Tough Headwear Balaclava Snowboarding Motorcycling Reviews Summary

Warmth and Insulation

Pros:

• "This thing is amazing! I use it on my motorcycle in some really cold weather."
• "OMG THIS IS A LIFE SAVERI bike commute everywhere and once the winter time came my ears started freezing!"
• "Cold weather. Did a great job."
• "I never realized that they burning in my lungs when I start running on freezing days could be mitigated."
• "This seems well made and has kept my head warm pretty well in a Minnesota winter."
• "The Tough Headwear was highly rated and a good price so decided to buy it. It has been GREAT at keeping me warm."
• "I’ve only used it for one day and I can say it really did help a lot."
• "This face mask was a life saver for me."

Cons:

• "The fleece lining is VERY thin (you can see through it if you hold it up to the light). Not warm enough IMO for anything below freezing."
• "It does fit larger heads but is too loose, excess material on the top of your head."
• "I thought the product was okay it said it was very warm but once you get out in the cold with the wind it blows through and it doesn't keep your face warm or your head."
• "While it does block some wind, it does not block all, nor keep heat in very well."
• "Very thin material and as for being windproof forget it."
• "When I got the mask, I thought I might have been played for a sucker as it arrived in an almost envelope sized bag and is made of a somewhat thin material."
• "The description said it has a thick construction, which I didn’t really find."

Fit and Comfort

Pros:

• "Good wear, easy to breathe through!"
• "Keeps you nice and warm, it fits snugly!"
• "For adults with huge heads, though, this probably won't be ideal—it's too small to be comfortable for my husband."
• "I (5'9" woman with average sized head) bought two of these two years ago, and am now buying a third so that my two kids and I all have one."
• "Balaclavas usually fit like a second skin, making them uncomfortable after they've been on for a bit. This fits well but has space over the mouth so you don't feel like you are being abducted by a really weak person."
• "I wear a helmet when snowboarding so I try to flatten out the creases and bulges on top as much as I can so it's not uncomfortable."
• "I ordered this for a ski vacation in Vermont, and it worked very well."
• "Works fairly well. 1st time I used it, I snowboarded for 6 hours straight on a VERY cold day and it held off the wind for the most part and kept my face protected from wind burn."

Cons:

• "The bottom part doesn't reach down into the collarbone far enough."
• "The mask doesn't really go down far enough around the neck, and it doesn't go down far enough onto my forehead or hold well enough on my forehead, frequently slipping over to the middle of the top of my head."
• "Wore it for 3 weeks in Minnesota (snow hasn’t even hit yet). It does fit larger heads but is too loose, excess material on the top of your head."
• "The only reason I did not give this item a 5 Stars was because in the marketing pictures, it stated it was breathable with no fog because of the mesh panels."
• "Took this out west to Montana for our snowmobiling trip. It wouldn’t say on my forehead let alone on top of my head."
• "The only thing is if you are wearing glasses, or sunglasses be prepared for them to fog up because of the warm air exiting out at the top of the nose."
• "Honestly, I am not that mad about it. I just wished they would make it a little softer and more stretchy."

Breathability

Pros:

• "I never realized that they burning in my lungs when I start running on freezing days could be mitigated."
• "This face mask it a great outer shell for your head when cycling!!"
• "I've had an all fleece balaclava since my downhill skiing days. Now I use it in cold weather when I'm walking my dog but it didn't seem to be that warm anymore and it got wet from breathing so I decided to buy a more modern balaclava."
• "I am so happy to have this balaclava during our winter storm season."
• "This face mask was a life saver for me."
• "I never realized that they burning in my lungs when I start running on freezing days could be mitigated."
• "I can’t fit my wireless headphones under it because of the way they are made but I like running without headphones on too."
• "Keeps my ears warm."

Cons:

• "The fleece lining is VERY thin (you can see through it if you hold it up to the light)."
• "Also, the breathable mesh only covers the mouth and not the nose openings."
• "The mouth area is so tight, you can see a perfect impression of your lips and if you talk while using, it will get wet from condensation (cold weather) and saliva droplets since it’s so tight."
• "It's comfortable, warm, etc. My only complaint is the breathe holes. They let cold air in when I'm driving the buggy around at work in cold weather."
• "I never realized that they burning in my lungs when I start running on freezing days could be mitigated."
• "I thought the product was okay it said it was very warm but once you get out in the cold with the wind it blows through and it doesn't keep your face warm or your head."
• "I bought this and the Nike equivalent with the intention of finding out which was better for skiing/snowboarding and the occasional extreme winter day."
• "Bought this based on a Google search for top ski gear and then lots of reviews here, but what I don’t remember was anyone saying the seams cross over directly over the ears."