[TheForge] The Beard vs. the Respirator

[Bob Brashear]

Mark Novak wrote:
> I need to ask this question before I shave. I wear a respirator when I'm 
> grinding, so as to minimize the amount of metal dust I inhale, but I 
> have a beard that interferes with the effectiveness of the mask. The guy 
> at my local Safety Store told me in no uncertain terms, "If you don't 
> shave the beard off, the mask will never work properly," which is what I 
> was noticing while wearing it. He told me that there is no respirator 
> that works on guys with beards... they all need skin contact.
> 
> Does anyone out there have a beard and wear a respirator effectively? 
> And if so, how did you do it? Did you fill your beard with vaseline? Did 
> you shave a silly looking thin line wear the mask can rest on your skin?
> 
> Mark Novak

Larry Niven (science fiction writer) has the idea of asymmetric beards 
in his stories. Start a fashion trend.

If not, shave. The lungs are more important than the beard. Got rid of 
my beard (and mustache) a couple years ago because of the mask seal 
problem. I was using some nasty epoxies and sanding carbon composite 
rocket airframes.

As soon as my knife grinder is finished, I'll go back to regular 
shaving, as much as I hate it.

Bob