Bell vs giro: what is the leading brand in bicycling helmets?



Leading brand in bicycle helmets: Giro or Bell?

  • Giro

    Votes: 4 44.4%
  • Bell

    Votes: 5 55.6%

  • Total voters
    9

Jade Croo

New Member
Oct 11, 2017
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Hi all!

I am conducting research for a college study and would like to get your thoughts on who you believe to be the leading brand in bicycle helmets: Giro or Bell? And why?

Thank you for taking the time to answer!

Jade
 
I really don’t care much.
All helmets are tested against the same standard.
All who pass the test promise to provide - at least - a certain amount of protection.
Reaching this base level of protection is (almost) all the test is about.
There’s NO testing of how much protection ABOVE the base level a helmet will provide.
So ”leading” - how?
What important feature would they try to do better in?
There’s MIPS of course. They both offer that.
There’s weight, vents and design.
POSSIBLY Giro is a little more creative WRT design.
But that’s subjective.
Apparently I’ve got a head that’s a bit more oval than the average.
Meaning I don’t have much choice WRT styling.
When I find a helmet with the right shape for My skull, that’s the one I get.
It could be decorated with pink unicorns, or have frolicking Dolphins embossed in the shell.
If it fits well both front and sides, I’ll buy it anyhow.
It’s for use, not for show.
 
I am on my third helmet and all three have been Giro's. The first one saved my head after I went (literally) over the edge on a mountain bike trail and hit rocks about 10 feet below. The helmet cracked but all I got was a concussion (and a broken arm.) The replacement helmet eventually timed out with age and was replaced with the current Giro Hex. I originally picked Giro because of style and the bike shop owners recommendation. So for what it's worth......Giro is my pick.
 
I have an oval head, and find that Bell has always been a good fit. Actually I guess I'm just loyal to them, having used Bell since the 60's on both bikes and motorcycles. Believe they were one of the first companies to come out with bike helmets. So I'd say they are among the leading brands, but I couldn't really say they are "better" than Giro.

As dabac said, it really doesn't matter. No one I know is going to notice or care about the brand name on my helmet.
 
I have an oval head, and find that Bell has always been a good fit. Actually I guess I'm just loyal to them, having used Bell since the 60's on both bikes and motorcycles. Believe they were one of the first companies to come out with bike helmets. So I'd say they are among the leading brands, but I couldn't really say they are "better" than Giro.

As dabac said, it really doesn't matter. No one I know is going to notice or care about the brand name on my helmet.

I agree with most everyone else, it doesn't matter. I happen to like lazer but I have an oblong head and certain Lazer models fit those nicely. I've heard a lot of great things about POC, Kali Protectives, Smith, Specialized, and Kask; all of which "seem" to be offering more then Bell or maybe Giro, but since all helmets have to meet the same federal requirements I'm not sure if those other helmets are any more special than any other helmets. The Specialized brand has further testing done on their helmets than the CPSC pass sticker that all helmets must have in order to be sold in the US, they also get the Snell B90A rating, which I think that Specialized is the only manufacture that has the Snell rating. The Snell rating is a bit of an odd duck, the reason most helmet manufacture don't get theirs tested to that standards is due to the added cost of the testing, so they may pass the test...but they may not either. The new MIPS technology is said to offer a degree of more protection than non MIPS helmets but lately there have been some studies suggesting that maybe for a road biker it doesn't work as great as they made it to sound.

But whatever all that means, I think the sweet spot for helmet costs is between $75 to $125 on sale prices, which means you could be buying a $100 to $175 helmet. I got my $140 Lazer helmet for $45 on closeout.
 
Most of my friends have Giro, and I have a Bell since it fits my head comfortably.
 
All helmets are required to meet a single standard of performance which was originally developed by Bell. This standard cannot be exceeded since bicycle helmets cannot be any larger without being too large and bulky to use.

Therefore it doesn't matter which helmet you buy as long as safety and effectiveness are concerned - they are all the same. Some people like helmets because of the way they feel on their head. Helmets other than Bell usually cost a great deal more than Bell Helmets so I always use Bell.
 
As stated by others, they protect the noggin.

I go for looks and which helmet provides the most air flow because I don't like to be too hot at all. I purchased the Giro Aeon because it looks good and provides good airflow.
 
As stated by others, they protect the noggin.

I go for looks and which helmet provides the most air flow because I don't like to be too hot at all. I purchased the Giro Aeon because it looks good and provides good airflow.

You sure must be particular about looks since a Bell costs about half of what a Giro does last time I bought a helmet.
 
You sure must be particular about looks since a Bell costs about half of what a Giro does last time I bought a helmet.

No different than how riders are particular about their cycling clothes and specific shoes.

I did say I want the helmet that "...provides the most air flow..." The Aeon meets my requirements at a cost that I am comfortable with. Also, I did not pay regular price for the Aeon.

One could make the same comment about anything - bikes, wheels, components set, cars, motorcycles etc.

When was the last time you purchased a helmet.
 
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No different than how riders are particular about their cycling clothes and specific shoes.

I did say I want the helmet that "...provides the most air flow..." The Aeon meets my requirements at a cost that I am comfortable with. Also, I did not pay regular price for the Aeon.

One could make the same comment about anything - bikes, wheels, components set, cars, motorcycles etc.

When was the last time you purchased a helmet.

I bought about three helmet four years ago. I crashed one of them and payed for a replacement last year. At that time I paid $50 for a good Bell and the cheapest Giro at that time was about $125.

Exactly WHY would you be as picky about your helmet as your shoes? The one looks the way you want a helmet to look while the other can cause almost crippling pain on a long ride if it isn't the correct shape for your foot.
 
...Exactly WHY would you be as picky about your helmet as your shoes? The one looks the way you want a helmet to look while the other can cause almost crippling pain on a long ride if it isn't the correct shape for your foot.

The best fit for my head, the most comfortable. Do my head deserve less attention than my feet?
 
All helmets are checked for compliance with the same standard, and then only a fixed number of accidents with injuries without a helmet
 
Helmets are truly made to one common standard. And already the further choice of people becomes very subjective. I also prefer a certain brand, but do not rely on any of its super parameters, so I don’t feel any racism in relation to others. Just for my university project I’m studying https://gradesfixer.com/free-essay-examples/racism/ where you can find different thoughts on different topics. And although there are a lot of helmets among the free essay examples, I would advise you to read some more literature and introduce more specific facts into your project. A social survey to leave as a small addition.
 
I think if you want to make sure that you get the best possible helmet for noggen protection you should consider reading this site first before you buy: https://www.helmet.beam.vt.edu/bicycle-helmet-ratings.html Virginia Tech seems to be a much better and more real world type of testing on helmets than Consumer Reports does, which because of that Virginia Tech tests makes it more difficult for helmets to pass, so only a few will get the top 5 star rating.