Do not buy from Motorcyclecloseouts

[wheatonFJR]

You can change the title of this thread with the full edit button if you are so inclined.

No he can't, he needs to be at the members++ level to be able to edit his post titles.

 

[Big-D]

If you really think about it, what makes a helmet lose its ability to protect you? I tend to think a helmet that is not constantly exposed to the elements will last for a very long time. I remember when I was a kid riding dirt bikes, full coverage helmets were not yet in existence. I remember taking an open face helmet and attaching a football face guard on it, place pieces of foam in between the openings and then wrapping electrical tape around the entire guard. But then MX boots consisted of all leather material with about twenty buckles and as the sole wore out, I'd wrap it with duct tape.

The protective element of the helmet is the construction of the inner foam. I know technology has seemed to have come a long way, but how much can really be done with Styrofoam. I've got a ice chest made of Styrofoam that has be be 15 years old and still looks as good as the day it was bought, but I keep it in my shed full of junk I don't want to throw away. I think as helmets have grown over the years, what has changed the most is fit & finish, making them more comfortable, reduced wind noise, fancy paint and a little more aerodynamic. I don't think that just because someone may choose to pay upwards of $700+ for a helmet, it will provide any better protection than a $100 helmet as long as it passes DOT. Remember, many of the Snell standards were considered too stiff, thereby not offering the give or flex to save your brain for the second and third collision you experience when your head hits the ground and your brain bounces around inside your skull.

I wouldn't be too disappointed with your purchase, the whole date expiration thing is mostly a CYA for the company to protect them from liability for the occurrence when someone gets run over by a freight train and the family sues stating they would have lived if the helmet company would not have sold a dated helmet. If it arrived and the foam was falling apart due to deterioration, I would be upset, but I think that is not your situation.

 

[Ignacio]

You can change the title of this thread with the full edit button if you are so inclined.

No he can't, he needs to be at the members++ level to be able to edit his post titles.

And even if he could...changing it would violate the principle of context change and shouldn't be changed. He's made his bed...he and the forum get to live with it.

Count me one of those that thinks he got a good deal on a closeout and the only tangible reason to worry is if he were to be a racer and the governing organization checks helmet dates to cover their own ***.

Much ado about very little IMO. It would be NEPRT if it weren't the first time I remember somebody actually complaining about it before.

 

[Afast03nNJ]

Shoei recommend 5 years from purchase date or 7 years from MFG date.

Of course they do, they're in business to sell more helmets.

Marketing 101

We do the same thing with a product our company mfg's. As the mfg, I know damn well the product will last well over 10+ years, but our packaging says 3 years. I want the repeated sale to keep my business going. It's called smart business practices and good marketing.

 

[Auburn]

snip...

The protective element of the helmet is the construction of the inner foam. I know technology has seemed to have come a long way, but how much can really be done with Styrofoam. I've got a ice chest made of Styrofoam that has be be 15 years old and still looks as good as the day it was bought, but I keep it in my shed full of junk I don't want to throw away. I think as helmets have grown over the years, what has changed the most is fit & finish, making them more comfortable, reduced wind noise, fancy paint and a little more aerodynamic. I don't think that just because someone may choose to pay upwards of $700+ for a helmet, it will provide any better protection than a $100 helmet as long as it passes DOT. Remember, many of the Snell standards were considered too stiff, thereby not offering the give or flex to save your brain for the second and third collision you experience when your head hits the ground and your brain bounces around inside your skull.

...snip

This is from my memory of a convesation with an Arai tech at the race track back in '97 as he serviced my helmet and checked it over and installed a new visor.

I asked him how a helmet works to protect your head. He said one of the first lines of protection is the outer shell. He said that the outer shell once it is made starts the slow delamination process. Upon impact that process is accelerated and is one of the primary means of distributing the impact over a large surface area to try and prevent pin point loads to the head. The styrofoam is another layer to that protection, but is is more for slowing down the rate of energy transfered to the brain.

He said, if you ever drop the helmet, even if it falls from the bike to the ground, it is junk. It may not show any damage, but the delamination process has been accelerated beyond what it naturally does over time. He said it would no longer perform as designed. He said above all, no matter what helmet you buy, make sure it is properly fit and worn.

I ran into him again at the motorcycle show a couple of years ago when I was considering a flip up style helmet. I asked him if Arai made a filp up style helmet. He said they do not and will not because they have not been able to make a helmet that can take the impacts without too much deforming and stay closed. The impacts that get transferred to the brain were to high in their opinion.

Again this is all from memory.

 

[na1g]

$300 for an X11 sounds like a good deal to me. As long as it was in its original packaging (box, plastic bag, etc.) it hasn't started deteriorating yet. About the only concern I might have is if it was exposed to heat, and there is no guarantee a more recent model wasn't exposed to heat anyway.

Enjoy it. Keep it clean. Most important: wear it!

pete

 

[Tree Doc]

snip...

The protective element of the helmet is the construction of the inner foam. I know technology has seemed to have come a long way, but how much can really be done with Styrofoam. I've got a ice chest made of Styrofoam that has be be 15 years old and still looks as good as the day it was bought, but I keep it in my shed full of junk I don't want to throw away. I think as helmets have grown over the years, what has changed the most is fit & finish, making them more comfortable, reduced wind noise, fancy paint and a little more aerodynamic. I don't think that just because someone may choose to pay upwards of $700+ for a helmet, it will provide any better protection than a $100 helmet as long as it passes DOT. Remember, many of the Snell standards were considered too stiff, thereby not offering the give or flex to save your brain for the second and third collision you experience when your head hits the ground and your brain bounces around inside your skull.

...snip

This is from my memory of a convesation with an Arai tech at the race track back in '97 as he serviced my helmet and checked it over and installed a new visor.

I asked him how a helmet works to protect your head. He said one of the first lines of protection is the outer shell. He said that the outer shell once it is made starts the slow delamination process. Upon impact that process is accelerated and is one of the primary means of distributing the impact over a large surface area to try and prevent pin point loads to the head. The styrofoam is another layer to that protection, but is is more for slowing down the rate of energy transfered to the brain.

He said, if you ever drop the helmet, even if it falls from the bike to the ground, it is junk. It may not show any damage, but the delamination process has been accelerated beyond what it naturally does over time. He said it would no longer perform as designed. He said above all, no matter what helmet you buy, make sure it is properly fit and worn.

I ran into him again at the motorcycle show a couple of years ago when I was considering a flip up style helmet. I asked him if Arai made a filp up style helmet. He said they do not and will not because they have not been able to make a helmet that can take the impacts without too much deforming and stay closed. The impacts that get transferred to the brain were to high in their opinion.

Again this is all from memory.

A little O/T but the conversation is sort of going that way...

More than just fit and finish, quality and type of materials used in the manufacturing make a significant difference in the quality and durability of a more expensive helmet.

When I got taken off my 'Zuki back in '08 by a double deer strike, I went down hard and fast in less than the blink of an eye. I was wearing a Scorpion EXO1000 and I took ONE solid and violent impact on the right side. The rest was sliding on the asphalt. The helmet did its job and I didn't have so much as a headache aside from my bodily injuries which were minimal considering. You could feel the compression of the EPS inside and the shell formed a small split at that point. Had the dynamic of my accident changed a bit and I took more than one impact to the head, I'm not so sure that helmet would have served all to well. I'm thankful I didn't test it beyond what I did experience.

This is one of my favorite videos regarding helmet fit, construction, and durability. Have a look at Shinya Nakano's, 9 helmet impacts crash in this video and consider if your $100 helmet or poly carbonate shelled helmet could handle the same! :blink: It's about 10 minutes long but if you have never seen it, I'd bet you'll learn something positive from it. Warranty and time dating is addressed in the video...

https://www.araiamericas.com/default.aspx?pageid=160

 

[Top Case]

Remember that the Shoei X11 is built to Snell 2005, which means that it was designed to limit impact acceleration to 300 Gs. Snell 2010 reduced that to 250 Gs, for the same impact.

The X11 is an obsolete helmet built to an obsolete standard, regardless of price.

And yes, I still wear my Snell 2005 helmet with 52k miles and a strap that's showing the first tiny bit of fraying; I'm waiting for the Qwest to show up in my local shops so I can try it on and get a helmet built to a better standard.

 

[cruppelt]

https://www.araiamericas.com/default.aspx?pageid=160

Tree Doc,

Thanks a bunch for posting this video, I had not seen it before, and a lot of good info here.

I found it particularly interesting that he states that any Helmet is a goner with any impact on paved ground with the weight of a head inside of it, but that an ARAI helmet is ok to keep wearing if it falls off the bike without any additional weight to it, never mind the scratches. There is definitely something to be said for laminating the outer shell vs using a polycarbonate single piece. The helmet in the crash shown would have definitely fallen apart on all these impacts with a single piece outer shell. I guess that makes me appreciate my ARAI even more, and I chose the brand originally simply based on fit for my noggin.

 

[zzzzip]

So, which is more likely to be worn?

An expensive well rated helmet with a little age on it vs. a lesser expensive/rated helmet made yesterday?

I used to argue that I'd rather wear a bullet resistant vest that stops 75% of the stuff and is comfortable enough to wear 12 hours, than one that stops 100% and can't be worn for more than a couple of hours. It don't do any good if it is in the trunk, no matter how good it is.

 

[Crash Cash]

https://www.araiamericas.com/default.aspx?pageid=160

I like the funny ******** about how you can get different cheekpads... :angry2: I wonder which planet he's talking about, because it certainly isn't this one!

 

[Tree Doc]

https://www.araiamericas.com/default.aspx?pageid=160

I like the funny ******** about how you can get different cheekpads... :angry2: I wonder which planet he's talking about, because it certainly isn't this one!

Serious? :blink:

This took about 5 seconds...

https://shop.ebay.com/i.html?_nkw=Arai+pads+&_cqr=true&_nkwusc=Arai+Cheekpads&_rdc=1

 

[ctfjr]

I wouldn't be concerned at all. My 7 year old Arai (7 years that I owned it, I have no idea what the mfr date was) did just fine when I landed on my head a few months ago.

From what I have read there is concern that the 'foam' liner will compress with use and be less able to absorb the forces in an accident. Just my $.02 ymmv

 

[Abercrombie FJR]

I'd put the helmet on and ride not giving it another thought. You got a great deal on one of my favorite helmets. Enjoy the awesome airflow and great fit.

 

[James Burleigh]

My understanding of why to look for a newer helmet is only because of technology improvements over time. I wouldn't worry that it had a mfg date that was a couple years old.

Recommend moving this to NEPRT, and agree with OM that the topic title is a bit broad based on the actual topic.

Anyway, if you have a three-year-old head, buy a three-year-old helmet. That's how it goes, isn't it? :blink:

 

[SacramentoMike]

". . . if you have a three-year-old head, buy a three-year-old helmet. That's how it goes, isn't it?"

By that logic, here's my next helmet:

 

[Texan]

". . . if you have a three-year-old head, buy a three-year-old helmet. That's how it goes, isn't it?"

By that logic, here's my next helmet:

Now that's funny, I don't care who you are. :lol:

 

[James Burleigh]

". . . if you have a three-year-old head, buy a three-year-old helmet. That's how it goes, isn't it?"

By that logic, here's my next helmet:

There was logic there? :huh: Where??? :blink:

 

[wheatonFJR]

". . . if you have a three-year-old head, buy a three-year-old helmet. That's how it goes, isn't it?"

By that logic, here's my next helmet:

There was logic there? :huh: Where??? :blink:

C'mon....too easy.

Old head...old helmet. Do you need help writing your name too??

 

[James Burleigh]

". . . if you have a three-year-old head, buy a three-year-old helmet. That's how it goes, isn't it?"

By that logic, here's my next helmet:

There was logic there? :huh: Where??? :blink:

C'mon....too easy.

Old head...old helmet. Do you need help writing your name too??

Hey, good one, Sac Mike.