Fiberglass Hard Hats
Fiberglass hard hats were the primary hard hats used by industrial workers during the 1940s. State of the art during their time, they were the first hard hats that addressed the three primary concerns on the work site – blows to the head from falling objects, electrical hazards, and extremely high temperatures.
They replaced the earlier aluminum hard hats which although provided an excellent hard shell to shield against extreme heat as well as blows to the head, put workers at risk for injury or death by electrocution because aluminum is a potent conductor of electricity.
For a short period fiberglass hard hats were considered the best all around hard hats, first providing an exceptional balance between heat resistance and electrical insulation.
However, what was thought to be an acceptable level of impact resistance turned out to be a false assumption.
Concerns were made about the several incidences during which an object, heavy enough and at a high enough velocity would strike the hard hat and crack or pierce the shell.
This drove companies to create the thermoplastic hard hat in the 1950s, which quickly replaced fiberglass hard hats due to their superior impact resistance, albeit a reduced level of heat resistance.
Thermoplastic hard hats remain the most commonly used hard hats to this day. However, fiberglass hard hats still remain popular in a few industries, and are especially recommended for workers who are consistently exposed to high temperatures, such as in steel mills, mining, and fire fighting. In fact, under such conditions fiberglass hard hats retain their protective properties better than thermoplastic hard hats.
At the time of this writing, there were two primary companies that still produced fiberglass hard hats, Fibre Metal and MSA. We’ve already done a write up about Fibre Metal hard hats in a previous post. For the purposes of this post, we will be covering MSA’s popular fiberglass hard hat, the Skullgard Protective Cap, model 10069360MSA.
This hard hat is suitable for a wide range of industries mining, oil and gas, welding, iron working, chemical, nuclear, hazardous materials, utilities, paper/pulp, sandblasting, and agriculture.
It provides excellent resistance to heat, rated to maintain its structural integrity up to 350 degrees Fahrenheit radiant heat.
The low profile design of the Skullgard helps the wearer avoid bumping his head against ceilings, walls, and structures while working in tight spaces.
With a non slotted, smooth hard shell, it ensures the worker will not become caught if in the event an object strikes the cap, or if the worker needs to squeeze through certain areas. This feature is especially helpful to those who work in mines.
Ratchet suspension makes it easy for the wearer to adjust the fit with a simple turn of a dial.
The Skullgard fiberglass hard hat complies with all ANSI Z89.1-2003 Type I Class G safety standards (protection against top-side impact, high heat, and low voltage).
If you are interested in purchasing this model, you can usually get it for around $80.
There are also two other versions of this hard hat available. Model 460389 comes with a lamp bracket and cord holder, and is especially made for miners. For those who work in welding, model 482002 may be more suitable as it is equipped with Welder’s lugs.
Fibre Metal Hard Hats
There is hardly a hard hat brand that can match the quality and craftsmanship of Fibre Metal hard hats. Fibre Metal has been designing protective headwear since 1905.
The best selling Fibre Metal Hard Hats are the Roughneck Series hard hats.
Fibre Metal Roughneck hard hats are constructed out of fiberglass.
Fiberglass hard hats were popular up until circa 1950, but are now a rarity these days. They have been largely replaced by polyethylene hard hat, as well as carbon fiber hard hat models. The reason for this is fiberglass is generally considered an inferior material to protect against blows to the head. Older fiberglass hard hats often cracked with a heavy enough blow, while polyethylene and carbon fiber have shown to be nearly indestructible against such blows.
However, fiberglass has always been known for its superior heat resistance compared to other hard hat materials, and that is why they are still the preferred type of hard hat in industries where workers often work in environments that experience elevated heat levels, such as steel mills, mining, aerospace, and fire fighting.
What Fibre Metal has done with its Roughneck hard hats is quite amazing to say the least. These hard hats are made out of a proprietary injection molded fiberglass that makes them more robust than the fiberglass hard hats of the past. Known as P2N, this material is about thirty seven percent stronger and retains exceptional impact resistance up to 325 degrees Fahrenheiit, way past the melting point of polyethylene (248 to 266 degrees Fahrenheit).
What’s even more fascinating is some tests have shown P2N to be about eight times stronger than the polyethylene hard hats primarily used today. This can very well change the industry once again and put fiberglass hard hats back into the mainstream, giving workers a hard hat that is highly versatile, able to protect in a wide range of environments.
One thing that you will greatly appreciate about Fibre Metal hard hats is nearly every model that we know of will come with an eight point suspension system, while most other hard hats will come with only a four point suspension system. The points in reference simply mean that the internal crown straps that create the buffer zone between the hard shell and head balance weight and impact at eight points around the hard hat. The more the better. Most other hard hats will only offer half the comfort and protection as they will come with a four point suspension system. Furthermore, the suspension unit in a Fibre Metal Roughneck hard hat are ratchet operated, which allows the wearer to fine tune the fit by turning a dial found at the nape. Most other hard hats will not have this premium feature, and must be adjusted via a series of holes in which pins or studs must be inserted, which may or may not provide a precise fit.
On a Fibre Metal Roughneck helmet, you can even adjust the tilt of the head band to further customize the fit.
This model meets all ANSI-Z89.1-2003 standards for a Type 1 Class G hard hat.
If you are interested in using a Fibre Metal Roughneck hard hat, you can purchase one for about $25. Available colors are white, black grey, green, navy, red, yellow, and orange.