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What Helmet To Choose?


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  • 3 weeks later...

Sometimes the more expensive helmets are more stiff and transfer the shock to your noggin. There are so many variables to this. Eirik covered it very well. I use Arai because of weight. It's expensive and light. You'll notice a pattern here if you try on a bunch of helmets.

 

I went to Shoei because I loved the Picotte look, but the front pushed into my face. It's not comfortable on me. Went straight back to the Arai.

 

I tried Bell helmets on at Laguna and will look to find one of those cheap online. I usually try on helmets and go home, get online and find them a LOT cheaper than you'll see at the stores.

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Hey Evans, plenty of good info here... but here's my take on helmets...

 

I'm not sure where you live, but most likely any helmets you buy will have to meet a certain safety rating. For example in Australia all helmets must meet a certain standard, otherwise they cannot be sold. So you can walk into any shop and buy any helmet - you absolutely cannot buy an "unsafe helmet" (at least as far as safety ratings etc. go). Maybe things are similar where you live.

 

Also with the different brands, it's not just sizing that may differ, but also the actual shell shape. For instance I have heard of people who have "uncommon" shaped heads sticking to one brand just because of the shell shape. Some people have Arai heads, others have Shoei heads, etc...

 

On price - generally I would say that all you get in a more expensive helmet are pretty graphics and better features like more ventilation, easier to use buckles & visor change system etc. Like I mentioned about safety (at least in Australia) all helmets meet the basic safety requirements, so the cheapest helmet may very well provide just as much protection as the most expensive one! I am going to try this out myself with a $70 full face helmet from Aldi that I can keep as a spare... (if there are any left in stock on Monday.)

 

The other thing to consider is the physical size of the helmet. While you're trying a helmet in the shop it may be worth sitting on your bike (or a similar one on the shop floor) and just try simple things like shoulder checks etc. I only mention this point because my first helmet was a Shoei, which was really nice, no problems. But I bought another helmet which is a KBC and it's much bulkier, the Shoei is no where near as wide by comparison. The KBC is so bulky that it hits my shoulder every time I do a shoulder check on the streets. I have to get my bum off the seat and actually turn my body around a bit if I want to do a proper shoulder check while wearing the KBC.

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