Ballistic helmets have gone a long way in just a couple of decades. Although there is still no viable option to protect you from rifle fire, at least not without breaking your neck, the best ballistic helmets of the market can save your life from a myriad of other things that are aiming to harm your noggin on the battlefield.
Also, not all helmets are designed strictly for urban armed conflict. Some models are mainly for quick and precise missions, making them ideal for law enforcement and security professionals.
There are three things a good ballistic helmet will protect you from:
- Handgun shots to the head
- Explosive frag and high-velocity debris
- Blunt force trauma
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Photo by Jakob Owens on Unsplash
And while it sounds easy to solve all three by just placing enough ballistic padding between you and whatever is coming your way, the things are not as simple. The force redistribution in the helmet needs to slide all of the force back to the helmet itself.
Protection that fails in its design might prevent a projectile from piercing anywhere but will create enough force on the other side for you to forget why you were there in the first place.
Finding the Best Ballistic Helmets for Your Needs
Before you pick out a helmet, you need to know where you will use it. There are even some cases where going without a helmet is preferable to having one on, especially in private security situations.
If there is no danger from explosives or point-blank attacks, and you need all of your sensory organs to be alert, especially your ears, any helmet will be an issue.
For law enforcement and low to medium risks conflicts, it is best to go with a high-cut helmet that will protect you from the vast majority of dangers without holding you down in a significant way.
But, when you can be quite certain that you will encounter an IED or grenade thrown at you at some point or the other, there is no choice but to go with a heavy low-cut helmet as well as some auxiliary armor.
Agile High-Cut Helmets
There are good and comfortable high-cut models out there that will not only keep you agile and relatively light but might also increase your combat capabilities.
With models like the HCBH™ High Cut Ballistic Helmet from UARM, you will be protected from anything falling on your head, as well as explosives and gunshots fired from above. Also, the features on the front and the side will allow you to wear comms devices, lights, and even optics if needed.
Sturdy Low-Cut Helmets
These helmets might be heavy, and the utility of the features added is generally less than with the high cut models, but they will protect more of your head from blasts and fragments.
Models like the LCBH™ Low Cut Ballistic Helmet are designed for open combat and protection from explosives. And, although it will decrease your hearing and vision a bit, it will increase your survivability significantly.
In the end, it will be up to you to decide which of these situations look more like your average day.
