Need advice on a new helmet...

[chevysoldier]

As you can see, I am a noobie. When I bought my bike, he threw in his helmet. I want to buy a new one and am thinking about a modular, maybe with the flip down visor inside. I have heard and read millions of thing on the pros and cons of helmets; full face can pivot back on impact and break your neck, modulars offer no frontal protection because they can open in a crash. Anyone have any insight? Oh and btw, i cant afford a $750 helmet lol. Thanks in advance.

Edited May 25, 2009 by chevysoldier

[Dubguy85]

Buy a full faced...

[Outrun]

Check out some helmets here:

http://www.tobefast.com/helmets-c-63417.html

And to Save you some Cash:

http://www.tobefast.com/low-price-guarantee.php?productid=1747522

Team McCoy MotorSports

www.ToBeFast.com

Phone (606) 432-1556

Sales@tobefast.com

[cmoosego]

definetly a full faced non modular with the right padding it should move with your head.... test fit them when you look at them it should fit you snug but not to the point of being pressure... I have 2 vega helmets, one modular and one full face, now keep in mind I ride a cruiser, and cruisers go down differently then sport bikes.... all you really need is a good helmet with dot/snell ratings... snell is gonna be a more expensive helmet, because they have higher standards... but you shoudl be able to get a decent helmet for under 300 bucks, heck my vegas were under 200...

[SAMBUSA]

I've got the HJC FS-10. Has the flip down tinted visor on the inside. Love the lid. And it's relatively inexpensive.

[jagr]

I've got the HJC FS-10. Has the flip down tinted visor on the inside. Love the lid. And it's relatively inexpensive.

Yeah^^^. I picked up one for me and wifey. nice helmet. they were on sale for $185 each.

Also if you have to have the internal visor check out the Scorpion EXO-1000. you can get one for about $300. Also the new Nolan helmets ,modular or full face, have the internal visor. but they are pricey.

[jagr]

Here they are.

http://www.tobefast.com/hjc-fossil-fs-10-motorcycle-full-face-helmet-pr-1628803.html

Good price too. ^^^Its less than i paid at the Pony.

Edited May 25, 2009 by jagr

[gruss]

First off dont pigeon-hole yourself to a particular helmet, get one that fits your head, if its not comfortable no flip down visor or anything will help.

first off the full face breaking your neck theory if something catches the chin bar...it may well be true but think of it this way, if something hard hits your actual chin with enough force to break your neck what is that going to do to you? My guess would be rip off your face AND break your neck.

I have a modular and a full face, FF tend to be quieter and most likely safer and way more variety, the modular is nice cause i wear glasses and can put the helmet on without taking off the glasses and its nice for my commute (low-speed backroads, stop and go), and running errands, and should still save my face in a low speed get-off. the FF vents better and is a little more comfy if I'm going to be on the bike a long time.

Either one is better than some silly 1/4 helmet, FF for all out safety, Mod for convenience, but get one that fits right so you will always wear it!!

[V4junkie]

first off the full face breaking your neck theory if something catches the chin bar...it may well be true but think of it this way, if something hard hits your actual chin with enough force to break your neck what is that going to do to you? My guess would be rip off your face AND break your neck.

QFT +rep

Go somewhere and try on a bunch. Buy the one that fits, feels high quality, and has the aforementioned DOT and Snell ratings.

[magley64]

I'd suggest full face (non modular) personally I love the feel of my shoei RF1000's, but you should find a good quality helmet that fits you properly, that's most important.

[jporter12]

Sounds like time to head up to Iron Pony to try some on! Even if you don't buy one on the spot, you'll have a better idea of what you want to get. I need to go up there to get a jacket still, might go tonight.

[AOW]

There's a shit load of helmet options out there. When I rode sport bikes I always ALWAYS wore a FF Shoei. When I got the VROD I switched to Nolan modular and a brain bucket. I use the Nolan the vast majority of the time, and it is very comfortable and protective. Since you're going to be on a sport bike, you should invest in a Good FF helmet. Stay away from bargain basement brain buckets, (you only get one brain), you may also need to experiment w/different sizes of cheek pads and liners to get that perfect fit. Head to the Pony and let them hold your hand through the process.

[rick37]

I started with a full helmet but found that half helmets are more for me, So I have a red white gray, helmet laying around somewhere. If I was on a sportbike I would be wearing a full helmet.

[jporter12]

I found the people at the Iron Pony marginally helpful, at best. They basically said the try some on and see what fit.

[obesityrules]

check into the HJC AC12, the sizing charts are fairly accurate and its hard to beat the price.

[justin0469]

I really want an EXO-1000. I have an EXO-400 now and I can't complain. I can't tell how much I would use that flip down visor/shade thing, I'd rather have the tinted face shield. There's just a few of the paint schemes that give me a boner and I'd assume they have to be more comfortable and more quiet than my EXO-400.

[Likwid]

wanted to put this out there... since it relates to helmets

I was in the usability lab today and one of my colleagues made a comment about my arm and asked how it was healing... I said fine and he continued about the safety course...

Seeing an opportunity I said "Heh, it's all good, helmets are for losers" I've never gotten a better reaction to rejecting safety gear.... he got a terrified look on this face..... It's nice to see SOME people are finding safety gear the norm and not an opportunity to exercise the difference between safety and being forced to do something

And yes, I wear gear everytime I ride.... upgrading it piece by piece, got new gloves coming this week!

[Cheech]

It doesn't seem like too long ago I was in this boat...

All the major points have been covered here. Understand that you might be spending multiple hours in this thing, so comfort is essential. With anything you get, run it through some review sites to get an idea of the things you can't find out inside the store, like how noisy it is at highway speed, airflow, so on.

If you are thinking about modulars, IMHO Nolan really is your only option. You're staring down $400 easy with this option. I personally have a Scorpion EXO-400 which I love, it's decently quiet at highway speed, and the fitment is good after I removed some cheek pad foam (big ups to someone in OR for teaching me that), and a Caberg Solo which looks cool, has a flip down internal visor, but is louder than all hell on the highway.

Just remember this is your head you're protecting here, and you only get one. With helmet tech these days you don't have to go totally into debt to get something sensible, but don't get the 30 dollar Bell special at the Pony either. Hope that helps.

[jagr]

To be honest the modulars I have are way more comfy than full face.

In fact I'll prolly never wear that full face I just got. The Nolan is just too good.

[jporter12]

I'm moderately happy with my $80 closeout priced Zox Spectra-R. DOT and Snell 2005 rated, and it's comfortable. The air vents, even when closed, don't seem to be closed. The breath guard is nice, but I found that it causes the air to flow right into my eyes, and I was always having to adjust it. Noise seems to be louder with it out, too. Now, I may be only putting it in on days when it is needed (like today) and I'll be wearing the helmet for a while. I think after this season (if not before) I'm going to get something better.

Wouldn't it be nice if Iron Pony had a small "wind tunnel" to simulate wearing the helmet at highway speeds, to test noise and airflow?

[jagr]

Damn. That's a good idea. You should tell them to do it.

[Likwid]

that is a really great idea! damn!

Fwiw, I have an HJC CS-R1, got it for 70 at State8... comfortable and quiet... but I have nothing to compare it too...

[jbot]

for a brand new helmet, i like a tight fit, just barely edging on uncomfortable.

i haven't bought that many helmets, but from my short experience, the padding breaks in just enough where if it's just a tiny bit too tight from the get go, it breaks in and makes it just right.

for example: my second helmet (HJC something or other full face) was a large and it felt very comfortable, almost verging on just a hair loose. After I wore it for a while, it broke in and was starting to bounce around just a bit which is too much. A few helmets later, i picked up a medium arai vector and it fit just a hair too tight, and a few rides later, it is perfect.

obviously, it shouldn't be so tight it actually hurts your head to wear (that's a distraction)... but it shouldn't be so loose it starts moving around on you (bouncing vision... a worse distraction).

good luck and go try on lots of helmets.

[jporter12]

This is my first helmet, and I also went with fitting just a tad tight, infact the cheek pads were uncomfortable after a half hour or so, but lo and behold it now fits really well!

I'm thinking it wouldn't take all that much to build a "wind simulator", and it could even be built so that a rider could pull their own bike in to test with how their bike is setup, windshield, etc... A couple large fans, probably some intake filters, and some vents in the opposite end to let the air out. Get the wind speed up to about 65 MPH, or so, since that's legal speed limit.... Hmmm...

[gsxr750girl]

To me my helmet is the most important part of my gear! Go try them on and see what fits the best, everyone is different. I would say go with a full faced helmet. I have seen a lot of wrecks with different types of helmets, and I will only wear a full faced helmet. That is just my opinion, and I agree with moose you can pick up one for cheap. I am one of those who spend the crazy amount but you don't have too. HJC helmets are not bad at all and you can get them for around 200.00