I got a great deal from someone on this forum last year for a low-profile Titanium and I absolutely love it.

Question: Is the "steel" mask that is advertised on Epic's website the black cage version of the Titanium? I vaguely remember Between the Lines carrying what they called a Titanium a while back but it was a black cage instead of the silver like normal. Anyone?

I had one, sold it at a tournament in Europe last summer for €100. Weird little quirk I have -- I like using the same hat on the plate that I do on the bases and it was just impossible with the low profile.

So I got a standard profile one. I'll be stylin' and profilin' with my new mask and my new Riddell Power this spring. :D

I have both. I started with the low-profile, because that was the first one available. I got the standard when I had to swap the first one out after it bent.

I now use the standard almost all the time. I use the low-profile when the stuff the kids are throwing isn't over 80 m.p.h.

In a winter scrimmage, I took a straight, uncaught 94 m.p.h. fastball straight in the right eye area of the standard one (a half swing blinded the catcher). The mask landed 15 feet behind and to the right of me.

I can say that the light weight makes for less of a jolt, and the pads on that mask are the best imaginable. Wear it loose, like Tim C. professes---it makes all the difference in the world. That same shot with a heavier mask that stays on, and it's a much different jolt.

I just called there. They said they only carry the low profile :mad:

It's your face and head. Paying what you need to pay to protect it optimally is, pardon the pun, a no-brainer.

Save (conceal) an extra game fee or two, and pay the difference to Jim at Ump-attire.com, and get what you need and truly want.

It's worth it in two ways: you get a titanium and you don't have to deal with Epic Sports.

I found that interesting too. Word on the street, and from a couple of umpire unions, is that low-prof masks carry a substantially higher risk for incurring a concussion.

Has anyone ever actually confirmed this with real evidence and not anecdotal stories?

Has anyone ever actually confirmed this with real evidence and not anecdotal stories?

I doubt there's an emperical evidence out there. It's just based on physics and common sense. I'd rather have a hatchet shape in front of me to deflect the energy, than a flat shape to absorbe it.

I don't know about "substantially higher", but logic would tell you the more round the shape, the less of a "flat" blow you'll get. What you're trying to avoid is the straight shot, where the ball just falls right in front of you. I had one of those with the old +POS SUL. I took the whole brunt of that one. I was coo-coo for three days, and didn't even know it.

I don't care what kind of "profile" mask you are wearing....when a 94 m.p.h. hits you uncaught, it's going to stun you for a sec. Like Finnerty says... gotta keep that mask loose.

Other than PBUC umpires telling me 'low-profile' masks were deemed 'not recommended' for safety from an increased potential for concussion...I have no real evidence.

As for choosing between standard or low-profile - I've used both and don't see a benefit from the low-pro significant enough for taking a risk for lack of real evidence. Of course others might prefer the field of view offered by the low-pro and choose to take that risk.

It's another purely subjective decision. No matter which mask is chosen we are at risk of being concussed when struck. Occupational hazard.

Well, some coaches would argue that the low profile hasn't helped me to see the zone any better. :D

ok, finally pulled the trigger yesterday. I ordered the Standard profile from Ump Attire. Sorry, but I like the 2 tone pads.

You should never have to apologize for liking something that's two-tone.

+POS two-toned ball bags?

Maybe those are the exception that proves the rule. ;)

Sheesh!

I didn't think of that, Bob. Good save.