The Helmet Story
 

We all spoke to the Arai rep about testing the biscuit's helmet after his crash. The guy said if you suffer any brain trauma, concussion, memory loss, etc. Arai doesn't need to test it b/c the helmet is no longer good. I accept the fact that Arai and Shoei are good helmets, and expensive....but I crashed in a HJC, and didn't have any of the above issues. I know that HJC is one of the cheaper brands, but I just found that interesting. He asked me what kind of helmet I've got now and I told him a Scorpion and he said granted that's a $200.00 helmet you can give it to us and we'll give you about $75.00-$100.00 of credit towards an Arai. I was like I just bought this helmet, it's unlikely that I'm going to burn the difference in the money by giving it to you for an Arai...I also found interesting (although I've been told this before) that if you drop a helmet just once, from about 2-3 feet from the ground it's no longer good b/c the foam gets compressed and doesn't offer as much protection. That seems realistic, but at the same time upsetting. When Mark crashed my helmet fell off my mirror and now I'm supposed to believe that it's not good anymore.....WTF???

Yes, dropping a helmet can render a helmet usless.

Pretty neat idea:
http://www.hyperlites.com/shokspotr.htm

Ive got an Arai and a Scorpion. The Scorpion actually beat the Arai in some tests and overall scored pretty much the same. I actually like my Scorpion better and wear it much more often. Stick with it.

Ive heard it both ways. On the other side of the coin Ive heard if the exterior is undaunted then your fine. Who knows.

yea there was an article on helmets the the ratings go DOT>BSI>Snell. but id go with BSI only cause its accually a testing system to make sure all the helmets meet the requirements, unlike DOT which is an honor system. im not that trusting. as for the helmet falling and rendering it useless i think thats a load of bull, i dropped my helmet a couple of time and that time i got in a crash it held up just fine, given that its useless now (inside styro is cracked) it still did its job.

Not saying it will always be the case...but there is always definite possibility depending on what kind of impact...many different variables to factor.

Your noggins not worth risking either way. :nuts:

ron...I don't think it's b.s. If you drop your helemt and the impact is hard enough...it could suffer a minor hairline fracture..that hairline fracture can get bigger due to weather..cold and hot weathers may cause it to expand and contract...

We really can't tell how bad crystal's helmet is...i don't know..to me it's just a fact that i believe you get what you pay for....If HJC or scorpian have really top of the line quality..y not charge and compete with arai and shoei? quality is quality...and it cost money..just like any other item...ie: computers, cars, electronics, etc etc...

Granted crystal's hjc helmet did her justice..but who's to say her crash wasn't as severe as say someone who fell off the bike doing 25 mph head first into the concrete...i'm sure crystal doesn't remember how she fell...

Crystal it's really up to you if you wanna get a new helmet...you know how I am..for safety I would get a new one...You saw first had what a blow to the head could do...and it could have been worse...

CORRECT! That's the main reason why a helmet should be replaced after it has been dropped from either a standing position at 4 feet, or more so from a wreck at any speed which is much more substantial regarding the impact. Helmets are designed to have tiny crumple zones like a car so if a rider was to fall from a sitting idle postion with their head being about 4 feet off the ground the helmet would compress inside and out in order to absorb the G forces experienced by the rider's head...this is tested documented info. from SNELL! That's how sensative helmets are, they aren't like suits of armor that can withstand impacts with brick walls without being damaged.

One hairline crack can lead to a webing effect causing a major portion of the helmet to be useless in the event of an impact. These fractures cannot be seen by the naked eye and are often located within the underlayers of the helmet's laminant structure. A helmet relies on it's entire structure as a unibody system, and if one part of that system fails, the entire system fails.

In my accident my head bounced and skidded on the ground for a bit at over 60mph and the HJC did it's job well, but that doesn't mean I'm going to think of using it again. When it comes to your head use your brain people, get a new lid cuz you're going to need that brain for a while.

Not only that, but dropping the helmet can rupture a helmet's internal impact system(different manufaturers call it something different) wich is good for one shot and one shot only...almost like a mini airbag system within the helmet if you will...(from what I was told) depending on the helmet if you look inside under the lining if the white styrofoam part turns black in any given area, then it ruptured and its time for a new helmet.

i know what you guys are saying but im telling you i dropped my helmet a couple of times before i got into that accident, there is a crack in my helmet now from the accident but it held up and prevent my noggin from being split, i wrote to arai and shoei and neither has responded. i also spoke to a couple of people who race and they told me that dropping a helmet is common and if everyone had to replace it everytime they drop it helmet prices wouldnt be so high.

Fuck wrong......I remember all of it.....Goooosh Mark! You were there to see me get up and you were able to speak to me.......don't you remember!:ohmygod:

And my issue is that my helmet fell from my bike and bounced about 2 times. There's a small knick in the back, but the face shield took the damage.

That's the problem, the majority of motorcyclists don't seem to know and/or understand the facts stated in this thread, therefore they don't replace them after being dropped. I know a few people using helmets that have clearly been damaged regarding exposed underlayers from road rash :ohmygod:, but riding's like playing poker, if you choose to go all in you never know if you'll come out with all your chips...

silly poopy doopy hoopy..i meant what kind of impact your helmet took while you were rolling down the highway, that you don't know how you "rolled" i guess we can say ...i know how you fell...duh.

A few things. Don't ever put your helmet on the seat, mirror etc. Put it on the ground, it can't fall off! Or put it on the helmet lock on the bike. Treat it as if your head is in it, always! Get a new one at least every 4 or 5 years regardless of how perfect it looks.