This is a product review for the ShMS Gas Mask for the Russian NCO Officer's:
http://www.sovietarmystuff.com/Product_ ... _Mask.htmlFirst off, when you see this mask in the opening stages, you will notice that it comes in three parts, the tube, the mask, and the filter. Please note, that to fully be able to appreciate this mask, you must use the accompanied canvas bag to carry the filter so that you won't have any issues with the filter knocking around or trying to find a place to store it without the bag.
The skull cap itself, is made from the latex material commonly seen in other gas mask models, and uses a fully enclosed system that covers your ears, hair, and the rear part of your skull. It fits very well and is very easy to apply, the material is comfortable in almost all cases, and the only problem that I had with the comfort on this mask is that there is a lip that comes from the forehead to protrude the eye lenses and face cover, which when you first wear it, may cause minor pain to swell around your eyebrows due to the tension it creates. This, however, isn't a complete problem, because once you wring it around and break it in, it should fit comfortably without any issues at all. The lenses have a good habit of not fogging up as easily as other gas masks that are similar in its make, such as the GP-5 and so on. The voice amp that is attached works very well compared to older models, and has a good reach of about 8 feet with some minor distortion like most masks cause when speaking. The lenses this mask has are the typical circular models, and do not constrict vision too badly, and can even work while sighting in with a red dot or iron sight.
The tube usually comes with a cover, mine did not, but you can request one at your will if necessary to be applied to your next order and so on. The tube is made of tightly woven fibers and encased in what I would speculate would be a mixture of water proofed materials and a hard casing to keep it all together, even with this though, it is very flexible and will not get in your way in most cases of combat or regular use. The tube works perfectly fine at delivering filtered air from the filter to the skull cap, and does not kink up at all. If you have the cover, it will further provide better water proofing to your materials below.
The filter that this mask comes with, is a rather large canister which works particularly well with this mask, though smaller ones can be applied as well. I have not had any problems with this filter or the smaller one clogging or filtering properly as of yet, and I have used both for a good amount of time in the rain and while using smoke grenades as a field testing substance.
The bag can be adjusted according to your height, and properly stores both the mask, tube, and filter with ease as long as you file them where they belong. It may take awhile to get the mask and tube in there right, but once you find the right way, the filter fits perfectly fine. The bag is very durable, and also resists water quite well for its material, and becomes essential when using the mask itself to carry your filter.
All in all, this is an excellent gas mask for someone who will most likely not be caught in extensive combat situations that will require quick movement and a lot of weapon utilization, as it is normally issued to NCO's who I can speculate would more so commonly would be speculated to view the battlefield and asses the combat situation. I can also recommend this mask to anyone who will be caught carrying heavy loads and will not be likely to use anything more than a sidearm due to its functionality and makeup. Also, make note, that this mask is indeed a very terrifying mask, it can cause extensive psychological fear in cases where you are fighting someone in combat, or just making an entrance around unknowing individuals, it is very intimidating as the sight itself explains in the description.
The ShMS NCO Officer's Gas Mask, gets a 9.0/10.
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