Things to Think About Before Buying a Motorcycle Helmet

These days helmets are an important investment for any rider/driver who needs head protection. Whether you're on a motorcycle, quad, snowmobile or in a car, there's much to be considered.

Obviously, safety is the main reason you need a motorcycle helmet. However, many other factors enter into the buying decision. How the helmet fits is important for both comfort and functionality. Style, color and "cool factor" are also considerations which often determine what we trust our brains to. Don't forget that it's your brain you're trying to protect.

Cost is another consideration. It can be, and often is, the determining factor in the helmet buying decision. There are snell and/or DOT rated motorcycle helmets on the market that sell from well over $500.00 to around $80.00. So if you're on a tight budget these days, don't feel like you have to break the bank on a new helmet.

Helmets are usually constructed of fiberglass, carbon fiber, kevlar or plastic shells with various densities of foam liner inside the shell. It's the combination of the characteristics of these two materials which determines how much force gets transmitted from an impact on the shell, through the liner, to your brain.

Some of us believe the stiffer the shell and liner are, the more your brain is protected. This is both true and false. If the blow to the helmet is direct and hard enough to break a less rigid shell, then may be true. However, in what I'll call a medium hard impact, that same helmet is absorbing less of the impact and your brain is taking more of it. In this case a less stiff shell/liner combination may be better for you by absorbing more impact . This is likely the case in the instance of a glancing blow. By glancing blow, I mean one that does not bring your head to a complete stop when the blow occurs. In my experience, the vast majority of non-car crashes would fall into this category.

The two most likely exceptions would be if you fell off a stopped motorcycle (snowmobile or quad) and smacked your head directly into the ground, or; if you fell off at speed and slid directly into something which could stop you instantly. Falling off while stopped would not be a hard impact and, therefore, would not require helmet designed for hard, direct impacts. In fact, a bit of give in the shell and a softer liner absorbs more of the impact leaving less for your brain to take.

In a high speed, direct impact situation you need to consider how much protection something hard wrapped around your head it going to provide. Not to mention the fact that if you drive into the side of your neighborhood Wal-Mart at 90 mph, a stiff helmet won't keep you out of a casket.

Over to the right of this page, you'll find a link to an article from motorcyclistonline.com which details results of tests on various helmets under various impact forces and directions. It's a little bit long but gives good (sometimes surprising) insight into what type of helmet might best suit your riding needs.

To sum things up, when deciding which helmet to purchase it's important to take a look at what you ride or drive and the conditions in which you operate. What type of crash do you feel is most likely for you? At what speed? When it happens, what are the chances of actually sliding directly into something that's not going to give?

Be honest when you answer these questions. Some of us like to think we are so fast that we need the stiffest protection possible. My personal opinion is that's rarely the case. Even if you are the fastest guy on the planet, how often are you going to hit something head-on at high speeds? Unless you're doing something dramatic in a congested area, it's not likely.

Just for the record, I'm not trying to convince anyone to run out and buy a softer helmet. I just want people who need head protection to think about what's actually best for them. Remember, you only get one brain. Besides, the best helmet for you will look just as cool as one that's too hard. Or too soft, for that matter. Decide wisely.

Helmet Standards

There are 4 common standards to which helmets can be held. In the U.S. it's the DOT FMVSS 218. In Britain it's the BSI 6658. The European Standard is called ECE 22-05. These 3 are the government mandated minimum standards helmets are legally required to pass in those countries. A voluntary, private standard is the recently updated Snell M2010 which is used mostly in the U.S. However, changes adopted in the new M2010 take effect on Oct. 1, 2009 make it possible for manufacturers to meet both Snell and ECE requirements. Thus making those Snell certified helmets legal for street riding in Europe.

Each of these standards have different rigidity and G-force requirements. Generally, from softest to hardest you'd find DOT, then the ECE, the BSI and Snell, which requires the hardest helmets.

Most racing organizations will accept any of the above certifications. The exception is that some European organizations don’t allow DOT only certification. Mostly, it’s presumed, because the DOT allows the manufacturer to certify their own helmets. BFI, ECE and Snell each do their own testing.

Cleaning Your Helmet the Right Way

Glossy Finish. Most helmets are painted with an automotive type paint. Therefore, you should use the same type of products in cleaning or polishing your helmet as you would on your car. Use rubbing compounds to remove scratches and scuffs, but be aware that over polishing with them can cause light abrasions which can dull the helmet's finish. If you remove stickers or decals, you'll notice that adhesive residue will be left behind. To remove it, use alcohol swabs. Wipe away excess liquid immediately and wash the area with soap and water once the adhesive is gone. Be careful not to apply too much pressure when rubbing residue out. You're better off using multiple, light treatments rather than one heavy handed treatment which could scratch or scuff the finish.

Non-Glossy Finish. For flat finish (non-glossy) helmets, you're good to go using just warm water and mild soap. Use multiple treatments for dirtier areas. Again, don't use excessive pressure or rubbing compounds while cleaning the surface. Doing so could cause a glossy area which won't look all that great on a flat finish.

Flip Up Helmets

I've never owned, borrowed or used a flip up helmet. These are just my thoughts on the subject after reading test reports from around the 'net. I think there is a place for flip ups in motorcycling. I don't think they are a replacement for a regular, one-piece full face though.

To me, a flip up is just an open face helmet with an add-on. Some may be better/safer than an open face, some probably aren't. You have to look at the flip up's construction, padding and method of operation to make that determination.

A weak or un-padded chin piece would be a problem for me. Partly because my last crash sent me over the front of my RC-51 to land face first on the desert floor. And yes, I know RC-51's aren't supposed to be in the desert. That left turn just didn't quite go as planned. But, with my full face helmet on, the only mark on me was a small red spot in the middle of my forehead. I don't know for certain if that would have been the case if I had been wearing a flip up.

The pivot points on flip ups are likely to be weaker than a standard one piece full face. Therefore, going from full face to flip up is probably sacrificing a certain amount of structural integrity.

However, some of the flip ups that are well designed and padded may offer more protection than a standard open face as long as the chin guard doesn't get released in a crash. I'd hate to think of how a neck could get twisted and bent while tumbling across the ground with a raised flip up. Such an unwanted release is why I'd prefer a mechanism which required both hands to engage. I think it would be highly unlikely for two releases to get bumped open during a crash.

I can't argue with the convenience of a flip up. They make it much easier to have a quick chat, smoke, drink or snack than a full face. I can certainly understand the attraction. For me to take a quick sip of water, I have to take off my gloves, undo my chin strap, take off my glasses, remove the helmet and put the glasses back on. Then reverse the process. It is a bit time consuming and troublesome. It would be much easier to just raise the chin piece, take a drink, lower the chin piece and be on my way.

At the end of the day, there are very few, if any, bad helmets on the market. Anything you wear is going to protect your brain better than your skull alone.