shazam@mhuxl.UUCP (Tom Marsden) (02/05/85)
I just purchased my first bike and need to acquire a helmet. Being that a helmet is the most important piece of safety equipment that I will buy, I am looking for recommendations from experienced motorcycle owners. Any advice would be appreciated. Thanks in advance. Tom Marsden AT&T Bell Laboratories (201) 582-6202 mhuxl!shazam
lee@unmvax.UUCP (02/07/85)
The best, supposedly, is one that is SNELL approved. This is a foundation which, among other things, tests how well a helmet can protect your head. It is a very long and drawn out process for the manufacturer and they usually charge more when their product bears the SNELL sticker. Even after SNELL has tested the initial helmet design and it goes into production they periodically come back and pull random samples from the line to make sure that the final product is still up to par. DOT (dept. of transportation) has minimum requirements for helmets and yours should also bear a sticker indicating that it has met these. One problem is that this standard is messed. Helmets that do almost nothing for you will meet them. Some of these helmets can dimple in during a crash. They are fine afterwards, usually. You just pop that old dent right out. Aha, but can you pop the dent out of your head? Stick with a SNELL approved helmet. When I bought mine (SNELL 75) I was told, "your neck will break before enough damage can be done to your head to damage your brain." After reading some articles and watching a special on our PBS station I have come to believe that statement. I have a BELL star. It is drafty but I like alot of wind. It allows for VERY good peripheral vision. It fits snugly (as any helmet you own should). I have also owned SHOEI and find them comparable to what I have now. Take great care in finding a helmet that fits you well and remember to look for that SNELL sticker inside! Safe riding,
cliff@unmvax.UUCP (02/07/85)
> Stick with a SNELL approved helmet. When I bought mine (SNELL 75) > I was told, "your neck will break before enough damage can be done to your > head to damage your brain." After reading some articles and watching a special > on our PBS station I have come to believe that statement. One exception to this rule is JEB's from Italy. They do not have either SNELL, or DOT approval. I wouldn't recommend most non SNELL helmets, but I have seen the remains of a friend's JEB's after he lost control of his BMW somewhere above 105m.p.h.--quite the conversation piece, and he is around to converse too. (He had a limp for a while, but I think that has gone away). He had just had his accident when I was about to buy my first full face helmet, so I went with JEB's. > I have a BELL star. It is drafty but I like alot of wind. It allows for > VERY good peripheral vision. It fits snugly (as any helmet you own should). > I have also owned SHOEI and find them comparable to what I have now. I have a JEB's. It isn't drafty; I don't like a lot of wind. It too allows for VERY good peripheral vision and fits snugly. BTW, I believe AGV makes fairly sturdy helmets also (another Italian company). My p.o.s.s.l.q. has one, she has a small head and had a hard time with other helmets... I don't know of anyone who has dumped their bike in one though (and I hope I don't learn). > Take great care in finding a helmet that fits you well and remember > to look for that SNELL sticker inside! > > Safe riding, ditto. --Cliff [Matthews] {purdue, cmcl2, ihnp4}!lanl!unmvax!cliff {csu-cs, pur-ee, convex, gatech, ucbvax}!unmvax!cliff 4744 Trumbull S.E. - Albuquerque NM 87108 - (505) 265-9143
gadfly@ihu1m.UUCP (Gadfly) (02/07/85)
-- > I just purchased my first bike and need to acquire a helmet. > Being that a helmet is the most important piece of safety equipment > that I will buy, I am looking for recommendations from experienced > motorcycle owners. Any advice would be appreciated. > > Tom Marsden This experienced rider would also like recommendations for a helmet--full face. I've had my Snell 75 Arai for about 5 years now. The fit is good, but the straps are getting very frayed. I never liked the snaps on the face shield, because (1) they are invariably misaligned on replacement shields, and (2) those snaps are inoperable with heavy gloves on anyway. But the price was right when the '75 Challenger-X was superseded by their Snell 80 line. Desirable features (I think) for a full-face hat are: (1) a face shield that seals well, but that can be lifted up easily, without having to unsnap anything. (2) availability of replacement shields at reasonable price. (3) good resistance to fogging and icing. (4) full helmet integrity without the face shield. While I'm at it, I'll repost (the initial posting was several months ago) my inquiry about how to cut down on fogging and icing. Has anyone out there had any success (or failure) with the any particular anti-fogging/icing preparations? -- *** *** JE MAINTIENDRAI ***** ***** ****** ****** 07 Feb 85 [19 Pluviose An CXCIII] ken perlow ***** ***** (312)979-7188 ** ** ** ** ..ihnp4!iwsl8!ken *** ***
bob@cygnet.CYGNETSYSTEMS (Bob Clark) (02/10/85)
I'm also a brand new rider. After hearing about it on the net, I took the Mortorcycle Safety Foundation (MSF) course, which I HIGHLY recommend. After finishing the course, I bought a good leather jacket, leather gloves, a Shoei helmet, and a new 84 Honda 650 Nighthawk. Great stuff! And thanks to all the netters for the unknown encouragement. As far as the helmet goes, the Shoei has one feature which I really like, and would greatly miss. The face shield ratchets up and down with about 7 stops. The first one is the most important - you can ride on cold days with the shield open a notch and it won't fog up, due to the increased air flow. Being able to quickly flip it open and closed at lights is very worthwhile. Hope you have as much fun as I'm having! Bob Clark, Cygnet Systems, Sunnyvale, CA hplabs!cygnet!bob
dewey@ttidcb.UUCP (William Dewey) (02/11/85)
<> I own about three helmets..... so I'll let fly..... Simpson model 61..... good visiblity..... and you can also wear glasses with them.... big problem..... the shield flops down..... sounds like a feature till your in a fogg, or the rain.... and for whatever reason need the *&&^* thing up for awhile..... This is a fairly heavy helmet..... Shoei T-100..... Kevlar helmet..... (ar ar..... bullet proof) also Snell 85 approved..... fits very tight across the cheek bones, and this takes some getting used to..... other then that I love it..... has a rachet mechinism for the visor (althought the visor is still plastic with no coating for fogg and/or scratch protection) very spensive (200)... another problem..... the rings on the strap are very close to the helmet..... so I cant hang the helmet on my helmet thingy on the bike..... ah well..... I guess I can carry it into restaurants. Nava SupergalixnavaII (Yup I dont know if the spelling is even close) this is the first helmet I owned.... and the only I have crash expeiance in (thank Crom).... I didnt even feel the impact ( I was told I did 3-4 somesaults while flying over the car.... score:9.9... I didnt keep my ankles together... and the landing was weak, but good creativity :-) Just commentary..... If you do alot freeway riding, or riding at speed... only consider snell approved helmets..... and '85 is better.... ABSOLUTELY dont buy a used helmet..... And in my opinion.... a helmet is a one crash only (no matter how minor) device.... (my insurance company agrees by the way...) If you only plan to drive around town (speeds less then 35) then DOT approved should be OK..... Snell (I think) was originally for racing helmets only..... a low speed impact in a snell helmet will give you a headache..... they are very 'hard', but you will live (at least your head) through a high speed impact, and/or repeated impacts (Ie rolling at 55mph). Rich Silva (aka ttidcb!dewey) Manhattan Engineering
dewey@ttidcb.UUCP (William Dewey) (02/11/85)
<> The Shoei T-100 is a great helmet, and meets your criterion.... It has a rachet adjsutable shiled (although I dont know the cost of replacement..... is pretty light..... (kevlar)... anti-fogging.... hmmm. Shoei has this nose shield thing that works pretty good..... the idea being... keep the moisture away from the shield.... I've also had good luck with Nava anit-fogg stuff... although it must be re-applied often... There's also a few anti-fogg glasses cleaner sprays that work well, and claim to be safe for plastics.... Rich Silva
darryl@haddock.UUCP (02/14/85)
[] I just purchased a Shoei RF-5V, which is their Snell 85 replacement for the ER-7 (I am told). It does indeed fit snugly across the checkbones, but not uncomfortably so, at least for me. Pluses include 7 ratchet position shield and a 3 ratchet-position cam gizmo that pushes the shield up EVER-SO- SLIGHTLY. Also, two open/close vents over the forehead (haven't had a need for them yet, its only 80 in LA right now, but wait till the summer comes :-). The only minus I've noticed so far is that the D rings are made from a flat, wide wire, so the tab trick on my old Vetter doesn't work (a small piece of webbing material around the inside D ring can be pulled outward and left while the strap is pulled to the right so that the whole shebang comes off in one smooth motion). --Darryl Richman ...!cca!ima!ism780!darryl