Not IMO. You do actually go out on to the road on a CBT. With other traffic, with them doing 30 mph plus and you doing 30mph plus. If anyone wants to put their trust in a £50 helmet then good luck, I certainly would not.
How much should I budget for a helmet?
- Thread starter Hades
- Start date
Not IMO. You do actually go out on to the road on a CBT. With other traffic, with them doing 30 mph plus and you doing 30mph plus. If anyone wants to put their trust in a £50 helmet then good luck, I certainly would not.
Great choice with the Neotec 2. My head spends a lot of time in mine and it’s a fantastic bit of kit.
Whilst crash performance should strongly influence your choice of helmet, features which reduce your likelihood of crashing in the first place are generally not considered but should be. Fit, weight, visibility, ventilation, aerodynamics and visibility to suit the bike, and noise can all contribute to the addition or reduction of fatigue and distraction. They can be difficult to quantify but in my experience they are features that should not be underestimated.
Whilst crash performance should strongly influence your choice of helmet, features which reduce your likelihood of crashing in the first place are generally not considered but should be. Fit, weight, visibility, ventilation, aerodynamics and visibility to suit the bike, and noise can all contribute to the addition or reduction of fatigue and distraction. They can be difficult to quantify but in my experience they are features that should not be underestimated.
Depending on your head shape (Not aimed @Hades anymore, specifically as he's got a helmet), but the Shoei Ryd has a fantastically comfy fit, great visibility, fairly quiet, and has a five star sharp rating.
There are deals on it online now, as it's 'discontinued'. Around the £230 mark for a Shoei is reasonable.
There are deals on it online now, as it's 'discontinued'. Around the £230 mark for a Shoei is reasonable.
Deleted member 651465
Deleted member 651465
I used a HJC. No complaints as a first helmet, even had a slide down sun visor (which is essential imo).
I know this wasn't aimed at me
But I just checked and Motolegends have some Ryd's advertised. They will price beat a UK competitor by 10%. I used them to price beat on my Neotec 2. If someone can find the Ryd for £230 then they may price beat it to £207 which is a cracking deal. It obviously has to be the same colour and size etc.Cheers for pointing that outI know this wasn't aimed at me
Soldato
- Joined
- 15 Feb 2003
- Posts
- 10,142
- Location
- Europe
Been having a think about helmets recently and a look back at my old ones.
When I first started I had a £30 lidl helmet. Since all helmets have to meet a minimum standard I figured it was fine. What you get for paying more is more comfort and features.
The most comfortable helmet I had was an Arai Condor. Arai had so many shell sizes that it felt the Condor was tailored to fit my head. The issues were that is wasn't particularly feature full, and no easy to get on and off. There was no removable lining, no pinlock, no sun visor or anything.
I moved to a HJC something or other, CL-ST I think. It has a nice big visor, pinlock and removable lining. It leaked though, and I believe I was involved in an accident, so had to bin it. It wasn't a great shame.
At this stage I wanted to try modular helmets, and went with HJC again this time the RPHA Max. I believe it was the lightest flip up helmet around at the time. Nice and comfortable, full of features, and decent weight. This is the one I used around Morocco and South America.
It was actually a poor choice. I found that is was impossible to prevent air getting into it causing my eyes to water. At over 150mph (whilst touring through a country that allows that speed), I could barely see at all. Air getting in also meant water would get in too with large droplets actually forming on the inside of my pinlock.
I complained to HJC which was pointless. They don't exist in Europe and just use distributors. I should have known better after seeing Jorge Lorenzo complain about not being able to see out of his HJC helmet. If they can't get it right for guy they sponsor, that hope do the rest of us have.
Finally I changed to the Schuberth E1. This helmet was fantastic. Plush and comfortable, super quiet and with an excellent visor. It could also take goggles and had a peak (for my off road adventures). As it seals up so well to keep the noise out Schuberth did include some permanently open vents for air flow, but unlike the HJC these never cause me a problem and never ended up sucking water into the helmet.
The only criticisms I had of the E1 were that Schuberth were lazy in only making two shell sizes. I'm a small, so really could do with a smaller shell, rather than sharing one with the medium version. The weight. Not he heaviest flip up helmet, but not the lightest either. You'd certainly notice the difference between that and the HJC RPHA. Unfortunately this helmet was stolen along with my KTM 950 Adventure back in 2017.
Bit lateI booked my CBT today with a view to following Direct Access to get my full license (yay). I will need a helmet eventually so I would like to get it in advance of the CBT rather than use the training schools one. I don't want to spend a fortune because I will only be an occasional rider. But equally I don't want to scrimp when it comes to safety. So a £50 budget special is out of the question.
Is there a recommended price I should be looking at to get a good helmet? £200, £300? Thanks.
But i think another good place for helmets (plus other bike gear) is sportsbikeshop Motorcycle Helmets - FREE DELIVERY & RETURNS (sportsbikeshop.co.uk)
Associate
- Joined
- 25 Mar 2021
- Posts
- 272
Oh god, the RPHA Max. Had it for a grand total of a week, and that was only because I had to wait for a day off to take it back. Wind in your eyes even fully closed (the lid, not my eyes 
) and that single strap over the top of the head instead of full surround padding meant I could still feel the ******* of a thing for an hour after I took it off at the end of a 30 minute ride to work.
Never touching a HJC again, got a Neotec 2 to replace my Neotec after an accident, didn't balk at the price because the cager's insurance had already admitted liability and was paying for it anyway.
) and that single strap over the top of the head instead of full surround padding meant I could still feel the ******* of a thing for an hour after I took it off at the end of a 30 minute ride to work.Never touching a HJC again, got a Neotec 2 to replace my Neotec after an accident, didn't balk at the price because the cager's insurance had already admitted liability and was paying for it anyway.
Do you get whistling on the Neotec 2 at higher speeds? Mine whistles a lot from about 50mph with the visor closed (not when open). I've read that some Shoei helmets can be adjusted to pull the visor closer to the helmet and create a better seal to fix this. I will check if that can be done on the Neotec 2 but wondered if yours did it too. I don't recall it doing it when I forst got it. Apart from that I love my Neotec 2.
Mine doesn’t whistle. Check the visor seal for kinks. Sometimes it can get caught and will hold a fold line which can be worked out with a little heat. Do you have anything else attached to the helmet?
Thanks. I'll check it. I have a pinlock inside but that shouldn't cause it. Nothing else attached to it. I'll check the seal and try removing and refitting the visor again. If it continues after that I'll pop it back to the shop to check.
Associate
- Joined
- 25 Mar 2021
- Posts
- 272
Maybe a little whistling, but I wear a pair of earplugs from Custom Fit Guards that I got in January. Even after the ride to work, 30 minutes of mostly motorway, there's no ringing in my ears or the like so I can live with it.
If you haven't invested in a pair of earplugs yet, do so. CFG are based in Leamington Spa, there's a company called Vario I got my previous pair from down south as well. Not only does it protect your hearing but a lot of the helmet noise gets blocked out too.
If you haven't invested in a pair of earplugs yet, do so. CFG are based in Leamington Spa, there's a company called Vario I got my previous pair from down south as well. Not only does it protect your hearing but a lot of the helmet noise gets blocked out too.
Thanks.
Associate
- Joined
- 25 Mar 2021
- Posts
- 272
You’re welcome fella, hope it all goes great guns for you.
Now that all the gear shops have reopened in England, time to buy the other half her lid, just short of 3 months after her birthday. Podium finish for worst boyfriend in the world, but I can blame Johnson for that
Now that all the gear shops have reopened in England, time to buy the other half her lid, just short of 3 months after her birthday. Podium finish for worst boyfriend in the world, but I can blame Johnson for that
A quick update on the whistling. It was user error Upon looking closely, popping the visor off and on again and retesting it I realised the Neotec 2 has an almost closed position for air flow. It whistles when in this position as the visor is cracked open a millimetre or so. When closing normally it goes to this position and feels fully closed. But it isn't. You can click it down further to fully seal it. You have to really deliberately push it that extra mm.
No more whistling at all. Very quiet now. Happy
Upon looking closely, popping the visor off and on again and retesting it I realised the Neotec 2 has an almost closed position for air flow. It whistles when in this position as the visor is cracked open a millimetre or so. When closing normally it goes to this position and feels fully closed. But it isn't. You can click it down further to fully seal it. You have to really deliberately push it that extra mm.No more whistling at all. Very quiet now. Happy
Associate
- Joined
- 25 Mar 2021
- Posts
- 272
That little catch on the left should snap closed, yep. Glad you found it! In other news the other half is now also the proud owner of a Neotec 2 from J&S Northwich. She originally balked at the price but my response was simple: if you think I’m spending less to protect your head than I’d spend on my own, think again.
she’s worth it
she’s worth it