Cairns vs. Bullard

[JonathanStevens]

Out of curiosity which brand of helmet do you favor: Bullard or Cairns? contemporary vs. traditional style. I'm sure this has been discussed in the past but I havn't seen it posted before. So in other words... just humor me. haha.

[JohnVBFD]

Out of curiosity which brand of helmet do you favor: Bullard or Cairns? contemporary vs. traditional style. I'm sure this has been discussed in the past but I havn't seen it posted before. So in other words... just humor me. haha.

Ok, I'll humor you.

Knock knock

whos there?

orange

orange who?

aren't you tired of these knock knock jokes?

[malana1]

Why did the elephant lay on his back?

To trip birds!


Now that is humor

[KevinFFVFD]

haha, nice jokes. anyways to answer your question i use a Bullard Firedome PX helmet http://www.bullard.com/Fire_Rescue/structural/PX.shtml . its black(fire firefighter) and we have red(for captains) and white(chiefs). we also have blue for those who are medics. we have one guy who has a Firedome® UST Traditional Style Structural Firefighter. http://www.bullard.com/Fire_Rescue/structural/UST.shtml. its costs a little more, but i like the look. i would get one, but the department will only pay for the one they already issued me. so if i want the traditional one i have to buy it myself.
cant say much about cairns. never even seen one much less worn one.

[FF41230]

We use Cairns. Haven't had good experience with Bullard. We bought about 6 of the UST traditional ones several years ago and they fell apart within a few years. Some of them were cracking around brim and the impact caps fell apart. We have a mix of Cairns 1010's and 1044's, some have our own personal N5A's and one buy bought one of 880 traditions. They have all held up great over the years and are more comfortable then the bullards.

[npfd801]

We're entirely Bullard. New recruits wear yellow tactical tupperware Firedome so they stand out like a sore thumb. The rest of us wear USTs in various colors.

The new USTs are much nicer than the older ones. They're lighter, more comfortable, and I think if you buy the matte finish look decent (I know, it isn't a leather.)

I like the look of the Bullard shield holder, but that isn't why you buy a helmet. And we're in Bullard because we were when I took over the gear, and I don't want to maintain spares for three brands of helmets.

Any chance you can get to try a Cairns on? If you're buying it - pick the one that is the most comfortable. You may not like either, and end up not buying one.

[backsteprescue123]

In my limited experiences, I HATE anything Bullard with a passion.*** I can never seem to get them to fit right whether they are traditional or modern style. That being said, I love Cairns traditional, especially the leathers, and even the moderns arent that bad. They seem to fit alot better. Granted I wear a Morning Pride Ben2Plus right now and don't have any real complaints with it. It took me 2 minutes to find a right fit with that helmet and with my Bullard captain's helmet I had that thing for 4 months (before I got the Ben2) and had yet to find a comfortable fit.


*** Edit: I take that back..... partially. The Bullard USRX, urban search and rescue helmets are very nice and the few times I have worn them they were comfortable, but those were the exception.

[DeputyChiefGonzo]

Bullard makes great thermal imagers.... and that's all I am going to say about that.

[dday05]

Bullard mkes great thermal imagers.... and that's all I am going to say about that.

I'll second that! We wear Morning Pride BenII. But a buddy of mine from a neighboring dept has a Cairns similar to what we wear, and I put it on and it seems to be more comfortable then our helmets.

[N2DFire]

Thanks to the 2005 AFG - we all now have new Bullard USRX helmets.

Prior to that - it was whatever was on sale when we needed to buy a new helmet.

I have also had my own Cairns 1010 - Quality wise I have no complaints about Cairns.

When I first had it I loved it - but over time & use I found that I never could get it to fit me quite right - it was always uncomfortable and because of that - the weight began to bother me too.

I was in the process of looking for a new lid when I was elected Lt. on my dept. and just began wearing the Red "Salad Bowl" they gave me. After I stepped down as a Lt. I went back to a second hand bullard until the new USRX's came in.

IMHO - it's all a matter of what you like that fit's you best. Dosen't matter how "good" or "cool" a helmet is - if it's uncomfortable to you, you'll end up looking for any excuse to not wear it and a helmet is no good unless it's on yer melon.

[bjgaylord]

We use Cairns. Haven't had good experience with Bullard. We bought about 6 of the UST traditional ones several years ago and they fell apart within a few years. Some of them were cracking around brim and the impact caps fell apart. We have a mix of Cairns 1010's and 1044's, some have our own personal N5A's and one buy bought one of 880 traditions. They have all held up great over the years and are more comfortable then the bullards.

I would be interested to hear from other users if they have experienced cracking of the Bullard UST Traditional outer shell around the brim. My department did a complete replacement of our bullard contemporary style thermoplastic helmets as they were too old and not in compliance with current 1971 standards. We decided to stay with Bullard because we have never had an issue. We of course decided to "upgrade" to the UST traditional. Within 2 years, over 50% of the helmets had to be replaced due to cracking of the shell around the base. The supplier ate the cost of replacement because Bullard would not cover it under warranty. Their excuse was that our helmet mounted lights were too tight and caused the cracking, even though not all of the helmets had lights mounted or the lights were on the opposite side of the helmet as the cracking. Now, after the replacements have been in service for under a year (Jan. 2012), we are starting to see cracking again.

If you or your department has experienced similar issues, I would like to hear about it. We are preparing to replace again, but we are not sure that we are going to stay with Bullard, as they obviously don't want to stand behind (or in this case, "under") their product.

[FyredUp]

In my personal experience I have used Morning Pride Ben II's, Cairns 1010, 1044, N5A, and N6A, and a Chieftan traditional style helmet. Given my choice I would pick either of the Cairns 1010 or 1044, or the Chieftan. I find them the most comfortable and the Chieftan has been my primary helmet and seen the most fire of any helmet I own. It has held up fantastically and the price couldn't be beat.

I bought my son a Bullard UST over 2 years ago and he has used and abused it not only in real incidents but as an instructor and fire setter for live fire training. He has had no issues with this helmet and likes it very much.

Frankly, to me it boils down to the helmet that is the most comfortable and meets the current NFPA standard. To me the comfort is as high a priority as the protection offered. I could have the safest helmet in the world but if it doesn't fit and it isn't comfortable it isn't for me.

I suppose I should comment on the 2 leather helmets I owned, the N5A and N6A. I like both of these helmets but preferred my old standard N5A, it was lighter and far more comfortable to wear. I found the N6A heavy and uncomfortable to wear and frankly it was not a good value for my money. The N6A fell apart at about 5 years of use. I am not telling anyone not to buy a leather helmet if you want one. I just won't spend my money for another one.

[IronValor]

Leather Forever N6A
Anything else is simply tactical tupperware. Great for heating up leftovers and containing the mess not so good at manly protection

[nameless]

I like the old leather top hats they wore in the early 1800s

[FyredUp]

Leather Forever N6A
Anything else is simply tactical tupperware. Great for heating up leftovers and containing the mess not so good at manly protection

LOL!! Perhaps so, but my plastic traditional style helmet has held up better AND lasted longer than my
N6A did. To me it was simple economics. I can't fford to replace a leather helmet every 5 years or so. Especially when the level of protection is no better than the plastic traditional.

Enjoy your leather. I certainly liked my old standard N5A, which lasted longer in service than my N6A!

[wischief]

We recently bought Paul Conway American Classics. They are more comfortable than our old Cairns 1010's and we were able to get them at a better price than Cairns.

[RyanK63]

Cairns all the way. My department issues the modren style Cairns helmets but if we so choose we can purchase our own. I use a 1010 and will never own anything but a Cairns.