V-force Grillz
by Ian "Lo" Ebersole on Feb 24, 2009
The newest product in the V-force line of goggles is the V-Force Grillz. Acting as the new flagship of a line of paintball masks long loved by woodsballers, I recently put the Grillz up against my trusty pair of Profilers to see which mask would make the cut. And much to my surprise, my Profilers have now taken the backseat in my gearbag. Here are a couple of reasons why.
Initially, the Grillz appear to be roughly the same size as a pair of profilers, although they are obviously shorter in the lower mouth region (I’ll spare you the obvious pun). I was initially worried that this would leave my chin exposed slightly. However, putting the Grillz on showed that this would only be the case when my mouth was fully open, so my concerns were quieted somewhat. This will of course vary from player to player, so as always, I recommend that you try on any pair of goggles you are looking at before purchase.
The second item of note was the lens area, which is somewhat smaller on the Grillz than on the Profiler. This does result in less peripheral vision,
although not as much as one might think since the Grillz sit closer to your face then Profilers do. That said, there is less peripheral vision, one area which the Profilers excelled in. The benefit to the smaller lens is that there is a smaller hard profile on the Grillz, which means that a stray longball is more likely to hit the soft rubberized portions of the mask, and then bounce off, rather than eliminating you.
The Grillz is made with a dual-durometer frame, which means that some parts are hard to retain the structure of the mask and for protection, while the rest is soft for comfort and to promote bounces. The soft area is noticeably larger than on the Profilers, and is quite effective in deflecting long shots, from my experience. Also, unlike some JT Flex masks which are so soft that they lose their shape, the Grillz have retained their original shape despite being crammed and smashed into my gearbag dozens of times after a day of play.
Because of the smaller lens area and tighter fit of the Grillz, they are not as glasses-friendly as the Profilers were. Often times, in fact, the Grillz will take my glasses with them when I am taking the mask off in the staging area, and larger glasses may not fit well inside the mask. However, I’ve noticed that the Grillz have as good of ventilation if not better ventilation than the Profilers, so the risk of your glasses fogging inside the mask is minimal. Add a single pane fog-treated lens (true thermal lenses are unfortunately not available), and fogging issues are minimized except in the most severe playing conditions.
When it comes to humid conditions, one particular feature of the Grillz stands out. The foam carrying frame of the mask is removable, and can be switched for a frame with dry foam. Even better, this process takes less than a minute, and is entirely tool-less, requiring only two additional steps beyond those required to swap out the lens. To free the lens, simply undo the strap clips, pull the two lens wedges out of the mask, and push the edges of the lens inward and forward. Removing the lens wedges exposes the locking mount for the frame, which can be unlocked by putting a lens wedge in the slot and turning it a quarter turn. Once both mounts are unlocked (one per side), the frame pulls out of the mask. This is one of the best features of the Grillz, that the process is very easy to complete, even with gloves on, and the lens and frame both return securely and easily.
As with any mask purchase, nobody can recommend which mask will fit you best, or give you the features you need. But if you’re in the market for a new set of goggles, definitely give the Grillz a try. With the new refined features and the legacy of great masks behind it, the Grillz are definitely at the top of their class.