free website stats program what style of helmet | Page 3 | Harley Davidson Forums

what style of helmet

In North Carolina a new law went into effect this year... you have to wear a DOT approved helmet or get a ticket if caught and that tickets comes with points against your licenses! I used to wear a brain bucket in the summer time and have gone to a very nice good fitting 1/2 helmet for the summer months, one that does not make my head look like a mushroom. Took a long time to find one that fits and looks good. In the winter I have a 3/4 Bell helmet with a full face shield that keeps the cold air off my face at interstate speeds. According to the reports I found say more than 1/2 of ALL motorcycle fatalities riders were not wearing a helmet. After witnessing my son flip his brand new BMW end over end after a dog ran out in front of him at 70 mph right in front of me, I no longer have a problem wearing a helmet. Our group of 10 riders were out on a cool winter morning and I was the bike behind my son and saw it unfold right in front of my eyes, he could not have avoided it. His full face helmet was scraped up from chin to the top of his head. If he was not wearing a helmet he would be dead or his whole face would have been scrapped off..

And yet we (you and I both) still wear the 1/2 or 3/4 versions instead of the full face. This thread proves style and comfort trump safety in the vast majority of cases, even after witnessing the results.
 
I have a 3/4 that I purchased and a half that I got from the guy that I bought the bike from. The 1/2 has only seen my head to see if it fit, else I have never ridden with it on. Living in PA/NJ, it gets hot in the summer, but the 3/4 helmet is plenty cool for me and I personally would rather be safe then leaving my wonderful family behind cause I didn't protect myself properly. While riding is a risk, I choose to minimize it and along with the person above, I too where the armor (all year round) and am working on getting a pair of chaps too.
 
I find an open face helmet gives better visual awareness while city riding but also carry a full face for when the weather or ride dictates. One thing though, whatever helmet you go with make sure its a perfect fit or your just wasting your time.
 
I have a 3/4 that I purchased and a half that I got from the guy that I bought the bike from. The 1/2 has only seen my head to see if it fit, else I have never ridden with it on. Living in PA/NJ, it gets hot in the summer, but the 3/4 helmet is plenty cool for me and I personally would rather be safe then leaving my wonderful family behind cause I didn't protect myself properly. While riding is a risk, I choose to minimize it and along with the person above, I too where the armor (all year round) and am working on getting a pair of chaps too.

I think this is a very common misconception. I really don't believe a 3/4 is any safer than a 1/2 helmet. The MSF course showed the statistics for impact zones in a motorcycle accident and the vast majority are on the jaw/chin/face area. The only true leap in safety from no helmet or a 1/2 is to go all the way to the full face helmet.

I'm not passing judgement on any of us. I wear a 3/4, I've thought about getting a 1/2, and I rode lidless a couple times while at Biketoberfest. I just think we're all trying to rationalize anything less than the full face when we all truly know the facts deep down inside.
 
Let me just add this about the 3/4 vs 1/2 helmet from my personal experiences.

I wore a 1/2 helmet for many years but going back 20 or so years, I wore a 3/4 helmet and I was hit by a car which landed me with the back of my head on the edge of the curb when I landed. If I had been wearing the 1/2 helmet at that time, I wouldn't be typing this most likely.
I wear what I'm comfortable with which is the 1/2 helmet in the hot weather regardless of the safety factor. If I were concerned more with the safety factor of riding, I wouldn't be riding on 2 wheels to begin with. JMHO.
 
Last edited:
DOT Half helmet, Florida summers are HOT, it has a zip in lower for the winter which works surprisingly well.
 
A helmet and a seatbelt should be an individuals choice IMO,but I always buckle up.I also choose to wear my helmet in Delaware because I choose to.Anyhow,I've always figured if I go down I'm probably not going to get up.So far so good.I've never been down in 39 years of riding on the street.
 
Last edited:
3/4 face for summer.

Old age is setting in - bought a (GASP! HORRORS!) full face WHITE one for winter.

For the young un's: back in the day IF you rode a Harely and wore a helm at all, it HAD to be black or you just weren't cool. White was definitely out!

Sort of like fingerless gloves today... OH LAWSIE, HERE WE A-GOES AGAIN!!!


:small3d023:
 
I haven't really started riding yet(I just got my license this last summer and still can't afford a bike...that runs) but I will always wear a helmet. I've always been kind of intrigued by the helmets that can switch back between 3/4 and Full Face(I'm sure they've been mentioned before. I didn't read the full thread).


I was lucky enough to learn to wear a helmet on something a little cheaper than a motorcycle. I was just on a mountain bike going a little under 30 MPH down a hill. I was trying to get up on the sidewalk to go off into a park to ride around a little bit. I missed the ramp, hit the curb, and flying flying/rolling on the sidewalk. I had two stitches in my elbow and a bunch of road rash all over my arms and side. The reason I'm telling this story is because even at that relatively low speed I still had dents in the brand new helmet I had gotten the day before. If I wasn't wearing that helmets those dents would have been in my head.
 
Totally off-subject King, but I love your signature line. Too cool and WAY, (unfortunately), too true.

Well we are talking helmets,right?OK,I'll give you that I might be a little off subject.We can discuss helmet laws on another day in a different thread.Having said that,my helmet probably wouldn't protect a fly's head.But that's my choice and it should remain my choice.
 
Back
Top