TurboJohn (previously Trackside Tim)
no longer makes or repairs suits.
Dixie has retired.
Member here of the more than Once on Fire Club
A comment by JR2 in the past made me think that after a lot of wash cycles - using cold water and a tiny bit of soap only - that the suit would not hold up in flames the same as a new suit. Conclusion: after enough years, a suit's not really the same from a flame time standpoint as the patch claims, your results may vary. Never wash a suit in hot water and never put in the heat of any drier. After using the very brief wash cycle setting in the washer, spin dry no heat in the washer more than once and then hang up to dry - turning inside out a couple of times > during the more than once no heat washer spin cycle and also the hang up sessions.
For what it's worth - I also will not wear single layer Nomex gloves, only double layer - if you ever meet up with me and are curious from this thread, ask me to show you "exhibit 1" - I buy double layer gloves at the track from the trailer
Nomex Durability - quote from Pegasus
Quote:
Originally Posted by
Lotus7
Just another thought. Is there any "loss of fire protection" for nomex over time due to ozone/sunlight and presumably many many washings since 2005?
Quote:
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Does Nomex expire? Is old Nomex any less fire retardant?
No. Fire retardance is an inherent property of Nomex, not a treatment or a coating. It will not fade away and can never wash out. BUT... that doesn't mean that a very old driver's suit is still a good choice!
Why not? If it was good enough for Mario in 1967...
First, there's mechanical wear. Abrasion, rips, pulled seams, stretched-out elastic, and worn-out Velcro can all compromise the integrity of a suit after a few years. Second, driver's suit design and construction have come a long way since then, both in terms of comfort and in terms of protection. A modern 3-layer suit can provide as much as five times the protection, while feeling infinitely cooler...
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So, IMO, a well used SFI 3-2A/5 suit that is in good physical condition is still fine for protecting a driver from fire.
Full article: https://www.pegasusautoracing.com//d...ocID=TECH00126