rblanders@watrose.UUCP (Robyn Landers) (09/30/85)
I've been searching for a quiet helmet ever since I got a Sabre with Hondaline sport fairing i.e. short windshield. Unfortunately my head is wierd and few helmets fit me at all. I had an Arai Challenger 80 which was quietest with the shield open one step (!) but it wouldn't stay in this position bacause of wind blast. Covering the side plates which house the shield pivot and catch helped immensely. Although better Arai helmets, such as SuperSport, SuperVent, etc have better padding around ears and chin line (VERY important for cutting wind noise) they have same shield pivot assembly so I suspect they might be unnecessarily noisy. Check out Motor Cyclist September (I think Sept) issue. It has a large section devoted to rating helmets, as well as articles on what the Snell and DOT tests test for, construction, saftey, etc etc. Very informative and useful. They recommend the Marushin VT-910 as near perfect in fit, quality, quiet, price. It really is a very nice helmet, too bad it didn't fit me. Also they like the Shoei RF-V5. I ended up buying a Shoei RF-85 (very similar to RF-V5) which is much quieter than my Arai Challenger. Better jaw and ear padding, much better seal around shield, good overall fit. I've tried some wax earplugs which are soft and mold to your contours when they get warm, but they work better for rock concerts than wind noise. They helped a bit, but not enough to be worth the discomfort (helmet pinches them). I'd say get a new helmet (Full face of course!!) with tons of padding along jawline, cheeks, ears, and complete seal around shield area. I found that Simpson and Bell were the pits in this regard. Way too much open space around the bottom. This, along with a windshield (:-)) should help avoid the zzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzzz. Robyn