I need a new helmet!

[HeroicFerret]

So last year I had an accident where my essentially my bike disappeared beneath me and I ended up head long into a gutter. My bike and I suffered minimal damage, where as my helmet did its job and now is hanging on a wall to remind me how damn lucky I am. Seeing how its getting warmer outside and i'm on a budget, I'm in a bind. The helmets I want are way out of my price range and I don't really know any of the cheaper brands and how good they are. Are there any simple full faced helmets that will keep my brain bucket safe and not drain my wallet?

[capz]

Any DOT approved helmet will do its job in an accident. I was always under the impression that what you're paying for in higher priced helmets is comfort, fit, and graphics i.e a higher priced helmet may give you more vents and adjustments in the pads.

Check out this thread.

http://nighthawk-forums.com/index.php/topic,8843.0/topicseen.html

[Tryvelcro]

Any DOT approved helmet will do its job in an accident. I was always under the impression that what you're paying for in higher priced helmets is comfort, fit, and graphics i.e a higher priced helmet may give you more vents and adjustments in the pads.

Check out this thread.

http://nighthawk-forums.com/index.php/topic,8843.0/topicseen.html

Are you sure?  Brain buckets have dot approval but I wouldn't trust them, and there is a reason for snell approval.  Higher price can  also mean higher product quality used to make the helmet.  Maybe a dot approval is enough, as you say, but I have my doubts and don't like the idea of risking my brain.

For the op..... I love my HJC helmets and you can get them pretty cheap on closeout.  They also get really good reviews.  Check newenough/motorcyclegear.com.

[JB1290]

Also check out Competition Accessories.com for their helmet closeouts. I just ordered a really sweet SparX FF for a buddy of mine for $65.00.

http://www.compacc.com/

http://www.compacc.com/p/SparX-S-07-Hornet-Graphic-Special-Edition-Helmet/2002001/

[detdrbuzzard]

www.newenough.com or www.motorcyclecloseouts.com

[muttstang]

dennis kirk has a deal on that HRC helmet for $66 or so

I have one of the scorpion exo400's that I got on www.motorcyclegear.com for under $60 that fits really nicely

[Bumblebee]

Any DOT approved helmet will do its job in an accident.

 
The typical DOT approved salad bowl won't do squat for you in a crash. Neither will an open face DOT anything beyond the most benign topple over while nearly stopped...motorcycle crashes are called a faceplants for a reason. You absolutely want your face protected with a solid chin bar and preferably a closed visor when the proverbial 4-grit belt sander is trying to scrape your face completely off.

and there is a reason for snell approval.

The more I look into it, the more I'm not so sure about that. All else being nearly equal, Snell tends to be harder and can handle the carefully controlled test lab double impact hits at the same point to the same force delivery standards. To pass that secondary impact test though, it often means a harder less energy absorbing shell and harder impact foam lining than DOT approved helmets. IOW, it delivers more energy to your head in the initial impact.
Most real world crashes that I've heard of (and my first hand experience crashing assorted things over the years) are a single high impulse force initial impact followed by a lot of grinding. Not two or more hard impacts. Just one hard hit followed by a very minor tap and a great deal of grinding. As long as it can get you through that first hard impact while delivering the minimal amount of energy to your head and keep the grinding outside, you're likely as ok as you'll ever be.

That said I wear a Snell helmet simply because it fits better on my head and tighter than every DOT helmet I've tried on. Proper fit is essential to keep from slamming your head against the inside of the rebounding helmet thus reducing total forces to your head.

To heck with your budget. Find the FF helmet that fits best and buy that helmet, not another one. No amount of money in the wallet will do you a bit of good when you get sucker punched in the face by a planet. If it's $50, great. If it's $500, do it anyway. It's a one time real world health insurance payment.

[Burgi]

Snell tends to be harder and can handle the carefully controlled test lab double impact hits at the same point to the same force delivery standards. To pass that secondary impact test though, it often means a harder less energy absorbing shell and harder impact foam lining than DOT approved helmets. IOW, it delivers more energy to your head in the initial impact.

Somewhere I read that this may actually be worse for older riders. Our heads can't take the hard impact. Snell better if you are young, worse if you are old?

[Bumblebee]

Somewhere I read that this may actually be worse for older riders. Our heads can't take the hard impact. Snell better if you are young, worse if you are old?

I don't see how delivering more energy could be better for younger heads or bodies or anything else for that matter. A lower g impulse will always be better at reducing damage regardless of age. A younger head/body is more resilient and able to handle higher impact forces with less initial damage than one that's been knocked around for a lot more years.

Worse for older riders? Probably. Better for younger riders? Extremely doubtful.

Heads are a lot like hearing. It's cumulative damage. Start protecting it early so you don't have problems with it later.

[Burgi]

It has something to do with younger people having more fluid surrounding their brains. In theory the head of a younger individual can withstand the impact because they sort of have a build in crash protection, the harder helmet offers them more protection. Old folks can't take the initial hit.
Smaller heads were also more at risk.
All that maybe moot with the Snell 2010 standard? I believe that is supposed to comply with the European standard which was softer.

[Bumblebee]

The one that always gets me is the impulse forces a woodpecker's head goes through. IIRC, it's over 1000 g's for a fraction of a second and they do that repeatedly at multiple times per second. Years ago there was some helmet research going on where they were looking into woodpecker's for inspiration on how to reduce head injuries.

[fishball]

Check out SparX helmets.  Generally under $200 can be found at closeout for $75.  These are good helmets, light weight, DOT and ECE (Euro standard).  Very comfortable for my roundish oval head.  They generally run small so look for one size up, at least that was my experience.

[green427]

It has something to do with younger people having more fluid surrounding their brains. In theory the head of a younger individual can withstand the impact because they sort of have a build in crash protection, the harder helmet offers them more protection. Old folks can't take the initial hit.

I believe this. Seems like everyone I know gets more hard-headed as they get older....

 

[cmbutn2]

I just bought a Scorpion Exo-400 from sportbiketrackgear.com on closeout for $60. It is Snell approved and has been great so far. The fog free coating is amazing, I don't have to crack the visor when I stop anymore.

[capz]

Brain buckets have dot approval but I wouldn't trust them

Obviously a full face is the way to go. I remember in my MSF course they showed the percentage of hits on the area of helmets. Most were in the chin, lower jaw.
 I'm just saying any helmet that is DOT approved has been tested with the force of a crash and held up. So a cheapie will protect the head just as well as a wallet buster. No matter what the marketing says.

[HeroicFerret]

Alright then That actually answers a lot of my questions. Thanks for the input.

[Bumblebee]

I remember in my MSF course they showed the percentage of hits on the area of helmets.

Helmet crash percentages:
Anything less than a full face leaves 45% of the crashes exposed to the proverbial 4-grit belt sander. Add in open face helmet shifting back and up on your head because it moves so easily and suddenly you're at 64% exposure.

Theory is all nice and academic however this is what happens in the real world:
Crashes are called Faceplants for a reason.

[mattrowe19]

Denniskirk.com has some great deals on HJC full face helmets. If you check out some of the closeouts you can easily find one for under $100. They're comfy and DOT and Snell rated.