FF Turnout Gear: What Is Top of the Line All-around?

[JAKE 1075 0]

Hello everyone , I have a question and seeking info from users of what are some of the best turnout gear manufacturers on the market? I am curious as to what outter shell fabrics ,materials ,inner liners- fabrics ,weight oz. in protection do you currently use? Model of gear such as Globe GX-Extreme,Jannesville V-force,Morning Pride etc ? Repair or sizing issues with the respected companies or thier distributors ? Thankyou.

[fireboy 6]

In Hastings we are just about fully switched over to morning pride but still have a few janesville sets being worn.

[M' Ave 1,466]

Hello everyone , I have a question and seeking info from users of what are some of the best turnout gear manufacturers on the market? I am curious as to what outter shell fabrics ,materials ,inner liners- fabrics ,weight oz. in protection do you currently use? Model of gear such as Globe GX-Extreme,Jannesville V-force,Morning Pride etc ? Repair or sizing issues with the respected companies or thier distributors ? Thankyou.

In my limited experience; I've worn older Globe and Janesville gear. More recently it's been all Morning Pride for me. I've seen some demo Globe X stuff and some Quaker and Lion. Both Quaker and Lion were a little "light weight" in terms of durability for my taste. When I was a volunteer, we had Morning Pride which used a "Nomex III" outer shell. It was a bit stiffer and heavier, but offered a great deal of durability. Since coming on the job in New York City we've had Morning Pride which has a PBI outer shell, if I'm not mistaken. It's fairly flexible and light-weight, which is good. Considering how much it weighs after I fill the pockets with tools, webbing and rope, I'd like a coat that starts out as light as possible. The downside? Well, I'd say that it's a tad prone to tearing and excessive wear. We send out gear out every six months for cleaning and repair. It always comes back with patches and such. Now, granted, I know the cleaning company might be a little liberal with their repairs (they have to make a buck!) it does wear out pretty quickly. Forget fire duty, it's the wearing of the gear while jumping on and off the rig, carrying tools or hose and taking it on and off 10 times a day when you're working. That's what wears that stuff out and it sure does wear out.

[FireMedic049 597]

My department has been in Morning Pride for 6 years now. The first round was PBI Matrix shell with a 3-layer E-89 liner. The current stuff is the Advance outer shell with their new "I" 2-layer liner. We switched outer shells for economic reasons, however the outer shell we got was not the one that was settled on when the spec left the committee. We had actually spec'd the Advance Ultra outer shell since it provided similar protective properties to the PBI, but with a decent price break.

So far, there doesn't seem to be any problems with the current stuff, but we've only been in it for a little under a year now.

Personally, the Morning Pride is the best fitting and performing gear that I've worn in my fire service career (almost 19 years).

As for what's the best materials to use............

I'd say it's hard to say what may be best for you without knowing your situation. PBI Matrix is one of the best outer shells if money is no object. However, the Advance outer shell has a long history of satisfactory performance and would be a solid choice if the gear doesn't see a lot of heavy use.

Thermal liners are kind of in the same boat. So, I'd recommend sitting down with a vendor or two and seeing what they recommend. Then do some research on those items and look for opinions from departments/people who have used those items.

One thing to keep in mind when selecting your PPE. You need to look beyond just the materials that comprise the 3 layers of the gear. Other than a few proprietary materials belonging to some of the manufacturers, every manufacturer is using the exact same materials and from the same mills. As such, some of the "wear" that M'ave mentions in his situation may not be attributable to the Morning Pride gear itself, but to the materials used in it's construction and therefore would be present if they were wearing any other brand. Design, construction & fit are just as important because these are the areas that really differentiate between the available manufacturers out there.

[Guest alsfirefighter]

Out of all of them I've worn over the past years I prefer Morning Pride 1st and GX Extreme like barely 2nd..and the Morning Pride wins only because to me it fits the best for comfort

[JAKE 1075 0]

I myself have used older Globe product such as the Astra suit in PBI ,when i first started in the fire service. I thought then that it was the best all around in comfort and wear. Then going to the GX7 product in a PBI outter shell. I was not overly impressed with that gear. Then up to recently I have used the Morning Pride, with PBI Matrix outter shell an caldura/crosstech linning. Great product in its fit, movement an weight of material. The knee padding was never a issue ,as we had removable pads. I have recently been placed into Quaker Radius gear with PBI Matrix outter shell with caldura/crosstech inner lining. It sure does not fit as well as the Morning Pride but in time I can give a better wear report. We have always used the PBI material in gold since switching from the earlier all nomex material to Globes Astra Suit in PBI. I know that the top contenders in Turnout gear are Morning Pride,Globe an Lion/Janesville. It is just interesting to see an hear as to what other departments currently use or will be switching to. I assist in my department with the Chiefs as to PPE research an recomendation toward purchasing. But it does come down to what the budget allows for in the end,but we always look to go forward with the latest in safety an performance in turnout ,ppe gear.

[BFD1054 1,552]

Out of all of them I've worn over the past years I prefer Morning Pride 1st and GX Extreme like barely 2nd..and the Morning Pride wins only because to me it fits the best for comfort

I have to go with Tommy here, Morning Pride hands down.

My old dept used Globe for years, but switched to Morning Pride a couple of years ago. My new dept is in the process of switching from Globe X-Treme to Morning Pride. Unfortunatley for me, i was issued a new set of Globe just a few months ago, so no Morning Pride for me lol.

Personally, i find Morning Pride to be lighter and much, much more comfortable.

My Globe pants are way too baggy and very uncomfortable, especially with my harnass.