How often do you change your Lid ?

[29davyt]

Just wondering how old some people’s Helmets are ( the ones you use and go on your heads ), my current one cost a bloody fortune, never been dropped and done f**k all miles but seem to remember a recommendation to change after 5 years ??

[steve h]

Until they prove that lids are no longer fit for purpose after a said amount of time...mine will continue to be used when and if.
How they are kept and treated must have a bearing on their integrity. I fail to see at how when something is six years old, it becomes u/s
Whereas one 5yrs 11mnths is ok. Oh its just industry guidelines I know.. but they drew the lines.

[geoffb]

lol, I still have my fibreglass Arai Supervent from the 1990's and would still wear it if the lining wasn't desintigrating. 😁

Personally I don't think about when to replace my lids because I have so many but I would definitely stop wearing any of mine if damaged, shabby or the lining was shot.

[steve h]

My Aria from 1992 is still good! Aaaaand I use it! Lining all sound.... and its checked.

[kirkhd]

Mar 20, 2021 21:48:59 GMT 1 geoffb said:

lol, I still have my fibreglass Arai Supervent from the 1990's and would still wear it if the lining wasn't desintigrating. 😁

I've got an Arai Maverick & Rapide(better halfs) that are about 22 years old and the headlining in them have also turned to dust, all other padding is fine   which is a shame as they are nice helmets. Phoenix Distribution used to be near me and knew someone that got me 40-50% discount so they were in the £200-250 range instead of the £400-500 but it would be nice to get replacement headlining's for them.
As i got fed up of having bits in my hair (yes 50+ and still got hair that has very little grey also  ) i got an Arai Chaser Samurai as i replacement.

[pdxjim]

I reup when the lining gets packed out.

Ususally about every 5-7 years.

Wearing a Shoei RF-1400 now.

[Delbert]

Oddly enough I realized a few days ago my lid is ten years old, so wondered the same

[Tobyjugs]

Intetesting thread.
My lids have mostly deteriorated over the years. The last new helmet I bought was about 6 years ago is a Shoei which is my favourite make.
At present I still use it but I think I should scrap it. I've have two crashes on track with this one and both times I touched down head first. The first crash no marks to helmet but it looked like someone went over the visor with a disc grinder. The second accident left a few guages in the front top piece.

Since then I have bought two 2nd hand helmets from freinds both turned out to be from Arai.
One I bought because it was yellow and black.
The other is in Ducati colours. My friend won it at a Ducati weekend but it was too big for him. I was looking for a helmet for Kees because he has a cheap plastic helmet and he drives like a loon now and again. It was too big for Kees, but the right size for me and I thought a hundred euros was a bargain.

[veg]

Planned obsolescence as long as you care for it the lining is still good it should be good. Thermoplastic helmets only have 5 year span. The material degrades

[donkeychomp]

My Simpson Bandit is about 6 years old now and still mint. Not changing it.

Alex

[JonW]

they used to day 5 years as they delaminated, but it was never proven as you say. the lining does defo fall apart tho.

I think 10 years would be the max for me. I have a growing collection of old lids now with powder coming out the inside but look like new on the outside.

[Tobyjugs]

That's the good thing with newer helmets there's more opportunities to renew the padding.

[steve63]

Had a silver Arai for probably 15 years and managed to keep it in mint condition all that time. In 2018 I bought myself a nice new Arai Chaser X. I paid nearly double what I've ever paid for a helmet before. In 2019 I had an altercation with the inside kerb at Cadwells hairpin and managed to put a scrape on the side of it. It's a shame but I'm not buying another helmet until this one is maybe 10 years old....unless I have another brush with the tarmac I suppose.

[Tobyjugs]

When you add up the price of motorcycle clothing,etc it can cost the same as a bike.
That's why I went 2nd hand on the last two helmets.

The padding in the yellow and black helmet needed washing several times to remove the faint smell from the last owner

[29davyt]

Mar 21, 2021 9:42:59 GMT 1 Tobyjugs said:

When you add up the price of motorcycle clothing,etc it can cost the same as a bike.
That's why I went 2nd hand on the last two helmets.

The padding in the yellow and black helmet needed washing several times to remove the faint smell from the last owner

Yukky !! 🤮

[29davyt]

Reckon mines got a few more years left in it yet as long as I look after it , it can become an expensive hobby changing all your kit every few years, I mean you’ve got to have all the stuff to match your new bike don’t you ?? 😂

[midlifecrisisrd]

I'm currently using (rarely) a Caberg. Love it. It's comfy, quiet and has the integral sun visor.

Must be about 8 years old

I only change them if:

1) it stinks
2) it's falling to bits inside
3) I've dropped it heavily

I hate changing them as a lot of money to spend then find out you don't like it

Long time ago I had an AGV Rossi Mugello replica and it was a great helmet. Managed to smash it on a track night so giving the fact that I liked it and I walked away with a concussion I went and bought another AGV

This was back in 2005. I still have it but barely worn it as it was the noisiest helmet ever that seemed to catch the wind and try and rip your head off

I thought there was something wrong with my bike at first. If the wind caught it the right way there was a noise like a cross between a screaming 5 year old girl and a wonky horn that need adjusting

That and the wind roar stopped me wearing it

Steve

[Tobyjugs]

I don't seem to notice wind noise these days.
Must be getting deaf or just don't ride fast enough.

[panzermatt]

all helmets have a lifespan of about 5 years or so, the interior hardens with age, so after a while it doesnt absorb the shock like its supposed to.
thats what we were told when we were racing anyway.

[Chewie01]

I did a quick google search on the subject and this is the advice I got back.
You can imagine each manufacturer has a recommendation for their helmets. Arai recommends you replace your helmet 5 years from the day you first use your motorcycle helmet. Whereas other manufacturers such as Shoei, recommend replacing your helmet 7 years from the date of production. Generally, the advice from all helmet manufacturers is to replace your helmet every 5 years under “normal” use, but emphasise that the life of a helmet should really depend on how it’s been used. The more you ride, the shorter yours helmets life expectancy is. The greatest long term damage to your helmet is done by the sun’s UV rays.

So from this I would say if you use your helmet every day then 5 years is the maximum life span, but if you only use it on sunny weekends then I would say 10 years should be a good point to get a new one.

[midlifecrisisrd]

Christ! My AGV has been worn half a dozen times then been in a cupboard for 15 years 🤣

Steve

[Chewie01]

If your only using it once every 2 years on average then UV brake down isn't going to be an issue. I would expect the foam lining would start turning to dust though, which at best will look like you have a bad case of dandruff .

I also found it interesting that Arai state 5 years and Shoei state 7 years. Can we infer from this that Shoei make better quality helmets, or does Arai just want your money more often.

[Delbert]

[/quote]

I hate changing them as a lot of money to spend then find out you don't like it



Steve[/quote]

I find this with any of my kit I change , they just don't make em like they used too !! I can't find a winter jacket that's anything like my old lewis one

[29davyt]

So with that £500-£600 I’ve just saved by not renewing my Lid this year I’ve just ordered myself a new pair of Sidi Mag 1 boots 😂

[st66]

Shame could of had my sidi mag 1 for a cheeper than new mate and there a few months old worn like twice like brand new 👌👌

[steve63]

Quite a few years ago I took my wife's Arai Spencer replica out of the cupboard and the liner had turned to dust so I binned it. A while later I saw that people were buying them as display ornaments. Not my thing but should have flogged it 😁