[navpreet318]

Sadly they're out of stock on all sizes except xs. Hopefully more deals should come by soon.

We have a large community of bikers here on Tbhp. We should try to get a nice group buy deal. It'll be nice if we make a non public thread for group buys. Would benefit us all including the sellers.

[Geo_Ipe]

Got myself my first helmet - Steelbird Air. Got it from my local helmet store for 1800/-

The helmet comes in two sizes - 580 mm & 600 mm. My measured head circumference was 58 cm. Tried on both 580 and 600. 580 was tight, but not uncomfortably so. 600 felt comfortable, but was moving around too much around the head, hence chose the 580.

The online catalog shows a lot of graphics and designs, but my store guy had only the black and green one (apart from pure matt black), which I picked up.

[neil.jericho]

Having used the Nolan N86 helmet for 11,900 kms in what is a week short of 2 years, now is as good a time as any to post my ownership review of what has been a surprisingly good helmet.


Date of purchase : Early May 2015. I had bought if from AutoQueen in Cochin which has been my go to shop for riding gear over the last 9 years. They had just recieved a consignment of Nolan helmets and I was coming off a fall which had put my HJC CL17 into the retirement home.

Why the Nolan N86 : The reviews that I could find were favourable. My first choice was the HJC RPHA 10 but I couldnt find it in stock anywhere. I was also looking at the super light XLite X802R that I could have picked up on a foreign trip but when I heard about the Nolans (incidentally they are also the manufacturers of XLite helmets) I decided to take the plunge.


Initial Impressions : My distinct first impression was that it was definitely not as comfortable as my HJC CL 17. Dont get me wrong, Im not talking about pressure points or folded ears when I talk about comfort. Its just that the CL 17 seemed to be a much more natural fit for my head shape from day 1 whereas the N86 took some time to break in and for me to get fully comfortable with it.

Oh and it certainly was noisy even with all the vents closed. On the plus side, it had an internal sun visor that I initially thought was gimmicky. Oh how wrong that proved to be. It also came with a pin lock visor that has ensured no fogging up which is something that I faced with the CL 17.


Usage : Its seen nearly 12,000 kms of the best and worst of our weather and has been used for commuting, weekend highway rides, track days etc.


Current Impressions : I'll break this down into separate parts
a. Drop down sun visor - This is an extremely useful feature to have in your motorcycle helmet as it completely eliminates the need to carry around a bag with your tinted visor so that you can swap it out during the day. The drop down visor is controlled by a lever on the left side that is large enough that it can easily be moved with one hand without looking and quality wise it still moves with the same fluidity as day 1.

I do wish that the sun visor was a few millimetres longer so that I could have the visor cover my view when I looked down at the bike's gauges though but that's just me nitpicking.


b. Pin lock shield - This is a huge difference maker especially when you are using your helmet during Indian monsoons. My CL 17 used to fog up even before I used to take my bike out of the parking lot in the monsoons!

That said, it hasnt really stood the test of time. Ive noticed small spots appearing on the main visor over the last few months. This was from air bubbles being formed between the pin lock shield and the visor because the glue that was holding the pin lock shield has started to lose its strength.


c. Ventilation - If you are in Bangalore's atrocious city commute with the vents closed, you can start to feel your scalp sweating after a while.

Top Vents - Open and Closed



Chin Vents - Open and Closed

Open up the vents and you can notice the difference. On highway rides, I usually keep them closed.

Rear vents

It also comes with rear vents that I guess help in extracting air from the helmet.

d. Noise - So you want ventilation but dont want to noise? Cant have one without the other. I agree but that said this is one noisy helmet. In my case, my Continental GT has a Givi windscreen which deflects air to the upper part of my chest and the helmet and on highway rides I find that the noise is really annoying. I use air plugs but still it isnt as quiet as I would like it to be.

e. Fit and finish - No complaints whatsoever with the paint finish and quality on the outside. Ive washed the cheekpads several times but I cant seem to get them to look clean. However I have noticed small gaps appearing between the removable cheek liner and the inner liner which I suspect is letting in air and causing more noise that what others would experience.

If I try placing my finger at that spot on either side, I find the noise levels going down. For now, Ive plugged in some tissue paper so you can see what Im talking about.

f. Weight : At 1460 gms, it is lighter than my earlier helmets.

g. Chinstrap : Ive been using the double D ring system for several years and the one problem with it is that you cant put on your helmet if you have your gloves on.

The N86 comes with a slide in toothed system that makes it easy to lock in the helmet even if you have gloves. Also if it is too loose or tight, its easy slide in and out as compared to the double D ring system.


How much did it cost : Rs 20,000 which all said and done is a fair price for what has been a good helmet so far.


Overall rating : A solid 8.5 out of 10 stars.


Final thoughts : Compared to the HJC CL 17 which cost less than half of it did, the N86 is a lighter, easier to use helmet that came with a drop down visor and is DOT approved, meets ECE standards and has a 4 star SHARP rating. The N86 has now been replaced by the N87 and reviews once again seem to very positive. How positive? For starters it won both the Motorcycle News (MCN) product of the year and RiDE magazine "Best Buy" awards in 2016. Web bike world (which is a website I trust for its depth of reviews) says "The new Nolan N87 beats every other helmet in its price range. In fact, you'd be hard-pressed to spend twice as much and still get as much." Sure, a Nolan N87 doesnt have the flash value of the AGV K3 or K5 series and price wise sits between them in India at Rs 22,000 and if it is available in your city it is certainly worth taking a long hard look at it.

[motorpsycho]

Originally Posted by mobike008

and was hand carried back

Mobike, could you please share a few more details on how to carry a helmet in a international Flight, I was in the US recently and really wanted to Pick up a Bell Qualifier, they were on sale on Revzilla. I did not if the Airlines would allow it, since I already had 2 Check-in bags.

[mobike008]

Originally Posted by motorpsycho

Mobike, could you please share a few more details on how to carry a helmet in a international Flight, I was in the US recently and really wanted to Pick up a Bell Qualifier, they were on sale on Revzilla. I did not if the Airlines would allow it, since I already had 2 Check-in bags.

I would recommend you to keep the helmet in your suitcase (assuming its the standard international size) as it would easily fit in a full face helmet and check-in

[akshayhonda]

Hi guys,

After 15days of wait the helmet is finally here, AGV K-5 You. Ordered the helmet from Motardinn.com Landing cost break up as follows:

1. Helmet cost - 9500
2. Shipping cost - 1650
3. Duty paid - 4800

Total cost: 15950INR. Price in India is 29500 saved nearly 50%. Helmet is May 2015 mfg and 100% genuine product (a friend ordered AGV K-3 SV Groovy that was May,2016 mfg).

Feel of the helmet is superb a tab bit lighter than K-3 SV. Matte finish in white will definitely need some extra care and attention and will get dirty easily. Superb buying experience.

[v12]

That's a good deal Akshay! But a 2 year old helmet - doesn't the helmet material (the glue, liners, foam) degrade with age? Was this mentioned to you before buying that it would be a 2 year old helmet?

[Amey Kulkarni]

Really a good deal you go there Akshayhonda. Can you specify the accessories you got with the deal? Extra visor, extra screen-guard for the visor, extra set of lock sets etc?

And how would you compare a K3 SV to a K5 you got? Which is more silent?

Cheers,
Amey

[IshaanIan]

Originally Posted by Amey Kulkarni

And how would you compare a K3 SV to a K5 you got? Which is more silent?

The K5 is exactly the same as the K3 SV except for the fact that it uses a carbon composite shell. You wouldn't notice any difference in noise insulation but its always nice to wear less weight on your head and give your neck a break.

[motorpsycho]

An update on their site states they will no longer ship AGV helmets to India anymore-

"* Due to the AGV new regulations relating to distribution, we are not allowed to ship some products of this brand to india"

[akshayhonda]

Originally Posted by v12

That's a good deal Akshay! But a 2 year old helmet - doesn't the helmet material (the glue, liners, foam) degrade with age? Was this mentioned to you before buying that it would be a 2 year old helmet?

Yeah mate it's indeed a good deal. A helmet has a usable/shelf life of 5yrs hence it's fine with me. Will be anyways using it for 2-3yrs max. Next up for me is AGV Corsa. It wasn't mentioned to me I checked it upon getting it.

Originally Posted by Amey Kulkarni

Really a good deal you go there Akshayhonda. Can you specify the accessories you got with the deal? Extra visor, extra screen-guard for the visor, extra set of lock sets etc?

And how would you compare a K3 SV to a K5 you got? Which is more silent?

Cheers,
Amey

K3SV & K5 are same designwise. The difference is K5 is slightly lighter than K3SV as it's Carbon fibre composite helmet.

Originally Posted by motorpsycho

An update on their site states they will no longer ship AGV helmets to India anymore-

"* Due to the AGV new regulations relating to distribution, we are not allowed to ship some products of this brand to india"

I'm responsible for that mate. For interests of our biking community I happen to post the link on my social media. Somehow/someone happen to report it to AGV/Dainese India about the same. Few guys called up to the store regarding that huge price difference. So India wing contacted the international wing which inturn contacted Motardinn guys and stopped shipping AGV & Dainese products to India

[Urban_Nomad]

Originally Posted by v12

That's a good deal Akshay! But a 2 year old helmet - doesn't the helmet material (the glue, liners, foam) degrade with age? Was this mentioned to you before buying that it would be a 2 year old helmet?

Like many things related to motorcycling; this too is a grey area IMO

Would a helmet used daily, dealing with all the heat, sweat, oils for a period of 2 years see similar "deterioration" as a helmet properly packed in a box, sitting on a shelf for similar duration? I think not

I have tried looking for some science behind this number (5 years) and frankly haven't been able to find anything credible or conclusive. You have to see it from a manufacturer's perspective as well. They want to see a churn in sales and would therefore want to see a customer return to buy more product. I am not saying that helmets have an indefinite life span but to me, 5 years is not cast in stone. I like to make a decision based on factors like general look and feel of the helmet, how it fits, have the cheekpads now "sunk" thereby making the helmet move around more etc

A lot of it comes down to maintenance as well. For instance, some people are very surprised to see the condition of the face shield of my Bell helmet that's been used almost daily since the last 3 + years. I have often heard comments like people have to swap shields every year or at the very max - 2

In conclusion; of course a recent manufacturing date is preferred; but it should not be the absolute basis of deciding the helmet's longevity IMO

Ride safe

[bhavik.1991]

Originally Posted by Geo_Ipe

Got myself my first helmet - Steelbird Air. Got it from my local helmet store for 1800/-

The helmet comes in two sizes - 580 mm & 600 mm. My measured head circumference was 58 cm. Tried on both 580 and 600. 580 was tight, but not uncomfortably so. 600 felt comfortable, but was moving around too much around the head, hence chose the 580.

The online catalog shows a lot of graphics and designs, but my store guy had only the black and green one (apart from pure matt black), which I picked up.
Attachment 1632529

Attachment 1632530

Attachment 1632531

Thank you for the pics. Please do post your initial experience with the helmet.

I am considering it along with Studds Shifter & MT Mugello (If I stretch the budge) for my recently purchased RC 390.

[.sushilkumar]

Looking for a tried & tested authentic shop details in Delhi where i can go and try helmet before buying. I know of Karol bagh but not sure of authenticity of helmets being sold there.

I friend paid for original LS2 and in return got a fake one. Looking for suggestions on authentic shops.

[IshaanIan]

Originally Posted by .sushilkumar

Looking for a tried & tested authentic shop details in Delhi where i can go and try helmet before buying. I know of Karol bagh but not sure of authenticity of helmets being sold there.

I friend paid for original LS2 and in return got a fake one. Looking for suggestions on authentic shops.

If your concern is wanting to try on and feel the helmet before buying, why not just walk into any big KTM dealership (or someother brand). The first floor is usually filled with gloves and helmets and stuff like that. Many of their helmets are made by entry level European companies like LS2, MT etc.

Now the prices at these dealerships will obviously be 15-30% more than what the helmet is worth, so just take a look at them, note down the model numbers of what you like, and then order online for the best deal.

No need to go searching for some obscure little helmet shop because all you need to do is walk into a big dealership which you would trust and already know the location of.
No need to waste time bargaining and then feel bitter when someone else claims they got the same thing for lesser because you really do find the best prices online.

IMO this is the best way to do it.