MIRA SAFETY M Certified Facial Gas Mask Respirator - Full Mask 1 Year Manufacturer Warranty (CM-i01 Black)

Cannot wear with ballistic helmet, very comfortable and good visibility. Easy to use

Build quality is great and looks like it will last along time. I vacuumed sealed mine with desiccant packs and the filter together for future use if needed. I highly recommend doing that if you plan on using it at a later date. It keeps the rubber soft and supple for decades

Generally speaking this is a well built mask, comparable in quality to name brands such as 3M or Honeywell. Takes universal 40mm filter and fits the face quite well. However there is a serious flaw with this model and it’s due to the fact that it’s designed and made differently than any other respirator on the market regardless of price. Usually full face respirators would have a two-chamber construction, on that covers mouth and nose, and the other covers the eye. Upon inhaling, fresh air would enter from the filter and pass through a non-return valve from the eye chamber to the nose/mouth chamber, clearing up any foggy or humid air in the way. And when exhaling, the valve would prevent hot humid air to go back towards the eye chamber but to exit directly from the mouth chamber. There is no such valve in this mask, so whenever you exhale the hot air would rise and fog up the entire visor. Their marketing claim is that they employed a super low resistance flap that would allow the hot air to exhaust directly from the mouthpiece and to breathe in easily. In theory it might’ve worked, but in practice this is absolutely not true. Once you use the mask for a while and the antifog layer is used up it becomes completely unusable. It’s also funny to see that their higher end models respirators all having the non-return valve and being marketed fog free design as well. So why they they attempted to fix something that wasn’t broken? Respirators have been working for decades with the non-return valve design. So it’s either a really messed up design, lack of real world test or they intentionally crippled this model for being the cheapest tier in their lineup.

I live near a very active rail system, major highway,on top of a major fault line and in tornado alley (maybe that's why I got such a great deal on the house). It is not a question of "If" it is more of a question of "When" will I need this. With more and more dangerous materials going by rail this is a "must have". I have experience with military mask, and was a certified HAZMAT tech as a firefighter. I have given this mask the once over, the twice over and tried to nit-pick it and I just cannot find anything wrong with it. Other than it having the faint odor of caramel (why I have no idea, not a complaint, I personally love the smell of caramel) I do believe that if I can get to it, it will get me out of the hazard area safely. I purchased the MIRA Safety NBC-77 SOF filter to go with it, and that covers about 90% of what I may encounter in the event of an incident, and get me to a safe area far away from the incident. Once you decide on what filter you may need, get two. One to practice with, and one that is fresh when you need it. And DO practice with it, the more proficient you are with it, the more effective it will be.

As a woman, finding face masks that fit a small head is difficult since all advertised photos and reviews are of men, who have larger heads typically, so this was a gamble since you can't return this mask. The fit is mostly okay. For my fit reference, the length from top of my forehead (about 2" past my hairline) to bottom of my chin is approx 9.75" and from ear to ear (including over nose) is approx 11.25". Circumference of my head is 21.5". If you have a small face, you'll need to pull the straps tight and be mindful of the fit under your chin. It's difficult to wear with glasses (especially wide frame glasses), so if you have contacts I'd recommend wearing contacts for the snuggest fit. Overall not bad. It should do the job in case of emergencies, which hopefully never happens, but it's good to have just in case.