Here at YTA we take our customers safety very seriously and have made some updates to our protocol with your eye protection. As you are all fully aware the most severe danger in Airsoft is the danger of being shot in the eye, this can lead to the loss of eye site or at the very least severe long-term eye injuries.
Whilst we have always advised that our customers wear good quality eye protection we now feel it's time to go one step further to keep our customers safe when playing airsoft. After extensive research and also some market research we have found that some of our customers are unaware they are using insignificant eye protection which may result in major injuries. It has always been the player's responsibility when using their own kit to ensure they have adequate eye protection however due to some airsoft retailers selling inadequate products we feel it's time to intervene and set a higher minimum standard of eye protection when playing at our venues.
Approved eye protection
Specs, hybrids, and goggles Approved
Polycarbonate lens with a B or A marking on the lens this comes straight after the manufactueres mark which in the diagram below is a crown. (800 and above FPS Rating).
Polycarbonate lens with a ANSI Z87.1+ marking on the lens this comes straight after the crown or company mark. (800 and above FPS Rating).
Polycarbonate Lens that is STANAG 2920 marking this will superceed any other markings. (over 800 FPS rated).
The Specs, hybrids , and goggles must have a strap. (to hold the specs tight to the face).
They must be less than a fingers gap between the lens and the face.
Specs, hybrids, and goggles, we advise not to wear.
Polycarbonate lenses with an F Marking after the manufacturers mark which in this instance again is the crown (these are only rated to 306FPS and are not suitable for being shot point blank at upto 350FPS). unless STANAG 2920 tested.
Specs not allowed.
Glass lenses (these can shatter causing massive eye injuries).
Lenses with no markings (very dangerous and have not been safety tested by any governing body).
Damaged lenses (if the lens is damaged it will compromise its integral strength and must be replaced).
Lenses with more than a finger width from the face (bb’s could fly past the lens and hit the eye).
Please see the very useful diagram supplied by Bolle below, which will tell you all you need to know about what we are looking for with regard to safety specs.
Mesh goggles
There is no known official governing body that tests Mesh however manufacturers have a duty of care to the end users and are required to manufacture these as fit for purpose. We have seen in the past, that cheap none branded mesh causes issues and will have no real place of origin to take any claims back to.
We will allow all mesh goggles on site providing they have a reputable manufacturers mark.
- These goggles must be free from heavy rusting and impact dents as these will cause the steel to be weekend and or may cause fine particles of paint and rust to enter the eye and cause damage.
Paintball masks and similar
All paintball masks will have a CE mark which means they have been tested for use in the UK and will withstand point-blank shots of up to 500FPS, these are allowed because they meet our maximum FPS limits, and no one should be shot at absolute point blank with a sniper rifle or DMR as we already implement a 30m minimum engagement distance.
No paintball masks will be allowed without it having a reputable paintball manufacturers mark, I.E Valken, Tippman, Dye, etc.
No Airsoft full face will be allowed without either mesh Eye protection and carrying an airsoft manufactures mark or a lense that has the same markings as the specs mentioned above.
Under 18s
All under 18s must wear a full face mask that complies to the above rules.
How YTA enforces these rules.
When attending one of our locations you will be asked to sign an insurance waiver in which you will state that you have brought adequate eye protection with you. You will also be informed during our safety briefings about the importance of the correct eye wear, what we require you to wear as a minimum standard, and finally we will carry out checks on your eye protection.
So what happens if you book, pay for, and attend our venue and then are told you don't have the correct eye protection? Firstly don't worry! We will have full face masks that we will happily rent to you free of charge, secondly we will have approved eyewear available for sale at our on-site shops.