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-   -   Which Helmet? Tips on buying a good helmet (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/ride-safe/19699-helmet-tips-buying-good-helmet-97.html)

Is it going to be reality and at affordable prices, in the near future ?

https://www.indiegogo.com/projects/s...orcycle-helmet

Best Regards & Ride Safe

Ram

Hi guys, slight dilemma that I hoped to call upon those with more knowledge than me to solve. In my search for a helmet, I've narrowed the choice down to the following
http://www.motosport.com/IN/motorcyc...LLIANCE-HELMET
http://www.motosport.com/IN/cruiser/...et-HiVis-Rally
Both meet or exceed DOT and Snell, so I assume they're safe enough. Added bonus that they're in all black. In your opinion, which of the two is the better helmet? Comfort, ventilation and cooling being the parameters apart from the obvious, safety.
As an aside, my head measures exactly between 56 and 57 centimetres, so which size would be best? (small 55-56, medium 57-58) Sadly I have nowhere to try on a pair. Which size would be a better bet?

First off, good that you are considering DOT and SNELL rated helmets. The all black color choice however is not a bonus. Research points that black and grey colored helmets tend to blend into the background and coupled with blind spots these could be potentially dangerous for riders. That said, yellow, white and other bright colors stand out and are most visible to other road users.

Do search for my posts on this thread for the research article I have mentioned.

Use the sizing guide provided by each manufacturer and buy a lid that is visible to other road users. While the helmet you're considering is safe from a certifications standpoint, these certifications are intended to keep the rider safe in an untoward incident. A highly visible helmet will do its bit to keep this untoward incident at bay. :)

Yep, thanks to team bhp, I believe in ATGATT now. I think I've read almost ever page of that thread. Along with the riding gear sticky, been a great source of information.

I was hoping black would match the colour of my bike, but I guess style can take a back seat here.

Quick question, can I replace riding pants with thick jeans and knee armor? Or will the denim not stand up to the abrasiveness? This is the only piece of gear that's impractical to carry around all day.

Here is the link to the research bit I was referring to. Apologies for posting an external link but this should help our readers.

I hope your question is answered in the figures mentioned in that link. :)

I totally agree with Aditya when he says high viz / lighter color helmets add to your visisbility. For this reason, I have pasted a BIG yellow coloured "TechSpec" (sort of like stomp grips) sticker at the back of my grey coloured Gmax helmet

That said, try and see if you can find youself an Icon Alliance "Dark" version. You get a free smoked visor with that. Not too shabby eh? Work on making yourself more visible by adding some high viz stickers / reflective tape etc on the helmet (and your clothing can be high viz too)

Regarding riding pants - I agree its cumborsome. I have found a way to make it work but I understand that it may not be everyone's cup of tea, no matter how much they would like to. I came off my bike last year at around 50 kph and slid across the tarmac. My Levis held out just fine.

Add expressway speeds in the mix though and I would not recommend denims at all. And do read this (Warning! Graphic content):

https://rideapart.com/articles/why-w...eally-bad-idea

Ride safe :thumbs up

I'll be picking up a Helmet this Wednesday. Budget is around 5000. Bike is a black Hero Honda Hunk.

I was always fascinated by the LS2 range till I saw the MT Revenge Jaggu picked up. Any suggestions from the more experienced folk?

I currently use a Vega Motocross Helmet. I seem to have a very bad tolerance to high beam and seem to be a little sensitive to bright lights. Anything that could help?

Avoid LS2. The quality isn't what it used to be. In fact I had a LS2 and gave it away for free.

That's an eye opener. :eek:

Any particular reasons why?

And if not LS2, what helmet would you suggest? I want one that is primarily black but has red elements in it. lol:

I bought a LS2 Phobia, the quality wasn't close to the original AGV helmets from 2005, plus I got the chromed visor which was almost impossible to use once dark. So I gave away the LS2 and got myself an AGV K4 Evo for an every day helmet :thumbs up

Wow. Sharp ratings are quite similar to the MT Revenge.

Now, I am almost convinced to NOT buy an LS2.

Any suggestions, Sunny? I am not well versed with helmets, so any help is appreciated. :)

@Sunnyboi, I should've taken your advice a little more seriously.

Yesterday evening, I was at Helmet Paradise looking for a helmet.

I immediately told them I didn't want LS2. But they pushed for LS2 saying that MT, Shoei, SOL etc. are manufactured in Chennai while LS2 is imported. They showed me some LS2 and my rationality went down the drain.

I ending up liking a LS2 Atmos Black-Red FF351.22.


On the visor, it had a sticker claiming a SHARP rating of 4 and ECE 22.05 certification. Satisfied about the safety, I picked it up. They initially quoted Rs. 4200 then finally settled for Rs. 3750. I get a feeling I could've bargained a lot harded. That said, I suck at bargaining!

Anyway, I got home and was doing some reading about my new acquisition. I was looking for the SHARP rating and found it to be just 1! :deadhorse


Apparently, I am not the only one with this issue.

http://www.motorcyclephilippines.com...P-Rating-Issue

And the helmets thread on xBhp also documents the same.

What I found fishy is, I don't want the mercury visor. Night vision is terrible! I was looking for a clear visor when I found that the visors of the FF350 and the FF351 are interchangeable. And coincidentally, the FF350 has a SHARP rating of 4!

Apparently, LS2 expected the same rating as the FF350 for the FF351 as they claim only slight differences that have nothing to do with the basic structure and shell of the lid. So, they stuck the 4 star sticker on the FF351 as well. But a recent SHARP test concluded a safety rating of 1.

Aargh, I am so frustrated! I am going down there this evening to exchange the lid. And this time, I am going to steer well clear of LS2. I am bent on getting the MT Revenge Gloss Black now. Hope they have it. I am not too sure if they are ok with a refund.

Any quick suggestions for 5000? please:

I went down to Helmet Paradise again for the exchange. And I told them that the reason was that the FF351 wasn't very safe. They asked why. I told them about the SHARP rating. They guy there immediately got cranky. He went on to tell me how I shouldn't take anything on the internet for granted and how his experience tells him which helmet is better. Yet, he leaves the choice of exchange open.

I politely told him that I would like an exchange.

He was again pushing for an LS2. I have seen the E-Mail exchanges between LS2 and Prince Sirohi here and I don't want to deal with a company that doesn't want to part with vital information. I told him I don't want LS2. And I would like to see other helmets. He showed me the KYT ones and said they were Rs. 4000. I again asked him for MT helmets. He outright told me they were junk. At this point, I would have walked out had it not been for the money that I had already paid them. But, I also know that their behaviour would be different if I was a potential customer and not a sucker who had his money locked up. :Frustrati

So, I was looking at the KYT helmets. It was an RC7. He said it cost Rs. 4000 as earlier quoted. This is when I picked up my phone to check the SHARP rating. Magically, the price dropped by Rs. 500 without me even saying anything. And it appeared like PlanetDSG had the same lid for Rs. 3,500.

The next problem was the size, the M was a tad too tight while the L seemed a tad loose compared to the earlier LS2. Again the guy started (almost) yelling at me for how the internet will not tell me how the size is and what not. Also, the box with the M size helmet had an MRP of Rs. 3,500. No wonder he quoted Rs. 4,000 outside. No one gets to see the box at all!

So I decided on a KYT RC7 Large size. The cost was Rs. 3,500 and he wasn't going to budge. He needed to refund Rs. 200. I told him I'd like a balaclava. (I had bought one from the same shop around a month ago for Rs. 150 odd. Somehow now, it costed Rs. 280!

I told him I don\'t need it and walked out with Rs. 200 in hand.

I don\'t intend to walk back in again! What a hopeless experience!

Now that I have ranted, can someone help me source a KYT Smoked Visor for the RC7? stupid:

I feel you should have gone for medium size one. Helmet should fit snugly. New helmets will always be tight fitting but loosen out over time. But with a large helmet it will loosen further. Which is dangerous

Helmet paradise and Balaji helmets are same family run and are cheats. Why did you go there when you could have crossed the road and gone to megha helmets who are official reseller of MT helmets. I am sorry to say, but you knocked at the wrong door

The current L size isn't a tight fit. It just seems to be the right size. I figured that I will be wearing a balaclava and a cap as well. So I guess that the current size will be just fine.

Also, I have always had a good experience with Helmet Paradise, but this one incident is enough to ruin the whole experience I have had till date.

I regret not leaving the shop the minute he began to show me the LS2 helmets yesterday. But that said, I believe I have a pretty good lid for Rs. 3,500 for sedate city riding. :)

And like you said, I did knock the wrong door. But never again! :I Rule: