Time to replace my helmet?

[bigfloppyllama]

From the cycling dork thread:
“3. Replace your 6-year old Bell helmet. The alarm bells go off instantaneously when a rider with a Bell Vector or some such antique helmet rolls up. Eeeeeeeek!”

Going on 7 years with my current Bell. With my long hair however, it’s particularly annoying since the vents are relatively small. I fell the other day when I first got my clipless pedals and the helmet lightly hit a nearby pole (I forgot to clip out). It seemed fine at the time, but while riding today someone pointed out that there was a slight indentation with a little bit of the styrofoam torn. I know to replace helmets after a crash, but I’m not too fluent on how the structural integrity of the helmet is affected by slight tears. I’d imagine that the tear would be rather weak and split at the spot in a crash, but is it worth looking into getting a new one or can I hold off a bit longer? Also, I’ve gone to a few local bike stores and tried on some of their helmets. Mainly the “sport” kind, but one store had a Bell Furio (http://www.bellbikehelmets.com/main/product/furio.html) that felt quite nice. Again, I’m definitely no expert on helmets, but are there any opinions on this helmet, or what I should be looking for?

 

[GearóId Ó Laoi]

I wouldn't worry about the age of the helmet at all, as long as it's not been crushed. This kind of
stuff is put out by manufacturers to sell them. It's like frames going "soft"

 

[bigfloppyllama]

Originally posted by GearóId Ó Laoi
I wouldn't worry about the age of the helmet at all, as long as it's not been crushed. This kind of
stuff is put out by manufacturers to sell them. It's like frames going "soft"

It's not the age so much as the dent in it right now. Even for something about 6cm long and 1cm deep should I replace it?

 

[Ajs]

I thought even the "stable" Foams were sensitive to UV, Ozone, Petrochemicals and many other things.

AJS

"Gearóid Ó Laoi, Garry Lee" <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:[email protected]...
> I wouldn't worry about the age of the helmet at all, as long as it's not been crushed. This kind
> of stuff is put out by manufacturers to sell them. It's like frames going "soft"

 

[Russell Seaton]

Sure, get a new helmet. They are cheap if you shop wisely. You can usually pick up last year's or
two years ago top end model for $30-40 from Nashbar or Performance. A few weeks ago I bought the
Bell Alchera (almost identical to the Bell Ghisallo) from Performance for $29 after various coupons.
And I see you can buy the official 2003 Ghisallo for $60 from Performance or Nashbar now. And the
Pneumo has been on sale recently too.

So buy a new helmet every few years for fun. Or too change colors. Or if you are worried your old
one won't protect you. New helmets are very cheap if you can live with an older model.

bigfloppyllama <[email protected]> wrote in message
news:<[email protected]>...
> From the cycling dork thread: ?3. Replace your 6-year old Bell helmet. The alarm bells go off
> instantaneously when a rider with a Bell Vector or some such antique helmet rolls up. Eeeeeeeek!?
>
> Going on 7 years with my current Bell. With my long hair however, it?s particularly annoying
> since the vents are relatively small. I fell the other day when I first got my clipless pedals and
> the helmet lightly hit a nearby pole (I forgot to clip out). It seemed fine at the time, but
> while riding today someone pointed out that there was a slight indentation with a little bit of
> the styrofoam torn. I know to replace helmets after a crash, but I?m not too fluent on how the
> structural integrity of the helmet is affected by slight tears. I?d imagine that the tear would be
> rather weak and split at the spot in a crash, but is it worth looking into getting a new one or
> can I hold off a bit longer? Also, I?ve gone to a few local bike stores and tried on some of their
> helmets. Mainly the ?sport? kind, but one store had a Bell Furio
> (http://www.bellbikehelmets.com/main/product/furio.html) that felt quite nice. Again, I?m
> definitely no expert on helmets, but are there any opinions on this helmet, or what I should be
> looking for?

 

[Alex Rodriguez]

In article <[email protected]>, [email protected] says...
>
>
>From the cycling dork thread: “3. Replace your 6-year old Bell helmet. The alarm bells go off
>instantaneously when a rider with a Bell Vector or some such antique helmet rolls up. Eeeeeeeek!”
>
>Going on 7 years with my current Bell. With my long hair however, it’s particularly annoying
>since the vents are relatively small. I fell the other day when I first got my clipless pedals and
>the helmet lightly hit a nearby pole (I forgot to clip out). It seemed fine at the time, but
>while riding today someone pointed out that there was a slight indentation with a little bit of the
>styrofoam torn. I know to replace helmets after a crash, but I’m not too fluent on how the
>structural integrity of the helmet is affected by slight tears. I’d imagine that the tear would be
>rather weak and split at the spot in a crash, but is it worth looking into getting a new one or can
>I hold off a bit longer? Also, I’ve gone to a few local bike stores and tried on some of their
>helmets. Mainly the “sport” kind, but one store had a Bell Furio
>(http://www.bellbikehelmets.com/main/product/furio.html) that felt quite nice. Again, I’m
>definitely no expert on helmets, but are there any opinions on this helmet, or what I should be
>looking for?

When in doubt, send it back to the manufacturer for inspection. From your description, your helmet
is ready for the landfill. Get a new helmet.
-----------------
Alex __O _-\<,_ (_)/ (_)

 

[Donald Gillies]

[email protected] (Russell Seaton) writes:

>Sure, get a new helmet. They are cheap if you shop wisely.

Indeed. My mom got me a "Bell Biker" in ~1973 for $20 i believe. Since inflation is up 6x-7x since
then, that's about $120.00 in today's prices.

I was told that the lexan "dries out" in the UV / sunshine (think about what a pneumatic tire looks
like or what your plastic car bumpber looks like after its been outdoors for 7 years). The styrofoam
is more stable.

Changing your helmet is like washing your hands every time you go to the restroom. You do not
necessarily _need_ to wash every time, but washing a few times a day extends your life. Think of all
those times you tripped and dropped your helmet, or hung it over the seat and it cracked against the
seat stays, etc., - those little injuries could add up. Moreover, the performance standards for
helmets have generally gotten better so by purchasing a new one every 5-6 years you are probably
getting better technology.

I'm not sure I trust the latest spider web helmet designs. I generally buy the helmet with the most
antique design I can find.

- Don Gillies San Diego, CA