Two-piece hard hat

Claim 1

A protective hard hat assembly comprising: an upper crown member being generally dome shaped and having a generally annular periphery; a lower ring skirt member having a generally upright wall portion with an upper end of a shape and size corresponding to the periphery of said crown member and a lower end forming a brim; and means for detachably securing said crown member to said skirt member with the periphery of said crown member engaging the upper end of said skirt member to form said hard hat assembly, said securing means includes coacting means on said crown member periphery and said skirt member upper end forming a tongue and groove joint between said crown member and said skirt member, said crown and skirt members secured to one another at a location approximately midway of the vertical height of said hard hat assembly such that when detached, the height of each member is approximately half the height of the assembled hard hat, and a sealing ring disposed in the bottom of said groove and sealing the connection between said upper and lower members to prevent liquid from leaking into said hard hat.