Pinlock Lens - Why did I wait?

[betoney]

I was out for a ride on Wednesday in clear but fairly cold weather...

My helmet shield was constantly fogging up so I had to keep the shield cracked open the entire ride to keep it clear.  I said to myself "I need to try a pinlock... wait a minute, I ALREADY HAVE a pinlock..."  Shoei helmet shields are all pinlock ready and they come with an included pinlock lens, Mine has been sitting in a drawer for a few years... Insert Homer Simpsons "DOH!!"

Needless to say I dug it out of the drawer and installed the lens on my shield in a minute and went out for a ride this morning - 50F degrees and raining fairly hard.  I went for an hour long ride and didn't open the shield once until I got home and it was completely fog free. 

I'm really not sure why it took me this long to realize I had the solution sitting in a drawer, bottom line is; if your shield is prone to fogging in colder weather, get a pinlock lens, THEY WORK!

[texscottyd]

I’ve used them religiously since I got one included with my first Shoei RF1200.   Great product; works exactly as advertised 

[fddriver2]

Just be careful cleaning them. They scratch easily and at some point I got something on mine that gave it a "orange peel" look.  I had to get another one.....  

[2and3cylinders]

To clean my Pinlocks (exposed side) I use Sparkle glass cleaner in a fine atomizer and a high quality lint free (Japanese) 0 nap microfiber "towel".

My PinLocks last for years.

Have them on several helmets makes

[PhotoAl]

First trip out in my AGV K6 left the pillock visor at home.  LOL of course it rained, not too bad but as you say had to keep it cracked.  Next trip had it in!  Big difference but not perfect.  I've found that if I get caught in rain and get moisture on the inside of the visor then it going to be a struggle.  Have to get it dry and keep it pretty dry.  If I hit rain and keep it closed and don't let rain get on it is's perfect.  I've ridden in rain down to the low 40s F with it in and no issues.  Have been down to 30 F in the dry and no fogging.

I clean visor with Plexus which will cause a little orange peel look but once it dries it's good.  In the past when I had them they would last for a couple of years and then loose effectiveness mostly due to loosing the seal around the edge of the PinLock.  I had a clean and a tented that I would sway and eventually it messed them up.  Better to get one and leave it alone.  Don't have to clean it very often unlike the outside of the visor.  Since its so cheap don't use Plexus on the helmet just the visor.

[piotrek]

Pinlock helps... but I have to find a solution to stop my glass from fogging. When I first used the Pinlock, I would call it all kinds of nasty names until I realized it was my glasses fogging. 😁

[2and3cylinders]

Try this for your glasses it works for me but you have to put it on very thin otherwise you can get rainbows.

[Wintersdark]

6 hours ago, betoney said:

I was out for a ride on Wednesday in clear but fairly cold weather...

My helmet shield was constantly fogging up so I had to keep the shield cracked open the entire ride to keep it clear.  I said to myself "I need to try a pinlock... wait a minute, I ALREADY HAVE a pinlock..."  Shoei helmet shields are all pinlock ready and they come with an included pinlock lens, Mine has been sitting in a drawer for a few years... Insert Homer Simpsons "DOH!!"

Needless to say I dug it out of the drawer and installed the lens on my shield in a minute and went out for a ride this morning - 50F degrees and raining fairly hard.  I went for an hour long ride and didn't open the shield once until I got home and it was completely fog free. 

I'm really not sure why it took me this long to realize I had the solution sitting in a drawer, bottom line is; if your shield is prone to fogging in colder weather, get a pinlock lens, THEY WORK!

Yup.  Pinlock, or just straight up dual lens, will keep you clear and fog free down to below freezing.  They will eventually fog and ice if not heated too, but only well below temps people usually ride in.  They're awesome in rain and such too.

When I helmet shop, now, I always make sure they either come with pinlock, or have dual lens shields available.  For *any* helmet, not just a winter one.  It's really nice to have a collection of helmets, none of which ever fog. 

[Wintersdark]

4 hours ago, fddriver2 said:

Just be careful cleaning them. They scratch easily and at some point I got something on mine that gave it a "orange peel" look.  I had to get another one.....  

Yup.  Gotta be VERY careful of the stuff you put on the inside of the lens.  I've wrecked a couple over the years using stuff like glasses/screen cleaner.  Ultimately best to just clean with water and a microfiber, at least inside.

[BBB]

5 hours ago, Wintersdark said:

Yup.  Gotta be VERY careful of the stuff you put on the inside of the lens.  I've wrecked a couple over the years using stuff like glasses/screen cleaner.  Ultimately best to just clean with water and a microfiber, at least inside.

They recommend taking the pinlock out of the visor, washing in very mild detergent, rinsing in clean water and then leaving to dry before refitting. Easy enough to do after a ride and its ready for the next day. Pinlocks work as the polymer is hydrophilic so moisture spreads across the surface rather than beading and fogging. If you clean the surface with some cleaners you destroy this ability. The downside to pinlock is that the polymer is very soft and scratches easily.

A tip for glasses is to put a spot of shaving foam or hair conditioner on the lense and then polish it off with a dry cloth. That leaves the surface hydrophilic in the same way that pinlocks work. Products like Rain-X work this way.

[petshark]

I love my Shoei with Isomorph visor and pinlok. I only clean the outside (soak bugs with wet paper towel, no products). I never touch the inside so it never needs cleaning.

After 5 years there is not a scratch to be seen anywhere. 🤞

Edited November 28, 2021 by petshark

[Wintersdark]

18 hours ago, BBB said:

They recommend taking the pinlock out of the visor, washing in very mild detergent, rinsing in clean water and then leaving to dry before refitting. Easy enough to do after a ride and its ready for the next day. Pinlocks work as the polymer is hydrophilic so moisture spreads across the surface rather than beading and fogging. If you clean the surface with some cleaners you destroy this ability. The downside to pinlock is that the polymer is very soft and scratches easily.

A tip for glasses is to put a spot of shaving foam or hair conditioner on the lense and then polish it off with a dry cloth. That leaves the surface hydrophilic in the same way that pinlocks work. Products like Rain-X work this way.

Huh.  I always assumed pinlok lenses worked in the same way a dual lens does: just two lenses, with a sealed air gap between them to insulate the inner lens.  With dual lenses, there's no particularly hydrophillic nature to the inside (no more than any visor), just the insulation allowing the inner lens to be nice and toasty and thus not fog.  

[OldBikers]

On 11/28/2021 at 10:26 PM, Wintersdark said:

Huh.  I always assumed pinlok lenses worked in the same way a dual lens does: just two lenses, with a sealed air gap between them to insulate the inner lens.  With dual lenses, there's no particularly hydrophillic nature to the inside (no more than any visor), just the insulation allowing the inner lens to be nice and toasty and thus not fog.  

Yep, same principle as ski goggles, the air gap is what keeps the lens clear.  Bare in mind that the gasket must be tight against the visor in order to maintain the air gap. 

[Heli ATP]

Installing a Pinlock EVO lens on my Shoei Neotec 2 helmet and the instructions say not to use at night, as vision can be reduced to 80%. I expect to leave the pinlock lens installed all the time, (or until I get moisture inside or the bead fails). Does anyone remove them after the sun goes down, or is this just lawyer speak?

[kilo3]

8 minutes ago, Heli ATP said:

Installing a Pinlock EVO lens on my Shoei Neotec 2 helmet and the instructions say not to use at night, as vision can be reduced to 80%. I expect to leave the pinlock lens installed all the time, (or until I get moisture inside or the bead fails). Does anyone remove them after the sun goes down, or is this just lawyer speak?

You'll get a lot of light flare off headlights/street lights due to the double pane. It's lawyer talk but at the same time noticeable. Bothers some.