Opinions on flip-up styles.

Hi,
I have a 2009 F650GS equipped with a taller Cee Bailey windshield that does allow wind around the helmet for ventilation.
I just finished a long trip with my 2 year old HJC full-face, and am fed up with the effort and pain of my glasses with this helmet. Taking pictures, toll booths, coffee, talking and especially taking on and off, then trying to get your glasses in there. Good luck...

I was looking into a good flip-up, as I've seen many wearing this style traveling.
My Beemer dealer showed me a Nolan and a Shoei, and the Shoei felt the best, but wind noise was continually stressed as a downside.

The sunscreen gadget on the Nolan looked nice, but I would be worried about gadgetry and parts loosening up after a year or so, as the dealer said it would.

I would like to hear from some wearers of both if you have the time.

It would be helpful if the respondent had a similar situation, that being that the helmet was always in the air stream, not hidden behind a full windshield.

Thanks for your time,
Robert

I have the older Shoei Synchrotec (before the present Multitec).
The Synchro has been getting progressively louder. With my GT it is actually quieter under many (but not all) conditions with the face shield (clear plastic part) raised instead of lowered.
It is comfortable to this day, no comfort complaints.
The Multitec is supposed to be lighter and quieter.
I tried a Multitec on and feel it is indeed lighter, no experience on the noise. I like it.
Quality complaint on the Synchrotec is that these 2 plastic pins inside the chin piece both broke off. The pins hold springs in place that evidently are instrumental in keeping the chin bar raised. So at this point the chin won't stay up worth a hoot. I have had the helmet in use way longer than should have, and this started breaking last year, so really I have stretched the limits of this helmet to the max anyways.

My next helmet I believe is going to be a Schuberth C3 imported for Eur-many. A bit more than my second choice which would be the Multitec.
My old System 2 helmet made by Schuberth never ever let me down. I still have it but it's retired, that thing is 21 yrs old!
Gilly

Robert,
I have a Jarrow (Now known as Caberg) Justissimo that I have had for 3-4 years now. I realize its not one you are considering but still, a couple things to say:
1) I will NEVER buy anything but a flip front helmet
2) I will NEVER EVER EVER EVER buy a helemt without the built in sun shield. This is the greatest invention since the motorcycle! This is not a gadget. And for one who travels into the sun both to and from work, the addition of the shield PLUS sunglasses allows me to literally ride right into the sun without squinting.

Hope this helps.

I have an older Nolan (N102?), and my older 650 has a tall, narrow windshield as well. I am liking the Nolan less and less since I got an Icon full-face helmet. It's the usual dichotomy: the Nolan is good for around-town stuff where I'm on and off the bike frequently (I wear glasses too), but if I'm doing 50 miles or more between stops I go with the Icon. It's lighter, quieter, and the airflow is better with the visor open or closed. I have yet to wear the Icon in a real all-day downpour, but I know the anti-fog insert on my Nolan gives out after about two hours.

Oddly, on my K75, which has a tall, wide windshield, the Nolan is quieter than on the F650, and the Icon is louder. Of course, the Icon is still the quieter of the two.

Have you considered an HJC flip-up? I'm assuming your HJC full-face helmet fits reasonably well, and I've heard their flip-ups have improved in the last few years.

I have a flip up Caberg justissimo with the built in sunshield and will NEVER buy another
helmet without one! Greatest thing since sliced bread. Ventilation, noise, fit, weight, name,
and dot-or-snell all seem to be personal taste, or one persons loves it another hates it.
But the sunscreen is just too good. Might be worth looking at Scorpions, heard lots of good stuff
about them. (I think Caberg imported about 10 helmets and gave up on the US market)

I always had full face helmets, Arais and Bells. I have light sensitive eyes, so I'm always wearing sunglasses, even in rain, in fog, unless it's pitch black, or nearly so. The glasses/full face combo was a major hassle.

I have a Multitec now and it is a huge improvement for dealing with the glasses. It is also a big relief to flip up the shield in hot weather, at lights, in town, in slow twisty stretches, to get gas, to clear any condensation, which rarely happens anyway, because the helmet is pretty well ventilated, to cut glare riding into the sun, or to speak to someone. It's much easier to put on/take off. It's more confortable. It messes up my beautiful hair less. I'll never go back.

The Multitec is undeniably louder than a high quality full face, but it's totally worth it. I wear hearing protection, anyhow. Now I haven't seen any conclusive evidence, but I'm going to concede that a modular helmet is slightly less protective in an accident, especially a multi-impact accident, but, truth be told, I sometimes ride in Levi's, too, and eat red meat.

The lens on a Multitec flips up also, just like on a full face, but it's just not the same as uncovering your entire face.

I got a HJC Sy-Max 2, very noisy. I like the features of flip up and internal sun visor, but unded up buying a standard full face.

Hi RobertK. I just bought a brand new Nolan N103 and while its undoubtedly "noisier", than my trusty Arai Astral, the fitment, comfort, and overall quality of design and features convince me that I made a good choice in purchase. I always wear ear plugs, and though there is a noticeable increase in wind noise volume between the Arai and the Nolan, it is substantially less than using no ear protection at all.

I have owned the Schuberth and now the Multitec.. For those that wear glasses and listen to tunes with earbuds there is no comparison in ease of use..I'd never own anything other than a flip.. Downside as everyone has said is extra noise (i never notice) and in my case with the Multitec, there seems to be excess air floating around from somewhere that i can't seem to pinpoint...

Had a Nolan N100

My Nolan N100E was the first full face helmet that I ever owned, and it was flipup. The fit was excellent, the venting was OK, and the convenience of the front flip was nice for glasses, grabbing a quick drink, etc. The only complaint I had about this helmet was the fact that it was very noisy. Sometimes, for short trips, I didn't always want to put in earplugs. These days I pretty much put in the plugs for every ride.

I'm currently using an HJC CL15. This is a non-flip, full face helmet. It's less noisy than the Nolan, fits very well, doesn't vent quite as well, but was never meant to be my "forever" helmet. It's also very inexpensive.

That said, I strongly suspect that my next helmet will be a Shoei Multitec. This brand seems to fit me quite well, gets great online reviews, and would allow me to get back to the flip front again. Like one of the previous posters, unless it's pitch black outside, I'm wearing shades. I really like the convenience of the front flip.

FWIW: I've an old Nolan in the closet, a Schuberth Concept (first gen.) that I recently retired after ~6-7 years, and a new Concept C3.

The new C3 is considerably quieter than either the Nolan or the 1st gen. Concept.

One of the things I like about the Concepts is that the sunvisor is not near the face when extended. In the Nolan N103, the sun visor drops down to within a fraction of a cm of (and sometimes hits) the bridge of my nose. The Concept C3's visor is quite a bit further forward/away from my face. The Nolan visor also has a large inverted "V" in the sunvisor to fit around the nose, and I found the edge of the V to be very annoying when trying to read the bike instruments. The C3's visor is straighter across the bottom, and thus less distracting to me.

As to longevity, the Schuberth sunvisor mechanism appears to be bullet-proof -- a simple Bowden cable from the slider on the side of the helmet to the visor (observed when I was installing a J&M headset in the C3). As to the 1st gen. Concept, after 6-7 years of near-daily use the sunvisor still operates smoothly.

I had the HJC Sy-Max II but sold it and now have the Shoei Multi-tec. The HJC's Large size became a little too large after 3 or 4K miles and its internal tinted shield should have been a little darker, but quality-wise it was excellent. If it had fit me better I'd still have it.

The Multi-Tec seems excellent in all respects except that it's noticeably heavier than my other Shoei, an X-11 full-face - but not uncomfortably so. Unlike the HJC it has only the one shield, a tinted one, but I carry a clear faceshield in a sidecase.

Among the three helmets I've mentioned I haven't really noticed any difference in noise or venting. Yes, my head is possibly more numb than average but I always wear custom earplugs and ride with the stock RT12 windshield in an intermediate (noisy) position.

I'd say that if the HJC fits comfortably (or is only very slightly too tight when brand new), it's an excellent choice.

I have a Shoei head so I've only really considered the Multi-Tec. I tried one on a few months ago and I liked the way it felt on my head. But you can't remove the liner for cleaning. I sweat like a pig so a removable liner is a must. So for now I'm sticking with my X-11.

Hi Guys,
The Schuberth C2, which is new, seems to be the nicest one I've seen so far from what you've mentioned. Their website is awesome. Makes me think the price may be too ;-)
Now I have to find a dealer around me that carries them.

Thanks for all your help.
Robert

I can not stand the wind tunnel of the Nolan. I found a cheap Scorpion open face with the flip in shield and I love every thing about it. All of us have different opinions about helmets. If you wear ear plugs to mitigate some of the noise don't you feel as though you are removed from reality a bit? I have tried them and don't like the cocoon feeling and I want to hear everything. I can't figure out why the full face helmets are so much noisier I know they are much safer, I guess I am willing to take the chance. My modeling days are over anyway.
Jeff

I wear glasses too.

I've had an Arai full face helmet, an Arai 3/4 helmet, a Shoei 3/4 helmet, and now I have a Shoei Multi-tec.

Like several before me have said; I will likely never have anything but a flip front helmet again for all of the reasons everyone else has listed.

As we all know fit is very, very important and every head needs a different helmet to be comfortable for the long haul...ride.

I will likely stick with the Shoei Multi-tec as it seems to fit my head better than the others I have had and or tried on in the store. It does seem to be very light compared to my previous Arais. There is some noise but I'm on a motorcycle, what the heck.

I wish Shoei would make a Multi-tec with the flip up sun visor. I would buy two or three for fear they would quit making them.

Shoei Multi-tec here w/ glasses. I ride in partial wind too with a Cee-bailey euro thang.

I have a loooong head so this was one of the few that fit me. However it is so comfortable except that my chin will barely graze the guard. I think it can be noisy depending on the riding conditions - i.e. when it's warm and lots of trucks on the road the air is turbulent thus making more noise but mostly from the sides. In early evening or night it is not noisy at all. I wear either earplugs or in ear monitors.

I have figured out how to easily pop on the helmet and not mess up my glasses at all.

the only complaint I have on flipups other than they tend to be heavy, is that they don't meet SNELL standards.

For about 7800 miles I have been using the new Scorpion EXO-900 which has a built in sun shield AND an inflatable liner and I love it.

I only buy flip up style helmets anymore and the latest is an HJC IS-MAX. The helmet is comfortable, soft liner parts can be removed for cleaning, and the retractable sunshade is a great feature when riding into the rising or setting sun. A full face helmet is just too hot for me in the summer and flip up/modular helmets fill my needs for comfort and safety. Ride Safe