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.
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