Safety Standards On Thai Helmets-->are There Any?!?!

[peterd1961]

Hi Peaceblondie,

I just check my helmet and see he is manufactured in 2005 is that normal when you buy a helmet or to old! do you know this???

Regards Peter

[submaniac]

2005? Where did you buy it? Did you buy it new or used. There are places that sell used helmets, which I would not recommend. Even your fancy Arai and Shoei helmets that you spend 20,000 baht on...you have to replace every few years. Wearing the helmet, dropping it on the floor chair, or whatever, the materials do deteriorate. (Like Peaceblondie's helmet shrinking). That's why I wouldn't buy too fancy a helmet. Just the DOT cert would be good enough for me!

[PeaceBlondie]

I am no expert. I bought a 2001 Suzuki in 2002 and may have bought an expensive 2000 helmet with it. They say that in time, the plastics may deteriorate (or shrink) but I did not notice it until 2007.

[LivinLOS]

Personally for the place and type of riding I would do (low speed, in town, short hops 90%) I would want the highest ventilation motocross style I could find.. I would even consider a mountain bike downhilling helmet (before you all scream murder those guys pull 80 - 100 mph) for casual use as airflow would be great.

[Bigbaka]

I just got a helmet made by Real, it appears to be of a decent quality and is certainly better than any other Thai helmets I have seen. Very comfy and you can get them in any size unlike the shops which stock Index helmets. It also appears to be DOT approved.

We're did you end up getting your Real helmet from? I was looking at sizes in Top Gun for my girlfriend, but they didn't seem to have smaller sizes at that store even though the website lists all sizes.

[withnail]

I just bough a Real helmet and am pretty happy with it. It's not the best helmet I've ever seen but definitely looks a grade above your standard Thai brand. It's a nice design and the padding is removable, not bad for 1480 Baht.

I've been driving round Bangkok trying to find a full face that fits me (an Index L is like a headband on me) and found an XL Real which fits me pretty well. He didn't have or couldn't get XXL but the guy tells me that the difference between those two is basically the padding.

The shop I went to was http://www.118bikes.com/ but I think you could always order off the website http://www.real-helmets.com

[oMega69]

I just bough a Real helmet and am pretty happy with it. It's not the best helmet I've ever seen but definitely looks a grade above your standard Thai brand. It's a nice design and the padding is removable, not bad for 1480 Baht.

I've been driving round Bangkok trying to find a full face that fits me (an Index L is like a headband on me) and found an XL Real which fits me pretty well. He didn't have or couldn't get XXL but the guy tells me that the difference between those two is basically the padding.

The shop I went to was http://www.118bikes.com/ but I think you could always order off the website http://www.real-helmets.com

I also have a REAL Helmet. . , i like it . . quality is fair . . ,, Iam going to buy the new one that have arrived now . , the G-Force model . . , See if i like it or not. . ,

http://www.real-helmets.com/components/com...f7d55faddcb.jpg

[Netfan]

well there's always these nice yellow ones. the plastic is soft, pliable. I like the importance that is placed on motorcycle safety - putting the helmets in the f*(&%^ing lamp section!

[ttakata]

I hate to sound like a grim reaper but next to your lungs, I would say your brain is the most important part of your body.

If you have any sense of intelligence you have to buy a DOT/Snell helmet, anything without and you're just lying to yourself.

I love the bucket with holes analogy BTW.

Now I want to reiterate the importance of a full face helmet.

The study below (read bottom right corner) shows that an open face has a much greater injury risk of 30% vs less than 10% in a full face helmet.

http://www.jstor.org/pss/29514881

Think about it; if you fly over the bars in a crash, your face and chin are likely to hit the road before the back of your head.

So what good will an open face helmet do, nothing.

Look closely at a road surface or better yet run and slide on it naked.

You'll see it's very course and in a high speed accident, it will sand away any exposed flesh.

Would you rather have the image to this link on your helmet or face?

http://jeff.dean.home.att.net/swisher.htm

This page also show some stats as to what part of your head hits most often, the chin.

Do some research, I'm sure there are many statistics to helmet effectiveness online.

The reason I wear a fullface DOT helmet is because I have crashed many times pocketbike racing.

Many times were less than 10mph and I still got slight concussions.

My friend also saw a sportbiker in the US wipe out with no helmet on.

Half of his head was gone because it was sanded down by the road.

Suffice to say he was dead.

This pic is me in a less than 10kmh slide off my scooter.

Now imagine this is your face instead.

[highonthai]

Snell approval is the industry standard. Do not trust a helmet with just a dot sticker on it!

If always cracks me up when I see a modified bike and the rider is wear a sub standard helmet.

Make sure your helemet is approved by SNELL. Here is the link http://www.smf.org/. Or the UK ECE 22-05 standards.

As for the any Thai helmets, up to you.....

I have some Tupperware I'm willing to give away.

[ttakata]

Snell approval is the industry standard. Do not trust a helmet with just a dot sticker on it!

If always cracks me up when I see a modified bike and the rider is wear a sub standard helmet.

Make sure your helemet is approved by SNELL. Here is the link http://www.smf.org/. Or the UK ECE 22-05 standards.

As for the any Thai helmets, up to you.....

I have some Tupperware I'm willing to give away.

SNELL is the standard it changes every few years.

DOT is an old standard but there are conflicting opinions on which is better in certain cases still.

From what I've read DOT concentrates on absorbing one lower G hit well, but SNELL concentrates on taking a higher G and/or multiple hits well.

So a Snell helmet can also pass the DOT standard, but a DOT helmet will likely not pass a Snell test.

The Snell is a newer rating but some believe it may not be best in all situations.

That first hit to the head in an accident has the most Gs and is the one that will give you brain damage.

If you look at the chart on the Snell link above, you'll see the Snell can sustain higher Joules of energy which sounds good.

The argument is if the Snell can sustain more J's of damage, its transferring more of those Joules to your head instead of destroying itself trying to save your head.

Are you trying to protect the helmet or your head?

This may be why my $400 Simpson autocross helmet only had a DOT rating and no Snell; autocrossing is fairly slow and the chances of a high speed crash or a rollover are slim.

I found this disturbing article on DOT helmets failing their tests.

http://4wheeldrive.about.com/cs/beginninga...erhelmets_4.htm

I ride a scooter (slow) so the chances of me hitting my head multiple times in an accident are relatively low.

So I'm OK with my DOT (a $300 HJC) helmet since I think it can suppress more of the Gs of one low speed hit.

I used a Snell (Shoei) on my motorcycle and when pocketbike racing since I was going fast and crashing often.

I agree a Snell is probably better in most cases and a must if you ride fast.

In my particular case I'll take a quality DOT helmet over a Snell since I ride slow.

These are just my opinions and we're on a forum.

I probably have brain damage from all those pocketbike crashes anyway.

We're all just trying to help and give advice but you really should do your own research and decide for yourself what's right for you.

It's your head, ride safe.

[GungaDin]

I've had a look at a few "top grade" helmets made here, after a few months the metal buckles for the chin strap go rusty.

Why don't they use nylon buckles? They outlast metal any day, they're good enough for luggage!

------------

What is the name of the cotton under helmet (sweat) caps, so that I can Google the correct term?

cheers

New Yam 135 LC owner.

[LingPing]

I just got a helmet made by Real, it appears to be of a decent quality and is certainly better than any other Thai helmets I have seen. Very comfy and you can get them in any size unlike the shops which stock Index helmets. It also appears to be DOT approved.

amazin information and entertainment guys..... but where can one get one of these REAL helmets in Chiang Mai?!?!

[GungaDin]

I just got a helmet made by Real, it appears to be of a decent quality and is certainly better than any other Thai helmets I have seen. Very comfy and you can get them in any size unlike the shops which stock Index helmets. It also appears to be DOT approved.

amazin information and entertainment guys..... but where can one get one of these REAL helmets in Chiang Mai?!?!

www.real-helmets.com and look for the dealer list.

Try http://www.real-helmets.com/index.php?opti...er&Itemid=5

[Netfan]

I've had a look at a few "top grade" helmets made here, after a few months the metal buckles for the chin strap go rusty.

------------

What is the name of the cotton under helmet (sweat) caps, so that I can Google the correct term?

cheers

New Yam 135 LC owner.

I want to say its a "baclava", but i think thats a Greek desert. It's something like that though. Anyway, you can get the caps at any decent bike shop. They come in cotton or the "wick-away" material. should be available at pattaya bike week.

[GungaDin]

I've had a look at a few "top grade" helmets made here, after a few months the metal buckles for the chin strap go rusty.

What is the name of the cotton under helmet (sweat) caps, so that I can Google the correct term?

cheers

New Yam 135 LC owner.

I want to say its a "balaclava", but i think thats a Greek desert. It's something like that though. Anyway, you can get the caps at any decent bike shop. They come in cotton or the "wick-away" material. should be available at pattaya bike week.

Thanks Netfan, it's Headsweats "Coolmax" wick-away skullcap I'm looking for.

[LingPing]

i tried the Yamaha helmets today. They seem to have a Thai Safety Standard number!!! Does anyone know what these are like. The full face one was 1400B