Kali Protectives Naza FRP helmet review

[scratch]

First a little background - First helmet was an XS Shoei ER-5, followed by Shoei GX-1 (XS), Bell Star (6 and something inches (XS)), 2 Shoei RF-800's (M & S), 2 Shoei TZ-1's (S & XS) and a Shoei Qwest (XS and added the 41mm thicker cheek pads), and I've got to say this Kali Naza is the best helmet I've ever owned.

It's a small, and fits my oval head perfectly, but I do have to cinch the helmet strap all the way to keep it on my head. They do not offer an Extra Small and wish they did, because I'd buy one (and have 2!). Maybe a shorter strap on the left-hand side would do.

Note: I normally rides bikes without fairings/windshields

It's the quietest helmet of all, and flows an amazing amount of air. I was even surprised with airflow over my right ear, but not from under the helmet, with no additional wind-noise. The shield doesn't fog on these cool mornings to work (8am), but does have some distortion which doesn't bother a veteran rider, but may disorient a newer rider. The view port is narrower than the aforementioned Shoei's, with noticeable impingement in peripheral vision. Not a problem for a vet, but I do wish for more peripheral. Hopefully, Kali will address this and the face shield distortion. There are three positions for the shield, and with glasses, the 1-inch breath guard does a very good job of deflecting the air from my eyes.

Glasses, or shades, fit very well with the plushest interior ever experienced, unlike the Shoei Qwest which likes to prop up the glasses up to my eyebrows (which may be because of the thicker cheek pads, but still).

On the freeway, there's no helmet lift. At all. And, turning my head did not result in any difficulties. But, I do notice that it acts like a sail in crosswinds (afternoons on 101 North from Montague to Lawrence), not dangerous, but weird.

I'll be exploring tinted and mirrored face shields when they come in at Santa Clara Cycle Accessories, which is where I bought the helmet, and will report on those here in the coming weeks.

All in all, I am very pleased with this helmet, and excited about wearing it every ride.

Graphics: Normally, I wear an all-safety-white helmet, but I bought the Brush graphic and it gives me a good naughty feeling when I wear it.

[yamahonkawazuki]

tbh scratch ive never heard of them. but will take your word/review, since you're no newbie here 

[pronator]

Hey Scratch,

Looks like they're carrying them in XS now! Probably just a cheek pad swap since they're using two shell sizes:

XS, S, M = 1 shell size
L, XL, XXL = 1 shell size

Give the guys at Kali a call, especially since you're in the bay area. They have an office and warehouse in Morgan Hill. Very friendly when I spoke. Sounds like they'd be able to help you out with getting an XS liner.