Reevu - Rear view helmet review

[ital916]

(Apologies for no pictures, camera has broken, I will get them uploaded asap).

Hey guys,

Well, I was at work yesterday when the reevu reps came in and dropped of two demo Reevu (Rear View) Gen 2 helmets for us to have a look at. The bass kindly gave me permission to blast around in one to see how it works and check out how good it is, so here is my review. I have tried to be as objective as possible.

I'll get the generic helmet sections out of the way first:

Price: $699.00

Construction:

The Reevu is a tri composite helmet made of polycarb (plastic), fiberglass and kevlar (so the rep says).

Weight wise it is 1600gms for the medium I tested but feels light enough. Construction quality was good but for $699 helmets could be a little better, mind you this was a demo model. Everything was put together well enough but little things like rubber trim coming a bit loose at the edges, the mirror system being a bit fragile feeling (I will expand on this later) etc made me think it could have been done better.

On the whole however, I do believe it is a well put together piece of kit, though not quite on par with the shoeis and other leading brands in that price bracket.

Comfort:

I was pleasantly surprised at how comfortable the Reevu helmet is. The interior lining is extremely plus and very soft. I would have to say the Reevu is one of the most comfortable helmets I have worn. The fit is almost the same as the Givi 4.01 helmets with the interior linings having almost the exact same fit and feel.

There is a generous cushion around the neck area making the helmet very easy to get into and out of. The softness of the interior liner also makes the helmet instantly comfortable as opposed to the stiffer interior pads found in other helmets which need to be broken in a bit.

The interior lining is removable allowing it to be pulled out and washed. There are various cheek pad sizes available allowing the fit to be fine tuned. These bits are also able to purchased further down the line to replace worn interiors.

Chin strap:

The Reevu utilises a ratchet clip system like that found in the Givi helmets. It is easy to use with gloves allowing the clip to be done up and undone quickly. On the down side it doesnt feel as secure as a double D ring attachment, though for street use it would be fantastic.

Though it may seem a trivial point the Reevu comes with no dome on the end of the chin strap to secure excess material once adjusted. For myself, I had about ten centimeters of strap left that I had to to tuck in to prevent it from slapping against the helmet when riding. Minor but annoying.

Ventilation:

Not so great. It comes with one top vent and one chin vent. I take it the reason for this is the vents would interfere with the system of mirrors built into the helmet in the usual spots that ventilation would be placed.

At slower speeds around town yesterday where it was sunny (yay!) my face was cooking. The vents couldn't evac the hot air quick enough and whilst you can live with it, it does get a bit annoying after crawling through traffic for an hour. Not enough to make me hate the helmet though.

Once up to 60-70 kmh though, the vents work a bit better and the helmet is cool enough.

The construction of the vents is solid and easy to use with gloved hands.

Visor:

Comes with a clear visor which has a quick release lever. Other visors are available as well as anti fog options. Lots of vision, pretty standard stuff; not much else to say really.

Finally, The Rear View Mirror:

The mirror viewing mechanism is situated in the center of the forehead sections of the helmet directly above the riders eyebrows (see photos). The mirror is adjustable backwards and forwards and can be pulled down out of the helmet or recessed back into it. This allows a lot of adjust-ability to cater for different riders and different bike types. A little plastic allen key is used to retract/extend the mirror and fingers can be used to tilt the mirror back and forth.

Once the helmet is popped on it takes about five minutes to get the mirror adjusted properly.

The mirror itself is quite thin vertically and allows the user to see a squashed view of what is behind the helmet. Due the amount of movement of a riders head during well riding, one must consciously moved their head to get an image of the same spot. This is again due to the small viewing angle of the mirror system. Move your head a little bit and all you will see is the top of buildings. Once you get use to it after about thirty min though, you can easily enough center back on the point behind the bike.

What isn't mentioned is the image isn't perfect. It is slightly distorted and does have imperfections. Depth perception is almost nil. So even though you can see what is behind you, telling how far away it is, is extremely difficult and inaccurate.

What the helmet does do is give the rider a quick indication of what is behind them (not a riders blind spots though, one still should always do and has to do head checks and mirror checks) . Given over time and practice one could use the helmet enough to figure out depth perception etc I found it very difficult.

At nighttime the mirror isn't as good due to lack of lighting, as a plus headlights do not cause blinding due to the filters built into the mirror system.

A major negative however occurred when my partner tested the helmet. She wears glasses when riding and said the system was unusable for her as she had to look over glasses, through the frame or at an angle where her glasses didn't work. this may not be the case for all riders with glasses but I strongly recommend trying before buying if you do use optics.

The little mirror itself is sturdy enough though it does feel a bit like I will break it when adjusting it. The rep said the helmets mirror system will withstand shocks of everyday use without affecting the alignment of the mirrors which are moulded into the shell. I will have to take his word on that.

Overall:

Overall the Reevu is a alright helmet, comfortable and well built. The Mirror system is useful here and there but for me personally my wing mirrors do a better job of showing whats behind me. Some may love it and some may not.

All I can say is, TRY BEFORE YOU BUY.

For all those aucklanders who want to try one, come into motomail and I'll organise a test ride for you with the reevu helmet. Who knows it may be the best helmet you've ever used.

[Muppet]

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=VYFla-d1lKA

[Hitcher]

What happens for riders who wear backpacks or carry pillions?

[ital916]

What happens for riders who wear backpacks or carry pillions?

A pillion will obscure your vision, backpack aren't a problem give they don't come up to the height of the mirror entrance at the back of the helmet.

Same with pillions, as long as they don't block the mirror they wont block your vision.

[R-Soul]

So I guess wearing sunglasses with the helmet is out? Do they come with internal visors?

[jeffs]

I have been trying-out the new Reevu helmet for some 3 weeks now ( imported from the UK for approx $500 ).

I have been riding in Auckland traffic every day, rain/sun and fog.

Here are my views of the helmet.

1. Be patient, using the rear view mirror system is not something that you can just put on and ride away with.
It took me at least 4 days riding, to feel comfortable about visibility and depth perception.

The extremely narrow view angle ( very small mirror ), means you will find yourself holding your head a lot steadier than your would with a normal helmet, as moving your head around causing tracking issues ( loosing the view of what is behind you and finding it hard to re-acquire it again).

2. Forget seeing behind you at night or low light. My helmet is fitted with a metallic finished rear visor, and is like looking through very dark sunglasses at night. When the sun goes down so does your rear view.

3. If you plan on going out for night/ low light rides, fit the standard clear front visor. Yes I know this is obvious, but I rode down to Hamilton yesterday in a bright sunny day. I was held up and ended coming back to Auckland as it was getting towards sunset. I had fitted the real cool looking metallic silver visor to my helmet and come 7:30pm I was almost blind. Fortunately I was back in Auckland by then and was in slow traffic, so I could ride with the visor open. I have tinted visors on other helmets, this was very tinted.

4. Find a way of taking out the excess chin strap, as ital916 says it really does flap around and hit everything if not held down properly.

5. It is heavier than the label says. It reports to be 1600g but is 1700g ( weighed on calibrated scales ). Don't be disheartened by this, I suspect this discrepancy is common with lots of helmets.

6. The fit of the Front visor was poor and required adjustment of the screws for the tilt mech. When delivered this meant water coming in between the seals and the visor. This seems to have been fixed, but since I did the adjustment it has not really pored down, so only time will tell.

7. As ital916 says, Glasses ?? I wear glasses and it takes some adjusting my glasses every time I put the helmet on. The problem is not the mirror but the helmet lining pads. They are not glasses friendly and take some getting used to. Once seated they are ok, but the pads could do with a bit more freedom around the place the glasses arms slide in.


Now I have got the bad points out of the way.

Would recommend the helmet to everyone ?

YES !!!

Once you train yourself to use the helmet, it comes into its own.

Forget the price, this helmet is not about comparing it to others in the same price bracket. It is about being the only helmet with a rear view system, and there are no others to compare it too.

At the NZ asking price of $699, Think about it as a $399 helmet with $300 dollars of rear view technology.

[bikemike]

Sounds like an overly complicated solution to the problem of inadequate mirrors - or am I being obtuse?

[cs363]

Sounds like an overly complicated solution to the problem of inadequate mirrors - or am I being obtuse?

I tend to agree, seems like more of a gimmick to me - I'd rather have a helmet that I'm confident gives me the best protection. If I couldn't see behind me, I'd be changing my mirrors for something that works better.
But, each to his own as they say.

[jeffs]

Sounds like an overly complicated solution to the problem of inadequate mirrors - or am I being obtuse?

Yours is a very common statement, and one that is hard to explain to someone who does not commute or has very good rear visibility.

For me

Reason 1. My standard rear mirrors are crap, I have wide shoulders and can not see anything behind me. So I tried bar end mirrors, and these were great.

BUT

Reason 2. I commute every single day, and there is a section on road that my bike can not get through traffic with bar end mirrors. This section adds 5 min to my trip.

Reason 3. It is not a gimmick it works.

If you catch me on the motorway in the morning, I will pull over when lane splitting, because I can see you. If I relied on mirrors, you would be unhappy
being stuck behind me Or endanger yourself trying to get past.

I hope this helps

[jeffs]

I tend to agree, seems like more of a gimmick to me - I'd rather have a helmet that I'm confident gives me the best protection. If I couldn't see behind me, I'd be changing my mirrors for something that works better.
But, each to his own as they say.

The Reevu helmet is a helmet first, the mirror is a plus not a minus. And as I see i, someones gimmick is someone else's safety feature.

[bikemike]

You are confirming my position then.

Perhaps other mirror options are possible other than bar ends.
Obviously I am happy with my mirrors; I can see right behind me in both (couple of car lengths behind) - so I don't have a problem to solve.

I must admit, I was impressed by the original idea.

But I have three issues against -

• This is a *feature* on one brand of helmet only and it's hard enough for some to find a good fitting helmet, so taking this as a solution will not work for many
• Simpler and cheaper solution is well designed and mounted mirrors - root cause analysis
• Switching long to near focus - I assume this is required...granted I have not used :-)

[cs363]

The Reevu helmet is a helmet first, the mirror is a plus not a minus. And as I see it, someones gimmick is someone else's safety feature.

Agreed on it being a first, debatable whether the mirror is a plus, though this would of course depend upon the wearer as evidenced by the OP's partner who had issues with it due to wearing glasses. For some the relative lack of ventilation could be a very big minus, depending on how hot the individual's running temperature is, especially in the middle of summer.
However, as you say one persons gimmick could well be anothers safety feature.

Personally speaking it's an answer to a question I've never asked in all my years of riding road bikes. In fact I've only ever had one bike that had poor rear vision and that was rectified with readily available mirror extensions.
Of course that's just one persons opinion, others may see this as the next must have item on their list, just like the fans of flip-front helmets, I can't stand them but there are many, many people who swear by them - from your earlier post above it sounds like the Reevu is the answer to your prayers, if I was in your position I'd probably be looking at this more favorably, especially in preference to bar end mirrors, which I've never been a big fan of.
I guess it's a result of the great range of motorcycle accessories available to us these days that there is a product for almost every requirement! You are obviously happy with your purchase which is all that ultimately matters. Enjoy

[jeffs]

I guess it's a result of the great range of motorcycle accessories available to us these days that there is a product for almost every requirement! You are obviously happy with your purchase which is all that ultimately matters. Enjoy

What i did not add is I have been using a rear view camera system for 5 months.
I have not had mirrors on my bike since then.

This in conjunction with the helmet give me great vision in all light and weather conditions.

At night I see by camera, by day helmet mirror. ( don;t ask me to justify this, I am an engineer and like toys ).

Just remember all. If you are happy with your mirrors, why would you buy one of these ? I agree, don't fix what is not broke.

For me and the bike I have chosen, it is broke, so this is just another fix.

Bar end mirrors were without question the best all round rear vision option.

But one day i decided that I was not going to be stuck behind 2 buses pumping out crap for the rest on my riding life, because I could not get through the gap
with bar end mirrors.

I have tired mirror extensions. They did not work.

My rear view camera system does, but it needs more R&D and that was not worth trying if there was an alternative. For now I am trialing the Reevu helmet.

All I can tell people is. it works for me. You choose for your self's.