Time for a new helmet

What is everyone's opinion on the SA2015 helmets? My old helmet was a Bell K1 that I loved, but it is now too old to use. I must have got a good deal on it somehow because that is now a $500 helmet. I only plan to do a few HPDEs and a few autocrosses this year, so I'm leaning toward a more budget friendly option.

The carbon g-force is what I thought I wanted, but its not expected to be available for a while after my first event. So then I was thinking about the regular GF3 or the EX9.

I guess I'm looking for negatives on either of those helmets, or a reason to spend a little more on the Bell Sport, Simpson Voyager or something else. I also found some other brands like Zamp, Racequip, Velocity and HJC.

TRY THEM ON!!!!!!!

You definitely can't tell if they'll fit till you do. It's worse with these new ones than it was with the old.

They have more padding around the neck and I went up 2 sizes to find one that fits. It has been close to a month now and one of my ears still hurts from trying to stuff my head up in them.

The shape of the head varies quite a bit between different models in the same brand and even more between brands.

I should have mentioned that I have tried the Bell, the Racequip, the Zamp and the G-Force. Bell and G-Force were comfortable for me. Zamp seemed long; RaceQuip seemed wide. In a different price range, the Stilo just felt weird.

So I guess the better question is whether the Bell is in any way preferable to the G-Force? Ventilation on the Bell looks like it would be better with the forehead holes, but with my past Bells those were pretty marginal. Does anyone have the opinion that the ventilation in the G-Force is unbearable vs any other helmet?

Listen to carguy123.

All the FF helmets that meet the same rating are pretty much as safe as each other from $129 to $9999. Find one that fits properly and comfortably, with washable lining, an eyeport you can see out of that is as light as you can afford and has any other features you might need (cooling hose/pinlock/radio wiring/etc).

The longer you spend behind the wheel the more you will be kicking yourself in the ass for not being more diligent and focusing less on being thrifty. Still... you can find a lot of helmet for under $500. Even a lot under on occasion.

Different people have differently-shaped heads, and different helmet manufacturers usually make all of their helmets to fit a particular head shape. If the Bell fit well before, it's likely that you'll be most comfortable in another Bell.

But yeah, nothing beats trying them on. Find a local store that has them and go there. Helmets are a lousy thing to buy online.

Try on several different ones, especially if you'll be wearing it for long periods.

I recently had to upgrade and I was looking for the best $/years of service deal. I settled on an SA2015 Pyrotect Pro Sport duckbill. I tried to save money by buying my own HANS posts and installing them myself, ended up costing the same.

Where are y'all going to try them on? I live in a pretty large city and the only places with helmets in stock are motorcycle shops.

Pyrotect Prosport is supposed to be a bang for buck king. I'm about to order one.

I must have a Simpson shaped head. I have always just got Voyager Helmets. Never really looked at the cost as compared to other helmet's. They just fit me very well. It also let me transfer my various face shields from one to the other. I had a couple different ones I would use depending on when I was driving and the weather.

I was going to say the same thing.
Even a G Force fits me well.

I ended up with the G-Force. I'm hoping to use it way more than I expect to!

calteg wrote: Where are y'all going to try them on? I live in a pretty large city and the only places with helmets in stock are motorcycle shops.

I'll second this. Where do y'all go that you're able to try them on?

-Rob

In reply to rob_lewis:

Well, I'm in central Ohio, so I go to the Jeg's brick and mortar store, but I don't think that's going to help many people on here.

I must have a Simpson head too! Wow, that doesn't really sound flattering. Anyway, I had a open face Simpson SA2000 that I can no longer use. I ordered a new Simpson FR Cruiser. BACKORDER? Great, now I need to borrow a helmet for the first few events.

Trying them on is the best, but sometimes you can get an idea from a motorcycle shop. Also, you may ask someone at an event to try theirs on. Do this before the event so it's not sweaty.

rob_lewis wrote:

calteg wrote: Where are y'all going to try them on? I live in a pretty large city and the only places with helmets in stock are motorcycle shops.

I'll second this. Where do y'all go that you're able to try them on? -Rob

I blind-purchased mine, as usual. It's a gamble (which I've been lucky enough to always win so far), but I don't have to wear it for long durations anyway so no big deal even if it was uncomfortable. But if I wanted to try on some helmets I could've gone to a race shop or giant high-end motorcycle dealership near to where I was staying when I had the helmet delivered.

I have an expensive shaped head, as in not round. All of the brands that fit my head started at expensive and went up from there. So I ended up with a Racequip, it almost fit well. I took a lug socket and gently rolled the front foam until it fit my forehead better. The rest fit great.

trucke wrote: I must have a Simpson head too! Wow, that doesn't really sound flattering. Anyway, I had a open face Simpson SA2000 that I can no longer use. I ordered a new Simpson FR Cruiser. BACKORDER? Great, now I need to borrow a helmet for the first few events. Trying them on is the best, but sometimes you can get an idea from a motorcycle shop. Also, you may ask someone at an event to try theirs on. Do this before the event so it's not sweaty.

So I got the helmet. Same size 'designation' as the old SA2000. New one is too small. Good grief. Back it goes.

My friend just got the new Roux R-1. $549 bucks, ouch! But damn, it's nice. Built-in audio, and a drink tube. Visor latch was a little fiddly, though. I wish I could justify a replacement for my 2010 HJC, but I can't.

"So I got the helmet. Same size 'designation' as the old SA2000. New one is too small. Good grief. Back it goes."

Told ya!! The new padding makes a huge difference. I went up 2 sizes and I literally almost ripped my ear off in the trying on process. It hurt for a month.

I went to a Polaris dealer and they had car helmets.

carguy123 wrote: "So I got the helmet. Same size 'designation' as the old SA2000. New one is too small. Good grief. Back it goes." Told ya!! The new padding makes a huge difference. I went up 2 sizes and I literally almost ripped my ear off in the trying on process. It hurt for a month. I went to a Polaris dealer and they had car helmets.

Great! I'll have one size up next week to try on. That new padding IS supper thick. When I tried the same size my head felt like that video where they keep placing rubber bands around a watermelon until........

So, the Large size helmet came in Friday. Actually fits my cranium, but super tight around the cheeks. So tight, it was uncomfortable. Ugh! Now what to do! So I set it aside and used a borrowed helmet for Sundays event.

Got to talk to a road racer friend of mine. He said the SA2015 spec has gotten everyone in an uproar. Apparently, the spec calls for more padding within the helmet. But, to save money, the manufacturers did not want to build new tooling to make a bigger bucket to accommodate said padding. He let me try on a few of his and they all had some issue with comfort.

After arriving back home, I pulled the padding around the cheeks out (it's attached with velco now) Without the padding, I have plenty of room. Of course, you cannot use it that way. So the fit is to squish the padding or replace with thinner padding.

So my cheek pads are now sitting in the wood vise. We'll see if this works! If not, the next step it to open them up and shave off some padding until its comfortable.

I'm guesing the thicker padding is to meet the low lateral impact requirement. See attached link.

Snell SA2015 Press Release

You can see how thick the padding is around the cheeks.

It's supposed to be tight. If it's loose, it will only get "looser" as you wear it. Then it can't do what it's designed to do in an impact.

maj75 wrote: It's supposed to be tight. If it's loose, it will only get "looser" as you wear it. Then it can't do what it's designed to do in an impact.

There is a BIG difference between tight (which is good) and stuffing your head in a compactor.

You need to be able to breathe!

trucke wrote: So my cheek pads are now sitting in the wood vise. We'll see if this works! If not, the next step it to open them up and shave off some padding until its comfortable.

You know I'm all for GRM fabrication, but helmets strike me as something where at-home, DIY modification is really not a good idea...