Rocker66
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I find my Shoei Neotec extremely comfortable
Which motorcycle helmet is the best you have personally own and wear?
- Thread starter Old Can Ride
- Start date
Old Can Ride
Active Member
That is what really matters, it fits you!
Last edited:
MZ5
Well-Known Member
Arai Profile. Only thing that fits me comfortably. I hear the Signet Q(?) is the current helmet with the same shape. Supposedly there's a company now with a Snell-certified modular with a long-oval shape. I'll try one of those on one day when my Arai needs replacement.
tooblekain
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Bell Star Carbon. Good peripheral vision, extremely, light, good aerodynamics, excellent ventilation. Cheek pads and top hat are removeable, washable, and replaceable.
vandyke100
New Member
I also wear a Shoei Multitec. I find it very comfortable with a "snug" kinda feel that I like. The main reason I like flip-ups is I can leave my glasses on, like others have said. The venting works well. I put the dark smoke screen on as I rarely ride at night, and if I do I just leave the screen up (not the whole flip-up)
Old Can Ride
Active Member
I see two key elements that keep coming up almost every time when it comes to your helmet choice.
1. The helmet is comfortable to the person wearing it.
2. The helmet fits the person wearing it.
We are all built different. So, buy the helmet that is comfortable and fits you!
But most important - Wear the helmet that is comfortable and fits you!
1. The helmet is comfortable to the person wearing it.
2. The helmet fits the person wearing it.
We are all built different. So, buy the helmet that is comfortable and fits you!
But most important - Wear the helmet that is comfortable and fits you!
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wickerman
New Member
kjang
Member
I wear a Arai xd-4. Fits me very well. Very comfy for me. Oh yeah, its HIGH VIS. Everyone sees me 
Ken
Ken
JamesD
Member
Only two helmet brands fit my head and those are SHOEI and BELL. I tried the ARAI helmets but one was too wide in front and the other too narrow in back.
My old helmet is a SHOEI RF-800 which served me well for many years and my brand new one is a BELL Star Carbon.
Since the SHOEI is a 1999 model I can't say exactly how it measures up to the RF-1100, but air circulation was decent on mine and the newer model looks better.
I commuted home 50 miles in a heavy rain one night and all I had to do to prevent fogging was use the lever on the side to break the seal between the visor and helmet.
It was also nice and warm on commutes in the winter and this was between Highlands Ranch, CO and Boulder, CO.
A friend bought his Arai at the same time I bought my SHOEI and I thought the two brands were pretty even except it was easier to change visors on the SHOEI.
The BELL is a much more expensive helmet and is aimed more at the track than my SHOEI.
It has removable liners (very nice), different size cheek pieces to choose from, lockable face shield for high speed, room for speakers, removable chin barrier, optional photochromatic face shields and it's one of the lightest helmets I tried.
FWIW I had a Nolan and some European brand (AGV?) as well but neither measured up to the SHOEI or BELL.
I looked at and tried on Icon, Scorpion, AGV and a couple other brands when I bought the BELL.
Icon had the biggest variety of graphics but it ran slightly smaller and didn't really have anything else that made it stand out.
Scorpion had a drop down tinted lens which was nice but I don't think the visor attachment system looks as nice as the SHOEI or BELL. Visors are easy to change though and they are anti-fog coated. Nicer models had an air pump (similar to some shoes) to customize the fit.
AGV fit tight and much less comfortable than the Icon shape wise. I know they make decent helmets though.
The Nolans looked more Goldwing than sport bike so I didn't bother with them. I was focusing on my VFR when I bought the BELL.
ARAI are well constructed but I couldn't get a good fit and they run a little higher in price for similar tech. I still don't like the visor change system. I saw my friend fight with the mechanism while changing his visor a couple times.
I didn't like the look of the HJCs, they looked pretty budget to me.
The SHOEI GT Air was very nice and had a drop down tinted visor as well. Ventilation looked improved over my old SHOEI and it was a tough choice.
If I had to name what I thought were the best helmets I would rank Arai, SHOEI and BELL pretty similar construction wise but that's just my opinion.
The Scorpion wasn't far behind though and if you want a Touring helmet Nolans are very good and I believe you can get some with a Blue Tooth transmitter pre-installed.
My old helmet is a SHOEI RF-800 which served me well for many years and my brand new one is a BELL Star Carbon.
Since the SHOEI is a 1999 model I can't say exactly how it measures up to the RF-1100, but air circulation was decent on mine and the newer model looks better.
I commuted home 50 miles in a heavy rain one night and all I had to do to prevent fogging was use the lever on the side to break the seal between the visor and helmet.
It was also nice and warm on commutes in the winter and this was between Highlands Ranch, CO and Boulder, CO.
A friend bought his Arai at the same time I bought my SHOEI and I thought the two brands were pretty even except it was easier to change visors on the SHOEI.
The BELL is a much more expensive helmet and is aimed more at the track than my SHOEI.
It has removable liners (very nice), different size cheek pieces to choose from, lockable face shield for high speed, room for speakers, removable chin barrier, optional photochromatic face shields and it's one of the lightest helmets I tried.
FWIW I had a Nolan and some European brand (AGV?) as well but neither measured up to the SHOEI or BELL.
I looked at and tried on Icon, Scorpion, AGV and a couple other brands when I bought the BELL.
Icon had the biggest variety of graphics but it ran slightly smaller and didn't really have anything else that made it stand out.
Scorpion had a drop down tinted lens which was nice but I don't think the visor attachment system looks as nice as the SHOEI or BELL. Visors are easy to change though and they are anti-fog coated. Nicer models had an air pump (similar to some shoes) to customize the fit.
AGV fit tight and much less comfortable than the Icon shape wise. I know they make decent helmets though.
The Nolans looked more Goldwing than sport bike so I didn't bother with them. I was focusing on my VFR when I bought the BELL.
ARAI are well constructed but I couldn't get a good fit and they run a little higher in price for similar tech. I still don't like the visor change system. I saw my friend fight with the mechanism while changing his visor a couple times.
I didn't like the look of the HJCs, they looked pretty budget to me.
The SHOEI GT Air was very nice and had a drop down tinted visor as well. Ventilation looked improved over my old SHOEI and it was a tough choice.
If I had to name what I thought were the best helmets I would rank Arai, SHOEI and BELL pretty similar construction wise but that's just my opinion.
The Scorpion wasn't far behind though and if you want a Touring helmet Nolans are very good and I believe you can get some with a Blue Tooth transmitter pre-installed.
SlowSteve
New Member
I wear a Shoei GT-Air.
It's essentially the same as the NeoTec, but it's got a cool flick-down sunguard in the lid which works out to be very useful indeed - no more messing about trying to get oakleys around you're head with the lid on. It actually works really well indeed, and also in the summer you can leave the main visor up and still have eye protection from the shade, which is great if it's hot but there are bugs around.
The only thing I'm not thrilled about is the chin-vent seems to do nothing at all. However, the top vents do work well, so nothing really is lost.
As other people have said, the Arai's and the Shoei's are commonly considered to be about the best helmets you can get in terms of both design ( quietness etc ) and also safety , but they seem to suit different shaped heads - I can't find an Arai that fits - any size or any model - but the Shoei's fit like a glove.
I have the white GT-Air, which shows up better at night and I have added stripes of 3M reflective tape to it on the back. During the day you can barely see it - it's almost exactly the same shade of white as the lid is, but at night the headlights make it dazzlingly bright and I've had some comments at lights that drivers didn't know what it was, so slowed down - which is exactly what I want to happen.
It's essentially the same as the NeoTec, but it's got a cool flick-down sunguard in the lid which works out to be very useful indeed - no more messing about trying to get oakleys around you're head with the lid on. It actually works really well indeed, and also in the summer you can leave the main visor up and still have eye protection from the shade, which is great if it's hot but there are bugs around.
The only thing I'm not thrilled about is the chin-vent seems to do nothing at all. However, the top vents do work well, so nothing really is lost.
As other people have said, the Arai's and the Shoei's are commonly considered to be about the best helmets you can get in terms of both design ( quietness etc ) and also safety , but they seem to suit different shaped heads - I can't find an Arai that fits - any size or any model - but the Shoei's fit like a glove.
I have the white GT-Air, which shows up better at night and I have added stripes of 3M reflective tape to it on the back. During the day you can barely see it - it's almost exactly the same shade of white as the lid is, but at night the headlights make it dazzlingly bright and I've had some comments at lights that drivers didn't know what it was, so slowed down - which is exactly what I want to happen.
Everyone's head is different, but I was going to "upgrade" from an Arai Quantum II to the Schuberth. I could never get comfortable in it, though if it had fit, the features and quality were impressive. As it was, I sold it for a gut-wrenching loss and bought an Arai RX-7. They discontinued the Quantum shape, but I have found the RX-7 to be more comfortable for me than the Quantum (after the cheek pads were changed).
CagerOnTwoWheels
New Member
My best helmet ever is still my much loved-hated Agv Horizon
Love:
The internals are fantastic. More confy than all the shoei I tested.The lining is made of a very fresh, different fabric. Its not that plush cottony-like things all helmets have. The Horizon (and the skyline, its sister helmet) has a silky interior, which is very fresh, specially during the summer.
Ventilation is also awesome. Front vents push a lot of air into your face (in my case, sometimes it can make my eyes water). The top vents also work very well - you dont feel air hitting your head (unless you got a sweaty/wet head), but your head is cool at all times, even in 40ºC+ temperatures.
Hate:
Well... I'm on my 3rd warranty claim. First helmet was completely replaced, second one was just repaired. Problem is the double-D ring straps, which kinda fell apart. Not the retaining strap, but the little red tab you pull to open the Ds, and the little red spring on the other side to grab the flappling strap.
Also, some users have complained of the visor gasket tearing off - which I also had on my first helmet.
HOWEVER, The first full replacement came from the very same shop, so if it was a batch with issues, the second one would also have it (which happened). This time, it appears to be ok.
Internal visor is ok. Not very good quality optically, but it works. After a while, the spring which holds it up gets weak, so a hard bump can drop down the visor. Since I prefer a full mirrored visor, I just removed the internal visor altogether.
Love:
The internals are fantastic. More confy than all the shoei I tested.The lining is made of a very fresh, different fabric. Its not that plush cottony-like things all helmets have. The Horizon (and the skyline, its sister helmet) has a silky interior, which is very fresh, specially during the summer.
Ventilation is also awesome. Front vents push a lot of air into your face (in my case, sometimes it can make my eyes water). The top vents also work very well - you dont feel air hitting your head (unless you got a sweaty/wet head), but your head is cool at all times, even in 40ºC+ temperatures.
Hate:
Well... I'm on my 3rd warranty claim. First helmet was completely replaced, second one was just repaired. Problem is the double-D ring straps, which kinda fell apart. Not the retaining strap, but the little red tab you pull to open the Ds, and the little red spring on the other side to grab the flappling strap.
Also, some users have complained of the visor gasket tearing off - which I also had on my first helmet.
HOWEVER, The first full replacement came from the very same shop, so if it was a batch with issues, the second one would also have it (which happened). This time, it appears to be ok.
Internal visor is ok. Not very good quality optically, but it works. After a while, the spring which holds it up gets weak, so a hard bump can drop down the visor. Since I prefer a full mirrored visor, I just removed the internal visor altogether.
dduelin
Site Supporter
The Neotec has the drop down sun visor - the earlier Multitec and Syncrotec flip-up modulars from Shoei did not incorporate this feature. Initially I did not want the visor and planned to get another Multitec as it was my favorite helmet for a long time. I immediately liked the sun visor feature and am glad I got the Neotec. The other thing is the Neotec flows air extremely well. So much so I sometimes have to close the chin vent because the breeze across my face is causing a bothersome dry eye. I think a feature that helps reduce noise and also direct vent air is the chin curtain which I retain in the Neotec even in the hot summer time.
mreric
Site Supporter
Rhpa-max. best i have used
mahbin
New Member
This is really a silly question because helmets are like shoes - what is comfy for one person might be a torture machine for another. The only way to buy a helmet is to go to a shop and try on several different models/brands until you find one that fits well. Buying a helmet because of a recommendation from a stranger or a survey is asking for trouble.
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miw
New Member
I have 2 Arai Chaser... Best for me
I've been using the Shoei Neotec for just over two years. Features that I like most are that it is modular, the built in dark screen, and the pinlock system. I also like being able to remove all the pads and throw them in the washing machine.
When I first bought it, I switched to thinner cheek pads (available from Shoei), and the helmet has been amazingly comfortable ever since. The helmet does flow air very well, but that also makes it a little loud. Pop in some foam earplugs and it's fine.
When I first bought it, I switched to thinner cheek pads (available from Shoei), and the helmet has been amazingly comfortable ever since. The helmet does flow air very well, but that also makes it a little loud. Pop in some foam earplugs and it's fine.
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I think it's great to be able to get other people's takes on what they like and dislike about some features on the helmets they buy, myself. Sure, I can go down to the local brick and mortar shop and look at/try on/poke and prod at various helmets, but not all of the brands and models available out there.
Some things I may plumb forget to think about until someone mentions it, or brings up a detail that may have been glossed over. I love my Icon Variant, but worst face shield change system ever!
2brnut2b
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I currently have 3 helmets and have had probably near 10 in my life...The one I prefer is the one I wear most of the time, a Nolan N43 : light, very good peripheral vision, on demand sun visor and fits my head perfectly...but to every head is helmet !
