No too scientific a review, visit one factory and decide..... I was always told one either has an Arai or a Shoei head. I had an Arai but was much tighter than the equivalent Shoei, so sold it after a year of never wearing it. So firmly a Shoei wearer, latest an X-Spirit I think. But like tyres and oil, suits, gloves and boots there is no best, just what works for you.
Sort of, clearly an Arai will be best out of a LS2 or Arai, Dainese will be best out of Frank Thomas and Dainese, Sidi will be best out of Merlin or Sidi etc. Price points, budgets, R&D all come into it. Some products made to meet min specification others made to exceed. But I get your point and being a bit pedantic, I blame this bloody weather.
Don't blame the weather - valid points. I have had a few different helmet inc. a nice carbon HJC, but the Shoeis have been comfiest. And I accept that brand reputation can be a significant influence. But at the end of the day we all protect our freedoms to choose. My first ever suit (textile) was from Lidl,and frankly was the equal of most higher level brands I've had since. Now just ride in leather(s). Choice.
I’m a HJC guy, had an arai and have a shark in the garage too but I keep going back to the HJC’s. Not the best on the market but certainly worth every penny, I have one of my old ones from 10 years ago and even though I don’t wear it anymore it looks almost brand new still. To each their own.
I've been wearing arai since the early 2000.s pissed off now with the wind noise from visor pods . it's a very old design and I struggle to see why arai carry on with it . next lid is going to be a carbon 6d I think . love the mips system in them .
It seems as though Arai produce a very tough outer shell and then line it with various density foam liners. This is all good stuff in producing top level protection. Shoei claim that their AIM+ shell technology is more flexible and the impact forces will be better absorbed and distributed than with a hard inflexible shell design. Anyway decided to dismantle a Shark Race R Pro helmet to see what they are up to. Will keep the carbon one and so this one was "spare" about three or four times removed - time to take it apart and have a look inside The foam seemed to be single density and as hard as wood. It may help with keeping the shell rigid, but that is one rock hard bit of foam. A look inside the very thin shell. Quite flexible, and actually quite thin, but it is a composite. Gave it a bash with a blunt instrument - it broke quite easily but it did not go through to the inside, it just split. I picked the outer bits off to reveal the next layer of fibers. As good as their word - some carbon and other fibers ! Conclusion It seems Arai reckon that they have a strong outer shell so that they can line it with varying levels of softer EPS foam - and that EPS foam will absorb the internal impact forces of your head rattling around inside the helmet. A bit disappointed that the Shark did not have different layers of soft EPS foam. That EPS liner in that helmet is rock hard and I can't imagine it would have any give in it at all - and the old brain would continue to rattle around inside your skull. Really is a solid - I had no idea they could make EPS foam that hard ! This is central to Arai's argument that "other" manufacturers (like this Shark) have a lightweight and flexible outer shell which needs a hard internal EPS foam liner to give it strength and rigidity. The downside being that there is no internal shock absorption for the poor old brain. Interesting. Maybe Arai and Shoei know something after all
I went across the road on my front at speed( from a twat with no brake lights who stopped sharply in the wet and I went sideways) and was stopped when helmet hit the curb - luckily no oncoming. I started with Arai but went to Shoei for better comfort for my shape. The Shoei certainly saved my head and neck on my off. Hardly a mark so wasn't sure about getting rid of it. In the end I did and got another X2 but still got the old one in case...
I used to work at Hein Gericke, and Arai offered a service, where you could send the helmet back to them, and they would send you back a detailed report on shell integrity, the thickness of the padding (Had any compression taken place) and the strap fixings. Even threw in a nice refresh of the whole thing. As far as I am aware, they were the only manufacturer to supply that service. So might be worth emailing Shoei to see what they say.
At the motorbike show in Birmingham they 'service' your helmet and also offer a custom fitting. I had this done and it was great, guy was here from Japan to do the fit, knew his stuff. The service is just a general check over and bit of a clean. Not sure how far they strip it down etc as I didn't hang around to watch. Not bad for free though!
Had a couple of Arais in the past and one of them was my longest serving helmet. Very comfortable but now they've gone away from offering a long oval shape they simply don't sit right on my head so they're not an option. I've also noticed that Arai have historically performed not too well in the SHARP tests. Not a great advertisement for a company that supposedly makes the safest helmets on the market. I'm now riding around in an LS2 lid. It's very light, very quiet and most importantly.......fits perfectly. Gets the same SHARP score as most Arai lids and it's a fraction of the price.
I had one of my top vents repaired free of charge on the Arai stand at Birmingham bike show. Top service.
