Open face helmets

[MikeT]

We have been having an unusually dry/settled/warm spell of weather (yes even in July/August thats unusual in Ireland), anyway it prompted me to dust off my open face lid for short blasts and relegate the Schuberth for longer rides only for now.

The interesting thing I found was that with my screen up to the max I seem to get much reduced turbulence and noise than I would wearing the schuberth in chin doen visor up mode, in fact when wearing the schuberth turbulence prevents a visor up position at high speed.
Also bugs are not much of a problem with the open face, I found that about 95% of bugs get splatted on the screen, only the very occasional one getting through to my glasses.
Besides the obvious benefit of cooling breeezes in hot weather the open face is also easier on the neck at about 1/3 lighter than the schuberth.

I guess a down side is the reduced safety benefit with the open face, I wonder what others do/think ?

BTW I'm about 5'8", ride with seat at mid-position and am reliably informed I have a larger 1150 screen on my bike (came from the dealer that way, one of the last 1100s).

Cheers

[vince20721]

It's funny you should mention this issue, as I was just about to bring it up myself. I am in the Washington, D.C. area and in the summer months, we have to deal with the three H's: Hot, Hazy, and Humid weather. I like to commute to work every now and then, and I use my HJC three quarter helmet with shield. I have noticed that it is a lot quieter than my Nolan flip-up helmet. Like you, I am aware that it is not as safe as a full face helmet, but I am willing to balance that with the comfort of having air hit my face every now and then. It just gets too hot behind a full face in this area.

[rdfarr]

The following gives me pause regarding wearing an open face helmet regularly: (from Jeff Dean website)
http://jeff.dean.home.att.net/swisher.htm

[honard]

Originally Posted by rdfarr

The following gives me pause regarding wearing an open face helmet regularly: (from Jeff Dean website)
http://jeff.dean.home.att.net/swisher.htm

Sold! I was considering going from my full face Arai to a flip up style Shoe/HJC/*.*, I'll stick with the Arai.

[MikeT]

Originally Posted by honard

Sold! I was considering going from my full face Arai to a flip up style Shoe/HJC/*.*, I'll stick with the Arai.

I must say that picture is scary, but if you want to weight the relative risks take a look also at the motorcycle accident survey at:
http://www.atsb.gov.au/road/res-exec/cr174ex.cfm

I must admit it surprised me that one of their results showed:
no significant increase in risk associated with wearing an open face helmet compared to a full face helmet

The exact details were:
Facial injuries were relatively uncommon, with 95% of drivers having no injuries in this body region. Injuries to the face appeared to be more common to those wearing open faced helmets than full face helmets (8% versus 4%) but this difference was not statistically significant (z=-0.92, p>.05).

And I guess with a flip up the safety difference could be inferred to be much less assuming you ride with the chin bar down most of the time ?

[ErricZ]

I only believe in statistics 50% of the time ... and only when they don't directly relate to the amount of facial skin I'll have left at the end of the day.

Full face for me now and full face for me always. You don't get much skin to start with, I like to keep what I have in all the same places. *shrug*

[vince20721]

The one sight that makes me shake my head are those bikers that wear a full face helmet but have on shorts or jeans and tennis shoes! Oh, and they also have on a t-shirt that flaps in the back as they're riding down the street!

[Terry]

I think we all agree that this is a personal decision.

However, from my perspective, and certainly in Central London, the increased peripheral vision and general all round awareness advantages which I guess help me to avoid an accident in the first place, outweigh the risk of increased injury in the event of a spill.

My London lid is a Roof Boxer (a closing open face rather than an opening full face) - In this kind of muggy weather I do use it on the open road but it's not great in closed mode.

Of course in the heart of the Metrolops, my speeds are lower so this would also help.

Normally on the open road, I switch between my AGV and the Lazer Revolution flip front. The AGV is quieter and lighter, the Lazer is more flexible and the most mist free lid I've ever worn.

[MikeT]

I'm with you there Terry,

I also have a collection , Flip up (most used), Open Face and Full Face , using whatever the conditions, ride and my mood suit best.

Cheers

[Dee Duble Yuh]

Originally Posted by Terry

<snip>Normally on the open road, I switch between my AGV and the Lazer Revolution flip front.<snip>

I hope you pull into the side of the road and stop before you switch. Changing helmets while moving can be dangerous, don't you know.

(Note to self: Must stop posting facetious responses to serious threads.)