Help with helmet fit

[smccrory]

Replacement cheekpads do nothing for safety in the event of a crash. They are not crash protection. At all. Those are purely comfort items. If you want to compress the stuff that protects your brain, that's your deal, but trying to defend it by saying the replacement cheekpads are related is false.

I'm not - you skipped the point that helmet shells are fitted with variously sized inner foam, and that demonstrates that a few millimeters have negligible effect on helmet safety ratings. Otherwise, every fiberglass shell would be a different size, and they're not. If you want to argue with anyone about it, talk to the DOT and SNELL ratings people, not me. Perhaps they would better appreciate your helmet safety credentials.

PS. Correctly fitted cheek foam minimizes posterior helmet rotation in an impact.

[jacobhawkins]

Haha. Same team man, yes, a helmet should fit snugly and stay on your head and the pads help do that. After that, no use for impact slowing/protection.

Yes, shell sizes are different and some of that may be foam thickness. I don't know dick about why they are shaped the way they are, that's why I trust the tests and engineers who say its the proper shape when it leaves the factory. I don't mess with things like helmets because I rely on them to work to the best of their ability.

I know you wear gear, as do most of the people on this site. It just weirds me out when safety equipment is "tampered" with, even in what may* be a minor way.

Can we talk about which oil makes you go faster or something? Haha

[smccrory]

It's all good, and Bob is smart enough to make his own choice (we work together).  Maybe he'll even use the headaches to justify an integrated sunshade helmet :-).  Craig and I just wanted to give him the option so that he doesn't avoid riding.  I also doubt he'll need the helmet for a passenger on his FZ07 - it's a fantastic bike, but not exactly roomy accommodations for any pax bigger than a runway model.

[Wojo72]

Thanks for the feedback guys.   What I will probably do is try the spoon trick to gain some immediate relief.  That will give me a little bit of time to figure out what I really want as far as fit, features, weight, etc.   A $150 mistake is bad enough.  I surely don't want to regret a $500 helmet.  

[swingset]

Haha. Same team man, yes, a helmet should fit snugly and stay on your head and the pads help do that. After that, no use for impact slowing/protection.

Yes, shell sizes are different and some of that may be foam thickness. I don't know dick about why they are shaped the way they are, that's why I trust the tests and engineers who say its the proper shape when it leaves the factory. I don't mess with things like helmets because I rely on them to work to the best of their ability.

I know you wear gear, as do most of the people on this site. It just weirds me out when safety equipment is "tampered" with, even in what may* be a minor way.

Can we talk about which oil makes you go faster or something? Haha

 

Clearly, no one's going to talk you out of your position...but again, the amount needed to reduce a pressure point is miniscule. Not .5", not .25"...more like .062"...usually less than that. That's probably under the variation of just normal shell/liner thicknesses between sizes (if you don't believe me, take a ruler to IP and start checking all the interiors minus the outer shell thickness).

 

This is a non issue that's sounding scary too you, but you're not thinking about it in perspective.

 

Did you ever pay an ounce of attention to your foam thickness relative to the shell size to ensure you had the maximum possible before buying a lid? If so, kudos at least you're consistent on this...but then you'd be missing that there's no standard for thickness nor does it equate to perfect transmission of force away from the head.