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What Helmet do you ride in?


Cruizin

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I too have this helmet but in gloss black. Great helmet, quiet, light, good ventilation. One thing you have to be carefull with is the latches. You have to check that they close right, this is more of a problem when the helmet is not on your head. Great helmet, just completed a 1300 mile ride in 6 days. Temps went up to 111 deg F, ventilation was good. I did ride with visor up most of the time.
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Schubeth C something and love it.
 
I have a pin head (XXS or XS depending on brand) so there aren't many helmets that tend to fit my head properly - Shark I've found fit the best and have been my preferred choice until the Schubeth. The only thing I find is it fogs up a bit. There are pinlocks available for it but I haven't as yet purchased.
 
With all the vents and visor shut, it's so quiet that I can actually hear the engine sound now instead of the wind noise (after installing the taller screen).
 
They are pricey here is AUS @ around $900+ (I managed to get mine on sale) but when I need a new helmet again, I would spend the money.
 
 
 
 

Kimmie......the lady who likes to take little detours :)

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I too have this helmet but in gloss black. Great helmet, quiet, light, good ventilation. One thing you have to be carefull with is the latches. You have to check that they close right, this is more of a problem when the helmet is not on your head. Great helmet, just completed a 1300 mile ride in 6 days. Temps went up to 111 deg F, ventilation was good. I did ride with visor up most of the time.
 
 
Only problem I have found is the chin vent is lacking but then again, I have a v-stream screen that does a great job of not allowing wind into the "cockpit"... I too keep the visor open to the 1st detent. Still though, its a very good upgrade and I'm quite pleased with it.
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Just got a Schuberth E1.
Very quiet and comfortable.
It has a noticeable cool spot on the back of the head, perhaps the shell is higher there than my Bell RS-1.
 
Unfortunately the shield is not compatible with the large Givi windscreen. Too much buffeting. It has 3 positions, in the highest one, it's invisible, in the lowest it's too low in your vision. The middle position has the most buffeting, enough to blur vision at speed.  
The wind does not grab the helmet when head checking at speed. In contrast, my MX helmet really grabs the breeze and tests neck muscles. 
I've now taken the shield off, and the helmet is basically a C3 Pro without it.
I'll put the shield back on when the weather warms up again and I go back to a smaller windscreen.
It came with a pinlock fitted, my first.
I like the buckle system, it means I don't have to put my gloves on after the helmet.
It has an internal sun visor which works better than I thought, and I can now ride without sunglasses.
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Have had Scorpion, Bell and others in the past, but have 3 HJC's now, One that I use for drag racing in the Supra, when I used to do that, it's open face, and DOT/SNELL rated and my size, so very rare with the SNELL for that size..
 
Just picked up a IS-MAX II, and I think I like it. The price was excellent. I absolutely love the flip down sun screen/shades so you can run your clear with a pin-lock that will not fog up, but on sunny days, or riding into a sunrise, or sunset, flip down a nice shade. Perfect. And it fits with my glasses on, just touches my nose, but that's fixed easy with a few seconds of dremel work.
 
I've always had to get 4x helmets, I have a large head. (Abnormally large they have claimed, but I figure hey, gotta fit my brains in there somehow right? LOL
 
The HJC I've been riding with for a few years is the last of the non-flip down sun shade types, has a clear and shaded visor that I can swap out, have a pin-lock the clear, and I have prescription sun glasses, so normally ride with the clear shield year round and use my shaded glasses when I'm out in the nice weather.
 
The fit is longer on the full face. The flip face IS-MAX II feels shorter, and my mouth is nearly pressed into the chin bar. I'm hoping it wears/breaks in looser so I'm not feeling so "fitted" into the helmet. It's not a deal breaker, but I'm going to modify it soon if it does not break in over time. I always modify or remove some cheek pads, and Have not done this yet on this new for me helmet. If it does not break in there too, I'll pull some foam, and trim it to fit my face/head better without losing any of the crash protection I'm wearing the thing for in the first place.
 
Speaking of that, the SHARP ratings are good for the prior version of this helmet. 4 out of 5 stars. It's pretty quiet, but on the FJ09 quiet air is very subjective. :) Riding on the FZ was an absolute pleasure with no screen v/s the vortex/turbulence generator they call a windscreen on the FJ. With the GIVI touring, it's not bad. But for summer use, I'm going to cut down the stocker into a GIVI bracket fitting fly screen, and paint the backside to make it opaque.
 
I can't say enough how much I love the flip down sun shade. It's in the top of the helmet, has a soft/quiet flip up feature, has two settings for use, and a third for removal/swaping out shades. In the past I've used Orange tinted screens year round, found them very cool at night to cut glare, and the "blue blocker" effect it has on sunny days is excellent for reducing glare, and stuff in the shade suddenly pops out and it's easy to see. (And it works in foggy weather too, but not as well as yellow of course.)
 
So, mods are this: Slight cutting/grinding of the flip down shade so it does not hit my nose. Possible cheek pad mod/reduction. Modify the chin bar for a mic and install Bluetooth/Sena unit. Add some reflective high viz to the already high viz stripes. (Can't be too much of an eye catcher, especially at night, I like my life, and don't want to be run over.) Add a Orange visor with pin=lock. :)
 
This is what it looks like.
https://www.bing.com/images/search?q=hjc+is+max+2&view=detailv2&&id=0E641F75ED76A14EC49C1C23C055EC080474905C&selectedIndex=9&ccid=NIbMFM%2fJ&simid=608014134317354538&thid=OIP.M3486cc14cfc99e43eefe6d2608eef292o0&ajaxhist=0
Ride more.
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  • 3 months later...
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Time for a review of the Shoei Neotec. I've put more than 7,000 miles on it and I am very impressed. It's better than my Schuberth S2 in every way. Particular strengths:
 
- Superb ventilation. Air flow is very noticeable across top of head when sweaty
- Comfort. Firmly supportive and cushy at the same time, The ear cut outs are positioned just right, my ears always slide right in, I imagine it would easily accept Bluetooth speakers.
- Smooth, quiet flip,up action. This is my first modular helmet and it is the way to go especially for touring. Really useful at gas and bathroom stops.
- Best sun visor I have used. Excellent clarity, smooth operation, dark without effecting vision.
- Hi viz option
- Weight feels the same as full face helmet, even over multi-hour rides
- Liner removal is easy enough; ditto the visor
- D ring buckle (I didn't like the Schuberth ratchet style)
- Pinlock insert is included.  After using this you'll never do without
 
If it's in your price range give it a look. At a 54 cm head I straddled the small and x-small size. I went with the x-small and it has broken in nicely. A few hot spots early on but no more.
 

IBA Member #59800

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Time for a review of the Shoei Neotec. I've put more than 7,000 miles on it and I am very impressed. It's better than my Schuberth S2 in every way. Particular strengths: 
- Superb ventilation. Air flow is very noticeable across top of head when sweaty
- Comfort. Firmly supportive and cushy at the same time, The ear cut outs are positioned just right, my ears always slide right in, I imagine it would easily accept Bluetooth speakers.
- Smooth, quiet flip,up action. This is my first modular helmet and it is the way to go especially for touring. Really useful at gas and bathroom stops.
- Best sun visor I have used. Excellent clarity, smooth operation, dark without effecting vision.
- Hi viz option
- Weight feels the same as full face helmet, even over multi-hour rides
- Liner removal is easy enough; ditto the visor
- D ring buckle (I didn't like the Schuberth ratchet style)
- Pinlock insert is included.  After using this you'll never do without
 
If it's in your price range give it a look. At a 54 cm head I straddled the small and x-small size. I went with the x-small and it has broken in nicely. A few hot spots early on but no more.

+1 on the review! I'm in the middle of a 6K+ trip and bought a new Neotec just before leaving. Love the helmet! Schubert didn't fit me (I'm between large and x-large). A+ on comfort, convenience, and versatility.
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I've been wearing flip-fronts for many years from the original HJC Symax to my current Gmax 54S and Nolan N90, both of which are getting a bit long in the tooth.  I've tried on the new and old Scorpion, HJC, Shuberth, Nolan, Shark, Shoei and others flip-fronts, and all did not pass muster for one reason or the other.  The latest Shoei is definitely the nicest and tempting but I wear eyeglasses and how can Shoei desgin a flip-front you have to take off your eyeglasses in order to put it on and take it off!!!!!!!!! :P  
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I just picked up a Kabuto Ibuki in red... I've had a Bell RS1 for a few years and now that I got the FJ, I felt I needed something more sport touring minded. These have often been compared to the shoei in fit and finish. Got it from motorcycle closeout at an amazing price... Plus the red matches almost perfect to the fastest FJ color (red). Here's a video review  

 

Did you pay $225 and can it be donned and taken off with eyeglasses on?  It says it has "Eyeglass Friendly Cheek Pads" but that could be once it's on. 
Also, how is the fit, true to size, round, semi-round, long oval, medium oval (Shoei now makes different helmets for different head shapes, so saying it fits like a Shoei...)?
 
http://www.motorcyclecloseouts.com/sport/modular+helmets/kabuto_ibuki+modular+helmet
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Guest autobiker
I ride with an HJC RPHA-ST. It's lightweight, vents very well and has a drop-down sunshade that actually works. The liner is comfortable and there're cutouts for BT speakers and eyeglasses. Took it on a month-long tour, rode many 6-10 hour days and never felt uncomfortable.
 
It's not perfect, though. The face shield gasket is not 100% water-sealed and leaks a few drops in heavy rain. It can get annoying if you're touring in unfamiliar territory. The drop-down sunshade fogs up very easily and is basically useless in cold mornings. The Pinlock shield posts need some tweaking to fit the included Pinlock insert tightly, and even then it can only slow down the fogging on cold wet days.
 
Despite the cons, it's a great deal at $300 (picked it up during a sale) and it's still my favorite touring helmet. My experience with premium HJC helmets (i.e. their RPHA line) has been great. My RPHA-10 was as good as my Arai Corsair V for half the price, and better than my OGK Kabuto FF-V in the same price range. If I have the dough, I'd try a Shoei, maybe a GT-Air. OTOH, I avoid Nolan.
 
YMMV of course, different noggin's on different folks.
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Guest reeseyboy
The X4 was a bit of a gamble for me. I've always liked the looks of these types of helmets but was a little concerned about lift and drag from the peak. Has been faultless and very comfortable. The only downside is having to remove the peak to change visors....
and the price...
And the fact it leaks like a sieve when it rains. Comes in through the brow vents on the visor as they aren't sealed in, just clipped. The water then transfers through the vent channels and makes it a bit cold and uncomfortable. Apart from that, it's a nice lid. I find myself wearing the GT-AIR for commuting as I can't be arsed removing the peak to swap the visors over. The X-Spirit gets an outing every now and then for hooning!
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After riding with Shoei's Hornet X2: Not good air flow, water loves to stay on the windshield and requires extremely frequent "swipes". It did keep the water out though. The beak works great and offers no resistance when head turning at up to 80 mph (I don't think I've tried at higher speeds). The interior speaker pockets were great for my Sena SMH-5 but too small for the SMH-20S speakers. Tried the spacers but the speakers ended up too close to my ears (caused pain after a few hours). Had to use the Dremel to allow for cable end to fit.
 
It is not a particularly quiet helmet either but it is the only adventure type helmet that I have used.
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  • 2 weeks later...
I have the hornet x2 and the rf1200. the rf1200 is way more aero dynamic but I love the beak. the 20s works and installs just fine on both helmets. on a road trip I went through some rain and found that turning my head complete right and left deflects the water well while going freeway speeds rather then using the squeegee on my glove. changing the visor out on the rf is way quicker then the x2 so if I know i'm going to be out late then I wear the rf so I can switch to the clear visor quicker. the x2 is matte black and the rf is white.
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Shoei X-Spirit, Shoei GT-Air and Arai Tour X4
excellent choice sir.  
I bought an x4 last week to replace my shoei neotec that I bought six months ago to replace my tour-x3, 7 years old. Very pleased with the x4...
 
The shoei I have given to a friend.
 
The x4 is better than the shoei, and an improvement on the x3.
by way of update. The X4 top vents rattled and Arai sent some replacements...except they sent the wrong ones. Anyway I made one good set out of all bits.
 
Next issue is when I came to fit the pinlock visor, that doesn't fit. And I also discovered multiple cracks on the visor radiating out from the left hand pivot point. Quite worrying for a six month old helmet.
 
Anyway its gone back to Arai..we'll see what happens next.
Honda SS50, Kawasaki Z200, Honda 400/4, Yamaha TDM900, Yamaha XT660Z Tenere, KTM 990 Adventure, BMW R1200GS, Mr Stevens, and my favourite of all: Yamaha MT-09 Tracer...a bit like FJ-09 only properly named :¬P
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