In recent weeks, I have been attending local wrestling matches presented by the Great American Wrestling Federation and taking photos which I upload to my Facebook page. I was asked to be the “official” photographer and I accepted. Some of the GAWF wrestlers wear hoods in the ring which got me thinking about my personal wrestling mask collection. I remembered my blog entry on collecting wrestling masks and decided to revisit it. I didn’t realize that I initially posted it almost 5 years ago. Time flies, doesn’t it? One day, now that I have a good digital camera, I’m going to have to take the time to photograph my collection (need to find a decent styrofoam head — anyone got Al Snow’s cell number?) and make a graphic.
~={O}=~
People who know me also know that one of my passions is watching professional wrestling. They also know that I come from a family of collectors and I have collections of various things like soda bottle caps (Nehi, Barq’s, etc.), hockey jerseys, CD’s and one of my most unique collections; professional wrestling masks.
So it was nice to see my favorite mask maker “Ironman” Mike Woody back on ebay with a great selection of his creations. The masks you see above are just a few examples of his outstanding work. I’ve been collecting wrestling masks for several years now and frankly, Mr. Woody’s are some of the finest I have seen. Through ebay, I’ve managed to acquire several masks including pro-grade replicas of some of my favorite masked wrestlers (like Mil Mascaras, the Assassin, Rey Mysterio, Jr., the Masked Superstar, the Grappler, the Spoiler, etc.) as well as some very cool original designs.
Collecting professional wrestling masks is an unusual hobby in the U.S., but in Mexico and Japan it’s more common. In fact, at shows in Mexico as well as in Central and South America, masks are sold as souvenirs like t-shirts are sold at shows in the U.S.
There are three basic levels of quality in regards to wrestling masks – pro, semi-pro and commercial. Pro quality masks are the masks the wrestlers use in the ring. They are created to hold up during ring use and abuse. They normally have double-stitching with liners to give seams extra support. The materials used tend to be of heavier and highest quality. Stitching on the face patterns are tight and consistent. Pro masks also are custom-fitted for the wearer. Semi-pro masks look very similar to pro quality masks but usually are single stitched at the seams with lighter weight fabrics. The face pattern stitching tends to be a little less consistent, but pretty good. These masks tend to be made in standard sizes and are intended for fan use. If you want a very good looking mask for less cost than pro quality masks then this is the choice I would recommend. Commercial masks tend to be the bottom line choice. They are usually made from cheap materials with a foam lining. Stitching overall varies from mediocre to poor and face patterns usually are sloppier than pro and semi-pro. These masks are made in mass quantities and are the ones most commonly sold at lucha libre shows. If you are serious or even interested in collecting professional wrestling masks, I really recommending avoiding commercial grade masks.
I know that some people are going to think this hobby of mine is weird and may picture me as some fetish freak. Definitely not true. Frankly, the only time of the year I ever wear a mask from my collection is at Halloween (as a teen, I wore a wrestling masks each year for Mardi Gras as well as Halloween but that’s about it). One year I wore one of Mike Woody’s Rey Mysterio, Jr. masks he made for me and got a great reaction from the trick-or-treaters. Another year I wore a classic Mil Mascaras mask Mike made for me and not only got great reaction from the kids, but a lot of their parents recognized it and let me know it. I feel collecting the masks I have gotten over the years is a harmless outlet for one of my passions and is no stranger than when I collected coins and BSA council strips or my current collection of old soda bottle caps. I enjoy it and that’s really all that matters, right?
Anyway, if you are interested in starting a collection. Searching on ebay is a good start. If you’d like a custom mask, I suggest emailing Mike at ironmanaries@netzero.net for information.
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