New Helmets Available At Sumet Cycle

[siam cbr]

I picked up two REAL helmets at Sumet and they're great.

DOT Certified at that price is fantastic value. Comfy fit too and with replaceable lining (350b I think) they're a great deal.

Edited June 24, 2012 by siam cbr

[taichiplanet]

Out of curiosity, are any of those brands (Bilmola, LS2, and Rider) DOT, Snell, or ECE certified?

The LS2 models we sell all have ECE certification. Most of the Bilmola models also have ECE certification. A couple of them also have DOT certification. The Rider helmets only have TIS certification though. I'd probably only use the Rider for short trips on my scooter, but would be comfortable using either the Bilmola or LS2 on my CBR 1000 RR.

I may be wrong but the Bilmola is not certified, even on their website they state "All Bilmola helmets are constructed to meet European (ECE R22.05) and American (DOT, SNELL) safety standards." There is a big difference between 'to meet' and 'certified'.

According to the ECE regs 22 Rev 4 (5.1.9.) "In order to be considered as approved under this Regulation, subject to the provisions of paragraph 9. below, every protective helmet shall bear, sewn to its retention system, one of the labels referred to in paragraph 5.1.4. above. A different method of securing the label is authorized if it complies with the above provisions. "

http://www.unece.org...egs/r022r4e.pdf

The couple of Bilmola helmets i've seen in Thailand don't have that label, though not sure about their Carbon Fibre one. Also not sure about that step lock quick release buckle, whether it complies or not. I noticed some of the newer REAL helmets have this style buckle too.

The UK SHARP rating system has some LS2 helmets rated, but no Bilmola or Rider helmets or REAL; which doesn't necessarily mean they won't get rated or won't get certified over there. http://sharp.direct....-helmet-ratings

The USA has the NHTSA which test products related with vehicles, no mention of Bilmola, LS2, REAL or Rider; which may or may not mean something! For the USA, if the helmet doesn't have labels attached to the helmet that states manufacturer's name, the model, size, month/year of manufacturer, construction materials and owner's info then it does not comply.

http://www.nhtsa.gov...ems/comply/ (do a search on equipment , and In the FMVSS search box, click 218 to limit it to helmets)

Maybe in some of the other EC countries these helmets have been tested and comply, if any one has info please share.

Don't forget that DOT is a self regulated certification, the manufacturer themselves put their helmets to the test to see if it passes the DOT regs.

Having said all that i quite like the REAL helmets, and use their DOT stickered ones. Also the Bilmola Replicon looks interesting, though the buckle puts me off.

Edited June 24, 2012 by taichiplanet

[flying]

Also the Bilmola Replicon looks interesting, though the buckle puts me off.

I recently bought the Bilmola advantage for the scooter.

Yes the buckle at first put me off but on closer inspection I do think it is ok.

You know one interesting thing about the Bilmola....

I bought it at a helmet shop in Chiang Mai & the owner

showed me a Helmet made in Japan.

I have forgotten the name but think it started with a Y

Anyway he told me the Bilmola was a copy of this &

upon inspection I have to agree. Except the Japanese helmet was much heavier

(better shell material?) & 3x the price.

[mozzieslapper]

What is ECE certification ?

DOT ?

[flying]

What is ECE certification ?

DOT ?

[SumetCycle]

Let me check and see which models have certification and which ones don't. KTM sells the Destroyer model in Austria, so certainly that one is certified. They Bilmola Explorer is rebranded as Attivo and sold by Vemar in the European market as well. Regardless of certification, Bilmola offers quality helmets at very reasonable prices. Here is a review of the Vemar Attivo which costs 9,000 baht in western markets. http://www.webbikeworld.com/r2/motorcycle-helmet/vemar-attivo/ The same helmet (Bilmola Explorer) is only 3,900 baht here in Thailand.