This whole thing started in search of a cost effective, but safe backcountry aviation helmet, which proved to be nearly impossible.
So I bought a 3D printer and made the adaptors myself, converting a Bose A20 to fit a military-style helmet. I put a few photos of the result online, other pilots started asking where they could get one, and Sky Cowboy Supply Company grew out of that.
It has come a long way from one part coming off a printer in the corner. We build complete helmets now, around the headsets pilots are already flying with, and the catalog has grown to cover the rest of it: visors, mounts, carry, and the gear that lives in the aircraft and on the floats.
How the parts get made has changed too. The Bose A20 stirrups are not 3D printed anymore. They are injection molded in glass filled polycarbonate, and other parts are moving the same direction. Same design, made properly.
What has not changed is how this runs. It is still nights and weekends out of the hangar, and that is on purpose. It is not my day job and I do not expect it to become one. Staying small is what keeps the prices where they belong, and it is also why a helmet takes about two weeks. Every one of them gets built to order.
Everything we carry is chosen the same way. It has to make backcountry flying safer, more enjoyable, or less expensive. Aviation is already expensive enough.
The goal is to be the one stop shop for the backcountry aviation world. If there is something you think we should carry, tell me.
Tailwinds,
John Hartz
Questions about fit, headset compatibility, or an order: info@skycowboysupplyco.com
