newb here! how much should u spend on your helmet?

What is your head worth? $20 K-mart or $200 Bell?

Make sure it fits and is worn correctly, not too big, and has a standards compliance sticker.

Glasses, clear or tinted, eyes are valuable and precious.

Next, shoes, try to cover the ankles, MTB shoes may not look too cool, but when I fell off a month back, no foot problems.

Then knees, hands, elbows, give some thought to their protection, on or off road, they take a long time to heal if injured..

As far as I know, all helmets must pass the same kind of safety tests, so any given helmet is probably not markedly "safer" than another helmet.

Higher priced helmets usually offer a more streamlined fit, more air flow, easier fastening, more styling, and an available supply of replacement parts.

Spend as much as you deem necessary, but buy one that fits you.

oznation said:

i figure besides the bike itself the helmet is the thing u should spend alot of money on so you get some decent protection on your dome. (if im wrong please tell me) i was just wondering if in this case more money is better quality/protection. my dads a fireman/paramedic so i have seen and witnessed many of cracked skulls and dead people and i have seen many bike wrecks.

As much as you can afford

BUT and its a big one if you buy a big brand name your paying for the name ( the top Specialised is 175 euros here - at 1·22 dollars to the euro that´s a rip off ) so look for a good but not famous make - I´ve got a Flash Mango , a bit heavier but a lot cheaper : wanna be´s try harder .

Read this about whether helmets actually do much protection at all:

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/msp/crossPartyGroups/groups/cycle-docs/helmet-legis-commentary.pdf

Safety wise, a $20 helmet and a $200 helmet are about the same. The more expensive one is just going to be lighter and better ventilated. Fitting is a lot more important than price. Have someone who knows what they're doing fit it for you. I've seen a lot of people riding with their helmets tipped so far back as to render them useless in a crash.

KakenBetaal said:

Read this about whether helmets actually do much protection at all:

scottish.parliament.ukhelmet legis commentary.pdfOpen ↗

I read the article and I must say, NONSENSE!

The article consistently talks about the data from "serious accidents", but how many accidents were not serious because of a helmet, and therefore not reported at all? I have crashed, broken my helmet, and bought a new helmet, all without anyone else even knowing about it, much less reporting my crash data to any agency.

I hold this report in the same light as the laughable notion that automobile seat belts are dangerous because you can't get out as fast in an emergency. I'll take my "chances" wearing a helmet.

gclark8 said:

What is your head worth? $20 K-mart or $200 Bell?

I've always hated that response to this question...

It's worth $20 if that's what it takes to get a good, quality piece of safety gear. It's worth $200 or $2000 or $20000 if that's what it takes. But a $200 helmet doesn't not necessary protect better than a $20 one. It might, but it might only be prettier. I'll pay an extra $180 for safety, but probably not just for pretty.

Dean

DeanC said:

But a $200 helmet doesn't not necessary protect better than a $20 one.

Actually, not only do all helmets sold in the US meet the same safety standards, but in controlled tests (Consumer Reports did a big one last year), the prettier and higher-end the helmet, the less well they fared in crash tests.

In terms of sheer impact resistance, the $30 bowls did the best.

That said, again, even the worst performers meet a reasonable standard -- so impact resistance isn't really the issue. It tends to come down to fit, comfort, and style. The pricier helmets, not surprisingly, tend to offer better characteristics in all of those fields. A good fitting and comfortable helmet is nothing to sneeze at (and a sturdy but ill-fitting one could be pretty unsafe).

Get the best fitting one that looks the coolest and fits your budget. Want a popular tip? Look for the older model years of the Bell Ghisallo, on sale. It's a pro-level helmet that can be got for $60, if you search hard enough. If that's outside of your price range, Bell, Giro, Specialized and Trek all offer plenty of decent-wearing helmets in cheaper ranges.

I'm currently wearing a pretty pricey helmet, the Limar F111, but I love it... it's cool enough to make the cool drool...

KakenBetaal said:

Read this about whether helmets actually do much protection at all:

http://www.scottish.parliament.uk/msp/crossPartyGroups/groups/cycle-docs/helmet-legis-commentary.pdf

I regard myself as being alive today because I was wearing a helmet. High speed fall, landed on my head, cracked helmet - slight headache - couldn't walk for a week. Thank-you Specialized.

renoster said:

I regard myself as being alive today because I was wearing a helmet. High speed fall, landed on my head, cracked helmet - slight headache - couldn't walk for a week. Thank-you Specialized.

ok sounds good guys thanks i think i will get around a 60-80$$ helmet so i can get some more air flow but thanks again for the posts

I bought a Bell Ghisallo.... its so cool.... i've had cheapo bells my entire life, this one looks sweet, feels amazing, is super light and it well ventilated. And one of the things i learned is that if you ever do crash and break it within a certain time period (x years) you can return the helmet and for a fraction of the original cost get a brand new one.

gould86 said:

I bought a Bell Ghisallo.... its so cool.... i've had cheapo bells my entire life, this one looks sweet, feels amazing, is super light and it well ventilated. And one of the things i learned is that if you ever do crash and break it within a certain time period (x years) you can return the helmet and for a fraction of the original cost get a brand new one.

thats sweet

oznation said:

thats sweet

well im going to go to my local bike shop and grab a bell influx '04'

lokstah said:

Actually, not only do all helmets sold in the US meet the same safety standards, but in controlled tests (Consumer Reports did a big one last year), the prettier and higher-end the helmet, the less well they fared in crash tests.

In terms of sheer impact resistance, the $30 bowls did the best.

I'm currently wearing a pretty pricey helmet, the Limar F111, but I love it... it's cool enough to make the cool drool...

FYI, Consumer Reports is pretty good at doing one-dimensional tests that don't reflect real world application.

Also, helmet manufacturers self test, so the larger companies might be more likely to spend the money for better testing. Might is the key word.

I don't know that there is any agreement on how best to test head protection gear. In the motorcycle world, this issue comes up, too. Some large organization did a test of motorcycle helmets and found that the cheaper ones faired better than the expensive ones (Arai, Shoei race lids, for example) in their tests. However their tests did not reflect real world results.

Just thought I'd add a few muddying points to the murky waters of helmet choice. As everyone else said, fit is paramount.

alienator said:

FYI, Consumer Reports is pretty good at doing one-dimensional tests that don't reflect real world application.

Also, helmet manufacturers self test, so the larger companies might be more likely to spend the money for better testing. Might is the key word.

I don't know that there is any agreement on how best to test head protection gear. In the motorcycle world, this issue comes up, too. Some large organization did a test of motorcycle helmets and found that the cheaper ones faired better than the expensive ones (Arai, Shoei race lids, for example) in their tests. However their tests did not reflect real world results.

Just thought I'd add a few muddying points to the murky waters of helmet choice. As everyone else said, fit is paramount.

i bought mine new off Ebay. £17.00 bargain montana vented helmet and its brand new in box

alienator said:

FYI, Consumer Reports is pretty good at doing one-dimensional tests that don't reflect real world application.

True, I don't disagree; you've got to take them with a grain of salt. By citing that reference, I wasn't trying to knock fancy helmets... I've only bought fancy ones in the past few years.

I do think that along with the safety standards point, though, that it's a valid counter to the suggestion that spending more on a helmet equals greater crash protection -- something that doesn't seem to be the case at all.

I would agree that spending more on a helmet does not equal more crash protection. However, my own experience has been that the higher priced helmets are more comfortable. This may be to the more sizing options and the shape of my head. My Giro Pneumo is much more comfortable than my $30 wal-mart Bell. And most importantly, the Giro looks way cooler than the cheapo Bell.😎

oznation said:

i figure besides the bike itself the helmet is the thing u should spend alot of money on so you get some decent protection on your dome. (if im wrong please tell me) i was just wondering if in this case more money is better quality/protection. my dads a fireman/paramedic so i have seen and witnessed many of cracked skulls and dead people and i have seen many bike wrecks.

My wife had a serious crash last week, she was wearing a $30something Bell Helmet...it was dented pretty badly on one side and cracked in two places...it probably saved her life...at the least, it saved her from serious Head injury...

Your Dad has seen enough to convince him, and he's right!!

I wear an expensive Giro Helmet...the reason being, I don't like wearing any kind of Hat, they give me a headache after a while...my Giro is very lightweight and has lots of air vents...but even though it meets US standards I doubt it would protect my swede as well as my wifes heavier, not so well vented, Helmet protected her...

We always wear Helmets and would never even climb on the saddle without one...great question though!!