Someone had asked me: does anyone else besides Gerry Davis Sports sell these?

I got mine there and I haven't yet found it elsewhere. I couldn't wait; it was beautiful.

(Incomparably comfortable)

I am not 1000 percent thrilled with my face, but it's easily worth two bills to protect it.

I also noticed Tom Hallion switched out the pads for the slightly fatter doeskin wrap-arounds like Chris did. That looks pretty cool, too.

And does Gerry Davis's web store have a bad rep or something.

I foud them to be a little slow, and the prices are hardly a bargain, but they seem like one of the better sites.

I've never had a problem with their web site or ordering. I've used them from the first day they began selling stuff and have been happy since. I ordered my titanium and now will await its arrival. I have the bigger black Amara suede wraparounds on my current New View mask, so I might switch those to this mask. We'll see.

I would only switch if it's to the doeskins. You'll love how soft these pads are that the mask comes with.

I got an 85 m.p.h. straight shot between the eyes in this thing, and the pads absorbed a hell of a lot of the shock. But the blow did seem less severe because of the lighter weight of the mask. Titanium and doeskin is a very light combination, compared to the chrome molly with the black leather.

Man, I love this mask. It really is worth an extra buck to protect the face, but there are other benefits. It's less stressful on the neck for the thousands of times you are simply wearing it and not taking any shots; and it causes less wear and tear on your elbow and shoulder taking it off during the action.

Once you get past the pewter-colored bars, it's also a great-looking mask.

Interesting that Between the Lines has the new mask at $179.00:

http://www.btlofficialsgear.com/deta...&category=1375

I have ordered from Davis in the past and found that service is good, but pricing is on the high side.

I sent an email to customer service at Davis. Just want to see what kind of spin they put on it.

I'm happy with the mask, super happy. But saying that $199 is a special price is obviously nonsense based on BTL's price.

Ump-attire.com has started carrying it, too, but they're not giving it away like BTL ($224 to $179).

That means that by buying it from Davis, I spent $20 extra to have it for this past Sunday's game. I'm glad I took a shot. That may have made it worth the extra 20.

BTL's not making much on this thing if they're selling it for that price. But good for them in trying to get it out there.

Rex sets his prices fairly. I am a huge fan of Honig's shirts and pants or I'd give Rex more business. I did buy a pair of shoes from him a few seasons ago.

Who knows, it's possible he doesn't have a huge number of them and is doing this to show he's cheaper than Davis. They're both in Appleton and I'm sure there's some competition there. Not sure if there's any personal history between the two, though.

Visor
 

Does anyone use sun shield visor on this mask?Thanks.

I like his site very much, and his printed catalog is one of the best. He also seems like he truly loves it, which makes a huge difference. But the same goes for Jim Kirk and a couple of others. And then there's the Honig's quality and service benefits that you pay a premium to enjoy.

I guess the key is that if you're looking for a particular piece, you go to the site with the best price, if you can wait; and you go to the one with the best service and availability if you can't.

I really wanted that mask the minute it became available. I have been watching our two local catchers--Russ Martin & Mike Napoli--wearing their sleek-looking titanium masks for a couple of years now, and I always wanted to wait for it to be available by Wilson, rather than buy one of the other featherweights, (or ANYTHING that says "Nike" or has that infernal swoosh). After the Wilson finally became available, I looked for it for a week or so on all of the other sites, and because Davis had it for a few bucks off, I jumped.

I also got the umpire model Shock FX for $200 from a site that I used to go to for bats:

http://www.hq4sports.com/wilson-umpi...-a5590bla.html

Others have it for about that, too. Wait until you put that thing on. The comfort and visibility are unreal.

Both places are in Appleton, WI, though.

I think that a question sent to customer service isn't unreasonable. Davis's prices are pretty high. I'm still happy with the mask, but don't treat $199 as if it's a super-duper price when someone across town (who's much smaller a business) can sell it for $20 less. That said, I made my own decision and was happy to pay $199 for it.

My sun shield is called a "hat." Sunglasses on a really bad sun day. YMMV.

(Answer: No. I had a sunshield once and it kept the sun off my hat. I have it in a box somewhere.)

I must be getting old.

I can't believe you guys pay $200.00 for a mask, but to each his own.

And as far as lightweight goes, how light does a mask really need to be? I mean, think about it, if your neck can't support 1-2 pounds, you really need to work on your neck.

JMHO

My son just asked me for money for gas. I gave him a $50 and told him next time I'll give him enough to fill it all the way up. Then he said, "Can I get another twenty for lunch?"

Twenty dollars is not what it used to be. So the $179 loss-leader price (very smart) at BTL is the way to go for everyone else. I wanted the thing so badly that I waited only a week and jumped when it appeared that Davis had the inside track. (I suspect that they were taking orders before they had it, because as soon as I ordered it, a notice appeared that the initial shipment was gone and the new one will come in a couple of days. In business school lingo, that means they weren't even stocking it yet.) Davis's $200.00 price tag was not bad, and I knew that if I waited long enough, I could get the mask for significantly less, and a bare cage for $100.00 or less and use doeskins and MLB harness that I already have. But that could take months and I wanted it ASAP.

You take one look at this thing and it's love. The kind of feeling that one would only admit to other umpires. ;)