Helmet Woes

[dartyppyt]

Heads Up,

Bought a Shift Agent helmet 8 mos ago. I have two races on it and 4-5 trail rides. I fell on the bottom of a hill and landed on my shoulder. I guess the visor hit a little (Not Hard at All). It ripped the epoxy out that the visor screws are threaded in. The whole helmet is shattered from the side visor screws forward but the top plastic screw held. I have never seen a helmet do this with such a light fall. Kinda ticks me off cause I paid $159 for the helmet. Scary part is what would have happened in a hard crash.

Typpyt

 

[glangston]

They are meant to destroy themselves in a crash, so your head survives. They don't normally test ALL scenarios and the visors on dirt helmets are not part of the protection (except from the sun and maybe some roost). A road helmet that has a shield would probably have not had that failure.

Not good luck but a $500 helmet might not have done any better.

 

[robertaccio]

They are meant to destroy themselves in a crash, so your head survives. They don't normally test ALL scenarios and the visors on dirt helmets are not part of the protection (except from the sun and maybe some roost). A road helmet that has a shield would probably have not had that failure.

Not good luck but a $500 helmet might not have done any better.

+1,,,,now imagine no helmet, your brain bucket did its job.
PS Snell or Dot or EU standard? at $159 it sounds like a DOT cert helmet (not at same level of standard as Snell or Exxxx (I forgot the EU spec). Money spent on the skid lid is money well spent. Bell's advert from the 80's is still my fave,,,"Got a $10 head buy a $10 dollar helmet"
Glad you are OK and here to be upset about your smashed helmet from even a slow speed crash. R

 

[Motosportz]

"Got a $10 head buy a $10 dollar helmet"
Glad you are OK and here to be upset about your smashed helmet from even a slow speed crash. R

Actually if it is DOT and SNELL approved price really does not matter much. has been proven over and over. Some $10 helmets fair much better than $400 ones in testing. What you do get in a $$$ helmet is better design, features, removable internals, light weight, etc. I had a $500 Aria helmet, and a $10 Bell, both good. Like guitars, there are only a handful of manufacturers making 90% of the product offered.

 

[Troy F Collins]

Actually if it is DOT and SNELL approved price really does not matter much. has been proven over and over. Some $10 helmets fair much better than $400 ones in testing. What you do get in a $$$ helmet is better design, features, removable internals, light weight, etc. I had a $500 Aria helmet, and a $10 Bell, both good. Like guitars, there are only a handful of manufacturers making 90% of the product offered.

Very true....the thor helmet I used to wear....if you peel out the foam says HJC inside it....

you pay bigger bucks for fit and features etc...most helmets meet all standards nowadays...

What has changed is the quality of the fit for just a little bit more money..say 200 bucks and there are many examples of these helmets on the market....

I used to buy expensive lids...now I buy a $200 one and replace it after two yrs...heck at that price you can get a new one each year

they do wear out with regards to the foam and fit etc......

 

[Motosportz]

I used to buy expensive lids...now I buy a $200 one and replace it after two yrs...heck at that price you can get a new one each year

they do wear out with regards to the foam and fit etc......

As we ride in a lot of rain i have been buying cheaper helmets and replacing them every 6 months or so.

 

[Dirtdame]

I used to buy expensive lids...now I buy a $200 one and replace it after two yrs...heck at that price you can get a new one each year

I look for the close outs on expensive helmets and then buy them cheap.

 

[dartyppyt]

Well, called the place where I bought it from (3hrs away, bought while traveling) and I might as well been talking to the wall. I called SHIFT and they referred me to voice mail of someone. Will see if they get back to me.

Let's say that your helmet is sitting on your tailgate of your truck. Falls off accidentally and lands on the visor in the grass (That is how light I hit the visor, if that). The helmet cracks like an egg from the visor screws forward? Something isn't right and my local dealer tries to sell me another new one and says that they changed their designs. Keep in mind that this helmet exceeds DOT and SNELL standards. What is going to happen if I have a real crash? That is why I am being persistent and to boot $159. The new designs have all plastic screws holding the visors on and not aluminum like mine.

What do you guys think?

Typpyt

 

[Motosportz]

What do you guys think?

Typpyt

Get a different brand / model.

I think your going to get no where with them. Most shops will not take helmets back unused. Liability reasons. Once it is damaged your SOL.

 

[glangston]

I see what you are saying about the plastic screws vs. the alum. ones. However, the cert of the lid is for crash protection not surviving any chance meeting with an object without cosmetic or even structural damage. I crashed on a bicycle once and split the helmet a bit (a good knock) but my head was fine. The company, Giro, had an offer that if I sent them my helmet they would replace it with another model, slightly cheaper, but still FREE....and they did.

It's difficult for a company to determine what really caused damage like you describe, as opposed to damage from a fall that cracks the plastic and the foam. These helmets age too, and become less protective as time goes by.

Good luck on getting it replaced. You might have had better luck if this happened to a $500 Arai or Shoei.

 

[Troy F Collins]

Well, called the place where I bought it from (3hrs away, bought while traveling) and I might as well been talking to the wall. I called SHIFT and they referred me to voice mail of someone. Will see if they get back to me.

Let's say that your helmet is sitting on your tailgate of your truck. Falls off accidentally and lands on the visor in the grass (That is how light I hit the visor, if that). The helmet cracks like an egg from the visor screws forward? Something isn't right and my local dealer tries to sell me another new one and says that they changed their designs. Keep in mind that this helmet exceeds DOT and SNELL standards. What is going to happen if I have a real crash? That is why I am being persistent and to boot $159. The new designs have all plastic screws holding the visors on and not aluminum like mine.

What do you guys think?

Typpyt

The visor should tear off and leave the helmet free to take another hit...if that was a more serious get off...could have been a disaster...

I see your point..aluminum screws..??? Not good !!

Most tests involve a big weight dropped from a specific height....and the helmet is rated accordingly.....but I have seen these tests....and the the visor is rarely involved...most of the time its not on the helmet for the test....

let shift know about this one....

 

[Poopy]

I think $159 sounds like a cheap helmet, if it was a $500 helmet that broke like that, then I would be pissed. But still, I dont think it should have happened and I think its worth pursuing to see if you can get some sort of warranty.


Last weekend I had my helmet on my bars leaned on a tree, I went back to help a friend up an obstacle and the bike fell over with helmet still on bars landing on helmet and it was unscathed.

Just a 661 cheek squeezer helmet.

 

[Reddog]

Poopy, pull the liner and look at the foam.
Mine was resting on the end of my handle bar when it fell over, had a real nice impression of the bark buster pushed into the foam.
Got a new helmet now.

 

[Poopy]

Poopy, pull the liner and look at the foam.
Mine was resting on the end of my handle bar when it fell over, had a real nice impression of the bark buster pushed into the foam.
Got a new helmet now.

LOL uh....i retract my previous statement. Time for a new lid!

 

[columbia510]

Years ago I had a good crash with my new Shoei lid at Hollister. Got a fun concussion and broken thumb in the yard sale.I split the helmet chin area in half and into my face and stress cracks around the helmet. I sent a thank you letter with a picture of the helmet. They sent a new helmet to my front door and wanted the old helmet back for inspections or their garbage can. You get what you pay for.

 

[krasht]

Helmet replacement

Years ago I had a good crash with my new Shoei lid at Hollister. Got a fun concussion and broken thumb in the yard sale.I split the helmet chin area in half and into my face and stress cracks around the helmet. I sent a thank you letter with a picture of the helmet. They sent a new helmet to my front door and wanted the old helmet back for inspections or their garbage can. You get what you pay for.

That is what you call excellent, A1 customer service****************************************

 

[dartyppyt]

Updates:

Got a call from Fox Warranty division and they told me to send it back for inspection. Will see where it goes from here. Went to several shops looking for helmets and found a nice VEGA that matches my Husky Gear and Bike. Well, it exceeds DOT and SNELL standards so what the _ _ LL. It has a very nice fit and I like the visor. Has plenty of room to have seaweed hang from it!

Keep ya posted!

Thanx!

 

[Coffee]

October 2009 Page 68 of Dirtrider has an article on helmets.

But I'm having a bit of trouble following the testing nomenclature, I'll give it a more thorough read later. It did appear that some of the less expensive helmets did better than the more expensive ones though for crash protection.

 

[robertaccio]

remember, there are different train of process/science with these things. some may stand up to hard hits/abuse and be cheaper or not. but when your brain is bouncing off the inside of your skull because the helmet did not spread the hit load out through its shell/foam and maybe even destroy itself in the process, thats when the head trauma begins. And as we all know , no type of protection is good for certain hits.

 

[dartyppyt]

Good Point, maybe I should just retire it to the wall of helmets in my office. It is neat to see all the years that a helmet has progressed. I will lable this one as got drunk and fell off the back of my tailgate!