Helmet Face Shield

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Originally Posted by ChicagoFF

Bourkes work just fine.

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Yep, and unlike face shields you can still see through them after the first month.

My preference is for bourkes and safety glasses.

Goggles work well too, but face shields are pretty worthless, they get scratched up after a short time, the screws get loose so they don't stay up and get broken just riding around the truck, just a complete pita in my opinion.

Besides Bourkes look better on leather. :D

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Originally Posted by dustinlevengood

Bourkes aren't even NFPA approved anymore are they? They're completely useless as are face shields. I dont know why shields are still approved, they offer minimal protection during extrication operations it doesn't take a whole lot to get something to fly up underneath one of those. All of our helmets here in Riverside County are issued with goggles no shields no bourkes.

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Bourkes are NFPA approved if use with goggles. This is why my deparment allows us to were them. But my department is also taking the shields off and giving us goggles to use for extracation and etc..

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Originally Posted by tbonetrexler

Thats for those of you who see fire more than once or twice a year, lol. The goggles were a good investment for me, since 75% of our calls are MVCs. Of the other 25%, probably 1% involves fires big enough to melt my goggles. It all depends on your departments percentages though.

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I can see the benefits in goggles over the face shield, especially on MVC calls. We too get a majority of calls for MVC, I wonder if I should switch to goggles. I can leave the shield on also just in case I ever need it.......:rolleyes:

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Originally Posted by dustinlevengood

The goggles are only used during auto extrication, or when running a saw on a roof, the rest of the time they are flipped backwards and secured to the back of my helmet, if they melt my helmets gonna melt, and before that happens i'm gettin the f**k outta dodge. Alot of us myself included typically do use safty glasses rather then the goggles but if you drop the glasses somewhere or misplace em the goggles are always there.

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For sure man, If your goggles are melting to your face guys, you have a lot more to worry about than the goggles melting to your face, know what I mean?

So, for clarity, the NFPA ruling is that those worthless piece of crap faceshields (My opinion, since they crap out...ie ripple and melt on the inside, rendering them useless) are NFPA approved as "Secondary Eye Protection", The bourkes shields are not approved as neither primary nor secondary eye protection...UNLESS they are accompanied by the NFPA approved goggles, which are approved as "Primary Eye Protection"...So using the goggles by themselves in "other than fire conditions". When in a fire, obviously, the SCBA mask is NFPA approved as primary eye protection. The regular little protective glasses are approved as primary eye protection as well (and are definitely a good idea even on all medical runs, what with all the crap you can catch out there).

In any case, individual departments have SOPs that may even still be more strict that the NFPA ruling (you probably want to listen to your chief's orders :->)...IF your department is more lenient on these rules...GO by the NFPA ruling because your department isn't in compliance with with NFPA rulings, which are set up for Yours and my safety....just saying.

Hope this helps