Why I wear a good helmet.

[Coyote]

my old Hjc helmet that i got about 6 years ago was in a crash in october. It was a cheap $200 hjc.

on saturday i tried cutting it in half with a saw. only cut a about 2 inch long and cm into the top of the shell. then hit it with a large hammer about 10 times then smashed it on the ground a bunch of times and it was still in good shape. ie it looked not much worse than yours jimmy. They take a hell of a beating wich is good to know.

Thats good. Mines only a cheap HJC helmet

[Bonez]

Not all riders are twats that do godzillian kph everywhere on public roads so cheaper brands are probaply quite adequate for most riders.

[Sensei]

Not all riders are twats that do godzillian kph everywhere on public roads so cheaper brands are probaply quite adequate for most riders.

I suppose thats one way you could look at it ? . For me nothing less than $800 Shoei thanks . Spent $1200 on my first one which I still have in
semi-retirement . To each there own . Had a good friend crash beside me at 200k & his Shoei was what keep him alive .

[250learna]

!!! HJC ZF7 !!!

[Kwaka-Kid]

Sheesh! thats a hard hit.

Helmets are expensive though.

I use sub$100 helmets, especially for racing, because of the rate at which i damage them, i honestly couldnt afford to ride let alone race if i spent $500, or dare i say MORE! on helmets.

anybody else in my situation?

[gav]

Looks a fairly old Arai anyway WT, looks well overdue for a new one....

[erik]

I think if the helmet meets DOT or SNELL certification, then it's good enough.

Just because a helmet is made of fibreglass doesn't mean it's going to protect your head better. Fibreglass may be tougher and more rigid (depending on how thick they make it) than plastic shells, but that isn't necessarily a good thing as if the shell is too hard, it won't cusion the impact as gently. Plastic shells absorb energy elastically, fibreglass shells tend to delaminate and fracture because they are not as flexible as the plastic shells.
I tried doing a search on the net for any info about fibreglass vs plastic helmet shells. It was a fairly exhaustive search (well, I feel kinda exhausted, anyway...) but I couldn't find anything that definitively said one type of shell material was better than the other. I think since it's a balance between gently absorbing the impact and protecting from sharp objects, a tougher material might not offer an overall advantage.
Here's some interesting links I found...:
http://www.smf.org/response.html
http://www.perg.bham.ac.uk/pdf/motor...ash_invest.pdf
http://www.perg.bham.ac.uk/pdf/EffectivenessOfFoams.pdf
http://www.motorcyclistonline.com/drunk/
(the last one isn't anything to do with helmets, but looks interesting anyway)

[zeRax]

When i last crashed, i dragged my helmet from front to back.Claimed insurance...
but get this!!

The insurance company wanted to see the helmet to see if it could be repaired!
OHHH IGNORANCE IS BLISS!

hahah, made my night

[scumdog]

This is a result of my minor skirmish with the tarmac a couple of months ago. Although it looks like I've been break dancing or practicing orbital sanding on it, I assure you this damage was all done in one fall.

A polycarbonate (plastic) helmet would've broken, I'm sure of it. Although the pics don't show it, the back of the helmet has a big patch wear the fiberglass has begun to delaminate after a massive impact.

I walked from this huge hit with no more brain damage than normal.

Hmmm, a splot of Selleys 'Spredsole' and a lick of matt-black primer and she'll look spiffing and be jake for another bin or two !!

[BurnCycle]

HJC's work just fine.

[crazylittleshit]

Dame nasty

[White trash]

Not all riders are twats that do godzillian kph everywhere on public roads so cheaper brands are probaply quite adequate for most riders.

Actually, I think you'll find not all riders are twats that cruise around on 'orrible old Honda Fours wearing open face thingys with those stylish dome on plastic visors.

Whatever makes ya happy though, eh Bonez?

[White trash]

Looks a fairly old Arai anyway WT, looks well overdue for a new one....

2 years old.

[White trash]

I think if the helmet meets DOT or SNELL certification, then it's good enough.

Just because a helmet is made of fibreglass doesn't mean it's going to protect your head better. Fibreglass may be tougher and more rigid (depending on how thick they make it) than plastic shells, but that isn't necessarily a good thing as if the shell is too hard, it won't cusion the impact as gently. Plastic shells absorb energy elastically, fibreglass shells tend to delaminate and fracture because they are not as flexible as the plastic shells.

Ahhhhh, that'll be why Valentino, Max, Kenny, Nicky, Hopper, Sete, Troy, Marco, Alex, Loris, Reuben, Colin and a whole host of others wear composite lids.

[Sniper]

Looks interesting, thanks for the tip WT. I must say I saw something funny yesterday. A girl riding her scooter home from school with a bright pink bicycle helmet on. Haha