Artos FIE Mask

[KD5MDK]

At the Houston NAC I stopped by the Triplette table, and talked with a young gentleman there. I've heard all the old experiences people have had with them, and they did not strike me as a place I had wanted to deal with. However, the booth seemed to be run by decently nice guys, so I poked around.

Their sabre mask cords were too short: 40cm (we measured) if stretched out full length, but that put more strain than I was comfortable with on them and risked coiling back up as you present it to the armorer. I encouraged them to make the cords longer, and they said that would be no problem. Good to hear.

They had a sabre mask (Gajardoni) which wasn't a great deal (They wanted $109, I bought a BG FIE for $110), but what caught my eye were the old FIE foil/epee masks they were selling. Apparently they have a limited stock of Prieur and Artos masks from around 1995 they're clearing out for around $100 each. The Prieur was, well, nothing special to me, although I know other people like it (DFP). However, the Artos was something else. The guy at the booth said his was "like wearing a quilt" and the padding really was extraordinary. If there had been a sabre one I'd have picked it up right away. As it is, I don't know much about Artos except they're German and they are on the homologated list of FIE masks (from 1994). Again, the padding was softer and thicker than anything I've ever seen. If you're looking for a mask with lots of padding, I'd really recommend you give these a look.

[Junkie]

When did the standard for bibs on FIE masks move from 800N to 1600N, it was around 1995 i think and it would be worth checking that these masks are actually still FIE.

[KD5MDK]

As I said, the current FIE homologation list lists Artos as a certified manufacturer as of 1994, and the mask I saw was dated 1995. Also, I'm pretty sure it said 1600N on it anyway, but can't absolutely swear to it.

[RebelFencer]

My friend got a dent put in his Triplette mask (<1year) at the NAC so bad it looked like he got punched in the face with someone wearing barbed wire...it was pretty ugly. So when he took it back he got 15% off another mask. *sighs* I told him it was like putting your hand on a stove, saying "Oh god! That's hottt!!....I'm gonna try it again."

Edit:: Not trying to derail. Just figured it was somewhat on topic as it deals with Triplette and the Houston NAC.

[KD5MDK]

Well, this is where the "It's made by a completely different company which is not Triplette" comes into play.

[whtouche]

The real question here as far as I'm concerned is what is this super soft padding made of? if it's just some puffy fabric that's really soft I'd say stay away. I wear a leon paul x-change sabre mask currently, and couldn't imagine using a mask where the lining/padding wasn't made of some sort of moisture wicking material. Otherwise it would just stay soaked in your sweat and perpetually gross.