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mattguss

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    Lakewood, WA

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  1. It would be great to get a helmet (like Shoei) manufacturer to comment here
  2. hmm, I'm not a helmet expert either and certainly less expert than most in riding per se. That said, I never heard of the "one time use". It seems like it would be a matter of degree like most other things. It would make sense to disqualify the lid if you knew for certain that the helmet protection was compromised --shell or padding. But would a little scuff ("minor scratch") as a result of a fall where your head contacts the pavement disqualify that helmet absolutely? How many of us would trash can a $700 helmet for that? How many helmets have fallen off bikes and gotten scratched. There no head in it, in that case but still... I am not suggesting we be cavalier with our head safety but there must be some reasonable way to decide that without a black & white, yes or no rule for helmet contact. I know Shoei (for example) will inspect your "damaged" helmet and let you know if it is still doing its job as specified and therefore safe to continue using. You don't see riders throwing away racing suits after an off (usually). I respect that you have your rules at Superbike and maybe you are right to have them. It just seems like DQ'ing a helmet for any contact is a bit extreme. I'm not an expert either, but I have read up on this, mainly researching whether the costlier helmets really provide any better protection than the mid-range helmets, so here is my understanding: The problem is that the material inside the helmet is crushable, that's how it absorbs impact. After being crushed, it doesn't spring back to shape and thus has lost its ability to protect you in another impact. That crushable material is between the outer shell and the inner padding, you can't see it, so the ony way to check it is to send it (as you say above) for inspection by the manufacturer. In a crash, the inner material is crushed by your head's inertia inside the helmet - so the shell hits the ground, but the crushable stuff between head and shell cushions the impact, slowing your head down and helping to keep your brains from slamming into your skull, and /or your skull crushing on impact. Personally, if my helmet fell off a bike, I would be a little concerned about its protectiveness after that but I probably wouldn't junk it - since there is nothing heavy INSIDE the helmet to crush the inner liner in the fall. And yes, that could potentially scratch the helmet paint a bit, but in my limited experience, that does not look like the broader scuffs that occur from an actual crash impact. However, if a student crashed, hit their head, and there was visible damage to the helmet, I would absolutely not think it was wise for that person to continue riding, it's too difficult to tell if someone has a head injury or not; they might think they are fine when they really are not. I agree with your explanation entirely about how the helmet components are supposed to work. . BUT, still, isn't it a matter of degree? How much of a scrape on the pavement compresses the liner? How much compression is acceptable? My uninformed opinion is that a scratch like we're talking about here won't compromises the practical effectiveness of that helmet one little bit. I may be wrong here, but there are probably instances when the liner either is not crushed or is crushed in such a minimal way as to not matter. And if its your Shoei X12 with the little scratch are you really going to throw it away? I doubt it. I'm all for safety. We all are. But that's just too extreme for me. However I will bring my nice new, unscratched lid to a Superbike school!
  3. hmm, I'm not a helmet expert either and certainly less expert than most in riding per se. That said, I never heard of the "one time use". It seems like it would be a matter of degree like most other things. It would make sense to disqualify the lid if you knew for certain that the helmet protection was compromised --shell or padding. But would a little scuff ("minor scratch") as a result of a fall where your head contacts the pavement disqualify that helmet absolutely? How many of us would trash can a $700 helmet for that? How many helmets have fallen off bikes and gotten scratched. There no head in it, in that case but still... I am not suggesting we be cavalier with our head safety but there must be some reasonable way to decide that without a black & white, yes or no rule for helmet contact. I know Shoei (for example) will inspect your "damaged" helmet and let you know if it is still doing its job as specified and therefore safe to continue using. You don't see riders throwing away racing suits after an off (usually). I respect that you have your rules at Superbike and maybe you are right to have them. It just seems like DQ'ing a helmet for any contact is a bit extreme.
  4. What tire size were you using? 120/70 & 190/50 The 190/50 is your issue. The 190/55 Q2 wil lbe a much better construction tire and perform much better in the turns. What you experienced with the 190/50 is valid. It is a flatter tire and when leaned over it gives less contact atch andd is not as stable as the 190/55. Try the 190/55 rear for your next set of Q2, you will be much happier with the upgrade in performance. the 120/70 is fine and the correct tire size. Thanks for the tip about the 55's. It makes sense that they would put more rubber on the ground and I can understand why that would be grippier in the dry. Please tell me why the wet grip performance would improve. Also, changing to a 55 profile will I need to worry about ride height adjustment? or any other suspension change?
  5. What tire size were you using? 120/70 & 190/50
  6. This is directed to our Dunlop expert but I would certainly welcome any thoughts! I have run Q2's on my street bike ('08 cbr1000rr) for 2 years and love 'em...in the dry. I've had 4 sets of the q2's. I have ridden them on the track and twisties with great satisfaction. They are grippy as hell, predictable and give great feedback. BUT when it gets wet or even damp I find the Q2 to be a squirrley tire and not confidence inspiring. Even though I am a fair weather rider, it can rain or be wet on a morning. So my question is will the new Roadsmart 2's offer as good or nearly as good dry grip as the Q2's? And / or what should I expect the handling characteristics of the Roadsmart 2 to be like? Is switching to Roadsmart's a good idea or should I just with the Q2's and tip toe thru the damp? Anybody ridden on the Roadsmart2's? Thanks for any thoughts! Matt btw, why isn't there any objective measure for grip when it comes to tires?
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