Mission Carbster – Retro high tech, a look back at the first revolutionary helmet
Written: Jun 02 '05 (Updated Jul 30 '05)
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Pros: Excellent comfort and protection
Cons: Questionable appearance, not adjustable
The Bottom Line: The Carbster is a great helmet that you can buy for less than $50 today.
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| puckmugger's Full Review: Mission Carbster |
Why look back?
The helmet industry is about to get turned upside down. Bauer’s 8000 is perhaps the least exciting of the new helmets that either just hit the market or are about to do so. However it did introduce some new fit systems. The RBK 8K is the first helmet to combine Carbon fiber and a more traditional plastic shell into a lightweight design. Hefter’s upcoming entry will likely be the safest helmet for players since the inception of hockey.
But before Hefter and Reebok were even hockey brands Mission stepped out of the ordinary mold and made a helmet that was like no other. Five years ago the price tag of $150 was not an acceptable one to players and the helmet was as popular as country speed metal music. Despite not making the Carbster for three years, Mission’s helmet is still widely available at clearance prices. Why didn’t it sell?
The design
The Carbster was the first hockey helmet to sport a full carbon fiber shell. This made it more like a motorcycle or football helmet than anything that hockey players had ever seen before. Carbon fiber is a rather obvious material for helmets. It is stronger than steel and lighter than most plastics. Carbon fiber is also easy to mold into almost any shape. This is a material that goalie helmets had been made in for a couple years before the Carbster hit the market.
While a hard shell is a nice thing in a helmet, the lining is even more important. Anyone could slap a metal bowl on their head and call it a helmet. While a metal bowl might give you a nice haircut template, it certainly won’t do much to protect you from a concussion.
Mission used a dual density foam in the Carbster that made it highly protective. The dual density helmets of today where a couple of slabs of rubber are glued into the helmet and rest against the player’s head. The Carbster added a full layer of terrycloth-like comfort lining. This material is outstanding for wicking away sweat and giving the helmet a very soft, supple feel.
The strap system on the Carbster is the standard ear loop and chin strap variety. Essentially, a pair of rubber loops attaches to the sides of the helmet and hold the chinstrap in place. The ear guards are black plastic, unlike the more common clear guards on new helmets. They are removable however.
Comfort
The Carbster remains one of the most comfortable helmets on the market if it fits your head. While it was originally available in four sizes (S, M, L, XL), the Carbster was the first hockey helmet that wasn’t adjustable. To make up for the lack of adjustment the padding had to take up a little more slack than the typical hockey helmet does. To this mean, the outer layer of padding was much more pliant than what is typically found in a hockey helmet. However, the lack of adjustability made it a hit or miss fit.
The terrycloth lining is far more comfortable than any type of rubber or gel comfort lining in any other helmet I’ve tried. Further you can take out this layer and toss it in the wash. Lower stink levels in a helmet are always a good thing and help with the odor comfort level somewhat.
Some players have complained that they were between sizes on the Carbster. This is possible I guess. However, I think it is more likely that they were just more accustomed to the adjustable fit and hard lining of traditional helmet fits. I’ve found a number of more traditional helmet designs to be quite uncomfortable as the result of the liner shape being too different than my head shape. While the Carbster doesn’t have an adjustable fit, the shape molds to my head much better than these helmets with harder foams inside them.
The ventilation in the Carbster is very good too. There are large vents on either side of the helmet that help to keep players cool. Remember that Mission was primarily an inline company when this helmet was designed. (Arguably, they still are). Nonetheless, there is a little higher premium on ventilation with an inline helmet than there is with ice. This one will keep you cooler on the ice than most helmets will.
Protection
As mentioned, the Carbster was designed and produced by a company that was focused mostly on inline hockey. While often gear designed for inline won’t hold up for the rigors of ice hockey, the helmet is one area that needs to be as good or better for inline. As hard as ice is, asphalt and concrete are more so.
The Carbster offers excellent protection, on par with all of the major brands on the market today. While some of the EPP helmets will perform slightly better in impact protection, the Carbster’s full composite shell will be able to distribute the impact a little more evenly due to its lower flexibility. Unlike the partial carbon fiber shell in the RBK 8K, the Carbster is a very rigid shell with no plastic.
Another nice feature that the Carbster sports is a rubber pad all the way around the edge of the shell. Anyone who has been hit hard enough to have the edge of their helmet cut them will appreciate this. Most plastic shells have only a round beaded plastic edge which in a hard impact is still enough to need a few stitches. Even fiberglass and composite goalie helmets typically don’t have the extra rubber bead that Mission gave the Carbster.
The new Hefter will likely perform much better than the Carbster in terms of safety. Zorbium is probably the best liner for safety on the market. But the rest of the helmets on the market will be pretty comparable to the Carbster in this area.
Mirror test
Hockey players are as self conscious as anyone. Most of us won’t put on an old school Jofa or Itech helmet because it makes our heads look too big. Stupid? Yep, but that’s how we are.
The Mission is something of a borderline helmet in this respect. Perhaps the appearance is the reason that it didn’t sell well. More likely it is a combination of the appearance and the price.
The profile of the Carbster isn’t all that bad. By this I mean that the shape is fairly consistent with the more popular helmets on the market. The problem lies more in the lack of seams and the vents. We hockey players have grown accustomed to the seam where the helmet adjusts. Somehow the perfectly clean lines of the Carbster look a little too perfect I think. It somehow doesn’t look like a hockey helmet.
The vents are a problem too. They are somewhat reminiscent of the hood intakes on a 1950 Buick Roadmaster. The Roadmaster is a great car, but I wouldn’t wear one on my head play hockey. While the Carbster isn’t horrible looking in black, the black trim on the vents stands out a little too much in an y other color. Along these same lines the rubber edge around the outside of the helmet stands out pretty starkly against any color other than black.
Bottom line, the helmet might be nice looking, or it might be funny looking. That’s up to you. I’m going to call it a little less appealing visually than the other brands on the market myself.
Final Thoughts
The Carbster was well ahead of its time. Like other products that Mission has introduced over the years, it was revolutionary and quite good, but just didn’t catch on. The R & D at Mission must get more money than their marketing department does. They keep coming up with good ideas that other brands promote successfully a few years later.
Likely the biggest problem is the lack of adjustable fit. While most helmets today are increasing the fit options, the Carbster had none. Even with softer padding it didn't match up to a lesser helmet if you didn't have the right size and shape of head. Make sure to try one on if you plan on buying one or at least make sure you can return it.
In all this was almost certainly the best helmet on the market in 2001. Four years later it is still very good if you have a head that it fits.
A few of my other reviews that you might find helpful:
Fitting and Selecting Hockey Protective Gear
Hockey Mask and Cage Buying Guide
Hefter Evolution Helmet
Itech HC100 Helmet
RBK 8K Helmet
Recommended:
Yes
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