Cheap helmets vs. expensive helmets

[Lerxst]

I've been happy with my CL-14 + a guy I know t-boned a car at 150 km/h and survived (full recovery) wearing a CL-14... I'm sold.

Try tilting your head forward a bit before twisting it... that'll maintain more of a "bullet shape" and it shouldn't twist so much.

[The Antibody]

I own an ICON Primary. I love it. It has all of the options that the $400 range ones have, and more. and it only costs around $175. They look good, and perform well.

 -Anti

[mrslush50]

I own an ICON Primary. I love it. It has all of the options that the $400 range ones have, and more. and it only costs around $175. They look good, and perform well.

 -Anti

I almost bought an Icon, but ended up going with a KBC.  It's a VR-7.  Very nice helmet.    You get some of these guys who will tell you that if you don't wear an Arai or Shoei you're crazy, isn't your head worth it, blah blah blah...  basically there just being snobs.  You put my helmet on their head without telling them what brand it is and they would swear to you it was a Shoei, and that it cost at least $450.  In reality it retails for around $225 and can be found for under $100.  Don't think you have to spend half what you paid for your bike to get a good helmet.  If it's Snell, or British Standard rated then you know it's going to do it's job.  Then just find the one the fits both your head, and your wallet best.

[snapper]

For some of us its all about fit fit fit.  I have a pin head, so I bought a shoei XXS.  Its fits pretty good.  But now Arai makes a XXS as well and I tried one on.  WOW what a difference!  I will be buying one in the spring.  Arai wasn't making them when I bought mine (at least I didn;t find them in my research) and I find even though the shoei fits the shape of it doesn't work as well with my head.  So when I look up-- lets say to crack my neck, the back of the helmet hits my jacket.

So try on all the helmets!  Try them on with your coat and stuff.

The positives with my shoei is noise.. it is fairly quiet.  

Well I need to go pinch pennies now so I can save up for my helmet....
:lol:

Good luck in your helmet search!

[Laura]

update:

I got my new helmet, and I like it much better than my old. It is an Arai Quantum f, size small. It fits better. When I bought my first helmet, I was mainly going for the cheapest helmet they had, and the smalls hurt my forehead, so I got a medium. I didn't even try an Arai, because I looked at the pricetag first. I think the padding on my first helmet has condensed a bit since May, and it seems a little too loose. My new helmet feels much more snug, and it doesn't hurt my forehead. I think even if the padding condenses a little, it will still fit well. And if it doesn't, I can put thicker cheek pads in.

And also, the helmet looks MUCH smaller than my other helmet. And that's not just because this is a small, and that was a medium. I compared an Arai medium next to the HJC medium, and there was a big difference. It also feels lighter. I have better peripheral vision. The venting seems better. So far, I'm quite happy with it, although today is the first day I've used it. I wish I hadn't been trying to pinch pennies when I bought my first helmet, because I've ended up spending quite a bit more money, just because I wasn't that happy with my first purchase. Oh well. I suppose it's possible I might not have enjoyed riding that much, and in that case it would have been a waste of money to buy an expensive helmet.

And three cheers for my GS! I haven't really been able to ride it since the beginning of December, (except once in January), and it started right up today. I rode for about 25 minutes, and it was a blast. I've really missed riding.

Thanks again for all your advice.

Laura

[pantablo]

update:
...my first helmet, I was mainly going for the cheapest helmet they had...

I got my new helmet, and I like it much better than my old. It is an Arai Quantum f, size small.

It fits better.

feels much more snug, and it doesn't hurt my forehead.

looks MUCH smaller

It also feels lighter.

I have better peripheral vision.

The venting seems better.

Laura,
Glad it worked out for the better. A more comfortable helmet will allow you to ride longer, more comfortably and generally enjoy the whole experience.  Also, thanks for giving first hand experience comparing cheaper to mroe expensive helmets. I realize this is just one persons experience but it goes to prove that you do get what you pay for!

I wear an Arai Quantum f XS. I would have bought a S if left to my own devices but shop insisted the XS was better fit. Now its compressed a bit and fits like a glove.

Ride on girlfriend!

[pizzleboy]

I think a lot of people buy the cheeper helmets at first because:

1.  You just shelledout for Bike
2.  Insurance
3.  Jacket
4.  etc...
5.  Etc...

Plus, what if you don't really ride the bike much?  It's not so bad having a $200 helmet collect dust than a $500 helmet.

Also, can you really, truly appreciate that new helmet if you didn't have the cheeper one before?

I think I will keep my HJC for another season, and upgrade next spring.  Unless I get a big, fat tax rebate... :mrgreen:

[sanityfree]

am i the only poor boy with G-Max helmets?

[bigdaub]

working in the motorcycle industry, i've had the chance to talk to the helmet people in the past and have the following:

1. all helmets pretty much protect the same if they meet dot requirements.
2. difference in price mainly reflects style (graphics), ventilation, comfort, lining material, and weight.
3. once you've dropped your helmet, enought to have a dent (even a tiny one) or crack, discard it!!! the protection decreases significantly.

i started with a kbc tk-7, good cheap, but has a problem with the shield coming up when i turn my head at high speed after about 1,000 miles.  talked to my kbc contact and he took it back and replaced it with a tk-9.  there is a significant difference with the shield construction and i'm still using it, but most importantly, it's comfortable!

[MstrsLilBrat]

Well... HELMET PROECTS YOUR HEAD! You cannot be save $ for that. I dont buy a cheap cheap helmet... Expensive helmet or cheap helmet... They must has reason why...  

[The Buddha]

Hey actually there is IMHO a difference in ideology between various helmet manufacturers. This was told to me by someone who has attended a lot of sales meetings and dealer seminars for helmet retailers.
In group 1 is Shoei, arai, agv and some others maybe hjc, kbc and others.
Group 2 is Bieffe, bell, simpson, Icon and others.
Group one believes the helmet should be soft and give and have crumple zones and under impch the shell is supposed to deform even with light force. Hence a crash where Ben Bostrom slid along the ground at speed, but didn't hit hit head hard against much in a head on type of impact... left a large rash on literally 1/2 the helmet... The helmet deformed and rubbed the ground and when he got up it went back to its original shape... much weaker of course but still the idea of crumple zones etc was built in.
Group 2 is the stronger is better group... soft impacts will not even leave a mark, hard impacts will make it deform less, but your head is cushioned by the styrofoam and other spongy material inside. The shell is hard, the liner is the cushion. I prefer the second group. I think the soft shell is bad... impacts hard enough to deform the shell and hurt your head are plenty available on the street.
OK having said that... helmets are cheap because outdated paint and graphics, and outdated sponsorships... the BR 16 I have used to be Biaggi's when he was a bieffe sponsored rider... It used to cost $200+. I got it for $99. When the RF-1000 is out the RF 900 seems out dated. Doesn't make it a bad helmet... but its marketability and there fore price drops to 50-60% just cos its not the latest and greatest. The RF 1000 may not be much better really but its the latest. Bieffe came out with the airtech model, and BR15's dropped to $89... and actually the 15 was better than the airtech... the 15 ws snell 95, the airtech was dot.
Cool.
Srinath.
Cool.
Srinath.

[pantablo]

Srinath,
based on your Group 1/Group 2 thinking then I'd prefer the Group 1. The group 1 would be the equivalent of a modern day car with crumple zones that take/absorb  the energy of an impact prior to passing it on to you. This means that once energy from impact does reach you it has dissipated some.

Group 2 helmets would then fall under the older style cars that were more rigid construction that then passed on more of the impact energy to you, causing more injury.

Seems to me one would want a Group 1 helmet for maximum protection. Once again you and I disagree completely on another issue...what a surprise. I respect your opinion on this though, just dont agree.

[vtlion]

The force of an impact has to be absorbed by something... better the helmet than my head... I'm with Pablo.  I want my helmet to give in an crash.  I guess I can see they idea of having the hard outer shell for better puncture-resistance, but it seems to me that in a slide or (even worse)a roll down the highway, the odds of a blunt impact far exceed the odds of the helmet being pierced... and if that happens, I doubt any helmet would be enough.

[The Buddha]

OK the soft and hard helmets will both deform... but under different loads... the force of sliding with your head just touching the road will cause the group one to flat spot, group 2 will retain its egg shape under that light load. Say you slid 20 feet into a brick wall, a group 2 helmet shell will deform under that impact. So under light impact a group 1 will give you no pain while a group 2 will give you a sore neck/back. Under a severe impact a group 2 one will still give you a sore neck/back will a group 1 will break your skull. Plastic failure but at different loads. The group 1 is mostly race track targeted... where the hardest object is another bikes tire, and a group 2 is street oriented where the hardest object is the nearest semi. They all show elastic tendency before plastic failure.
Cool.
Srinath.

[JamesG]

I think all of the DOT/SNELL helmets will protect your head well enough in most cases, and the few "overmatch" cases are usually from the helmet getting hit so hard or in such an odd way, that failure can't really be attributed to this or that brand.
But
When I first started getting into bikes, I took the usual route and bought the cheapest helmets I could find. sub $200 Bieffes, Bells, Nolans.  I had peices of the fittings and interior fall off of the Bieffe and Bell...
Then I finally shelled out for a Shoei, the quality is night and day better.  I cling to my 4 year old RF-R because it is still a better helmet than any new HJC etc. one I've tried.

For race helmets though, I buy the top of the line, but from several years ago, AGV or Shoei (Ariis hold their value).   The helmets are good quality but usually cheap enough tha I won't cry after dragging it across the pavement, which I used to do to frequently...

[dgyver]

....At highway speeds, if I turn my head the slightest bit, my head gets jerked back. My helmet seems to act as a sail unless my head is in exactly the right position. Are the higher priced helmets more aerodynamic?

I have 2 Shoei XSPII helmets. It was their top of the line a couple of years ago before the X-11. My helmet will get caught by the wind a little when I turn it sideways. Turning a just little bit doesn't bother me.

...and realized the my head looks GIGANTIC in this helmet. Imagine a stick person with a big circle as a head.

I don't have a problem with my helmet size.... :dunno:



:mrgreen:

[Rich500]

/\---BEST PICTURE EVER!!!
I wish it was my avatar.

[Kerry]

I wish it was my avatar.

Good idea!  How many vote for dgyver to change his avatar?



PS - Hilarious!  Thanks for the belly laugh.

EDIT: Changed link from sisna.com to bbburma.net

[akh223]

I think I am gonna have to have an avatar talk with dgyver on Sunday when we meet for our first ride together........

Andy

[Laura]

Dgyver, great picture!  :lol:

Laura