Why the M50 replaced the M40

Possible reasons why the Avon M50 replaced the M40 protective mask in US army service.
The M40 had a few known problems, it was made from silicone rubber not butyl making it vulnerable to blister agents and other chemicals. The C2 filters it was issued with had a leaking chromium problem which caused a small scandal and investigation over their safety and the US wanted a mask that was better at protecting the user during filter replacement.
Personally I think the C50 in 40mm would have been a better choice than the M50.
Support me on Patreon
/ weaponsandstuff93
Please comment, rate and subscribe for more.
Follow me on Facebook and Twitter for updates:
/ weaponsandstuff93
/ weaponsstuff93

[@bigskrimp9847]

My Dad’s in the Army, and he says he prefers the M50 over the M40. He said it’s more comfortable, easier to sight in an M4, and he likes the sealing valves(they’ve replaced all the defective ones by now, and the mask has been in full service for about two years now).

[@Weaponsandstuff93]

Yeah I still personally like 40mm masks more though.

[@RockeyTheUmbreon]

As one who carry’s one to wilt every day.The m50 is just fine.

[@gruntlife5055]

As someone who is a collector and avid user of all American military has masks, I must say I also prefer the m50 the most because of how lightweight, comfortable, easier to breathe, better visibility and the best when using a rifle

[@alexk3678]

The good thing about the military constantly replacing stuff is we get lots of cool, relatively new, surplus on a regular basis that trickles down

[@Spartan2035]

I really enjoy watching your videos, you are the Forgotten Weapons of gas masks and other equipment! Keep it up.

[@Weaponsandstuff93]

Cheers

[@jingli3919]

if ur intrested in the metro redux last light mask its the pmk

[@CCM1199]

I was in the Army for close to 18 years. I had not issues with my M40 mask. we had a squared away CBRN NCO that took care of the masks. conducted cleaning, Testing, proper PMCS of it, identified the discrepancies and replaced whatever was broke. If the mask was not working properly, then it was an operator error and he didnt know what the hell he was doing.

[@ashkaysnowhunter]

The Helicopter pilot's still use M40s for the most part. Something about them being more compatible with the communication equipment on board.

[@MG-wi1eq]

Good vid. I just got a complete M40 kit with the carrying bag, C2A1 filter, clear/neutral gray outserts, butyl second skin, and the waterproof bag. I am very satisfied with the mask overall.

[@Weaponsandstuff93]

Cool

[@oussamalasfer4860]

M50 looks like mask from airsoft yard

[@SteelWolf13]

You mean the airsoft yard mask is a copy/ripoff to look tacticool like the M50?

[@SteelWolf13]

@Oliver Hancock sacasim is my native language. English my 2nd. );D

[@SteelWolf13]

@Oliver Hancock i was also poining out the OP had it backwards.

[@nigelwigglwattle]

Its the mobile task force mask

[@BladeObssession]

Isn't one of the reasons alot of masks have single filter design is so when you're fireing a rifle you can still achieve a good cheek weld?

[@Weaponsandstuff93]

Yes by having the filter on the opposite cheek.

[@nigelwigglwattle]

Each time i see the M50 i think of SCP MTF units lol

[@WeaponCollector]

interesting discussion and info, great work as always.

[@Weaponsandstuff93]

Cheers

[@zakr911]

Can confirm we love the m17.

[@jimkerr7064]

We American's sure love our Military Industrial Complex, wink-wink, LOL.

[@jesseowens1492]

the silicone is too hold your breath away from the lenses and stop them from fogging. these are made for combat and cant allow vision to fail. you can run and aim with them flawlessly when they fit your face the designed way.

[@pobblebonk2928]

i read somewhere that a good reason for having a second skin is that it makes decontamination easier. instead of having to scrub the whole mask if you wanted to reuse it just peel off the rubber face mask and scrub the filter/voice emitter ports with decontam wipes and you don't have to spend all day cleaning your mask (id hope that logistics would supply troops with extra masks so you could just trash dirty masks but regardless) if you absolutely had to, having one mask and 2 or 3 rubber skins could help with cleaning. having just one rubber skin would kind of defeat the purpose but we're talking about military logistics here anyways. would be a good idea if you had the hood + facemask kit to just dump the hood and reuse the mask with a fresh hood kit and eyepiece outserts. just my 2c

[@haydenwhite487]

13:20 U.S. Military "That's actually a good idea."

[@harrickvharrick3957]

It's obvious it got those looks now we've come to expect from movies. I am rather surprised instead they didn't come earlier with something like this, something more Darth Vader

[@harrisdail9939]

Nothing like a ferner to try and convince us colonist on what is best for us

[@santablanca3830]

I like the look of the M40 because it has a more iconic design but the M50 is good in all honesty my favourite gas mask is the PMK-S worn by the FSB

[@ghostgamer3353]

You Always make cool Videos

[@cplinstructor]

...and we actually did switch ammo. Lol We command our allies to switch to 6.8 SPC now lol

[@Jack-ro3sz]

I've read that the M40 mask was similar to the FM12 in that it came standard with two ports and a blanking plug, I was wondering if this was true with the M40 you own.

[@Weaponsandstuff93]

I think in theory it has two ports but you need a specialist tool to open the ports.

[@alexk3678]

@@Weaponsandstuff93 I found out that the d ring on the carry bag or a spread out needle nose pliers worked really well to unscrew the voice emitter and from there it was pretty easy to swap sides. (I needed to do to left handed reasons)

[@HeadPats-vi7jm]

13:21 Did you just predict the future?

[@shadowp3000]

avon is already making similar masks to the m50 but using 40mm conforming filters or traditional ones instead of bayonets if you want to see them look up "avon-protection" it should come up they are also selling their entry level masks on amazon, sadly at a very high prize gonna have to wait a couple of years before they come down to sensible prices.

[@Weaponsandstuff93]

Yeah it's called the C50

[@pizzerparty6590]

You are the best

[@andrewmb30]

I found an fm12 with no filter for 78$ American and an m15 with a filter for 60$ American, which one should I get?

[@Weaponsandstuff93]

At those similar prices the FM12 is the better choice.

[@kristianadams4610]

you can get the contoured 40mm filter for the C50

[@techstormdarkvision3590]

Honestly, my problem with the M50 and GSR, at least at this time, is their highly specialized filter designs, (At least that's what it looks like, I own neither so I don't really know), they seem like better designed, easier to use cheek filters. IMO, the m40 and the S10, along with its redesigns wins through universality, any NATO 40mm filter will work with them. I think that a perfected and streamlined M40 or S10 would have worked just as well.

[@Weaponsandstuff93]

That's basically the reason I like the CT12 and Forsheda F2 so much.

[@FuturPaladin489]

Nice video man keep it going ! Also i have a question, i want to buy a german m38 gas mask but the I have found is said to be a little bit deformed, do you know if its possible to put it back into a good shape ?

[@Weaponsandstuff93]

Probably not if the rubber has dried out?

[@FuturPaladin489]

@@Weaponsandstuff93 :(

[@FuturPaladin489]

@@Weaponsandstuff93 also, how can i wash the lens of the m38 bc they turn kind of rusty and yellow

[@Weaponsandstuff93]

@@FuturPaladin489 I'm not really sure you can without damaging them sadly.

[@FuturPaladin489]

@@Weaponsandstuff93 thats sad

[@hickory_stuff8246]

The m40 look good af

[@Weaponsandstuff93]

Yeah it's a cool looking mask

[@fitupfriday8484]

I love your American accent

[@atf343]

Can you test the fm53? They are a step above the m50 in that they accept 40mm and the filter ports are raised further to aid cheek weld, some models even have filter ports on one side or another to help cheek weld even more. They are currently in service with us jsoc atm

[@Weaponsandstuff93]

I can't legally buy one...

[@atf343]

@@Weaponsandstuff93 what about loaning? Maybe a kind soul here can loan you one?

[@sawek0878]

I like gas masks 😀

[@Weaponsandstuff93]

You came to the right place.

[@ghostgamer3353]

You defenetley are on the write Channel

[@dsmvmdsmsdmsd23]

I didn't even know that the m 50 replace m 40 I saw the m 50 before but I didn't know about the name I thought that it looks a lot better than m 40 by design. So yeah I would choose the m 50 over m 40.

[@oussamalasfer4860]

Kommando paramax vs mac'10 vs uzi which one better?

[@xarv368]

Avon c50 is 40 mm

[@mohammedakmah5230]

Damn

[@Constable00]

I just bought a Soviet mask. Can I retro fit with any new 3m filters ?

[@Weaponsandstuff93]

Not really

[@xXHaBXxluke]

You can buy the 60mm to 40mm adapter if it’s not the right diameter

[@Lidilly]

I have a question about gas masks and filters, if you remove a filter before its dead/expired or hard to breathe through, can you reuse it at a later time or is it completely fucked? Also do filters only expire when theyre actually used in the environments they protect from, or would they expire if you breathed through them in safe environments aswell?

[@Weaponsandstuff93]

You can reseal filters for later use but that's generally not as good as a factory seal. Unless you are in a sterile environment, you'll always be pulling contaminates into the filter.

[@Lidilly]

@@Weaponsandstuff93 Thanks for the answer, how long do most filters usually last?

[@Weaponsandstuff93]

When in proper use anywhere between a few hours and 24+ depends on the size and quality of the filter and what it's exposed to.

[@Lidilly]

@@Weaponsandstuff93 thanks again for the info. I appreciate it.

[@oussamalasfer4860]

M50 better than m40 in vision one piece of glass better than separate one

[@Weaponsandstuff93]

Well plastic rather than glass.

[@fractaltigerstripe6955]

One piece visors are "panoramic"

[@firstname377]

Most fm12s in the u.s. are like always out of stock or 100+

[@Devo57]

M40 has a cooler look therefore it’s better

[@DamianAI9]

Where did you get an M50? it's so expensive

[@Weaponsandstuff93]

UK eBay but they rarely turn up.

[@trekgod3]

They run $150 to $200 on eBay USA

[@trekgod3]

@Space Pope i got all of my M50 masks on ebay for between 50 and 150 dollars, but that was a year or 2 ago. Now with the pandemic, mask prices are insane

[@Sprnklrmn]

FM12 runs $225-300 on US eBay currently.

[@thaoneandonly9202]

@@trekgod3 i saw an m50 for 600$

[@taiturrell2945]

Hey I just purchased a gas mask in Britain but I live in the US is it possible to ship it over to the US legally

[@Weaponsandstuff93]

Yes but not the other way around.

[@taiturrell2945]

Weaponsandstuff93 Oh thank you so much I needed to get that clear

[@Weaponsandstuff93]

Because US export bans all surplus

[@cannedbear_]

13:20 that aged poorly.

[@latexbeep]

So the chromium filters were green huh?? so basically don't try any filter that's green in colour!!!

[@mysticcollector8258]

The original c2 filters had chromium and are black

[@nealpounders9733]

Do all gas mask use a purge valve outlet for voice communication ? Or do you know of any gas mask that uses a sealed emitter for acoustic voice communication?

[@Jarheads4Yeshua]

m50 < m40

[@DarkestKnight2424]

Where can I buy this

[@clorox821]

M50 and m40 can be bought off of ebay but are kinda expensive

[@johnsalchichon5956]

Im selling C50 masks if anyone is looking, $200 a piece. All sizes.

[@RockeyTheUmbreon]

I carry the m50 ever day to work. It’s not a bad mask.

[@Weaponsandstuff93]

Yeah it's a good mask but I prefer 40mm filters.

[@domonicb6752]

Because it’s a bigger number duhhh