Tactical Helmets

A ballistic helmet protects against fragmentation and handgun-velocity threats, and gives you somewhere to mount a light, a headset or a night vision device. That mounting platform is, for a lot of owners, as much of the reason to own one as the protection.

What it does not do is stop rifle rounds. No wearable ballistic helmet does — the weight required to defeat a rifle round across a curved surface that size does not exist in a form anyone could wear. Anyone claiming otherwise is selling something.

High cut shells are cut away above the ears. Less coverage, but they clear ear protection and headsets cleanly and are lighter, which is why they dominate among people who actually wear them for extended periods.

Mid and full cut shells extend lower for more coverage at the cost of weight and headset compatibility. The Vigil is a high cut for the reasons above.