Helmet fitment PSA

[SFSig]

I learned a valuable lesson the other day helmet shopping (luckily it wasn't the hard way)...

For the past five years I've been wearing a Shoei X-1000 in Medium. It was my first helmet and being my first helmet I didn't really know what a proper fitting helmet felt like. The advice I got at the time from the store staff was that it shouldn't feel uncomfortable and when I open and close my mouth, my teeth should scrape the inside of my cheeks. Not knowing any better I believed him... Bad employee, bad!:facepalm

5 years on and now time to replace my helmet, I go helmet shopping only to find out I've been wearing the wrong size and wrong shape all along. After trying on two dozen helmets, I finally realize that I'm a AGV XS. I went from a Medium to a XS... :wow

For any newbie riders like me that think their helmet fits right, I'd suggest reexamining the fitment... I've got a really snug crown fitment (without bumps or hotspots) and relatively tight fitting cheek pads. The logic there being you want the crown to be snug and the padding there won't compress too much while the cheek padding being so thick will compress (and you can always get replacement cheek pads in different thicknesses).

Anyway, not to be a safety nerd but I'd thought I'd share my experience here in case anyone else is contemplating getting a new helmet soon...

 

[Mr Pepsi]

I had done something similar, went from a HJC Large to an Arai Medium, but this was mostly because of my peculiar head shape.

 

[thedub]

"There is no brain in your face".

When I try on a helmet in the store, I remove the cheek pads so they don't obscure my evaluation of the fit around my head.

 

[TheRiddler]

Eh.

When I worked at a store, people would buy what they wanted to buy.

"A leather suit should fit like a second set of skin." Rider proceeds to buy one size bigger.

"A helmet should be snug around the top of your head. Ignore the cheek pads." Rider then buys a helmet with a gap around the sides of his head.

Maybe someone will actually heed your advice. More than likely they'll figure it out on their own....someday.

 

[CalculatedRisk]

Yup. I wear an XS Shoei or Scorpion - almost every shop has sized me at a Medium and finding XS is damn near impossible in store.

 

[tuxumino]

small shoei RF1000 -> XS HJC RPS-10

 

[Tydive]

I was riding with Shoei size large for my past two helmets, then I went to Road Rider and they put me in a medium Arai... Fit's so much better, I can't believe I had it wrong for so long.

 

[Crom]

Speak of, Anyone know what other helmets fit like an AGV GP Tech? Looking at getting a Suomy but can't find them in any shops.

 

[Daks]

What I've found with stores and helmets, it's much like shopping with bras. You fit what they have in stock, so go to a store where they have everything and know your general size when you get there.

I managed to land a perfect-fitting helmet from Icon. I have a roundish head. AGV doesn't fit me for tits, as it's for oval head shapes. Sumoy is too round. Shoeis fit me splendidly but they do not fit my wallet.

Sad day.

 

[SFSig]

Speak of, Anyone know what other helmets fit like an AGV GP Tech? Looking at getting a Suomy but can't find them in any shops.

I ended up getting the GP Tech. Before the AGV though I was trying on a Arai Signet-Q (or was it RX-Q... I can't remember. I do remember the sales guy said it was the same as their Corsair model, but the cheaper version). I almost bought that one as it fit great, but decided to run over the the D-Store to try some AGV's and fell in love with the GP-Tech. The GP tech was just as comfortable on the crown, but more snug on the cheeks. The deciding factor was the weight of the GP tech, otherwise I would have gone with the Arai...

 

[Hoho]

Speak of, Anyone know what other helmets fit like an AGV GP Tech? Looking at getting a Suomy but can't find them in any shops.

I wear an XL AGV GP Tech helmet, and recently had the opportunity to try a Kali Protectives helmet... found that it fit just as well as the AGV, but a size smaller. Give 'em a try...