I had to write a quick review about Rival’s boxing headgear. I started using them a few months ago and they are amazing! They feel great and have great cushion for my head against punches. There’s nothing else more important when it comes to headgear if you ask me. Above are the four current headgear products I see from their website. This review basically judges all of them in a nutshell.
Price
All of these are reasonably priced and while they do cost upwards of $60-100, they are well worth it. Money should never be an obstacle between you caring for your maximum health. For a sport that risks brain damage, you should always buy the best headgear possible and I highly recommend any of these!
Duarability
Super high quality headgear. All of them will last a long time. In fact, I’d almost go as far as to say that the headgear will probably outlast you. I definitely mean this.The leather is high quality and every strap and panel of this headgear feels solid.
Comfort
They feel GREAT on my head. A snug fit, not too tight, not too lose. Not too heavy. I felt very secure and safe in this headgear.
Weight
Not too heavy and also not so light that you feel naked and unprotected.
The Verdict
Again, I’ve used it for myself and I was in love with the headgear from the first day. It’s definitely more solid and offers more protection than most other headgear I’ve used. They look great and feel great. Just buy them!
Purchase Links
Here, I feature my favorite headgear pieces made by Rival. These are ones that I have personally worn and would actually wear myself. Some of their other models, I have either never tried or don’t recommend because they simply are not as good. Why take any chances with your head, right?!
Rival Traditional Training Headgear
One of my favorite headgear of all time…feels so comfortable, protective, and yet slim. The suede inside really grips. It’s the best bang for the buck.
Rival d3o Intelli-Shock Pro Training Headgear
One of my current two pieces of headgear that I carry in my trunk all the time. Very secure and protective. Takes a great punch. For some people, it can feel a little bulky.
Rival High Performance Training Headgear
Another high quality option. I don’t like this one as much but there are many others who say it is their favorite. It probably has to do with personal preference.
Rival Face Saver Boxing Headgear
Very important option if you have a nose that breaks easily and/or you have an upcoming fight and don’t want to risk getting your face cut. Many of the pros or more serious amateur fighters will use this for sparring. For some fighters, the facebar can be annoying because it takes out some of your vision.
Rival High Performance Youth Training Headgear
A good option if you’re looking for a protective headgear made specifically for kids. I’ve never worn one but I’m going to guess it comes in a smaller size.
boxer
The new boxing heargears offer less. They have been cheaply constructed. The Winning is the only one made like the old Tuff-Wear and old school Everlast. These have been deleted and were cheaply copied. (Made in Pakistan) You better purchase a Winning headgear for real protection!!! Look at old boxing photos and see how much thicker the front pad and ear protection was. Thats the American way they just keep screwing us!!
Headgear
I Just got the Avantaguard Headgear made by Top Ten. Supposedly their head gear was used in the Most current Olympics. I haven’t really had a chance to test it out yet, but based off all of the reviews i read, they came out on top. I must say the last piece of head gear that i tried on didn’t feel like it was going to match up to my new headgear. The last piece of headgear that i purchased was almost identical to the Everlast Facesaver. If i remember correctly, it was bulky, heavy, and didn’t provide the greatest vision. Having never really worn headgear before, i didn’t really know what to expect. After trying on the Avantaguard Headgear, i was impressed with the way that it molded my head, i liked the easy velcro straps (Hopefully they hold up over time), It seems to have very good protection (except for the nose that is), The material feels a little bit like rubber, but smooth for your face, the peripheral vision is wonderful, Its light, and it distributes the impact very well (I know cause i had someone hammer me, lol). Never tried Rival’s before, but i would love to compare the two one day.
Sorry for getting off topic, but i must say I am really loving most of your articles, except for the weight lifting ones, however i do agree with some of the things that you say about the arms being heavier as opposed to lighter. I feel that in some way ore another unless you are one hell of a knock out artist like Iron Mike or Ernie Shavers, you may wana keep that particular part of the body a little slimmer. Check out Arthur Jones. An amazing man with great training methods. Lifting explosive in my opinion is not beneficial in the long run.
Thanks for your time, JaPhA
Pls leave some feedback
@JaPha – the Avantaguard headgear looks pretty nice so I’ll keep that on my radar for a review if I ever get to try it. You’re definitely right about the Everlast headgear, their non-competition stuff is not very good. Rival is awesome so definitely try them when you can. They’re very popular in Canada where they’re based.
Arthur Jones is definitely a modern genius. Thank you for that and thanks for stopping by.
Johnny
Head gear
I think I would like the head gear in the top left because it looks like it would have more protection to face. I also like the fact that the head gear is almost weightless , when I did Karate the head gear I had did have really good protection overall but was slightly to clunky.
Headgear does not protect against brain damage, it just prevents against dermal and skeletal damage. It is basic collision physics, ask your local sports medicine doctor.
Absolutely true…but it’s the best thing technology offers us right now.
I noticed that the lining on the inside o the headgear is made of suede leather. How would you go about cleaning it?
I throw it in the laundry every now and then.
You can throw the suede headgear in the laundry? I really wanted to but the store rep for title told me not to. Was yours ok after? nothing worse than smelly gears…
I heard it’s bad as well. I did it anyway and everything came out fine. HOWEVER, the suede lining in one of my headgear did crack months later and now I wonder if throwing it in the washer/dryer had anything to do with it.
Smelly gear is ok as long as it’s YOUR SMELL 😉
Haha! thanks, I bought this shady spray on amazon so hopefully it works. You say if it’s my smell it’s fine, but tell THAT to my poor office mate!
Great review. What do you think of these facesavers? I’d prefer getting an open guard but can’t trust not getting busted lips for and going to work the next day after sparring.
http://www.rivalboxing.com/en/new-products/p17685000.html
These are good. A lot of serious amateurs and pros use headgear with a facebar for the same reason.
Cheers dude. Your vids have inspired me, so Just wanted to say thanks. Start a new gym tonight. Can’t wait to get punched in the face! Bring it on 🙂
BRING IT ON! Good luck.
Hello, Johnny. 1st off, I can not tell you how much your video’s have helped my understanding of the sport. So thank you!
Under your headgear review post. You gave a great review of the Rival d30. But you mentioned the vision being slightly blocked. Would you be able to inform me if any of the other rival products offer the same quality or next best, without having any vision impaired? I’ve heard good things about the cheaper rival headgear, except the face/chin area being more exposed.
Any help would be much appreciated. Than you.
The Rival Traditional one has better vision. But you have to try it for yourself. Everyone’s face is different. What feels like perfect vision for me might be “too exposed” for you.
Thanks for your reply. There is not any sport outlets where I live. So I’d have to order online, using estimates as for a good fit.
I’m having to judge by user reviews on this. I know rival has a good rep. I hear all the rival headgear absorbs shots really well. Only some leaves your face more exposed. I’ll try and gather any more information. Thanks again.
Measure your head and look up the head sizing charts on the manufacturer website. This will help you figure out the proper size so there’s less risk for you.
what is ur size when u bought those on?! i think we are same weight.i will buy it online so i cant try it on to know what best for me 🙁 plz help me!!!
I wear LARGE for Rival headgear. My head is bigger than it looks.
the D3o is one of two headgear, what’s the other one you use? I was thinking of getting the Cleto Reyes facebar and the d3o. Although I do like the look of the Rival facebar as well