helmet webbing / strapping

Tom <[email hidden]> posted:

Quoted message said:

I have a Giro "Gila" helmet I bought in 98. It has kept me out of the
emergency room at least twice.

I don't know about Giro, but Bell recommends replacing your helmet after
one crash - and you've had two!
- Max

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"Tom" <[email hidden]> wrote in message
news:[email hidden]...

Quoted message said:

I have a Giro "Gila" helmet I bought in 98. It has kept me out of the
emergency room at least twice.

The inner webbing / strapping is wearing out. I have searched using
Google and have not been able to find replacement webbing / strapping.
Does anyone know if the inner webbing / Strapping can be replaced -
and if so - who to contact?

Tom

You need to replace that helmet, ASAP. Besides the two crashes, and the
worn out straps, the foam used in helmets tends to break down over time and
lose some of it's protective abilities (especially if you store your helmet
where it gets hot).

Don't risk your head by crashing a third time with that helmet.

GG

Congratulations on picking a helmet that went beyond the call of duty and
saved you twice. They are only designed to be used once and then replaced.

Age is an enemy to bicycle helmets. The foam used in them will go
bad after they have been around several years and I have heard someone say
that five years is the maximum that a helmet should be used.

There is a reason that they don't sell the strapping by itself. The helmet
companies went to a good expense on designing the whole system of helmet and
strap. If you have to sew a new strap together to put it on the helmet it
may no longer meet the specifications that the original construction met.

Maybe a new helmet in the same line would meet your requirements. Or look
at other brands. They all fit a little bit differently and there might be
one that feels better on you and has better ventilation.

Allan Butler said:

Age is an enemy to bicycle helmets. The foam used in them will go
bad after they have been around several years and I have heard someone say
that five years is the maximum that a helmet should be used.

The polystyrene foams are rather inert and protected from UV by the
outer shell, so I see no reason why they would degrade in five years (or
even much longer periods) unless exposed to significant concentrations
of chemicals to which they react, such as acetone. The only test result
I've seen on helmet aging was reported at:
http://www.bhsi.org/biker.htm in which the Snell institute ran a
well-used and yellowed 10 year old Bell Biker through the same tests
used when that model was new. The results looked essentially the same
as they had for brand new ones.

Quoted message said:

There is a reason that they don't sell the strapping by itself.

Yes, the helmet companies would rather sell you a new one and for anyone
else to offer an after-market strap refit kit would expose them to a
huge liability risk even if their straps are as good, or even better,
then the original ones. With a rather small potential market, limited
profit potential per sale, and big liability issues, it's not surprising
that no one has chosen to jump into this market.

You can get a new helmet for $19 from nashbar etc.