[sleepngbear]

The one piece of gear I have owned and continuously used longer than any other (soon to be including the bikes themselves) is my Scorpion Exo 700 red Rivet helmet. I loved the colors as soon as I saw it (matte red, grays and black). It fits my melon better than any other full-face hat I'd tried before, including a couple of HJC's, a Shoei and an Arai (yes, some kind of expensive company there), and it's lighter, better ventilated, and quieter than all of those as well. And did I mention that I really like the color.

Trouble is, as much as it was quieter than all of those, it's still pretty noisy wind-wise, and I can feel my hearing deteriorating almost by the day. I'm sure that helmet technology has to have come some way in that regard in the last five years, so I'm looking around again.

As a stop-gap, I've ordered a Windjammer 2, which sticks to the bottom of the helmet and closes up that opening around the rider's neck (as much as possible while still allowing your head to fit inside). Mostly good reviews for reducing wind noise, though the most common criticism is that it's very tight going over your head. And it's going to take over a month to get here because it's coming from the UK.

Now I'm researching quiet helmets. I've found this article to be the most helpful so far, and I'm specifically looking at the HJC RPHA Max. Though I'm reluctant to pay $420 for a lid, it's the cheapest (and quietest) that the author reviewed, compared to the $500-$600+ for the others.

So after all that blathering, what I was wondering is what everybody else is wearing, and how happy (or not happy) are you with the wind noise?

 

[bob]

I used to have the HJC SyMax II. Bought it just before I bought my ST and it saved my noggin on a low side around a hairpin turn in Wisconsin. Insurance bought me another one just like it. In the bubble on my ST it was not the most quiet but quiet enough for me. It was a modular since I wear glasses and wanted the convenience of donning the lid without taking those off. Now I'm past that. My current glasses don't always allow even a modular helmet to go on without a little issue on occasion so decided I wanted the improved protection of a full face helmet. My Christmas present this year was a HJC Hi-Viz IS-17 (new model last October). Love the new lid so far. I always wear earplugs unless I am just riding down the street locally so was able to compare the former lid to this one while riding the same bike. I would say it is much quieter than the modular. Probably due to all modulars generally are comparatively noisy anyway. But my new helmet is quiet enough that I was had no problem with my test ride on the CTX yesterday at highway speeds without earplugs. I would normally wear the plugs anyway since I do have some hearing loss from working around jets in the Navy and Air Nat Guard, and desire to save what I can.

 

[firstime911]

I just brought the Arai CTZ at Chapparal yesterday, and i'm thinking to buy schuberth c3 pro as well.. however i'm considering the vintage look helmet. Anyone know where i can find retail selling in San Francisco. Thank you

 

[csdexter]

I'm wearing a Nolan N-90 Classic N-Com.
Pros:
- more comfortable (for my head) than others I've tried
- flip-up construction, very important around town and in the parking lot
- retrofittable with an audio system
- the venting flaps actually work and with all of them closed (on a very cold day) you don't suffocate inside
- pinlock visor, never ever got it to fog up
- removable liner, makes washing easy as cake

Cons:
- the Nolan N-Com audio system is a gross ripoff for the **** quality it offers, I built my own custom stuff which works nicely with my current bike
- the sun shade has a ****ty design with an oversized nose cutout and a too small height so that it only covers the top half of my field of view

Noise performance:
- way better than no-name helmets, but if I were to ride for a living at highway speeds, I'd need earplugs even with this one.

 

[bob]

Oh, forgot to mention on my HJC IS-17... Pinlock visor!
This is a must have if you've ever had an issue with fogging, in humid OR cold weather. I ride in some very cold temps in central Iowa. Seems the polar vortex, or whatever they decide to call it next year, always dips down right through Iowa so we get some of what the Dakota's and Minnesota gets for temps. Pinlock will keep you fog free in any conditions (under -14*F for me this year). As I wear glasses I must give a bit of warning though. The Pinlock visor insert is on the VISOR, not on my glasses. When the temps get down around the low 20s and below my glasses will start to fog so I do use a home made snorkel when the temps get that low. Before Pinlock I used the snorkel anytime temps were below 40*F, now I only need it for temps below about 23*F. But the Pinlock never fogs.

 

[ShadowRider]

I used to buy Shoeis years ago when I had the Gold Wing, but since their prices doubled they have priced themselves out of the market for me. When I got the Shadow I went with an HJC CL-16 in solid gloss black to match the bike. I have been fairly happy with it, though the wind noise is still a minor issue. It was especially easy to install the Sena Bluetooth audio system into it.

Over the winter I was visiting the dealer where I bought the Shadow and they had a sale on some of the helmets. I ended up buying a new one that looked really sexy (again, gloss black) because it had this cup-shaped piece that came up over my mouth and nose for wind protection. When I got it home, though, I realized it was exactly the same model as the one I already had! But I had purchased this one a size larger, to make it easier to get my glasses on and off. I moved the Sena over to it and have been using it with the CTX.

My only problem with the new helmet is fogging, so I think I will swap the visor for the one I had on the old helmet, as that one has the Pinlock thingy attached. It isn't perfect, but it DOES help quite a bit with fogging, which has been a big deal when riding during the recent cooler-than-average weather.

I have a bit of a quandary because I really like that classic all-black biker look, yet at the same time I'm concerned about my safety, and visibility is a big part of that. I previously bought a hi-viz TourMaster jacket but I couldn't bring myself to wear it more than once, it just looked so uncool. So in addition to adding the Skene Design lights that make the bike nearly impossible to miss, I have added strips of reflective tape to both of the HJC helmets. This is a special 3M tape in a color called "stealth black". It is literally a black tape that is nearly invisible on the helmet during the day, but when it gets hit by headlights it reflects back pure white. The effect is pretty amazing, actually, and it works from quite a distance. I created a pattern on the rear and sides that purposely uses both vertical and horizontal lines in a way that could not be mistaken for road striping or any other "normal" pattern that might be seen at night.

 

[TennesseeSmith]

I wore the HJC open face helmets for years. I like a little bit of wind on my face. I like to take a drink without removing the helmet. Mostly, I don't like looking through the plastic screen on a full face helmet. No matter how good it is it will distort a bit. When I wear my polarized sunglasses with a plastic face shield I can't tell the slick parts of the road from the merely shiny parts.

When the deer killed my Gold Wing, my head hit the ground pretty hard. Chin first. The helmet kept my brains from spilling out on the road. But I had to have my mouth wired shut and eat through a straw for weeks. That was a major nuisance.

I finally made the jump to a more expensive helmet. I bought an Arai XD4 and removed the clear face shield. That helmet has a sun visor similar to a dirt bike helmet. It is awesome. I liked it so much I bought a second one and left the shield on it. I wear the one with the shield on bikes without a windshield and on really cold days. I wear the open one on nice days when I'm sitting behind a nice windshield. My chin is well protected. The helmet has all manner of vents to keep my head dry on the hot days. The vents can be closed on the fly even with gloves on. Arai XD-4 Helmet - Motorcycle Superstore

I really like the peace and quiet I get in a good helmet. My ears are not shaped aerodynamically, so any time I've ridden without a helmet I've had a serious roar to contend with.

 

[sleepngbear]

So I caged it down to my dealer today, hoping for a last chance to size-fit a HJC RPHA Max, and dang it all if they didn't have a single hat in HJC's RPHA line. I did try on a couple of Sci Max's, a medium that fit over my head comfortably but didn't come down far enough, and a XL that also fit reasonably snugly but kind of came down too far. So I'm guessing I would need a large. But I'm still hesitant to dump $420 on a hat that I can't actually try on because nobody around here in driving distance actually has them in stock. They did have my new registration in, so at least it wasn't a wasted trip.

Decisions, decisions ...

 

[bob]

I didn't look but did you try looking on MotorcycleGear.com (the new name of New Enough) :: Motorcycle Jackets, Helmets, Gloves, Boots, Luggage, Parts and More! web site?
They have a good return policy for size adjustments or if it doesn't fit. Had to use that to change size on a pair of boots that I thought I knew better what size fit... I was wrong and they replaced with no hassle. Their staff is really good to talk to about fit and they try their products themselves so speak from experience for what I've bought from them... which is almost all my gear.

 

[sleepngbear]

Yeah, they're one of my many links for gear. I haven't hit any of them yet for shopping, just for reviews. There's a place in nearby CT that sells them, but they don't keep any HJC's in stock. They say if I call they can them them the next day. They have hundreds of Speed & Strength lids which I'd never heard of before, but no HJC's stocked, and no Scorpions at all. But anyway -- I'll make the rounds and see who's got what.

 

[ShadowRider]

Yeah, they're one of my many links for gear. I haven't hit any of them yet for shopping, just for reviews. There's a place in nearby CT that sells them, but they don't keep any HJC's in stock. They say if I call they can them them the next day. They have hundreds of Speed & Strength lids which I'd never heard of before, but no HJC's stocked, and no Scorpions at all. But anyway -- I'll make the rounds and see who's got what.

Another source for helmets is CycleGear. It's a national chain of motorcycle accessory stores that has some AWESOME prices on their house brand, called BILT. (I think you might already know about them, IIRC.) We got a very nice helmet for a friend there at an excellent price.

 

[RICHB2]

I enjoy all the ARAI helmets and have 5 and 2 Nolans (103 104 for Barb)
The 2 I enjoy the most are the Arai CTZ and have my Bluetooth installed in it, my Shuberth
C3 PRO is my choice for all tour rides and has (J&M) head set in it. I enjoyed using both when they are tethered to the Harley or the Goldwing. Just have to change the lower cord as the top dongle works with everything. All the other ARAI's have the J&M gear in them for the
tethers.

Oh, I am a shopper. It is my money I am spending so I try to find the BEST price for what I buy.Customer service being what it is makes buying something local to support the community has lost its luster as they usually do not negotiate. Loss for them.... Having Just said the above, there are always exceptions and helmet wise I ALWAYS check the J&M site and sometimes even call to see if they will sweeten the deal.... LOVE those folks down there in Tucson.

CTZ #1 and Shuberth C3 PRO #1 tour.

 

[CTXMaybe]

I read a helmet safety test comparison a couple years or so back and the cheapest helmet in the test, a BELL, got the best safety rating, better than a $700 Helmet, so I stick with BELL. In fact the helmet in the test was listed at something like $89.00 or therabouts, and at the time they were selling for $30 on ebay because they were "last years" model so that's the helmet I'm using right now.

 

[bob]

I've hear/read that many places... that the less pricy helmets actually do better in safety tests and even sometimes in noise tests. Many years ago I had a Bell full face helmet and it fit and served me well. I've been lately partial to HJC since they fit me right for head shape and comfort. I tried another Bell a few years ago and couldn't find any of the ones at that time that fit my head shape right.

 

[sleepngbear]

I trekked out to one last dealer in the area today that carries HJC, but they had NONE of the RPHA line, only the cheaper stuff. So I came home and jumped on Amazon and ordered me one HJC RPHA Max in matte black. Screw it. It'll be here on Thursday. Another long-winded review will likely be forthcoming. So get ready. Or be warned. Or both.

 

[CTXMaybe]

I've hear/read that many places... that the less pricy helmets actually do better in safety tests and even sometimes in noise tests. Many years ago I had a Bell full face helmet and it fit and served me well. I've been lately partial to HJC since they fit me right for head shape and comfort. I tried another Bell a few years ago and couldn't find any of the ones at that time that fit my head shape right.

I actually took a spill in the same model BELL (my brothers helmet) on the way home last November. It was a night that turned to rain and fog on the way home riding his little Ninja 250. His car went into the shop and he needed to haul some things to the office the next day. I happened to be in the area so I dropped off my car for him to use and rode the Ninja back home.

Long story short (I live about 25 miles away). About 5 or 6 miles from home... a bend, some light rain and fog and... A DEER! in the middle of the rode!

I was only doing about 35-40, but there was no way I could save it. All the practice in the world, the MSF course.. none of it matters when you're in a slight lean going around a bend on a slick road in the fog and see a deer 20 feet in front of you and you have a half a millisecond to react, panic stop, no avoiding it. I went down, my head and my (brothers) cheap BELL helmet slammed face first into the ground, I slid about 30 feet on my stomach into the oncoming lane (thank God no cars were coming) and came to a stop. My head was in good shape, it was only a 3/4 helmet and my mouth hit the pavement slightly and I got a small bruise on my lip, a few bruises and scratches on me here and there, but more soreness than anything else for the next few days. As for the Ninja, only slight damage, a couple scuffs on the plastics, a new clutch lever and gear shift and it was back in business. It was my first wreck in 20 something years of riding. Never even tipped a bike over up until that point. As for the helmet, job well done.

Edit, I'm lying. I just remembered, I did tip my brothers GS500 over when I hit the curb riding it out of the parking lot of our first apartment when I first started riding a long long time ago...

 

[sleepngbear]

Same brother? And he let you take his bike again?!?

Glad you ended up ok after that. But yeah, there's no amount of practice that will prepare you for that, unless you practice sliding. And that can get costly.

 

[CTXMaybe]

Same brother? And he let you take his bike again?!?

Glad you ended up ok after that. But yeah, there's no amount of practice that will prepare you for that, unless you practice sliding. And that can get costly.

Different brother, and the Ninja brother wouldn't let me pay for the damage to his bike, he insisted on paying because I was doing him a favor by lending him my car. Come to think of it, I don't think he ever reimbursed me the $22.50 I spent for a new lever and shifter!

 

[firstime911]

I just brought my second helmet.. Arai freeway2 free rider from EU.
I always want to have a classic look open face helmet, and with arai comfort and safety. i would go for it..

 

[sleepngbear]

^^^ That is a nice looking hat.