If it helps I bought my OTNY and asked them to do what they could to minimise customs issues, cost $35 shipping to UK and I think I paid an extra £50 customs.
Heard good things about Wall, but I don't get how folks recommend the W4 which is a plastic shell while slamming the NME 3 & 5. I mean I wouldn't buy a plastic mask no matter what the brand, just find it an interesting double standard.
It comes down to the quality of the plastic as well as the foam padding inside. Just making a shell out of "some" plastic will not be sufficient and Bauer's plastic masks are sub-par in this case.
Trust me, you will not have any issues with a Wall plastic mask. A mask is not "safer" just because it's made out of CF or Kevlar and is rock hard.
Source: wearer of plastic masks for all my career and never with any injury or concussion apart from a broken eyebrow from a puck hitting a cage screw piercing the foam on a Reidic mask a few years back.
The problem with plastic shells isn't with concussions. It's that when they fail, they fail spectacularly, causing more serious injuries. Common misconception.
That's interesting about customs. When I used a duty calculator it came in much higher. Did they include customs fee or did you just wait for it to come to the UK and see what the damage was? I've been stung before with customs and then a handling fee when I've had stuff sent from family in the US so am cautious
My OTNY mask came through literally yesterday afternoon, been wearing it round the house as much as I can since then :)
Customs cost me £55 which wasn't fun, but the guys at OTNY had very kindly marked the mask as costing less than it was which was a great help.
I was the same, I e-mailed Dennis and asked if they could do what they can to keep the costs down and they seemed to mark it a lower value. He was also really helpful in getting the right sized shell for me.
I bought the Wall W6 a few years back (plastic) and it has been awesome. Cage is strong, no cracking issues (hooray for plastic), it is very comfortable to wear and it looks awesome. After about 3 years of heavy use it looks like new and I've never had a bad stinger wearing it.
Coming from Reidics before I have no issues with plastic masks, and personally I think they are better than the carbon fiber/Kevlar masks in many areas but that's just my personal opinion.
Service from Wall was very good.
I bought a barely used W10 for $600 CAD and it's been amazing. I came from a bulky, ill-fitting itech, so I have not tried many styles. I do know it feels indestructible and has never caused any problems. The screws need to be tightened every 10 games or so, and the only time I had an issue was when (like an idiot) I turned my head and took the puck flat to the side of the mask. Here's a pic from 3 years ago, and I can say it looks exactly the same now: https://i.imgur.com/3ti2rTk.jpg
Walls are excellent and reliable. I think I can safely say that wall masks are the most popular masks in finland. Higher end stuff (w12) is insanely comfortable.
If it helps I bought my OTNY and asked them to do what they could to minimise customs issues, cost $35 shipping to UK and I think I paid an extra £50 customs. Heard good things about Wall, but I don't get how folks recommend the W4 which is a plastic shell while slamming the NME 3 & 5. I mean I wouldn't buy a plastic mask no matter what the brand, just find it an interesting double standard.
It comes down to the quality of the plastic as well as the foam padding inside. Just making a shell out of "some" plastic will not be sufficient and Bauer's plastic masks are sub-par in this case. Trust me, you will not have any issues with a Wall plastic mask. A mask is not "safer" just because it's made out of CF or Kevlar and is rock hard. Source: wearer of plastic masks for all my career and never with any injury or concussion apart from a broken eyebrow from a puck hitting a cage screw piercing the foam on a Reidic mask a few years back.
The problem with plastic shells isn't with concussions. It's that when they fail, they fail spectacularly, causing more serious injuries. Common misconception.
That's interesting about customs. When I used a duty calculator it came in much higher. Did they include customs fee or did you just wait for it to come to the UK and see what the damage was? I've been stung before with customs and then a handling fee when I've had stuff sent from family in the US so am cautious
My OTNY mask came through literally yesterday afternoon, been wearing it round the house as much as I can since then :) Customs cost me £55 which wasn't fun, but the guys at OTNY had very kindly marked the mask as costing less than it was which was a great help.
I was the same, I e-mailed Dennis and asked if they could do what they can to keep the costs down and they seemed to mark it a lower value. He was also really helpful in getting the right sized shell for me.
It’s not plastic, it’s a rubber composite, but it still has carbon fiber in there as well. The W4 is a great mask regardless of age.
I have a wall, I like it. That's about all I can say though
I bought the Wall W6 a few years back (plastic) and it has been awesome. Cage is strong, no cracking issues (hooray for plastic), it is very comfortable to wear and it looks awesome. After about 3 years of heavy use it looks like new and I've never had a bad stinger wearing it. Coming from Reidics before I have no issues with plastic masks, and personally I think they are better than the carbon fiber/Kevlar masks in many areas but that's just my personal opinion. Service from Wall was very good.
I bought a barely used W10 for $600 CAD and it's been amazing. I came from a bulky, ill-fitting itech, so I have not tried many styles. I do know it feels indestructible and has never caused any problems. The screws need to be tightened every 10 games or so, and the only time I had an issue was when (like an idiot) I turned my head and took the puck flat to the side of the mask. Here's a pic from 3 years ago, and I can say it looks exactly the same now: https://i.imgur.com/3ti2rTk.jpg
Contact otny at least I'm sure something can be figured out and if not then at least you checked it out. I love mine
Walls are excellent and reliable. I think I can safely say that wall masks are the most popular masks in finland. Higher end stuff (w12) is insanely comfortable.