What about head gear?

[parkerlineage]

In the AK dojo where I train, we do sports and medium contact fighting, but in my dojo (that I will own in a few months...wow...like...eight weeks...) I want to do more full contact and incorporate the Eagle Claw and Jiu Jitsu I know.

I think I want to use half-finger cloth gloves I found from Century, and probably the shin and instep cloth gear on the same page (below).

What about headgear? Do I need it? What kind works best for what I've described? Pros and cons are nice...thank you all!

http://www.centuryfitness.com/webapp/wcs/stores/servlet/CategoryDisplay?catalogId=10051&storeId=10051&categoryId=13628&langId=-1&parent_category_rn=13519&crumb=13501

[Jiffy]

Speaking generally of all headgear:

Pros: It allows students to feel more comfortable with a little more contact and does protect delicate areas such as ears and jaw pivot from damage.

cons: they are uncomfortable and do create a false sence of security. They will only prevent damage from small snappy techniques. Large mass hits will still hurt just as much.

[parkerlineage]

Large mass hits will still hurt just as much.

That actually answers my question right there. I was debating, because I don't want people to get hurt, but then, if I think about it, getting punched in the face or side of the head hurts no matter what kind of headgear you're wearing, and I seriously doubt that an inch of foam will do you a whole heck of a lot of good when taking a heel-hook to the temple.

I hear that most of the time, you're required to wear them because if you slip and fall backward, you won't kill yourself on the floor. Literally.

[UseoForce]

Invest in quality gear. Forget century cloth gloves, get some Combat Sports International, Ouano, or a similar type of glove. Trust me, you don't want crap gloves, because pretty soon you'll have to shell out more cash for a replacement pair. Been there.

Century stuff, IMO (and experience), is of marginal to average quality.

[bushido_man96]

Invest in quality gear. Forget century cloth gloves, get some Combat Sports International, Ouano, or a similar type of glove. Trust me, you don't want crap gloves, because pretty soon you'll have to shell out more cash for a replacement pair. Been there.

Century stuff, IMO (and experience), is of marginal to average quality.

That hand and forearm armor looks good, do you think it could suffice for my weapons training, or should I look elsewhere?

[UseoForce]

The "Martial Armor" might be good stuff, but I have no experience with it personally. That's more TKD/Point karate sparring gear, not my specialty

[parkerlineage]

The "Martial Armor" might be good stuff, but I have no experience with it personally. That's more TKD/Point karate sparring gear, not my specialty

Well, my ultimate goal is to move away from point sparring, but I don't want head injuries, or serious injuries to occur. What do you reccomend?

[UseoForce]

That was in answer to bushidoman's post. As far as you're concerned, why would you need forearm pads?Like I said, that's more TKD/Point sparring stuff. They are seldom used in MMA-style training.

If you still want some (if you want to train with forearm shots (?)) I think Combat Sports International has some better alternatives.

[bushido_man96]

You could get a Red Man suit.

[parkerlineage]

You could get a Red Man suit.

I'm not that concerned about injuries.

Okay, let's just set this straight: I want to just use the basic MMA style hand gear.

Here's the question: Do we need headgear to avoid serious injuries, or will my students be better off or just as well without it?