Diamond Pleat Hard Hat or Fly Hat Sunshade

pre-order- we sold out and are currently waiting on fabric to arrive.  Ship times will be 2-3 weeks until we are caught up.  01/06/25

PATENT PENDING 

Sunshades will fit Milwaukee Bolt Full Brim, Klein Tools, MSA V-gard, Bullard C33 (the XL sunshade fits the C34), MSA skullgard, 3M H-800R, the Honeywell smooth top one, MSA Topgard mohawk lookin' one, LIFT DAX and Pyramex to name a few.

NO RETURNS 

 DOES NOT FIT ON OMEGA II FULL BRIM, WAVECELL (new wilson const. hardhat),The Large size shell MSA Vgard and Honeywell Everest A49/A49R.  If the MSA says ”MEDIUM” underneath the front brim or anywhere else on the shell you're good.  The Larges aren’t very common, but they’re out there and our XL Sunshade will fit it.

The sunshade is NOT FR or Arc rated.  

We shut down sunshades a while back.  For the last couple years we have been listening to feedback from the field and working on a new version of our sunshade.  We've had samples on the ROW being tortured by Hands, not social media "linework influencers".  There were some things we could change to make the best sunshade even better.  We were getting ready to release these a few weeks ago and I realized we were doing something that I hadn't seen on any other product yet.  That's not a new feeling for us, but we've had so many supporters ask us why we didn't patent anything and we've had so many people blatantly copy our patterns, I held the pull on the drop until we were Patent Pending, which we are now.  

The number one thing people didn't like about our rigs is the sticky velcro.  The velcro we sew on the sunshades is very strong and makes a serious bond to the opposing piece that is adhered to the brim of the hardhat.  After a period of time it will lose its stickiness to the hardhat and come off the brim when you remove the sunshade.  The adhesive that was used left a residue behind that was a pain in the ass to remove and clean before putting new velcro strips on.  We started looking for new sticky velcro to use and ended up finding a manufacturer that could do a custom run for us.  We had them change the adhesive formula and if it has to be replaced it's a lot easier to do, plus it makes a stronger bond to the hardhat.  

The sunshade is soft and is meant to be soft.  It's made for people who work for a living.  It sucks getting chin checked when you jump in the cab of a rig or are trying to sneak around a line and buck in your hooks and jumpers are ripping off your hardhat.  Or the wind kicks up and your hardhat takes off with it and when the grunt brings it back the plastic sunshade is broken... again.  With that being said, our rig could be just a lil bit stiffer.  The hunt for a proper stiffener that would hold its shape in all weather conditions, but still be pliable enough to bend when bumped was a tough one.  We design and build our sunshades to be worn all year, not just in the summer months.  We went through a ton of different materials and none of them passed the T-Post test.  We finally found a material that wasn't too thick, wasn't too stiff, wasn't too soft, could hold up to the heat, the cold, the rain and the snow... and was still something that was sewable.  It passed the T-Post test and made its way to the Right Of Way for a proper beating.

I went over the bad parts of using velcro and what we did to make it better, but we tried to design the sunshade to be used without it.  We experimented with mounting clips that were already on the market and readily available.  We designed and 3D printed some attachments of our own to try and use.  We tried the elastic thing around the brim you see on Amazon style five dollar sunshades, but nothing really gave it a secure attachment that was adjustable across a wide range of lids.  It was either super loose and the sunshade would move all around or it would deform the shape of the sunshade when you put it on the hardhat.  We needed to securely attach the sunshade to the hardhat in a way that let it mold to the shape of the lid, kept it in place at all times, was easy to put on and take off and was a reliable connection that could stand the abuse of year around linework. 

After all that trial and error, the light bulb flickered in my head and we came back to velcro.  The little issues we were having was because the velcro was on the top of the brim of the hardhat!  It's being exposed even more to the heat and the moisture that causes the velcro to lose its adherence to the brim.  The "loop" that is sewn onto the sunshade is bigger than the sticky "hook" that is attached to the hardhat.  What does that mean, it means that the"loop" has more strength pulling on the "hook" than what it can handle.  The piece of hook is completely covered by the loop, which makes a very strong connection, enough so that it pulls the hook off the brim, especially after being exposed to the elements for a period of time.  

Over the years, we've proven that velcro can stand up to the elements, it's adjustable, it's strong and it works!  What we've done is apply the sticky velcro to the bottom of the hardhat brim and sew opposing velcro strips onto the sunshade that will go over the edge of the brim and attach to the hook underneath.  We went from 4 pieces to 6 pieces of velcro and from 2" wide loop to 1" wide loop on the sunshade.  The way the loop is sewn onto the sunshade makes it adjustable.  You don't have to push the sunshade down onto the brim of the hardhat to make a good connection.  Some of the lids have a very steep angle on the brim and depending on the style of hardhat you have, that can deform the shape of the sunshade when you attach it.  You're attaching a flat object to a curved surface, so it will naturally become deformed, but since it doesn't have to be pushed down, the sunshade can sit right where the crown of the hardhats meets the brim.  The surface area of the sticky hook is now larger than the loop so the hook will stay stuck to the hardhat much better.  The hook is now "stronger" than the loop and since it's under the brim it's better protected from the elements that eat away at the adhesive.

We added two more pieces of velcro for a couple reasons.  Strength is obvious, but it had more to do with the fitment of the sunshade to the hardhat.  Most hardhats have 4 bumps on the shell where the liner attaches inside.  These bumps can cause the sunshade to "pop up" off the brim in those places.  It's never affected the connection to the hardhat, but damn, you gotta look good right?!  We sewed in 4 of the velcro attachment strips where these bumps in the hardhat shells are located so it will sit nice and even all the way around the shell of the hardhat.

It's a privilege to build gear for my Brothers and Sisters in the field and it's not something we take lightly.  We will continue to build, develop and improve products to make your job safer and easier. 

With all that being said, the PATENT PENDING Low Drag Linehand Diamond Pleat Hardhat Sunshade will be available at www.lowdraglinehand.com starting at 1700/5pm pst 01.01.2025.

Love,

Kevin

MFJL5379339

P.S.  I haven't had time to get decent pics, but here they are anyway 

P.S.S.  MSA V-Gard's have one of the steepest angles on their brims, Klein and Milwaukee have some of the flattest brims.  I have some pics of Slim on the T-Post wearing all 3 types of hardhats to show you how the shade sits on a slanted bill and flat bill hardhat.  Just missing the liner on the Milwaukee Bolt lid lol

Solid colors and Kryptek Typhon fare better with the sun fade than pattern colors (See pic example) and all colors will tend to fade over time in the sun.  

1-3 business days to ship