There is a great deal of importance to a hard hat suspension system since it prevents head injury and possibly death. The system elevates your hard hat 1″-1 ¼” above your head to provide impact protection from falling objects.
If you take a hard hat and turn it upside down, you will see points of attachment holding the suspension system in place. Depending on the vendor, you will see four, six, or eight points mounting it to the hard hat. The number indicates the point suspension, which will be either four-point, six-point, or eight-point. The greater the number of points, the more the impact is spread out. Therefore, the eight-point hard hat suspension system will absorb the most impact.
There are two types of hard hat suspension: pin-lock and ratchet. One is pin-lock suspension utilizing the same concept used for a baseball cap. To operate the pin lock suspension you need to remove the hard hat the same as adjusting a baseball cap. It has a plastic band with holes for the plastic pin to go into for the perfect fit. The other type is
ratchet suspension, which is designed for one-touch fit adjustments. This system provides the ease of adjusting your hat without having to remove it. There is a small knob on the back and all you need to do is turn to the preferred size.
In addition, different companies have various names for the ratchet and pin-lock suspension systems. Some examples are:
MSA– Swing Ratchet, Staz-On, Fas-Trac, Uni-Pro
North– Quick Fit
Bullard– Self-Sizing, Flex-Gear Ratchet
Pyramex– Snap Lock
Vulcan Cowboy Hard Hat– Squeeze-Lock
I hope this information has been useful and helps all of you to make an informed hard hat suspension purchase. Please, remember to wear your hard hat – it may save your life.
Construction Gear Guru Blog 
I am writing to ask are there different sizes to hard hats? If I have to wear a hood then the hard hat will not stay on, and would like to find one that would stay on.
Thanks Roger Garrett
Hi Roger,
Yes, hard hats do come in different sizes. The typical sizes for hard hats are small, medium, large, and extra large. Hard hat suspensions also come in the same sizes. Just remember when purchasing a hard hat and suspension both components must be the same size to ensure the optimal level of protection and comfort.
A suggestion to assist with your hood fitting over your hard hat is to follow the procedure for determining the correct fit. The best way to determine your hard hat size is to use a soft tape measure and wrap this around your head just above the eyebrows. Hold the tape measure comfortably snug. I will tell you different manufacturers have different sizing charts so be sure to carefully match your measurements with the appropriate chart.