We had to twist some arms, pay an obscene amount of money for custom fabric, and wait the better part of 6 months but we finally have a BLACK FR Balaclava. To make a long story short, it's really hard to dye para-aramids, and even harder to do very dark colors. In the end it required a custom yarn and we had to add $10 to our MSRP for this color. (If you want to know why Arc'teryx only did one(?) run in this color several years ago, never made it again... now you know.)

At any rate, now you can complete your CIA SAD LARP kit with a fully deniable, technically and aesthetically advanced balaclava. Could it be the new official headwear of America's war on Venezuelan narcoterrorists? Maybe! The contract hasn't come through the door but I'm sure it will.

Jokes aside, it's sick as hell and we're really happy with how these turned out. Sorry it took so long to finally deliver black.

If you're new to the Eighty Four FR Balaclava (WHY IS IT $64?!) here's a QRD and some FAQs

Background

Over the last year or so we've worked with our manufacturer in California to create a high quality fire retardant balaclava to fill the void left by the demise of Arc'teryx. For those not closely following industry scuttlebutt, Arc effectively banned civilian sales of their extremely popular LEAF (Law Enforcement and Armed Forces) line of clothing shortly after selling out to a Chinese conglomerate. This resulted in skyrocketing prices on the secondary market ($130+), and a fairly significant void in higher end performance apparel.

Like many of you, we regularly used Arc'teryx LEAF products and were severely disappointed when we could not buy some of our favorite apparel. Eventually we got frustrated enough that we said f*ck it and called our manufacturing partners.

Changes Updates and Improvements

Since we were going through the trouble to build this from the ground up, we decided to make several improvements to the OG design. The first and perhaps most important change was sizing. Thanks to some geometry changes, the Eighty Four balaclava fits almost everyone with one size instead of the two size system used by Arc'teryx. Our current pattern has been tested on an absurd variety of heads and validated over thousands of customer orders - we've had sizing complaints with maybe 0.1% of customers. More importantly key areas like the bridge of the nose and forehead fit better than the LEAF balaclava and are less likely to slip off.

Other notable updates and changes include a longer neck drape which tucks in to your combat top and prevents slings and other items from exposing the skin on your neck. We also removed a flammable plastic binding tape inexplicably used on the LEAF product in next-to-skin areas. I'm not sure why they did this on an FR product, but they did.

For more information I highly recommend checking out the Eighty Four product page and the YouTube video we put together for the initial release of the Eighty Four FR Balaclava.

FAQs

Why is it expensive?

We use US made Tencate Defender M mesh and sew in the USA. Despite this, our MSRP is identical to the Arc'Teryx product which is sewn overseas and not available for purchase by civilians. To be blunt, the mesh is extraordinarily expensive. Fortunately it is worth the cost due to the unique comfort and protection it offers. Defender M is the only high performance FR textile we've found that can be comfortably worn next to skin all day without overheating or irritation.

What is the UPF rating of the balaclava?

This varies a bit between colors, but the minimum value is UPF 30.

Does the FR Fabric contain PFAS?

The Eighty Four balaclava is made with inherently FR fabric which is does not contain PFAS. The FR properties of the Tencate Defender M mesh come from the yarns used in its construction, and do not rely on chemical coatings or treatments.

Is it CAT1 or CAT2 FR Rated?

Our balaclava has not been tested for CAT1 or CAT2 FR threats. Tencate advises that their fabric may work for CAT1 but is not suitable for CAT2 threats. If there is enough interest in getting a CAT1 certification, we can explore this testing but it is a considerable expense.

How well does it work in winter?

This is a non-insulating balaclava, and is generally not advisable for subzero weather. That said, we frequently use these in winter conditions when lighter layers are called for (ie. with active movement and in low wind conditions)