I went to Motorcycle Live last week, my only intended purchase was a new crash helmet and narrowed it down to a Shoei NXR or an AGV Corsa. Anyway the AGV was just to tight and the shell seemed to be an odd shape when on my head. Shoei was nice but colours seemed a bit tame. I ended up at the Helmet City stand and the X-Lite 802rr Chaz Davies design looked great. My usual size is 61/62 XL. Tried the XL on and felt a touch big, tried the L on and seemed snug and was pushing my cheeks in, I know this is what they are like new and they give a bit but my teeth grinding on the inside of my cheeks. I have spoke to Helmet City and they are more than happy to exchange for the XL but I am reluctant to do so because after the easing of the cheek pads it will be probably to loose. I keep trying it on but my question is How Tight is Too Tight. I'm sure it will be fine.
Does it not have interchangeable cheek pads. Just looked on the sportsbike shop site and it appears you can get a 35mm, 40mm and 45mm cheekpads for size L. Check which ones are standard and ask helmetcity to exchange them. Hope this helps.
Yeah, quite a few manufacturers have diff size cheek pads and other internal paddings for the perfect fit nowadays. Shame the feckers selling em don't seem up to speed in pointing this out lol!
I went through exactly the same thing last year, I even ordered a second helmet the next size up so I could compare the two!! Shoei GT air. Anyway, didn't know what to do for the best, sat in my lounge watching TV for a couple of nights with the smaller helmet on to the point it made my head and face sore. I too spoke too helmet city who were fantastic. My advice, keep the small one. Worse case scenario, you have to spend circa £40 on a larger skull or cheek pads, but believe you me, it will "give". Mine now feels like it was made for me, never moves at speed and very comfortable. My HJC which was the larger size now feels very loose and like wearing an old p1ss pot. And if it helps, im a bloke whose got a base of skull and temporal skull fracture, so I take the fit of my helmets very seriously.
Also, to check the skull size is correct, make sure you can't get anything between you forehead and the helmet, if you can get a finger tip between them, it's too loose.
Perfect advice Tonic. Don't remove the tags and wear it in house for extended periods, watching TV etc. Any problems send it back. That 's the best thing about buying mail order ( not in this case I know). I am a staunch supporter of buying local but to shell out £5-600 on a snug helmet from a local dealer only to find it gives you a headache after half an hour just isn't on.
Provided the helmet is the right shape for your head (and all manuafacturers vary) (and as a consultant to a number of manufacturers I have seen and tried most), providing it is not causing excessive pressure around for example the temple, then the tighter you can get it in the first instance the better. A helmet liner will react to sweat, heat and even the simple process of putting the helmet on and off. Over a period of about 4 weeks regular use it will mould to your head shape and give by up to 1 complete full size. If you go for a comfortable fit in the first instance, then there is a very good chance that a month down the road, it will actually be too big for you which increases the possibility of the helmet coming off in a crash, and is often the cause for many complaining about a helmet being noisy. About a month down the road, I assure you it will have moulded itself to your head shape and you minimise the risk of what is called rotation (helmet coming off due to size issue) in the future.
