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Bell Modular Helmet

I just can't wrap my brain around any quality helmet that provides good safety, comfort, airflow, and features for less than $300 let alone $200. It may be ok as a budget helemt.

Comfort, airflow, and features... maybe. But safety? Either it meets DOT/Snell/whatever or it doesn't. There are (or at least used to be) $80 helmets that met Snell ratings (assuming meeting snell is important to you). I know folks who wear such and are quite happy with the comfort and airflow. They don't work for me as I prefer a full face helmet with a very large eye port and the cheapies seem to be lacking in that area. The flip ups used to be my best option until I found the Arai XD. Neither choice falls into the sub $300 range.
 
Comfort, airflow, and features... maybe. But safety? Either it meets DOT/Snell/whatever or it doesn't. There are (or at least used to be) $80 helmets that met Snell ratings (assuming meeting snell is important to you). I know folks who wear such and are quite happy with the comfort and airflow. They don't work for me as I prefer a full face helmet with a very large eye port and the cheapies seem to be lacking in that area. The flip ups used to be my best option until I found the Arai XD. Neither choice falls into the sub $300 range.

Couldn't be more wrong. Would you want a doctor who just passed his state exams or one who was top of his class and trained in advanced methods to perform your life threatening surgery?

The top helmet designers invest a great deal of research into what happens to the head and how to minimize the transfer of energy. They don't just make it pass the test and then paint it pretty.
That research and testing cost money and makes the helmet cost more. A good example is the Shuberth C3. They have a unique design to their chin strap that wraps around the back of the head. This prevents the helmet from popping off your head on certain impacts. Does DOT test for that, no. Is that a nice safety feature to have, yes. Is it worth $699? In my opininion yes because its my brain. I pay $200 for a set of bar backs.
 
Couldn't be more wrong. Would you want a doctor who just passed his state exams or one who was top of his class and trained in advanced methods to perform your life threatening surgery?

The top helmet designers invest a great deal of research into what happens to the head and how to minimize the transfer of energy. They don't just make it pass the test and then paint it pretty.
That research and testing cost money and makes the helmet cost more. A good example is the Shuberth C3. They have a unique design to their chin strap that wraps around the back of the head. This prevents the helmet from popping off your head on certain impacts. Does DOT test for that, no. Is that a nice safety feature to have, yes. Is it worth $699? In my opininion yes because its my brain. I pay $200 for a set of bar backs.

...here we go again...If it meets the ratings, it meets the ratings, what ya pay for after that is features...beyond the ratings, its all about the helmet that works best for ya, and who knows better what works than the guy or gal that is gonna wear it...
 
Comfort, airflow, and features... maybe. But safety? Either it meets DOT/Snell/whatever or it doesn't. There are (or at least used to be) $80 helmets that met Snell ratings (assuming meeting snell is important to you). I know folks who wear such and are quite happy with the comfort and airflow. They don't work for me as I prefer a full face helmet with a very large eye port and the cheapies seem to be lacking in that area. The flip ups used to be my best option until I found the Arai XD. Neither choice falls into the sub $300 range.

Agreed...obviously, a 3/4 helmet is gonna protect better than a 1/2 helmet, and a full face helmet protects best of all...BUT...is the heaviest of all, so the tradeoff MIGHT be the bullwhip effect on the neck...In my time, I've seen top of the line full face helmets literally trashed during a crash, and I've seen beanie helmets survive major crashes...who knows? If I'm wearing a helmet, I want to be wearing one that gets the job done, but there's no reason for me to pay $700 for a helmet...there are WAY too many variables for me, personally, to say a $700 helmet is any better than a $70 helmet...I've known VERY few real world crashes occur inside of a test lab...
 
gotta put my 2 cents in here. Wearing any helmet will vastly decreases your odds of brain damage. After that, the law of diminishing returns kicks in. Spending 3x more on a lid may increase your safety only slightly. Get one you like and is comfy. If spending more makes you feel better, by all means go for it. But it aint gonna make you bulletproof!
 
Couldn't be more wrong. Would you want a doctor who just passed his state exams or one who was top of his class and trained in advanced methods to perform your life threatening surgery?

Neither. And what does that have to do with helmets?

The top helmet designers invest a great deal of research into what happens to the head and how to minimize the transfer of energy. They don't just make it pass the test and then paint it pretty.

I think someone has been spending too much time reading marketing fluff. They make the helmet to pass the tests. That is goal one. If it doesn't pass the test they can't sell it. Passing the tests put all kind of constraints on the design. Making a helmet to pass the completely optional Snell tests (prior to Snell 2010) required a helmet to be harder which resulted in MORE G-force applied to your brain. So the helmet was arguably LESS safe for street riders, but the manufactures made them anyway because some folks got the idea (from marketing) that Snell was better. This let the manufactures charge more for Snell rated helmets, too. At least in the US. In Europe a Snell rated helmet was OK for racing, but not approved for street because a helmet couldn't meet both Snell and ECE 22-05 standards. The Snell 2010 standard resolved that issue.

And yes, the manufactures sometimes do paint it pretty and charge you an extra $150 for the paint. The fancy paint adds nothing to your safety, yet it jacks the price. Again, it could actually be less safe in that it makes the rider harder to see.

In general you'll get better comfort, longevity, and features with a more expensive helmet. But don't pretend it makes you any safer.
 
35634 & marchyman have said it all in a nutshell, and much better than I can do so...I sure as heck want my helmet to do the job it's supposed to do if I'm gonna wear that heavy thing on my haid, but paying over a couple hundred dollars or so to do it isn't in my financial scheme or in my psyche...especially given that every now and then, somebody steals the dern thang, and given that they recommend you replace them from time to time...

But, again, personal choice...if paying $700 for a helmet is YOUR choice, why should anybody else prevent you from doin' so!!!
 
Bell stuff is made in China......

Good to know...but if it passes DOT and/or Snell...and if the buyer doesn't give a rip...I reckon that's academic...but for those of us who prefer to buy American, that would be an important factoid...I guess for those folks, buying a Schubert C-3 is out of the question also...
 
Good to know...but if it passes DOT and/or Snell...and if the buyer doesn't give a rip...I reckon that's academic...but for those of us who prefer to buy American, that would be an important factoid...I guess for those folks, buying a Schubert C-3 is out of the question also...

Agreed. I bought a Bell Star (not modular) and liked many of the features. It is overall a very nice lid, BUT there are several little things that i think a good QA/QC dept should have caught. EX. The shield was not air tight because it seated slightly crooked from left to right, therefore noisy. The cheek pad snaps were slightly off so it was nearly impossible to remove/install them without stretching the pad an abnormal amount, The left side top vent whistled even when closed due to misalignment of the shutter.

I think the helmet is very nice and very functional, but for a couple hundred dollars more I would go with a more "premium" brand with more stringent quality controls.
 
IMHO, WebBikeWorld is a fantastic site that specializes in getting good information to the rider. They have done a brilliant job of simplifying the different human head shapes and then matching helmets to those shapes. In my opinion, right after Snell 2010, this is the next thing you should consider. An ill-fitting helmet may be somewhat safe but it will require withstanding cerebral torture for mile after mile.

Of course, every head shape is slightly different, but WBW have documented the basic differences among us. THIS page will acquaint you with the shape differences. Scroll down a bit for head shapes and example helmets to fit them.

Now that some basic head shapes have been identified, THIS table becomes extremely useful to (a) find helmets that have a good chance of being the right shape (you still need to consider head size -- best done with a "try-on" and an experienced helmet fitter), and (b) one that is as light as possible.

Using these tables allowed me to start my search zeroed-in on several candidate helmets chosen for Snell 2010 and probable comfort. I did find that the size stated on the helmet could vary quite a bit, so don't go only by your head circumference. Also note that most people buy for immediate comfort and wind up with a helmet that is too large for full safety after the inside padding wears-in.

HTH,
 
I'm not a fan of full face helmets, but I know that they have a place in my arsenal of lids...even when California was a pro-choice state, I had a 3/4 and a full face helmet, at minimum, and I've probably got a total of five or six now that I use depending, really, upon weather...

A couple of years ago I tried on a Fulmer full face and instantly liked the fit...the features were good, and it didn't break the bank...had all the certifications, paid a little over a hundred bucks, good to go...but I knew instantly that it was the helmet, I didn't have to pick over it or do a lot of research...

First impressions are VERY important, even in helmet buying...
 
Good to know...but if it passes DOT and/or Snell...and if the buyer doesn't give a rip...I reckon that's academic...but for those of us who prefer to buy American, that would be an important factoid...I guess for those folks, buying a Schubert C-3 is out of the question also...

:laugh true
 
Hmmmm...checked my kevlar Bell Magnum and it has 'Made in USA' all over it...

There are, unfortunately, loopholes that allow manufacturers to claim "Made in USA". The only items to which FTC regulations are specifically applied (percent of content must be declared) are automobiles, textiles, wool, and fur products. ThereÔÇÖs no law that requires most other products sold in the U.S. to be marked or labeled Made in USA or have any other disclosure about their amount of U.S. content.

A brief history of Bell from WebBikeWorld: "Well, it's a long story, but Bell was purchased by Bieffe, the Italian helmet manufacturer, one thing led to another, and the Bell name all but disappeared from the street motorcycle scene, but it developed a strong reputation in bicycle helmets and off-road motorcycle helmet markets throughout the world.

But guess what? The Bell name was recently reacquired from Bieffe, and Bell helmets are now available again in the U.S.A. As a measure of their commitment, Bell also opened a motorcycle helmet design and testing facility in Santa Cruz, California to develop, prototyped and create the tooling necessary to manufacture the new designs."

In fact, in looking at the "manufacturing" location for Bell helmets, it appears that actual manufacturing occurs both in Korea and China. Of course, even though the manufacturing labor is outsourced to off shore concerns, at least the design, prototyping, and tooling is done in the US!

To help unofficially justify the "Made in USA" label, a manufacturer may claim that the majority (at least 51%) of the cost of producing (design, tooling, manufacture, testing, etc.) the item occurs in the US. While this is not applicable to automobiles, textiles, wool, and fur products, it does help other (non-regulated) products to avoid closer inspection. In Bell's case, I'm sure that the costs of the design, prototyping, and tooling are far greater that the cost of off shore labor.
 
There are, unfortunately, loopholes that allow manufacturers to claim "Made in USA". The only items to which FTC regulations are specifically applied (percent of content must be declared) are automobiles, textiles, wool, and fur products. ThereÔÇÖs no law that requires most other products sold in the U.S. to be marked or labeled Made in USA or have any other disclosure about their amount of U.S. content.

A brief history of Bell from WebBikeWorld: "Well, it's a long story, but Bell was purchased by Bieffe, the Italian helmet manufacturer, one thing led to another, and the Bell name all but disappeared from the street motorcycle scene, but it developed a strong reputation in bicycle helmets and off-road motorcycle helmet markets throughout the world.

But guess what? The Bell name was recently reacquired from Bieffe, and Bell helmets are now available again in the U.S.A. As a measure of their commitment, Bell also opened a motorcycle helmet design and testing facility in Santa Cruz, California to develop, prototyped and create the tooling necessary to manufacture the new designs."

In fact, in looking at the "manufacturing" location for Bell helmets, it appears that actual manufacturing occurs both in Korea and China. Of course, even though the manufacturing labor is outsourced to off shore concerns, at least the design, prototyping, and tooling is done in the US!

To help unofficially justify the "Made in USA" label, a manufacturer may claim that the majority (at least 51%) of the cost of producing (design, tooling, manufacture, testing, etc.) the item occurs in the US. While this is not applicable to automobiles, textiles, wool, and fur products, it does help other (non-regulated) products to avoid closer inspection. In Bell's case, I'm sure that the costs of the design, prototyping, and tooling are far greater that the cost of off shore labor.

I reckon the only actual important sticker on the helmet, regardless of whether it was manufactured in Santa Cruz or Zimbabwe, is that one that says 'DOT' then! Otherwise, it's a moot point...
 
Have not seen a Bell helmet at any local shop for some time that I recall...will see next trip into the big city.
 
Helmets?

I see what appear to be good bargains for helmets in ads in various cycle magazines. How, can anyone tell me, do you buy a helmet from a mail order vendor and know that it's going to fit?
 
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