[apologies if this topic exists elsewhere, search disabled currently]
As I am doing more riding out on the roads, I am interested in getting a decent helmet.
So far, what I have heard and seen is that decent branded helmets such as Nolan, Shoei etc go for about 12,000-14,000nt.
I was recently looking at a MTR fullface at my local bike shop, that was around 3,600nt. The MTR has the standards stickers on the back, and construction ‘looks’ to be high quality.
How much better is the Nolan/Shoei/Arai variety over something under 4000nt that fits well and is manufactured to standards? Is price always a deciding factor when talking safety(a marketing ploy I am sure the big brands rely on)?
[quote=“Truant”]How much better is the Nolan/Shoei/Arai variety over something under 4000nt that fits well and is manufactured to standards? Is price always a deciding factor when talking safety(a marketing ploy I am sure the big brands rely on)?[/quote]Not better enough in my view. I do own a 10,000NT helmet which is very nice, but I don’t think I’d get another one. (Though I wouldn’t buy one UNDER about 3-4000NT either).
As the search function is disabled I can’t find the statistic I quoted previously that found that a mid-priced helmet gives nearly as much protection as an expensive one does.
With the more expensive ones you’re paying a fair bit for lightweight materials and increased comfort.
So yes, if you want ultimate protection then get a Shoei or similar. But a 4000NT helmet can still be a pretty useful piece of kit. I think the m2r brand is not too bad. I have one and Rosso’s go-kart place in Taichung (a well-run and safe place) also uses them.
There are also some interesting options priced somewhere in the middle: the Suomy and the Shark brands for example. The AXO I own was 10,000 and is a very nicely made helmet. Also, it was the only one I found in the Gochen shop that fit my head shape.
My Shark costs 14,000 and it wasn’t their highest tier, either. Their best one runs for about 18,000.
There was an ariticle in Motorcyclist magazine a few months back where they compared 500 dollar (american) helmets with 50 dollar helmets. What was the conclusion? In many cases the cheap helmets were safer with regards to impact absorbtion.
This article cost the magazine thousands in advertising as many big name helmets pulled all their ads from the mag in protest.
But they are testing the helmets with some impact machine and other sationary tools. In a real accident extra weight can cause serious neck damage…so lighter equals safer.
So all in all…any full face helmet THAT FITS VERY TIGHT WITHOUT CAUSING DISCOMFORT would be fine. For caucasians I recommend Shark helmets…their lower tier helmests run about 7,000.
I saw a real man on saturday. Half way into Taipei, lying on the ground not moving. I knew it was serious cos the locals were not tending to him, just standing back, some ladies crying.
He was wearing one of those 200nt lids, and his head hit the road on the side (where I presume 95% of head impacts occur) and the blood(or maybe his brain -no shit) that had sprayed out I would liked to a water melon falling off a truck. It sprayed out in a fan for over a meter.
[quote=“Ma Ke”]Real men don’t wear helmets, period![/quote]A joke, right? Haha.
If you were serious then I would have to point out to you that real men, even if unconcerned about their own lives, consider their reponsibilities to those who love and need them.
Mordeth, I’ve heard good things about Shark helmets. But if people don’t even want to spend 7,000NT then m2r helmets at around 3-4000 are not too bad. Mine has a DOT sticker on the back. I think they’re all DOT certified though you should check that if you want to buy one. They’re certainly a whole lot better than one of those 1000NT jobs.
[quote=“joesax”][quote=“Ma Ke”]Real men don’t wear helmets, period![/quote]A joke, right? Haha.
If you were serious then I would have to point out to you that real men, even if unconcerned about their own lives, consider their reponsibilities to those who love and need them.
Mordeth, I’ve heard good things about Shark helmets. But if people don’t even want to spend 7,000NT then m2r helmets at around 3-4000 are not too bad. Mine has a DOT sticker on the back. I think they’re all DOT certified though you should check that if you want to buy one. They’re certainly a whole lot better than one of those 1000NT jobs.[/quote]
Speaking of the devil…shwa Cao Cao, Cao Cao dao. I was at Autobike the other day and they were talking about you. Kept going on about how funny you are and what a nice guy…etc. But don’t worry…I helped clear up their misconceptions about you .
[quote]“I had a nearly fatal motorcycle accident on Dec. 4, 1988,” says the actor and musician. “And almost no one expected me to recover.”
But Busey was able to come back from the brink, and today he says he’s compelled to spread his message of caution. “I want people to understand that life is very important. And that if you’re riding a motorcycle, skateboard, or bicycle without a helmet, you’re challenging the face of death.”
Riding without a helmet is a gamble everyone is bound to lose, sooner or later, he says. “When the odds finally catch up with you, fate will steal your life and the hearts of everyone who loves you.”[/quote]
Plastic helmets (high-impact thermal resin), if they pass DOT or Snell, are reasonably safe, especially for low-speed scootering around town, but remember that the styrofoam core inside is important for absorbing shock energy. Even if the outer shell passes local impact standards, the thin cores of most locally made helmets (especially the little yarmulke types) would not, IMO, protect you as much as the thicker cores of most foreign helms which pass DOT or Snell. You also get what you pay for in terms of the quality of hardware and liner – the cheaper plastic quick-snap buckles are neither as safe as a double-D ring nor as durable as a metal fastener. The rivets on cheaper helmets quickly rust, and the visors are not scratch-resistant. The liners in better helmets are often removable, allowing you to wash them, which makes for more pleasant wearing, especially since Taiwan is so hot and rainy, and the liners can get sweaty, dirty, or even moldy rather quickly. And better brands often have cheekpads of various thicknesses, so you can swap them for a safer and more comfortable fit.
Also note that you can get a composite shell in mid-priced helmets now. A composite shell, of fiberglass, kevlar and/or carbon fiber held together with heat-cured epoxy resin (preferrably in a vacuum process) is superior because the greater strength allows a thinner, lighter shell to offer the same level of protection. The material will also absorb more impact energy, via delamination, than a plastic shell will. Thus, composites offer better protection in a particularly serious hit.
BTW, your head size and shape will also determine which brands you can wear. Local hats tend to be smaller, and very round in shape.
m2r helmets use double “d” fasteners and the core of the helmet is pretty thick. They’re not very light – only the cheapo and the fairly expensive helmets are light, but for different reasons!
Yes, the more you pay the more nice features like removable padding and fancy ventilation systems you get. Each person has to consider whether it’s worth paying thousands more for this. (Plus of course a bit more protection.)
It’s very important to point out to people that they can get reasonable protection from a 3 or 4 thousand NT helmet if they choose it carefully. If somebody believed that the only decent helmets cost 8 thousand or more, they might be tempted just to “make do” with a horrible 1000Nt piece of rubbish. That would be a big mistake. If they knew that paying just a few thousand NT could get them vastly improved protection, they would be more inclined to do the right thing.
Ya, I was just kidding. Ask anybody who’s lived in Taoyuan county for a good length of time, they are probably familiar with my accident in 94.
I think it’s funny when guys talk about how much their gear cost. You don’t need to spend a lot of money to be cool and well protected.
Good footwear is also important. I once lost the skin on the top of my foot and a couple of tendons, while wearing a good helmet.
Peace
[quote=“Ma Ke”]Ya, I was just kidding. Ask anybody who’s lived in Taoyuan county for a good length of time, they are probably familiar with my accident in 94. I think it’s funny when guys talk about how much their gear cost. You don’t need to spend a lot of money to be cool and well protected.
Good footwear is also important. I once lost the skin on the top of my foot and a couple of tendons, while wearing a good helmet.
Peace[/quote]
Just incase that’s directed at me…I’d like to reiterate that the mag I read said that cheap helmets that are DOT approved protect just as well as the expensive ones. I still bought an expensive one because it was the best fit…and fit is more important than price, weight, or cool factor.
Every helmet I’ve had since they started being mandatory has given me a headache and an angry red mark on my forehead. So I paid about 11k for an open face Shoei a year or two back. Fits perfectly and I can wear it all day without discomfort. Has all the right safety stickers, etc. I’ll be buying another like it for sure when that one gets too old.
The discomfort and red mark are because the local shells are round rather than oval. If you wear a round hat on an oval head, you get forehead pressure, which is only exacerbated if the helmet is also too small – but even if the helmet is large enough, then you get looseness side to side, which is unsafe, as it increases the chances the helmet will come off in a collision. And the wind pressure at speed will still cause forehead pressure…
You can get an oval-shaped, full-face helmet too, like an Arai Signet (the Arai’s are different shapes by model, by design, so as to fit a wider range of head shapes). The Arai Signet XXXL is the first and only helmet to fit me perfectly.
If the liner is removable, you can also thin the offending spot in the foam core slightly, which can really help a lot. Of course, this is not as desirable as buying one that fits to begin with, but until I discovered the Signet triple X, that’s what I was forced to do. I have a hot wire cutter with a curved blade for exactly that purpose. You can also sand or simply press very hard with the fingers until the thinning is accomplished.
You mean a shit-face helmet? Well, that’s what we used to call them back in Oz.
HG[/quote]
I suppose that’s what you could call it. But it has good cheek protection and the only thing missing is a chinbar. Its recognized pretty much universally as a safe helmet and is cooler and lighter than a full-face. For the commuting-style riding I do, it’s more than sufficient. If I go out of town I wear a full-face jobbie with a bit cut out of the forehead area so it doesn’t hurt.
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