NPOCP

"Frank Grimes" (FrankGrimes)
10/13/2015 at 02:07 • Filed to: None

Is it ok to buy a helmet worth more than my car? Is the helmet worth more than my brain?

ST5 GT ZERO 8860 $5,600

DISCUSSION (21)

911e46z06 > Frank Grimes
10/13/2015 at 02:18

CP. If I hit something hard enough where there will be a difference between a $5000 helmet and a $500 helmet, that’s something I probably wouldn’t even want to walk away from. But fuck it dude. If you’ve got the scratch, go for it.

My citroen won't start > Frank Grimes
10/13/2015 at 02:21

Alternative option:

Kinja'd!!!

Leon711 > Frank Grimes
10/13/2015 at 02:23

If there are helmets that meet or exceed the same certifications as this one for less then it's CP.

CB > Frank Grimes
10/13/2015 at 02:30

I think Lanesplitter just did a big thing on motorcycle helmets and mentioned that price doesn’t necessarily mean that it’ll be better. Plus, it looks kind of ugly. CP.

SP23 > Frank Grimes
10/13/2015 at 02:30

Kinja'd!!!

This must be how much it weighs.

Flavien Vidal > 911e46z06
10/13/2015 at 02:33

There ZERO difference between a 200 and a 5500$ helmet in term of security, they both, pass the exact same tests and quality is the same... What truly matters is how light the helmet is. But in term of impact resistance/protection, they are the same...

In this case, you just pay for the coolness of having a full having helmet since the Bell kc7 cmr is a few grams lighter and costs something like 4800$ less lol

pip bip - choose Corrour > Frank Grimes
10/13/2015 at 02:36

do it.

your body/brain is worth every cent you can afford.

Dusty Ventures > Frank Grimes
10/13/2015 at 07:53

I say buy the composite version and save four grand

Übel > Flavien Vidal
10/13/2015 at 07:59

Which is why all cars are identically safe, because they all pass the same crash test standards.

GTiceman > Flavien Vidal
10/13/2015 at 08:05

While what Flavien said is 100% true lightness makes a huge difference in an impact. The extra weight on your neck is a huge difference when the momentum of your head moving forward or side to side in an impact comes in to play. That being said Stilo helmets are some of the best that club racers, SCCA, NASA, AER, etc. use because they are all very light and can come prewired.

Santiago of Escuderia Boricua > Frank Grimes
10/13/2015 at 08:16

CP. Get whatever fits best

Flavien Vidal > GTiceman
10/13/2015 at 08:29

True, but the end result is a muscle problem, mostly causing problem if the crash is not “hard enough” (the type of crash where the rider/driver, can try to fight the force of impact with his neck)... On harder crashes, this makes no difference to the neck muscles as the person simply can’t fight it whatsoever and don’t have the time to...

Lighter helmets are mostly a confort thing, along with how breathable they are.

Flavien Vidal > Übel
10/13/2015 at 08:36

Helmets are HUGELY different in term of tests. Helmets are here solely to protect you. Nothing else. Unlike a car which prime goal is to bring you places and if there is a problem, do its best to protect you... Helmets only goal is to protect the head of it’s owner, which is why, they are absolutly uncomparable with a car. When a 100.000$ car with 30 airbags and huge crumple zone will protect you a lot better than a car with a tiny crumple zone and 2 airbags, helmets don’t work that way.

A SNELL 2010 helmet that costs 5000$ is, in term of security, the exact same one as a 200$ SNELL 2010 helmet. The rest on the other hand, like breathability, lighness, desgin and overall confort can be a huge difference though...

Übel > Flavien Vidal
10/13/2015 at 11:03

That’s an utterly nonsensical statement. It’s perfectly possible for a helmet to exceed the testing standards it’s certified for.

Flavien Vidal > Übel
10/13/2015 at 21:21

No, lol... It’s not that it’s possible, it’s that THEY ALL exceed the incredibly stringeant testing standards they are certified for. All of them, no exeption. This is why today, a 200$ SNELL rated helmet protects you exactly as well as a 5500$ one. Difference will play on fire resistance, lighness, confort, design, finishing touches (visor quality, visor mountings, radio...etc etc) and that’s all.

Taken from the Snell Fondation website, which is the absolute reference in term of helmet testing and certifiability (and of course, non-profit):

!!! UNKNOWN CONTENT TYPE !!!

While helmets are primarily a protective device, the true protective capabilities of a helmet, if needed will only come into play for about 2 to 4 milliseconds during the lifetime of the helmet. This leaves a lot of time for that helmet to be doing nothing more than sitting around on a user’s head. Producing a product that meets the standards is not really very difficult. Producing a helmet that people will buy and wear, and will consistently meet the standards is significantly more difficult. The Snell Standards do not measure factors like comfort, ventilation, brand recognition or style, and only indirectly look at fit, weight, materials and workmanship. These are factors that frequently drive helmet cost.”

On the other hand, no cars “exceed” the testings they are asked to pass. Some simply do better than other. The reason is simply because cars are not created to protect you. They just have to do the best they can in case of a problem and will be rated based on how safe they are.

Helmets though, have to be the best at protecting one’s head. All of them have to have perfect protection scores. The difference of price in NOT a difference in safety.

Übel > Flavien Vidal
10/13/2015 at 22:01

On the other hand, no cars “exceed” the testings they are asked to pass. Some simply do better than other.

http://dictionary.reference.com/browse/exceed

Helmets though, have to be the best at protecting one’s head. All of them have to have perfect protection scores. The difference of price in NOT a difference in safety.

Nothing is perfect at anything. Snell standards, and all helmet standards, primarily rely on G force reduction (along with visibility, stability, and a couple other factors). If Helmet 1 passes the Snell drop test with 200gs of force and Helmet two passes with only 150gs, then Helmet 2 is the safer helmet, although both would be Snell certified. There’s no such thing as a perfect helmet. At some impact speed, a helmet is no longer going to be capable of absorbing enough force to protect the rider’s head, that’s a basic technological limitation, and some helmets are going to be better at absorbing than others based on the materials used. On top of that, some helmets may have a stronger shell, allowing for improved intrusion resistance vs other equally compliant helmets.

Even at a pedantic level, Snell certifies open and closed face helmets under the same certifications, and we know damn well those aren’t equally safe.

Flavien Vidal > Übel
10/13/2015 at 22:34

Snell certifies open helmet the same way it certifies closed helmet. It’s up to you to choose not to have your jaw protected (no “true” open helmets like those non-existant biker helmets, are of course Snell rated). All the other parameters tested are the same eventhough SNELL adds extra testing for chin and even visor protections for helmets that do have those. It is also fair to mention that only 12 open helmets got the M2015 label.

Helmets are a lot easier to rate and test than cars for the good and only reason that there are limits to Gs a brain can endure, awesome helmet or not. What matters are impacts at certain Gs and it’s useless to test them over that for the sole and only reason that the helmet user will already be dead with a less violent impact.

This is the exact reason why there are no “safest helmet of 2015” rating contests...

Übel > Flavien Vidal
10/13/2015 at 22:57

Dude, what?

Flavien Vidal > Übel
10/13/2015 at 23:11

Yes, it is useless to tests impacts over a certain amount of Gs (by that I mean, impact speeds on the helmet, creating a minimum of a certain amount of Gs to the head, as the helmet can only be as thick as can be... Sorry if not clear), just like it is useless to test cars crashing into walls over a certain speed. Not exactly new...

Übel > Flavien Vidal
10/13/2015 at 23:14

No.

Flavien Vidal > Übel
10/13/2015 at 23:31

No?? great argument lol

A helmet being let’s say 1.5 inches thick, it will be AT BEST the distance your brain will take to decelerate. So given a certain speed, your brain will endure a minimum of a certain amount of Gs. Which is why it useless to test helmets impacts over certain (relatively slow actually) speeds as certain brain damage will occur at one point.

The goal of a helmet is to get as close as possible to this minimum force of impact, which basically all SNELL helmets reach nowadays. A helmet will make sure that a very precise point of impact gets absorbed by a wide part of your skull. But even if your skull resist, there is only this much your brain can take.