Helmets

[TiN]

It looks like there needs to be something to be written about buying/choosing/cleaning/storing/etc lids here...so...write away
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TiN
dotgems.net

[Tenthghost]

brief guide to buying a helmet

there is 3 main times of helmets

Full Face
Open Face
motocross style helmets

Full Face

As the name sugggests it covers the whole of your face. When buying one make sure that it fits snugly around your head and not loose. Make sure it has the european safety mark on the back .And never go by how the paint work looks always make sure it is comfortable and never ever buy a secondhand helmet


Open Face

These helmets are usually worn to look trendy or by people who are cosrtophobic stick to the same rule as a full face and you shoudn't go wrong

Motocross

This helmet is a creationo of mixing both of the above together.
Motocross are basically a full face with a bigger gap without a visor these will will be mainly used of road with goggle to protect your eyes from any dirt or muck
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[JimboJ]

If you want me to write a complete load of shit i can alls you need to say is:

Wearing a helmet in the UK is mandatory(and anyone who doesn't is just THICK)


There are (as far as i know) Two types of helmets; 3 and 5 year ones.
Then there are 2 styles : open faced
Open-face helmets are preferred by riders who feel closed in by full-face helmets and can be worn with either a visor or goggles. They don't protect the chin in an accident.

and

Full-face:
helmets cover the head fully and have a hinged visor. They protect the face in an accident and offer more weather protection than an open-face helmet.

Don't buy online unless you have tried the helmet on in a shop
When buying a helmet, the best helmet is on that fits.
Price isn't everything.
Looks won't save your head in a crash, a good fitting helmet will

When choosing bare in mind that some companies offer you free x-ray's for your helmet should you drop it (they used to on arai when I bought one)
Although they should do, check to make sure the helmet passes the right european law or british standard(E law is becoming more recognized now):

[Annabella]

Don't scrimp on your helmet.



I am repeating Jimbo, just to reiterate this point:

The most important factor is to make sure it fits properly.
It should be tight when you buy it, i.e. make sure it doesn't move around freely. Best way to do this is get a caring girlfriend/boyfriend to move the helmet around while you concentrate on keeping your precious head still.

Choose a fastening you are most comfortable with (either double D ring or the seatbelt fastening type), and tighten that, allowing you to easily get two fingers in between the strap and your neck.

The bottom aw of the helmet should be either lower, or in line with your jaw.

The back of the helmet should be at the top of your neck. Just at the bottom of your head.

If in doubt ask in the shop. They will be more than happy to help, and if they're not - go elsewhere.
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[MarJay]

Just a quick word about flip up lids,
I know there aren't really many old men on here so I doubt that this will apply to many of you. A little while ago before I got my current job, I applied to become a paramedic. When I mentioned to one of the paramedics doing the aptitude testing that I had a bike, the first thing that he said was "You don't have a flip-up helmet do you?" I said no, a full face. He said that in a hell of a lot of bike accidents that he'd seen involving flip up lids, the chinpiece had hit the floor first, and broken free. The way the Paramedic described the next bit involved the words 'reconstructive surgery'. I don't think I need go into any more detail than that.

Don't get a flip up lid.
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British beauty: Triumph Street Triple R; Loony stroker: KR1S; Track fun: GSXR750 L1; Commuter Missile: GSX-S1000F; Cheap project: CBR900RR FireBlade
Remember kids, bikes aren't like lego. You can't easily take a part from one bike and then fit it to another.

[zaknafien]

Already got one and i'm not going to change it because of isolated incidents.

I crashed in my old one and the front slammed into the ground and had just a scratch.
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02 Firestorm.

[MarJay]

Not saying that they're all bad in all accidents, but I couldn't really coax out of this guy which makes were worse than others, not being a biker himself he just sees flip up lid = dangerous.
Just passing on some info I got from a guy who might have to scrape one of us off the tarmac one day.
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British beauty: Triumph Street Triple R; Loony stroker: KR1S; Track fun: GSXR750 L1; Commuter Missile: GSX-S1000F; Cheap project: CBR900RR FireBlade
Remember kids, bikes aren't like lego. You can't easily take a part from one bike and then fit it to another.

[Scooby]

To be honest if a paramedic says that the accidents he has seen involving flip-up lids are not a pretty sight, then I am willing to take his word for it for two reasons. Firstly, you don't have to be a genious to work out that in this case a solid full face helmet is going to be stronger that a flip-up with a 'hinge', and secondly, I value my face too much too risk it
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A big enough hammer fixes anything!

[PsychoHippy]

I was chatting to a pair of traffic coppers the other day (no I hadn't done anything wrong), and they were saying exactly the same thing. One reckoned that in 90% of the accidents that he had been to involving flip up lids, they had come appart and caused injuries!
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I spend all my money on bikes and beer, the rest I simply waste!

[Demonic69]

What also needs to be taken into account ais that most flip up lids are not tested to the highest standards, like a lot of FF lids. Those that are are fairly expensive but are slightly more resistant to a facial battering.
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Back on a Blade. Just feels so right.

[TiN]

[Demonic69]

[McJamweasel]

[MarJay]

THey have to be submitted for testing as what they are claimed to be, so it depends what the manufacturers can be bothered to say they do... AFAIK.
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British beauty: Triumph Street Triple R; Loony stroker: KR1S; Track fun: GSXR750 L1; Commuter Missile: GSX-S1000F; Cheap project: CBR900RR FireBlade
Remember kids, bikes aren't like lego. You can't easily take a part from one bike and then fit it to another.

[Demonic69]