far greater than saving a few hundred bucks.
Just let some NY Times reporter find a story where some college or pro athlete was injured playing football and find out he was wearing a helmet that was four years old. Call the lawyers!!!
My point is that for a measly part of the equipment budget, it's far, far more prudent to replace helmets and upgrade helmets than it is to face litigation, bad publicity or injured players.
I remember in high school telling my coach I needed an XL sized helmet..... he wouldn't believe that I (5'8 160 lbs) needed the same size helmet as our lineman....I just have a big head (wear a size 7 5/8's hat) and he just told me to get a haircut! Man, I could barely get that thing on..... would get throbbing headaches just from wearing my helmet.... actually tried to modify the padding in it and thin it out so it would fit better......
Actually, in the NFL, they do reuse and recondition helmets.
Remember, helmets in the NFL are all about player preference. There is no mandated policy on what helmet a player has to wear. All they have to do is pass NFL certification as a usable helmet, so even if a helmet is discontinued, a player can use it so long as his team has it in stock.
Read this article: http://www.espn.com/nfl/story/_/id/9694560/no-break-process-new-nfl-helmets. It's about using throwback helmets, but also discusses NFL reconditioning helmets and how players wind up switching out helmets. If the NFL does reconditioning, I'm pretty sure most NCAA teams do it as well.
