Modern Vespa

Mateo's recent posting on the Shuberth J1 helmet got me thinking about interior sun visors, and what models are out there. I'm in Cannonball-preparation mode, and I'm looking for a suitable full-face or modular helmet.

If you know of a full-face helmet with interior sun visor, tell us about it.

scorpion exo 1000

g

Waay too heavy - 4+ lbs.

Caberg (i'm not 100% sure but i think ALL models have built in sun visor)

both of mine do

Here's a few I found on webbikeworld:

Airoh TR1
Caberg Justissimo
Caberg Trip
Dainese Jet Stream Tourer
HJC FS-10
HJC FS-Max
Nolan X-Lite X-1002
Schuberth J1
Scorpion EXO-1000
URBAN Helmets N350 Moto
Vox Flip-Up Modula


One quick and dirty suggestion was to buy a roll of automotive tint strip for a couple of bucks & use it as a 'disposable sun visor' , removing it on rainy days.

Regards
from Ottawa
Harvey

This is what I use: Airoh SV55-S



Not so hot about modular part (very seldom used by me as a feature) but the internal visor is great. Really great when you ride through freeway tunnels or canyons. I'd assume the same type of usefulness applies to riding through downtown areas on a sunny day as light/shadow conditions change.

I've tried on the Caberg Trip and it's actually very nice for that money, though like most Cabergs the sizing is very specific. If you're too oval, or have a large shnoz you may find that the sun visor comes down on your nose. But if it fits well, it's a nice modular option.

Robotribe- you say you go on and on - sooo - I want to know why you dont like the airoh. I am also interested in hearing more on the caberg trip fit - for round heads only like shoie? The thing I have heard the most about internal sun visors is that they dont come down far enough to close off the light coming from below. My wife has a modular Shuberth (heavy and noisy- her opinion) but says the viso is half way thru her vision area full down. I want to know how well these other helmets work- not just if they have a sunshade! Right now Im leaning toward the cagerg trip . 3 reasons LIGHT-SUNSHADE-QUICK CONNECT. Although Im worried it may not fit my OVAL head. No one seems to go in this drection. Nolan for me is a little too tight front to back. HELP

Actually the sun visor on the Trip is about the best one I've tried on because it does go really low....IF the helmet fits your head well. Unfortunately I can't really give you a good example of the interior fit b/c I've tried on Cabergs where the visor hit me on the nose even though the helmet was a good fit. But the Trip (or Rhyno as it's called here) fit me well in all regards. I do own a Nolan N32 (open face) and it used to rub my forehead pretty hard, though it's loosened up a little bit.

This is my current solution-- one roll is enough to make 'visors' for a small army. Works pretty well, actually!

--Deborah

I have a roundish head and the Airoh fits really well. What I don't like about the Airoh may not be specific to this brand, but just that I've found that personally, the flip up thing is rarely used. The only time I use it and keep the helmet on is when I'm filling the gas tank. Other than that, I'd don't see the point of riding around with it up since that defeats the purpose of wearing a fullface to begin with. Plus, what I think bugs me the most about the modular feature is the fact that with this model (don't know if it's the case with all modular helmets) you need to have it flipped up to put it on and take it off. I find that the most annoying part of all-an added task to putting my helmet on or taking it off. Lame.

On the other hand, the internal visor comes down just above the tip of my nose and is very functional. Plus, the location of the lever on the side is really convenient as well. I've seen that some models have the lever on the top of the helmet and I think that's just stupid to have to reach up that far when you're riding. Bad design.

SO, in shirt, modular flip-up feature is totally unnecessary IMHO, but the internal visor, at least on my Airoh, is very well designed and very useful.

As for noise level, I wear earplugs all when I ride, so I'm not a good judge of how loud or quiet helmets are. In my case, every helmet I wear is quiet.

huh? it's 3.6, which is like. .15lbs heavier than a shoei.

my airoh tr1 has a built in flip down sun visor.

everything about this helmet is CRAP, apart form the sun visor, the lil switch is cool and can be operated easily when riding along at 80.

its noisy, its broken, the little bolts on the side for visor removal are made from aluminium and they just round off, its cold, its a wierd shape, it lets water in easily, the visor steams up wayy to easily, the visor is a wierd shape so you can't buy those anti for linings for it, and the chin piece to buy seporate is 60 quid!

the sun visor works awesome and i use it constantly with my balaclava to hide my face. (when you look at my visor you can see nothing but blackness)

my react-to-light lenses in my specs do most of the light filtering but the visor is great for when the sun is low.


teh airoh tr1 is like the worst of the bunch, my old skool XPEED budget helmet was 20 times more comfortable and less noisy but it didnt have the lil visor. and the budget skid lid saved my head when i hit pavement at 20mph on my old scoot.

I'm a stickler for weight (or against weight, I guess) but I'd rather be carrying a few more ounces if my helmet is quiet and vents well. In my experience, quiet is dependent on fit as much as design but venting is pretty much all design.

Scorpions vent well and, for me, fit extremely well, helping to minimize noise. While I haven't ridden at speed with an EXO 1000 yet, I assume it will be quieter than a 400 or 700 because of the inflatable cheek pads. Could be wrong though.

I didn't want to like this helmet as much as I do but it fits and feels better than my 400. If you have a Scorpion shaped head, this helmet has fabulous features at a remarkable price.

"Helmet Weight
Here's where all the gimmicks and geegaws cause a problem. Our EXO-1000 in size XL weighs in at a whopping 1821grams (4 lbs., 0-1/4 oz.), which makes it #78 out of the 83 helmets we've reviewed at the date of publication.

In fact, this gives the EXO-1000 the very dubious distinction of being the heaviest full-face, non-modular helmet we've ever reviewed. The only helmets that are heavier are all modulars: the Schuberth C2; the Nolan N102; the Nolan X-lite X-1002; the KBC FFR; and the stupendously massive HJC FS-Max (Modular) at 1911 grams (all in size XL).

That's too heavy, and although I will say that the helmet does seem fairly well balanced so that the weight isn't riding up top, the mass can be felt when turning my head side-to-side." - http://www.webbikeworld.com/r2/motorcycle-helmet/scorpion/exo-1000/

I have the Caberg Trip. The internal sun visor comes just below my eyeline. It does the job well - and I would not go back to a helmet without a sun visor - but the position could be better for me. Like others have said it all depends on individual shape. You really need to try these on before buying.

Caberg also do a full face (non modular) called the V2 which has built in sun visor.

Nolan N103.

I bought it a month ago but had no time to test it extensively (the weather is constantly around or under 0°C, these days, and roads are frozen in the morning).
As soon as I will have the occasion to wear it for some time, I will post my impressions.

I came very close to buying the Nolan N102 (now the 103) but the more I evaluated the interior visor the less I liked it. I suspect it would be the first thing to fail with its fine springs and buttons.
I opted for a Nitro modular and I wear a pair of Nike sports sunglasses with very thin, flexible plastic arms that I can painlessly/easily put on and off when wearing the helmet.

Pretty much all Nolan helmets (the ones that have a visor) have VPS now (the flip down tinted visor on top)

Seth

They do, but every report I've ever read says that it's very noisy in the up position. It appears the N103 (yet to be released here in the US) has remedied that by moving the visor inside.

The new HJC Sy-Max II is said to have an internal visor, though it won't be released until March, I do believe.

http://www.advrider.com/forums/showthread.php?t=311486

...and the SyMaxII visor mechanism looked more fragile than the Nolans.
Nice looking helmet but it was just to gimmicky for me.

Spend $100 on the vega summit and then spend another $20 for the smoke visor. They are easy to change out. I like that its modular and even in XL it doesnt weigh too much.

My experience with interchangeable visors is that you always have the wrong visor when you need it, and carrying around an extra visor (and trying not to scratch it in the underseat pet warmer) is challenging at best. I'm trying to carry as few extra things as possible for the Cannonball race, and stopping to change the visor is definitely out of the question. Heck, I'd like to make the trip without so much as a pair of sunglasses on me.

I have to say that, for me at least, the Caberg Justissimo is fantastic. I have my second now, flip up works well and the visor is great (can be close to the bridge of your nose, sho check it first.

Also, the Caberg anti fog is second to none. Lasts for the life of the helmet and works as well as those inserts which, to me, cause problems with night riding.

The newer Cabergs have a few interesting features too such as headset channels for wires etc.

They are good value too.

Charles.

Not a full face but it does have the fighter pilot inside sun shield.
It's the OSBE Tornado: Fighter Pilot Style Helmet

Dave

For a full face I'd go with the Roof Boxer V

Dave

Thanks everyone for the many suggestions. This is a good list.

I note with some regret, though, that the majority of these helmets are, for the most part, unavailable in the US, and thus it becomes difficult to try one on for fit. For whatever reason, my head size is all over the map in different brands and trying to figure out the right size is a study in trial and error, something fairly incompatible with ordering a helmet overseas.

Out of all of these, the Nolan N103 looks like the best possibility for me, if it ever shows up in the US.

I'm almost tempted to make a quick trip to London to buy a new helmet.

You can write it off as a business trip.

While you're there, though, if you wouldn't mind getting me a few things...

I hadn't heard of the nolan N103- does any one have a link that shows it? The HJC Symax II is a tempting offering. It is heavy though.I was trying to guess what it woud feel like with an extra pound on my head all day- in the wind of course!

Here you go:

Wow - that is a nice helmet! I may even wait a little to see if they bring it over! The nolan fit can be a little short front to back for me though.Thanks for the info. Is there a web site address where we can leave a request to bring this over?

The Nolan 103 is one of the nicest helmet that I've see in a while.

I like the fact that it isn't covered in graffiti that looks like a seagull hit it carrying a couple of paint brushes.

Agree!
And it is not that expensive, compared to Japanese, too...I got it at my 'favourite' dealer's for 260EUR = 385$ (Street price - official price: 309EUR)

I was surprised when I did a search for "Akuma" and found nothing!

Just saw these yesterday. These have a built-in Li-Ion btty and circuit for powering a front LED flashlight, rear red LED "taillights for hi-vis, and they just annouced a push-button "Tint-On-Demand" visor, avail around July-August that will darken/lighten in about 20 sec.

Sounds worth checking out. WebBikeWorld gave good reviews to several models, and I haven't even mentioned the killer graphics byKiller Paint!

There will also be a plug-in Bluetooth Bike-bike Comm module later this year. As for weight, according to the WebBikeWorld test: "Our size XL Stealth weighs a relatively light 1631 grams (3 lbs., 9-1/2 oz.), which is pretty amazing, considering the extra weight of the battery, LED lights and electronics."

There are several unique styles:

http://akumahelmets.com/products.html

Shark Evoline too, but it's probably not available in the US....not readily anyway. I hope to try one of these on this week.

Jess-
Ever considered one of these: http://www.helmetheadcyclegear.com/cgi-bin/eShop/index.cgi?exact_match=yes&product=%20Sunblockers ? I've found the built-in sun visor helmets pretty heavy, and like you say, noisy if on the outside--both significant concerns on a long-distance ride like Cannonball. Not sure if it gives the coverage you're looking for, but they're cheap and light...maybe worth a test run.
Dongoose

Those sunblockers work good for keeping the sun out of your eyes at a high angle. They dont work well enough for me when I'm driving into the sun. If you leave them on the face shield they make some of them brittle after a while

Here's one - The new Vemar Jiano- webbike world has a picture and link. 300 dollars from motonation.com

grrr when will N103 come to US? I have N102 and love it so much (have almost 2 yrs) want other one... N103!