Open Face Helmets....

[pipestone]

Always have worn them..have tried the full faces but they make me claustrophobic.

My old Arai classic has the snaps for visor and shield.I'm upgrading to another open face soon..and have been looking at the flip up style like this one:

http://www.revzilla.com/motorcycle/arai-xc-helmet

Questions that I have is.. can this be used in the flip up position without the tugging of your head at highway speeds?? I ride the RT.

I would be interested in others opinion who run this type system..and how about listening to your tunes...is road noise a problem??

My old 3/4 O.F./ visor was very tame behind a wind shield..only dawned the face shield when in the rain...and wore ear buds with good results for my tunes.

Thanks -

God Bless America,
pipestone

 

[Mike_Philippens]

Questions that I have is.. can this be used in the flip up position without the tugging of your head at highway speeds?? I ride the RT.

I had the BMW System helmet when it came out and the Schuberth C2 but riding with it in the open position is not recommended at all, and especially not at highway speeds. It depends on how long you are, but I'd say that upto 40mi it's ok, but at higher speeds it starts to act as a brake parachute. Having said that, if your screen is high enoug, it might work. But why buy a flip up helmet, if you don't plan on using it in the closed position?

I wouldn't even consider riding with an open face helmet, but that's your own choice.

Have you considered this one:

Open face, but with some form of protection if you choose to kiss the road...

 

[WalterK75]

I would suggest you reconsider a full face helmet. Don't ride with a flip-up helmet open. It defeats the purpose. The first full-face helmet I put on was so claustrophobic I almost ripped off my ears removing it. However, I began to train myself to wear it. When I tried them on in stores I'd close my eyes, hold my breath so I wouldn't suffocate and make sure the visor was open until I realized I could actually breathe inside the helmet. Then I tried closing the visor, first making sure there were no labels covering the visor. This allowed me to see out. It helped reduce the bad feeling. I finally wore a borrowed helmet from my brother-in-law and once outside in the open I was feeling almost comfortable with it. So, wearing my brother-in-law's helmet and riding his bike, I discovered the claustrophobic feeling went away. I had a twinge of it now and then for a while (usually when putting the helmet on inside or when it steamed up a bit), but it's now gone. I used to ride with an open faced helmet and snap on visor, but feel better in the full face. I have a full face and a flip-up and no claustrophobia while wearing them. Whatever you wear, enjoy the rides.

 

[Mike_Philippens]

Having worn a full face helmet since I first stepped on a moped, I really can't understand the problem with it. I have a 'normal' helmet now (Schuberth S1Pro) because the microphone if the intercom gets in the way of my glasses when used with the flip up. That was the main argument for a flip up for me: I could keep my glasses on. But that's not the issue here.

A full face helmet is different when putting it on your head. But I always use the straps to put the helmet on. That is to say: I use them to keep the helmet's liner out of the way. That way you put the helmet on without scraping you ears. After a couple of days riding you get used to it and you won't even know that you ever did something different.

I won't even go down the street without my full face on (and all my gear for that matter). Research shows that in 60% of the accidents, you land on your face (left side/right side). My face ain't pretty, but after scraping the asphalt, it'll be hiddeous. That's worth the slight discomfort.

Anyway, if you choose a flip up helmet, take the Schuberth C3. It's the quietest helmet around. Even more quiet than lots of non-flip up helmets. When closed, that is... The standard fitted PinLock keeps the fog off your screen, and it's a very comfortable helmet. If it fits your head that is. Fitting a helmet is a persnoal matter.

 

[bluegrasspicker]

Always have worn them..have tried the full faces but they make me claustrophobic.

Questions that I have is.. can this be used in the flip up position without the tugging of your head at highway speeds?? I ride the RT.

They are designed to be used closed, otherwise can roll forward and off the head during a get-off.

 

[rcliffor]

You might want to look at the Nolan Triology N43. I really like mine since it does not feel as closed-in as a regular full face or flip-up.

 

[35634]

There are some flip ups with removeable chin bars, that might be a good way to ease into the full face world. I have seen people riding around town with open flip ups, usually smoking a cigarette or even funeral escorts (they need to be able to blow a whistle at intersections) At highway speeds the aerodynamics would be a disaster. Seems like I saw a review on a flip up where the chin piece rotated all the way around back so it could be ridden open. Maybe someone out there remembers what it was?

 

[Theo]

I seem to remember an illustration (in one of David Hough's books?) showing the human head and the regions where an injury from a motorcycle accident is most likely to occur. IIRC, the data showed the mouth, chin, and forward portion of the jaw to be one of the highest reported injury regions.

Draw your own conclusions, but it's a full face (or modular with hatch closed) for me!

 

[Mike_Philippens]

A note on flip-up helmets: not all are as safe as a regular helmet. Some helmets break the chin bar in a crash. I believe the Schuberth, Shoei and Nolan are quite safe. There is a website with crash reports on them, but I can't remember where I read it...

 

[rockbottom]

This thread is interesting because, as a claustrophobic, I was also worried about a full face helmet when I first decided to ride. I bought a flip up because of it but then found that a regular full face helmet doesn't bother me at all. My claustrophobia only seems to kick in when I can't move my arms.

 

[Theo]

This thread is interesting because, as a claustrophobic, I was also worried about a full face helmet when I first decided to ride. I bought a flip up because of it but then found that a regular full face helmet doesn't bother me at all. My claustrophobia only seems to kick in when I can't move my arms.

(Love Dr. Strangelove!)

In talking to a number of folks who know about these things, evidently some degree of claustrophobia is quite common among us. In college, I went with a group of folks to explore some caves in W. VA. I had know idea that it would bother me, but when we got to the part of the cave where the walls and ceiling narrowed-down, I had a panic attack!

But, like Rockbottom, a full-face helmet does not bother me a whit. I do like my customized EXO 900 flip-up, especially when fueling and taking a hydration break. I just wish it wasn't so heavy...

Speaking of claustrophobia, here's a Bob Newhart skit shown on MAD TV some years back: Fear of Being Buried Alive in a Box

 

[marchyman]

They are designed to be used closed, otherwise can roll forward and off the head during a get-off.

MOST are designed to be used closed. There is at least oneone where the chin bar swivels all the way back and lock into place, more-or-less converting the helmet to an open face.

http://www.revzilla.com/shark-evoline for example. That page included a video.

 

[irish]

The helmet in the link in the original post is not a modular helmet, which I think is what most of you are talking about. It looks like a 3/4 helmet with a face shield that ratchets up and down. I have never worn a 3/4 helmet so I have no opinion, but I think that's the style PIPESTONE was asking about.

 

[Yarddog]

I'm not one of those that goes along with the train of thought that any helmet is gonna do a hell of a lot for ya at speed, so most of the time I ride with a 3/4 open helmet...But I DO go along with the train of thought that if you're gonna ride one of those with a visor, you'd best put that visor down once you get goin' over 15-20 miles per hour! I have all three types of helmets that I wear according to conditions...a half helmet...a 3/4 helmet, no visor...and a full face helmet with the modular design, so I can either put up the clear screen or the entire front of the helmet...

My 3/4 helmet is a five year old Bell Magnum kevlar, but I believe it's either obsolete or getting thataway...I love the old style clean, round look, and I don't care about the little vents in the front of it...don't think they do a thing for ventilation. I have been looking at the Fulmer helmets with essentially the same design...they are DOT rated, but not overly expensive...you might take a peek at those...My GF has one with a clear visor, loves it...altho she rides passenger all the time, she also puts the visor all the way down above 20 MPH...

Hey, the Fulmer helmet even comes with the Captain America design! These days, Harley dealerships stock them, so pop into one sometime...take a peek...

 

[Theo]

So I found the diagram of impact locations on motorcycle helmets on page 40 of David Hough's book Proficient Motorcycling. He cited a German medical study of helmet collision locations by Dietmar Otte. Here is the diagram:

Note that a combined 34.6% of collisions impacted the chin bar area which is way more than any other combined (left+right) are on the helmet. Note that impacts in the visor area account for less than 11%. However, you'll appreciate the visor when that juicy, fattened June bug flies at your face!

 

[Mike_Philippens]

I'm not one of those that goes along with the train of thought that any helmet is gonna do a hell of a lot for ya at speed

Speed is just another factor in the equasion. You can't control how you fall. If you crash into a car at 60mph, you'r a gonner (in 95% of the cases), with or without a helmet. But sliding over the asphalt at higher speeds can be survived easily with a helmet.
So...I keep my full face helmet on all the time. I hope I can put my current helmet aside in a few years unscratched, like the others. But in the meantime, I'd better be prepared for the worst. It's the only head I've got...

you'd best put that visor down once you get goin' over 15-20 miles per hour!

Amen to that! I always have my visor down. When it's up, it's just for a brief moment. On my old helmet, I got a 'bullet hole' as I called it, where a piece of gravel hit me (55mph), just over the eyes/visor and it's like a ricochet bullet hit me...a piece of the outer shell came off! And obviously all the bugs, wasps and stuff... I must say that on the RT, thanks to the big screen in front, I'm better protected against those things, but I don't take any risk in that regard. I had a wasp in my helmet once, and I don't want any repeats.

By the way: I don't know about other helmets, but my Schuberth S1Pro (and other Schuberth's as well) have a very good and working ventilation system. The liner at the top of your head consists of 3 seperate 'lanes' of material (which can me taken out for cleaning). So there is space in between those 'lanes' and the vents on top of the helmet actually let air flow in between those lanes. You can feel that it actually works, because when it's cold, you got to close 'm. You can feel the cold air coming in. But I agree that for most helmets, the ventilation is crap.

 

[Yarddog]

Speed is just another factor in the equasion. You can't control how you fall. If you crash into a car at 60mph, you'r a gonner (in 95% of the cases), with or without a helmet. But sliding over the asphalt at higher speeds can be survived easily with a helmet.
So...I keep my full face helmet on all the time. I hope I can put my current helmet aside in a few years unscratched, like the others. But in the meantime, I'd better be prepared for the worst. It's the only head I've got...

Amen to that! I always have my visor down. When it's up, it's just for a brief moment. On my old helmet, I got a 'bullet hole' as I called it, where a piece of gravel hit me (55mph), just over the eyes/visor and it's like a ricochet bullet hit me...a piece of the outer shell came off! And obviously all the bugs, wasps and stuff... I must say that on the RT, thanks to the big screen in front, I'm better protected against those things, but I don't take any risk in that regard. I had a wasp in my helmet once, and I don't want any repeats.

By the way: I don't know about other helmets, but my Schuberth S1Pro (and other Schuberth's as well) have a very good and working ventilation system. The liner at the top of your head consists of 3 seperate 'lanes' of material (which can me taken out for cleaning). So there is space in between those 'lanes' and the vents on top of the helmet actually let air flow in between those lanes. You can feel that it actually works, because when it's cold, you got to close 'm. You can feel the cold air coming in. But I agree that for most helmets, the ventilation is crap.

Good points...I've never spent $400 or over for a helmet, so the Schuberth is well out of my range...but you do get what you pay for...does an expensive helmet protect any better than a less expensive helmet when they both have the same DOT endorsements? I don't know...but obviously, a full face helmet is gonna do a better job than a 3/4 or 1/2 helmet... Seems to me that just like your household appliances, a more expensive helmet buys you more features, not necessarily is it gonna be better at the base job...

In my area, this is the time of year when a visor or face plate of some sort is well recommended...bees are coming out, and other hard shell bugs...they hurt when they hit...so if ya gotta visor, it sure as heck belongs down, not up!!!

 

[rockbottom]

but you do get what you pay for...does an expensive helmet protect any better than a less expensive helmet when they both have the same DOT endorsements?

I've often thought about that. Based on what I've been able to find and my own experience, I doubt that a high end helmet would make a significant difference during a crash. I currently own four helmets and have looked at many dozens and my conclusion is that high end ones are more comfortable and will last longer. Of mine (which includes a Schuberth), the Arai is by far my favorite. I use the others for short rides around town but would always go for the Arai on longer rides.

 

[Yarddog]

I've often thought about that. Based on what I've been able to find and my own experience, I doubt that a high end helmet would make a significant difference during a crash. I currently own four helmets and have looked at many dozens and my conclusion is that high end ones are more comfortable and will last longer. Of mine (which includes a Schuberth), the Arai is by far my favorite. I use the others for short rides around town but would always go for the Arai on longer rides.

Agreed... I've always thought that a Bell Magnum was a fine mid-priced helmet that would clearly do the job it was designed to do, without a lotta fancy features that I have no use for...They fit me fine, and I think I'm on my fourth one since 1973...I've obviously had others along the way, and I'm also not one of those who throws his perfectly good helmet alway faithfully every four years... But when the insides start significantly deteriorating, or they get hairline cracks, well...it's probably time...

 

[Mike_Philippens]

Good points...I've never spent $400 or over for a helmet, so the Schuberth is well out of my range...but you do get what you pay for...does an expensive helmet protect any better than a less expensive helmet when they both have the same DOT endorsements?

Not necessarily. But there are other factors to consider such as comfort, features (as you mentioned) and how long you can use the thing before it comes apart I've heard people saying that HJC helmets had liners that were worn after only one or two years. Or crappy visors with mechanisms that don't work very well.
Maybe Schuberth is more expensive in the US, but since I live next door to Germany where they're made, it's not as expensive. I got mine as a bargain and it was under $400 (the Dutch are well known cheapskates)

It's the same as with your other gear: quality has it's price. That is not to say that the most expensive stuff is automatically the best, but somewhere in between lies the truth so to say. The most deciding factor with helmets is obviously how well it fits your head (the shape of it). If it doesn't fit well, the price is not important.

Just choose a helmet that fits well, is comfortable and has the right features (as far they are important for helmets).