Brain Bucket

[TFOGGER]

There is some argument to be made that the lesser DOT standards may be sufficient, and in many cases, better than the more stringent European standards. The euro standards are very specific (two heavy ball drops on the exact same place on the helmet or something like that), which are not representative of accidents and likely result in having helmets that are far more rigid than they probably need to be for 9/10 accidents. Having something that is too rigid is like having a head on collision between two 1970's cadillacs... the car's (helmet) might come out looking better when they are more rigid, but your body (brain) takes more of the whiplash as a result.

You're thinking of the Snell standard. ECE 22.05 is in many ways a better test than either Snell or DOT 218. You are on the right track though, in that in many cases, a less expensive helmet will absorb and dissipate a greater percentage of energy in a single heavy impact than a more expensive one.

[fitz19d]

Anything ece/schnell. I ride mostly highway and rarely have the need for it, but I dont like modulars. So be are way better than others but it remains they are not as sturdy as a regular full helmet.

[Duman]

After owning a modular, I won’t go back to full face. Modular convenience is important to me, and I’m not sure there’s any real difference in safety.

[Duman]

I like the pail bucket helmet....very chic and aerodynamic.

[Duman]

Deleted upon understanding the discussion is about motorcycle helmets and not tactical helmets.

Random thought: do they make tactical lids that can double as a road lid?

[Linkless]

I'd go by fit first, features second. I could never wear Shoei brand when racing because it had a pressure spot that really bugged me. The next larger size fixed the issue but moved on my head so it was a no go. The Arai was perfect fit without this issue. I found that the less expensive brands pretty much fit like one or the other so it seemed like there were two standards for helmet liner shapes.

[FoxtArt]

Thanks for the clarification TF. It's been waaaay too long since I bought a helmet. My favorite was a Chinese modular that included a sun visor and Bluetooth speakers integrated with a 18h life. There's more safety with a rigid full face, but balancing the risk... Chance of those rare 75mph disasters is very slim, most fatalities and accidents are pretty low speed. Everyone's MMV of course because it's a personal choice on how one balances risk..and we already accept unnecessary risk to be riding in the first place.

ETA and I know, Chinese, ick. But, it got a lot of helmet on a decent budget. Has good foam thickness, and I lean towards cheaper foam for the reasons previously described. China would have killed me if I hit a rock headfirst at 75mph no question But what good is a $700 helmet build for 90mph freak accidents for a 35mph left turn collision.

[wyome]

Picked up an Arai Defiant-X yesterday....it fit the best out of every thing I tried on. The Shuberth C-3 Pro and Shoei RF1200 were both nice, but didn't fit as well. My noggin didn't like the Shoei GT Air or NeoTec...grrr.