I’d been promising the boss I’d do a write up of some sort for ages, too long in fact. I knew I had owned a range of masks over the years from JT Flex IZE being the first through pretty much everything else that’s been released as time went on. 16 years down the line here I am and strangely enough I’ve come full circle back to the legendary JT Flex series.
Mine are all black though which is a bit boring and bland so off to Kee I go with a phone call or three and after they’d received their delivery I got a message, my stuff was waiting. One more phone call, payment details were exchanged and 2 days later I collect a box from the local depot.
Kid. Sweety shop.
Contained therein, the new LE Proflex colours, a Flex 8, lenses, fans, and proshields. I’m gonna do me some customisin’…….
2 old JT’s in the back and the new ones on the front row. Spot the difference? There really aren’t any which is a testament to the nature of the design. These masks have been on the go for a long long time and why fix it if it ain’t broke??
Anyway, on to the fine details. I would describe a JT proflex to someone who’d never seen one as a modular item. There are 6 main components
Frame
Faceplate
Ears
Lens
Strap
Peak (optional)
All of which are available in a variety of colours, some limited edition like above but bought as a complete unit, some will be limited runs of individual pieces like straps or frames. There’s a whole sub culture of JT collectors and builders out there who buy and sell individual bits for literally hundreds of pounds and dollars. Madness!
There are benefits to the modular system in that it’s probably the most customisable mask ever made. Six components in multiple colour options = a squillion combination possibilities from the stealthy to the outrageous and this is their appeal. The more practical side is that you can replace individual parts as they wear out or break giving them longevity and it’s not expensive to do as you go along.
I’ll put my neck on the line and say that JT have, in my opinion, the BEST thermal lens on the market. I’ve never had a mask which works as well as JT for the same length of time. Sure it’s not a quick release system but once you get used to changing the lens it’s not as fiddly as you think, the frames “bed in” as well making it easier after a few attempts. Your fingertips will feel it though, trust me. That said, it’s one of the safest lens retention systems too, you’d be hard pressed to pop a lens in the middle of a game!
Anyway, on to the masks. We’ll start with the intro level Proshield.
Retail is £45 ish, it’s the same basic modularity but with a hard faceplate and ears instead of the plush rubber on the Flex series. Designed as a site mask, they’re hard wearing with good coverage and the same foam as on the Flex series so mainly comfortable.
Here it is on the front left with its bigger brothers. The price difference isn’t really evident in quality terms, it’s most certainly well put together but is only available currently in black or olive and comes in a plastic retail bag instead of a nicely presented box. No mask bag either but hardly the end of the world. Proshield masks use the same Spectra lens as the rest of the flex series.
Here’s what I did with mine as a for instance, I consider this my all day comfort mask for big games where the mask will be on my head for extended periods.
I’ve swapped out the hard plastic ears which weren’t comfy on MY head for the soft JT mini ears. Hard faceplate for protection, camo frames and a camo strap for, well, camouflage. Dark lens which is my personal preference, peak for the rain and a fan, yes, a fan.
That’s a good shot of the foam too, nice and soft and comfy. The peaks do a good job in the rain, I know a lot of masks don’t supply one these days which I find strange. Note the fan fits snugly under the peak, it’s a 2 way switch so you can change the direction of the airflow. Yes it’s a bit noisy but hell, it works and it doesn’t have to be on all the time, only when your eyeballs start sweating……
Onwards to the Proflex LE colours. Retail around the £70 mark.
Nicely presented in a display box, these masks come with 2 thermal lenses, clear fitted and a smoke one in a lens bag. Also provided is a mask bag, so already you can see where your extra money is going. They’re priced in line if not cheaper than a lot of the competition.
These are two of the latest LE colour ways from JT.
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There are of course your standard colours available if you prefer. The main difference is the quality rubber ears as opposed to the foam of time gone by. The foam was easy to rip and fairly thin which didn’t offer much in the way of protection. I’m not sure that the rubber will protect any more than that but it is definitely harder wearing. Rubber faceplate has been a long time feature of JT masks and I have to confess, there’s been more than one tournament where I was saved by a bounce from it, any other mask would have resulted in elimination.
As far as your target profile goes, this mask sits neat and tidy. It’s not a big mask at all, here’s a comparison shot beside a pair of Vforce Grillz which are definitely snug.
Not a massive difference.
They’re comfortable to wear, so much being flexible rubber. There’s a chinstrap attached with full size adjustment and the main goggle strap is nice and tight with quality rubber beading on the inside to grip one’s noggin. Marvellous and you can easily double strap them for the look or extra grip. Mainly for the look though, we all know it.
Next up, the Flex 8…… retail around the £60 ish mark.
While part of the flex series, this is slightly different in design in that the ears and faceplate are one single piece, the goggle frame and strap are of course still interchangeable.
The main construction is of a harder plastic than the Proflex LE, this will obviously offer a little less chance of a chin shot but more chance of a break. Strangely, the peak on this was much shorter than the standard peak, still covered the required area though. It’s not worth making a big deal over.
The colours were good on the outside, it’s not printed on the inside but I did see more mould lines and things, this just didn’t feel as much of a quality product as the Proflex did for some reason. It didn’t feel cheap or nasty, it was good, just not as good as the Proflex.
Fitment is similar, slightly more tapered so if you’ve a face like a horse it may feel “neat” on you. It is again available in a range of colours, I quite like this though, tis a good design and the colours look better in the flesh than in the photos.
I’ll always have a proflex of some sort to wear, they’re the best all round mask I’ve seen. 16 years since I started playing and it’s still my first choice. For the record, I haven’t tried the latest offerings from Virtue or HK but I don’t think I want or need to. JT masks are well priced, plenty of spares and parts available, hold their value well on the second hand market, customisable, comfortable, hard wearing and look good as a bonus.
Just to finish up, here’s a few more photos because we all like photos of kit. Some of this is old, some new, some made up from spare parts and some colour swaps were done for a bit of variety.
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Mine are all black though which is a bit boring and bland so off to Kee I go with a phone call or three and after they’d received their delivery I got a message, my stuff was waiting. One more phone call, payment details were exchanged and 2 days later I collect a box from the local depot.
Kid. Sweety shop.
Contained therein, the new LE Proflex colours, a Flex 8, lenses, fans, and proshields. I’m gonna do me some customisin’…….
2 old JT’s in the back and the new ones on the front row. Spot the difference? There really aren’t any which is a testament to the nature of the design. These masks have been on the go for a long long time and why fix it if it ain’t broke??
Anyway, on to the fine details. I would describe a JT proflex to someone who’d never seen one as a modular item. There are 6 main components
Frame
Faceplate
Ears
Lens
Strap
Peak (optional)
All of which are available in a variety of colours, some limited edition like above but bought as a complete unit, some will be limited runs of individual pieces like straps or frames. There’s a whole sub culture of JT collectors and builders out there who buy and sell individual bits for literally hundreds of pounds and dollars. Madness!
There are benefits to the modular system in that it’s probably the most customisable mask ever made. Six components in multiple colour options = a squillion combination possibilities from the stealthy to the outrageous and this is their appeal. The more practical side is that you can replace individual parts as they wear out or break giving them longevity and it’s not expensive to do as you go along.
I’ll put my neck on the line and say that JT have, in my opinion, the BEST thermal lens on the market. I’ve never had a mask which works as well as JT for the same length of time. Sure it’s not a quick release system but once you get used to changing the lens it’s not as fiddly as you think, the frames “bed in” as well making it easier after a few attempts. Your fingertips will feel it though, trust me. That said, it’s one of the safest lens retention systems too, you’d be hard pressed to pop a lens in the middle of a game!
Anyway, on to the masks. We’ll start with the intro level Proshield.
Retail is £45 ish, it’s the same basic modularity but with a hard faceplate and ears instead of the plush rubber on the Flex series. Designed as a site mask, they’re hard wearing with good coverage and the same foam as on the Flex series so mainly comfortable.
Here it is on the front left with its bigger brothers. The price difference isn’t really evident in quality terms, it’s most certainly well put together but is only available currently in black or olive and comes in a plastic retail bag instead of a nicely presented box. No mask bag either but hardly the end of the world. Proshield masks use the same Spectra lens as the rest of the flex series.
Here’s what I did with mine as a for instance, I consider this my all day comfort mask for big games where the mask will be on my head for extended periods.
I’ve swapped out the hard plastic ears which weren’t comfy on MY head for the soft JT mini ears. Hard faceplate for protection, camo frames and a camo strap for, well, camouflage. Dark lens which is my personal preference, peak for the rain and a fan, yes, a fan.
That’s a good shot of the foam too, nice and soft and comfy. The peaks do a good job in the rain, I know a lot of masks don’t supply one these days which I find strange. Note the fan fits snugly under the peak, it’s a 2 way switch so you can change the direction of the airflow. Yes it’s a bit noisy but hell, it works and it doesn’t have to be on all the time, only when your eyeballs start sweating……
Onwards to the Proflex LE colours. Retail around the £70 mark.
Nicely presented in a display box, these masks come with 2 thermal lenses, clear fitted and a smoke one in a lens bag. Also provided is a mask bag, so already you can see where your extra money is going. They’re priced in line if not cheaper than a lot of the competition.
These are two of the latest LE colour ways from JT.
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There are of course your standard colours available if you prefer. The main difference is the quality rubber ears as opposed to the foam of time gone by. The foam was easy to rip and fairly thin which didn’t offer much in the way of protection. I’m not sure that the rubber will protect any more than that but it is definitely harder wearing. Rubber faceplate has been a long time feature of JT masks and I have to confess, there’s been more than one tournament where I was saved by a bounce from it, any other mask would have resulted in elimination.
As far as your target profile goes, this mask sits neat and tidy. It’s not a big mask at all, here’s a comparison shot beside a pair of Vforce Grillz which are definitely snug.
Not a massive difference.
They’re comfortable to wear, so much being flexible rubber. There’s a chinstrap attached with full size adjustment and the main goggle strap is nice and tight with quality rubber beading on the inside to grip one’s noggin. Marvellous and you can easily double strap them for the look or extra grip. Mainly for the look though, we all know it.
Next up, the Flex 8…… retail around the £60 ish mark.
While part of the flex series, this is slightly different in design in that the ears and faceplate are one single piece, the goggle frame and strap are of course still interchangeable.
The main construction is of a harder plastic than the Proflex LE, this will obviously offer a little less chance of a chin shot but more chance of a break. Strangely, the peak on this was much shorter than the standard peak, still covered the required area though. It’s not worth making a big deal over.
The colours were good on the outside, it’s not printed on the inside but I did see more mould lines and things, this just didn’t feel as much of a quality product as the Proflex did for some reason. It didn’t feel cheap or nasty, it was good, just not as good as the Proflex.
Fitment is similar, slightly more tapered so if you’ve a face like a horse it may feel “neat” on you. It is again available in a range of colours, I quite like this though, tis a good design and the colours look better in the flesh than in the photos.
I’ll always have a proflex of some sort to wear, they’re the best all round mask I’ve seen. 16 years since I started playing and it’s still my first choice. For the record, I haven’t tried the latest offerings from Virtue or HK but I don’t think I want or need to. JT masks are well priced, plenty of spares and parts available, hold their value well on the second hand market, customisable, comfortable, hard wearing and look good as a bonus.
Just to finish up, here’s a few more photos because we all like photos of kit. Some of this is old, some new, some made up from spare parts and some colour swaps were done for a bit of variety.
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