Editorial policy and sourcing
Gear Size Chart publishes sizing information that people use to spend money and, in the case of helmets and boots, to protect their bodies. This page explains where the numbers come from and what we do when they are wrong.
What counts as a source
Every size, range and rule on the site traces to a document someone else published. We rank those documents in this order.
- The maker's own size or fit guide for the product line in question, such as a ski brand's length chart or a helmet maker's circumference table.
- A governing body or standards document where one exists: league bat rules, a national safety standard, a federal regulation.
- The fit guide of a large specialty retailer that sells the gear and publishes its own method, when the maker publishes nothing usable.
- A retailer republishing a maker's chart, used only when the maker's site shows an interactive tool or no table. These are labelled on the page as republished.
We do not use forum posts, unsourced rules of thumb, or another size-chart site as the origin of a number. A rule of thumb appears on a page only when a maker or retailer states it, and it is attributed to them in the text.
How a chart is built
For each tool page we collect the published charts from several makers and retailers, enter them into a table, and compare them row by row. Where they agree, we show the agreed range. Where they disagree, we show the widest range any source supports and print each source's own figure beside it, so a reader can find the brand they are actually buying. We do not average sources together to produce a single number that no maker published.
The calculator on a page reads from the same table as the printed chart. If you enter a height and the calculator returns a range, you can find that range in the chart below it. That is deliberate: it lets a reader check the tool against the source material in a few seconds.
How guides are written
Guides explain the reasoning behind a chart: why ski length depends on terrain, what boot last width means, how bat drop is calculated. Each factual claim in a guide is tied to a source listed at the bottom of the guide, and the text names the source where the claim is made. Where sources disagree, the guide says so and gives both positions. Guides are written for this site and are not translations or rewrites of another publication.
Checking and dates
Every page that carries a chart lists the sources it used and the month they were last checked. Sizing guides are rechecked before each season, and sooner when a reader reports a mismatch. When a source changes a number, we update the chart and the date. When a source disappears, we replace it with another from the same tier or remove the figure.
Corrections
If a number on this page disagrees with the maker's published figure, email [email protected] with the page, the row, and a link to the maker's chart. We check it against the source, correct the page if the report is right, and update the checked date. We do not keep a public change log of every edit, but material corrections to a safety-related page, such as helmet sizing, are noted on that page.
Advertising and affiliate links
The site earns money from Google AdSense ads and from affiliate links to retailers. Neither pays for placement in a chart, and neither changes a number. Affiliate links appear in a separate "shop this size" block and are labelled. Ads are placed below the calculator and chart, never in front of them. The affiliate disclosure has the details.
What this site is not
Gear Size Chart is not a fitting service. Charts give a starting size. For boots, helmets and anything else where a wrong size is uncomfortable or unsafe, confirm the fit in person or against the exact model's own chart. The site is independent of every maker and retailer it cites.