British S10 NBC Respirator Part 2 - 2009

British S10 NBC Respirator part 2 - 2009 model

Manufacturer: Avon UK
Model: S10 respirator
Country: United Kingdom
Year: 2009
Size: 1
Price: £15.00 including postage
Condition: like new, excellent
Source: eBay
Issuer: Royal Navy
Location: HMS Richmomd

Almost a complete S10 kit

Well here we are again and this time the Long awaited second S10 on my collection.
This time a gas mask with a bit of a back story. A name to tie it to,
Apparently a former possession of petty officer D Griffiths of the British royal navy. How good is that?!
I stumbled across this S10 quite be accident. I wasn't really looking to buy another after the bargain 1989 model I picked up a few weeks before but I can't resist a bargain, and this 2009 model was going cheap. I played the eBay bidding game and snagged it for £15 which seems unbelievable considering the amount of stuff which came with it.  It's almost complete. Just short of the chemical indicator papers that's all. I can live with that!
Now I'm not really going to go into too much detail with this mask as I did that already in part 1. It's the same mask essentially. So it's just a quick look at what came with this kit.
For the first part of the S10 (1989 model) review click HERE

The Face piece

The star of the show is the S10 face piece and this example is in perfect used condition. not one blemish and not one scratch. Not surprising really as the need to use a gas mask on board ship in peace time is virtually non existent. I suspect this mask was only worn during a training drill or something. No complaints on appearance from me anyway, its immaculate.

It will be interesting to see how the drinking system works on this mask now that I have the water bottle adapter. Apparently its works well and much better than the ones found on lesser soviet bloc masks.


The eyes have it!
This 2009 model S10 came with the prescription lens fittings. Basically a piece of rubber with two circular forms which sits just in front of the eye pieces. These are designed to hold specially made specticle lens for visually impaired service personnel.
After months of trawling eBay for an S10 I never saw one with this fitting an interesting feature none the less.

Extra round eye pieces to hold prescription lens!

The extra eye piece things inside the mask look really strange from this angle. Surprisingly they don't hinder your vision and so there is no need to remove them if you don''t wear specs like me.
Making the S10 respirator accessible to the visually impaired is a clever idea if you ask me especially if non spectacle wearers can use the mask too without removing the modification. Avon certainly innovate.


The Filters

This S10 kit came with the standard training filter already fitted and a brand new sealed filter. This is how they come when issued.
The Filters supplied with this S10 kit were made by Scott safety UK, Just a few miles down the road from me in Skelmersdale, Lancashire..
The Skelmersdale site is also where the new Scott GSR respirator is manufactured. The mask which replaced the S10 a few years ago. Many will say that the current GSR is a steaming pile of shite and a poor replacement to the S10 but that's a story for another day!

Lucky for me this 2009 kit has a brand new and sealed filter in the bag. These filters carry a ten year shelf life so it should be good for another year or so officially. However, if this filter remains in its sealed state it should be good for twenty years or so. It's true that filters will degrade over time but not that quickly. The MOD have to have best before dates on their stuff to cover themselves in case something happens. Especially in today's world of suing and court cases.

The Haversack

The red dog tag is for identification during training exercises

Not to see here except for a typical S10 haversack in pretty good condition. It's a 1999 issue which suggests this bag from from an earlier issued mask that the sailor had.

A 1999 vintage Haversack by the looks of it

The haversack is in good order, the velcro on the top flap is still effective and not clogged up with fibers or dirt. It's been well looked after anyway.

The Accessories

What we have here are two different Osprey water bottle caps. One normal screw top cap and one specifically designed to work with the S10 drinking tube. Handy.


Survive to Fight NBC drill (revision 3 1995)
The included booklet has many pages within, far too many to be arsed taking photos of them all so I selected a few listed below.

The original booklet! 

Everything you need to know about the S10

How many other gas masks kits come with this sort of thing?

What do we have here? The trusty "Survive to fight" instruction booklet often missing from S10 kits. This plastic cased bendy book outlines everything a service person needs to prepare and survive a CBRN (Or NBC if you prefer) attack.
It's actually quite a good read and really useful in highlighting how to use protect yourself and maintain the S10 properly.
It's usual home is just inside the top flap of the haversack behind the elastic straps.

S10 Service log book

A very interesting service record

Another nice personal touch in this S10 kit is this rare service record with the mask being officially tested for safety on board the ship HMS Richmomd . It's not something I have seen before except for the odd blank service cards you get with ex Soviet bloc masks. They are a nice addition to the kit.

Something doesnt't add up?
Those who are paying attention would have noticed that the paper service record could not possibly belong to this mask. take another look at the photos again and it becomes obvious that the record pre dates the mask. It also refers to a mask which is a size 2 and this mask is actually a size 1. This could mean two things. Either this mask was a replacement to the one the sailor had originally or the ebay seller mixed up the mask with with another kit he had.
My suspicion is that the former is true. it's a replacement mask. oh well     

  Featuring the original dog name tags fitted!

I'm more than impressed with this eBay haul. The kit is in amazing condition, almost brand new. I know it's not as old as my other S10 but I don't care about that.
It's fascinating to know this once belonged to a sailor in the RN (probably) - issued but very well looked after I would say.
whatever the real story, I don't really care, I won't be selling this fine specimen, that's for sure!

Avon EH20 Escape hood

Avon EH20 NBC escape Hood 

Manufacturer: Avon protection plc
Model: EH20
Country: UK
Description: CBRN air purifier emergency escape hood
Year: 2006
Condition: new and unused
Price: £2.59 + £3.90 postage
Source: eBay

Well here is something you don't see every day... A fancy civilian (almost corporate) version of a gas mask. Designed  primarily to help facilitate a hasty exit from an office disaster or as an immediate respirator for the likes of police or fire departments. 

Essentially what we have here is a single use respirator capable of keeping out a wide range of airborne nasties for a maximum of about 20 mins, enough time to leg it from a disastrous situation and certainly the same capabilities as what a regular gas mask and filter can do. 

Simple no nonsense instructions for a quick get away!

Very little is known about the EH20 hood. It doesn't feature anywhere on the Avon website now or in the past which seems a little strange. However Avon do have an equivalent escape hood in current production called the NH15 which is pretty much the same product albeit with a few slight cosmetic changes.
These type of personal protection products seem to be aimed at the American market by the look of it. I can't remember ever seeing anything like this in the UK. As far as I know our police use regular avon FM-12s and the fire brigade have their own siebe-gorman type rebreathers . I could be wrong though?

According to the spiel on the NH15, these escape hoods not only protect against the airborne stuff but also protect against chemical splashes to the face thanks to the complete head covering they provide.. It seems a great idea!.
Avon also boasts that these escape hoods are the smallest compact respirators on the market. - what about the tiny Russian POY mask? Oh well

These respirators have a shelf life of five years which is OK but not on the scale of a regular mask which have filters that can have a ten year shelf life. As these respirators are cheap and cheerful the five year thing isn't really a problem. When it's expires, you just buy another I guess.

fits snuggly inside its nylon outer case.

Enough of the waffle, it's time to have a look at the damn thing.
Well first off the EH20 comes very tightly packed inside a silver foiled air tight pouch. It's definitely a single use item as there is no way you could fold it back up neatly in the foil again.
On the outside of the foil is a very well presented sticker of instructions outlining the fastest the way of fitting the hood in an emergency situation.
I can't knock Avon on their approach. These instructions are simple to follow and allow someone to get the hell out of somewhere quickly and safely without having to learn how to use the damn thing first. No prior safety course required here. I really like the concept so far.

Twin filters with a rudimetary voice diaphram on the front

The silver foil pouch sits snuggly inside a black nylon case. The case itself is practical and seems hard wearing. It features a handy belt loop on the back so the hood can be worn on someone's belt for fast deployment.
Once again it haas been carefully designed to be as neat and as compact as possible. The hood in its foil sealed pouch just about fits the case with no room to spare.  I pity the poor beggar who had to pack these in the factory. must have been an nightmare!

The hood itself is made from a clear plastic material which is  large enough to fit over even the biggest of heads. The hood then becomes completely air tight with the only air coming through the two flat filters on the front.
It's quite comfortable to wear and doesn't irritate as I first thought.
The escape hood is designed in such a way as to be donned quickly and safely - even if an idiot got hold of one. It seems impossible to get it wrong.

Great visabilty but looks like you have a bag on your head!

The business end of the hood, namely the dual filters are made from a newer type of filter material able to fend of the majority of toxic agents thrown at it.
The hood does feature a speech diaphragm of sorts allowing clear communications with others during an attack. It looks a little basic but it does the job.

Getting a hold of one of these specific escape hoods is pretty difficult, especially if you live in the UK. Since i bought this a few months ago i have yet to see any more floating around ebay. The NH15 on the other hand is much easier to get hold of. Despite Avons claims that the respirator is cheap and disposable it's not. Well its not cheap anyway. Some sellers in the US are flogging them for over 100 dollars each which seems outrageous.

I suppose this item does have its place in world of the gas mask. Its certainly an interesting one for the collection without a doubt.
In short then it's a gas mask in its most basic form. Made with expert know how by the clever guys at Avon who in my opinion make the finest gas masks on the market and have done for some time.
Avon never fail to impress with their innovations.