A good helmet by any measure.
Written: May 29 '02
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Product Rating:
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Pros: Comfortable, good ventilation control, light weight.
Cons: Expensive, Odd visor system.
The Bottom Line: A great fitting helmet that is extremely comfortable and has great ventilation. No product is perfect but the Arai helmet comes close. If this helmet fits you, buy it.
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| dwehmeyer's Full Review: Arai Arai Quantum/f Solids |
I recently purchased a new motorcycle and at the same time picked up an Arai Quantum/f helmet in black. My old helmet a Shoei RF-R was the first helmet I'd ever purchased. And due to my inexperience at the time, the helmet was really inadequate for my uses. It was slightly too big for me, and had a horrible time fogging up. It didn't seem to matter what configuration I had the ventilation controls in, as the airflow never seemed to change. What I didn't realize at the time, was how much time I'd be spending wearing that helmet. Over the past two years I have been gradually changing from a 'cage-driver' to a rider and have been spending more and more time with a helmet attached to my noggin.
So with much more experience under my belt as a rider and time online researching how to make sure your helmet fits, I felt armed with enough information to make an informed decision on how to get a good helmet that fit.
My decision came down to the Shoei Z-II and the Arai Quantum/f. Everything I'd read said the Shoei was quieter, and had a better visor system, and the Arai was more comfortable and had a better ventilation system. Off to the dealer I went to get my new bike and pick out a helmet. While the salesman was doing the paperwork for my new bike, I'm over at the accessories counter checking out the new helmets. I was not able to find a Shoei helmet that fit my head, they didn't have the one size I needed. That left me with the Arai. The saleswoman went and found me a unit in my size from the back.
As I take the helmet from the box the first thing I notice is how plush the inside of this helmet is. It's like a luxury recliner for your head, the fabric is ultra-supple and feels great against the skin, and the cushions are plush and conforming without putting too much pressure on the cheeks. The overall fit is superb, much better than my previous Shoei. It is snug all around without being uncomfortable. Also this helmet is very light, which of course is a good thing in a helmet, if you are going to be wearing it for any length of time.
One of the reasons I was partial to the Shoei from the beginning, was the vents are much more integrated into the shell of the helmet. With the Arai, there are simply holes punched into the outer shell and these are covered with small plastic ducts which direct air into and out of the holes as well as capping the holes when you flip the little switches. Of course Arai's system does work as billed, but I feel they really should be more integrated into the shell design instead of looking like afterthoughts. I think this is a major reason for the Shoei's getting top bill for being quieter helmets, since anything sticking out of the helmet is going to cause additional wind noise.
Out on the road with my new helmet I notice how transparent the visor is. I find my self trying to "see" the face sheild and can't. It is like it's not even there. I don't know if that's due to newer high quality optical plastics or if my old visor was just that scratched up. None the less, it's great to have that much clarity.
As for the visor removal, it's not terribly complicated, but is odd. It requires you to hold the helmet against your body, face shield out, visor open, lift these two tabs and pry and lift the visor out and away from the helmet. While it is odd, it does seem to work and is secure enough.
Visor position is another thing that is odd with the Arai. There are no ratchet notches for the visor. It will stay in position where you put it at low speed, but when the speeds go up you have no option but to let it close. There is a partially cracked position for increased ventilation but it is a very small amount. I haven't ridden in cold and or rainy weather since getting the helmet, so I don't know how effective this will be. My old helmet had to be open a good inch in heavy rain to keep from fogging. Hopefully the superior ventilation on the Arai will make the whole issue moot.
Ventilation controls are abundant on the Arai, three position mouth ventilation, two on-off visor/forehead vents, two on-off top intake vents, and two on-off rear exit vents. There are also two exit vents down low on the back of the helmet out to the sides a bit that are not adjustable. The controllable vents are easy to open and close, but since there are seven switches that are used to control the ventilation, it can take some time to open or close all of them and doing it while riding will cuase you to reach across your face to get to the one on the right side of the visor top, obscuring vision.
For wind noise it seems to be around the same as my old helmet. But more solid build and a better fit do seem to decrease the overall noise level somewhat. My old helmet had a mechanical rattle, obviously this helmet doesn't.
I use a ChatterBox helmet radio, mostly to listen to the radio but also for 2-Way communications. Fitting the speakers and microphone to the helmet was simple. The helmet is designed with small recesses inside to put the speakers in. These pockets are just small indentations in the foam liner that are almost exactly the same size as the speakers. With the speakers in and secure and you can't feel them at all. My old helmet required me to cut the liner, dig out the foam with a razor, insert the speakers and sew the liner back up. All told this was a much, much better experience.
I have no qualms about recommending this helmet. If it fits you should have no problem with it. I gave a four star rating, because like most products nothing is perfect but this one is close. I think the visor system is a bit quirky and the vents should be better integrated into the shell of the helmet, and thus more aerodynamic. All in all, there isn't much to gripe about with the Arai Quantum/f.
Recommended:
Yes
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Epinions.com ID:
dwehmeyer
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Location: Marysville, WA
Reviews written: 1
Trusted by: 0 members
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