Helmets...why pay more?

[Okiewan]

Materials quality, ease of maintenance (cleaning, etc), weight and FIT are the top reasons I spend $ on helmets. Fit is one of the biggest factors in how a helmet performs at impact.

Arai DOES make different shells, the quote above must be referring to fitting with interior changes (pad sizes, liner, etc.) not fitting all models in the Arai line.

Bottom line, without engineering info and some actual data, we are all speculating here. That being the case, I'll stick with what seems to be the best I can put on my head. Seems to me that most of the "it costs more due to fancy graphics" posts are by those who looked at two helmets and went with the cheaper one; afterall, this is a very expensive hobby. No one needs to justify their purchase either way, just go ride and good luck to you if you have to rely on your helmet.

 

[marcusgunby]

Bruce problem is going without on for example tires etc may actually make you need to use the extra safety a shoei might have? its all logical whats been written but i would like to know how much safer a Shoei is than a cheapo- 10% , 50%? i cant make a informed choice on this as we need someone to stump up the data, i understand some compainies may not want this, but we have a setup with cars-the ncap tests are very good -1 to 5 stars gives you a good idea what you are getting.Its great you have the info on this, but it needs to be public and given clarification on the test data.

If my M2R rated a 1 star i would buy a new one tomorrow.

 

[Chili]

I want to see a show of hands of all the folks who change out helmets after a crash no matter what. Be honest.

After every crash obviously not, a decent impact to the head and the helmet get's replaced is my feeling. LazyBoy knocked himself out practicing last season, I examined the liner of the helmet (HJC) and didn't see any visible signs of damage to the liner but in the end I figured he had hit it hard enough to lose conciousness that it was time to retire (not sell to some poor unsuspecting kid on e-boy) the lid. On the opposite note after his cartwheel routine through the rythmn section at DW last year he showed no signs of banging his head and again his M2R shows no signs of damage to the liner so we will likely run it again this season as a backup/practice helmet.

 

[Sawblade]

Sawblade:

1. are you sure that is talking about using just one shell? doesnt sound clear to me.

2. lets talk dollars- if you dont think $350-400 is too much for a lid, you can get the Shoei V-moto for less.

Once I read the statement again tonight its not so clear. Okie may be right in that they are talking about pad sizes not shell sizing. :think:

As for what passes at a higher standard we will never know. The manufactures are not going to release this information due to product liability. Its kind of like the old story about passing the bar exam to become a lawyer. The guy with the lowest passing score is still a lawyer, maybe not the smartest lawyer. But a lawyer none the less. After all any helmet that passes DOT and or Shell standards are only passing a set minimum requirement. :ohmy:

No doubt both Arai and Shoei make a very nice helmet. But Arai has placed themselves in a position of elitist with only being able to purchase a Arai from a "approved dealer" to ensure your helmet fits correctly. Like the guy behind the counter in most shops is an expert in fitting helmets. IMO this is part of the reason that HJC and others have become so popular in the last few years. They make a acceptable priced product that the buying public is willing to purchase. My local Honda shop is an Arai dealer, but they do not stock any helmets. When I asked why, they replied that 90 % of their customers buy the HJC at half the price of the Arai. IMO this turns a lot of people away from buying a Arai. But the real answer I would guess is back to the product liability concerns that caused Arai to only sale through a brick and mortar location and not mail or internet order.

 

[Lissa]

Our dealer is a Arai dealer. The reason our shop and most other Arai selling shops do not keep many examples (we do have a few in stock for sizing reasons) in stock is because of expense and the fact that the helmets we do (and did) stock are never the ones that anybody wants. People who are spending the kind of money to purchase a high quality helmet like a Arai, Shoei or Suomy (we carry all 3) usually will not settle for whats on the shelf. They want exactly what they want and nothing less where as a purchaser of a lesser expensive helmet will be alot more inclined to settle for whats on the shelf.

 

[LAN_Guru]

One Industries helmet question

I had posted this in the old helmet thread by mistake so here goes:

I would be interested to know how the One Industries Trooper helmet compares to the others from a protection standpoint. The Trooper Hurricane matches the Hurricane graphics on my bike perfectly

But, that said, if it's protection is substandard, my money will be spent on a Shoei or Aria.

Thanks in advance...

 

[kuritaro9]

I had posted this in the old helmet thread by mistake so here goes:

I would be interested to know how the One Industries Trooper helmet compares to the others from a protection standpoint. The Trooper Hurricane matches the Hurricane graphics on my bike perfectly

But, that said, if it's protection is substandard, my money will be spent on a Shoei or Aria.

Thanks in advance...

shoei also makes a hurricane vfxr for the japan market.you may be able order one... :cool:

 

[super rat]

I'd like to add that I run a white top of the line Shoei with some duct tape graphics, cause I don't want to look like some goob.

 

[Milhaus]

I think part of why this thread keeps going is because there really isnt anything more that anecdotes, hypotheses and philosphies, and no real hard evidence either way (although the 2 piece design is interesting, but even that is inconsequential , because many 2 piece designs when done properly can be stronger than 1 piece). Saying things like "$500 helmet for $500. head" is pointless because 1)it assumes that you always get what you pay for, and often this isnt the case 2) it doesnt even make sense....My head to me is worth $200,000....doesnt mean I can buy a $200k helmet, so in this case should I fell uncomfortable using a helmet that cost a piddly $500? Using that scheme, then can I really expect there to be a diff between a $150. lid and a $500 one?
-"I was in a crash and I surviived because i had the latest brand X helmet" Great for a commercial, but how do we know what would have happened with another more or less expensive helmet? we can't, so its pure speculation and hersay, no science. Science saves lives, not hearsay. -Does a brand name always determine quality? Mercedes benz used to be thought of as a top quality manufacturer, but recently their stuff is under scrutiny for being of painfully poor quality. Similar thing happened with cadillac years ago. What happened? How do we find out which manufacturer MAINTAINS quality, streives for innovation, invests in R&D rather than just marketing, and doesnt outsource their manufacturing to so-called "second rate" manufacturers?
Until a major lawsuit occurs, or perhaps someone finds a way to cash in on providing unbiased tests and reviews (which I for one would be more than willing to contribute to)-magazines are rarely reliable as they favor the products by their advertisers, we may never know.

 

[xsnrg]

When I was buying, I was told what many hear, that the more expensive helmets were a waste of money and that many middle-of-the-road brands offered just as good of protection as the Shoei's, Arai, Bell's, etc. Since I was only going to be riding trails 1x to 2x per month for a few hours each time, I couldn't justify the $300-$500 expense. I bought a HJC CLX helmet via e8ay on this advice and when I got it, I noticed that the shell was injection molded thermoplastic (read: Bounce on impact). I was a bit miffed, because I thought I had gotten the composite shell (read: crack/dent on impact), so I ordered myself a new HJC AC-X2...I love the helmet in fit and feel, but thankfully have not significantly tested the function. It made sense to me that you at the very least want a shell that cracks/dents instead of bounces. It should absorb much more energy instead of bouncing and transferring the energy absorption to your brain compressing against the inside of the skull. Same philosophy as the crumple zones in cars. When I was buying, the composite shells could not be found for less than about $150-$175.

 

[silencebe4thestorm]

Cant i just use my football helmet it gets hit pretty hard over and over again and looks good???






That was a joke just for those that dont get it

 

[highflyernick]

I dunno, my head starts to hurt in my football helmet after some good hits. Anyways, no one has said anything about M2R? I was looking at the X-2 and was wondering about them?

 

[Glikens11]

i didn't take the time to read all of your guys posts but i did read some of them and i didn't see this...I just got a new helmet from are local dealer and he was talkin to me he told me that the main things that cause the price differences are the weight and the graphics. He was showing me this Carbon fiber one and i asked him whats the difference between this one it was an HJC and your carbon fiber one he said weight but they will both protect your head the same just the carbon fiber one was 400 dollars compared to 120 dollars so if your not racing or freestyle or something i would go with something in the mid range I ended up with the JNC i think thats what it is i can't really read the logo but its the JNC kombat series and i love it it cost me a little over 150

 

[brian2372]

there is some great info here .i own a fly helmet and the reason i bought it was because it fits me better than any other helmet ever and its carbon/kevlar. price was not my concern but it just fits great.i read a artical several years ago that said that a helmet should be discarded every five years because the sun can break down its constuction material.after having a carbon fiber helmet i can never go back to a heavier one.i also think that there are some helmets that look cool with nice graphics but are of ultra low quality.my wife has a fox helmet and the forehead vents fell off after a few rides and the viser never has worked right ,basicly a peice of junk .

 

[railer]

uh....I was thinking of buying a Thor helmet...is this bad or good?

 

[+30]

bclapham,
you mentioned the TLD in a previous post. I checked helmetcity.com faq about ratings and it said snell was the highest. Looking into TLD site it shows their helmet exceeds snell m2000, m2005, dot and exe, whatever exe is. I use the TLD because the fit and weight are perfect for me, but I have always heard arai and shoei have the best helmets out there. Have you heard of TLD failures? Once you have reached the highest rating, can one helmet type far exceed another, wouldnt it then obtain another rating level? Why dont they just put 5 star impact ratings on helmets like cars then we dont have to research testing standards all day..... :whoa:

 

[+30]

oops sorry just noticed the threads over a year old.....anyway got a chance to wad it up over a 85fter with the tld, and i dont think i brained my damage.

 

[Chili]

got a chance to wad it up over a 85fter with the tld, and i dont think i brained my damage.

:laugh: :cool:

 

[CHR!S]

i don't know if this was mentioned already, i couldn't get through the whole thread, but DOT certification is on the honesty of the manufacturer. it is up to them to test their helmet, whearas snell tests the helmet before certifying it.

just an interesting bit.