The objective was to determine specimen-specific three-dimensional properties of the human head and compare with literature-based estimates, and examine the efficacy of using the latter dataset in the determination of injury metrics. Eight post mortem human subjects were exposed to sideimpact sled tests, and 3-d head kinematics and specimen-specific physical properties were obtained. Physical properties were also estimated from literature based on total body mass, stature, and head circumference, and length. Injury metrics obtained using literature-based data differed significantly from actual metrics obtained from specimen-specific information, suggesting the critical importance of specimen-specific data in establishing tolerance criteria.