Bike helmets sold on EBay ($40?)

Anyone have opinions on the nice looking helmets sold on eBay for pennies? I've done search reviews on these helmets and they are actually reviewed well and are suppose to meet DOT specs etc... Just curious if anyone in the forum has experience with these helmets.

Unless your really strapped for cash.. get something you are going to be comfortable riding in. For me that means a flip up modular helmet with a drop down sun visor.

If you need a passenger helmet this might be OK.. but I normally upgrade my daily use helmet and use my old one for passenger.... although... that depends on the head size of the passenger of course....

With my rear seat removed and Dales luggage rack installed I probably won't be having many passengers now.... unless I put the rear seat back on

EDIT Ok this IS a flip up helmet... with good reviews might be worth checking out.. look up the weight and compare it.. sometimes helmets are on the heavy side.
I am a bit leery since I can not find the yessources helmet online anywhere....

How much is your brain worth? If you are looking for something to satisfy Johnny Law, it would probably be fine (probably more protection than a half helmet). But under $150 I'd be leary, and I would buy from a reputable company. Defintely not without trying it on first, heads and helmets vary so much.

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I generally try to buy Snell certified helmets and this one is not. But then, almost no flip ups and internal visor helmets are on the Snell list. Snell Foundation - certified helmets

Fit and comfort would be the unknown here. Be sure you can return the helmet if it doesn't work out. The hinge and latch quality on the flip up would be important too. I'm guessing the DOT rating probably doesn't prove whether the chinbar will snap right off in a crash.

It's possible to buy a close out HJC or other name brand helmet for around $100, so if I were looking for a low price helmet I'd probably go that route.

cyclegear.com sells inexpensive helmets which also meet or exceed DOT requirements. Cyclegear is a known entity with a known brand (Bilt) which work quite well and cyclegear also sells other brand names (HJC, Shoe, Arai). If you live close to a Cyclegear store, they have a huge selection of helmets in store.

You could save $34 with these DOT approvals: DOT Approved Motorcycle Helmet Stickers | Decals | D.O.T. Black & White (4-pack) | eBay

If you prefer Snell helmets:3 x DOT ECE 2205 SNELL sticker Aufkleber Etikett etichetta klistremerke pegatina | eBay

Seriously, there are some things I've got see and inspect first.

As already mentioned, if your budget is so tight you're considering skipping some part of ATGATT or you're looking at almost too good to be true deals, then you need to be at Cyclegear.com. Their stuff is NOT the greatest, but they do have a good warranty and I consider them the bottom line, get you started at a minimum. And they do also stock the 'better' brands. You can sometimes score deals from forums and Craigslist/eBay etc. but I'd only go that route for non-helmet items. There's a reason that child car seats and bike helmets have a 3-5 year replacement lifespan, and a "don't buy used" - ever. You simply can't tell from looking at it what the condition of the head & brain saving material is. It does break down over time, and while it may be obvious for a helmet whether it's been involved in an accident, you should not be willing to take the risk. Similar can be said for cheap helmets. When you need them to work, you really need them to work properly because your life is probably on the line. Nobody was ever in a bike accident and said, boy I could have saved a few hundred on cheaper gear that is now trashed anyway. No. If anything they usually go out and buy even more expensive and more protective gear. You hope you never need to find out how good your gear is at protecting you, but when that time comes you will not be sorry for what you spent on the right gear, however you might possibly regret what $ you saved and are now paying for in other ways.

davidc83 said:

cyclegear.com sells inexpensive helmets which also meet or exceed DOT requirements. Cyclegear is a known entity with a known brand (Bilt) which work quite well and cyclegear also sells other brand names (HJC, Shoe, Arai). If you live close to a Cyclegear store, they have a huge selection of helmets in store.

Click to expand...

Not at my store. All they have is Bilt and Sedici stuff (both house brands i believe), with no other real stock.

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A counterpoint...

Motorcycle Helmet Performance: Blowing the Lid Off

I still can't bring myself to wear a cheap one. But an argument can be made (and well supported) that it is probably "good enough".

Beemerphile said:

A counterpoint...

Motorcycle Helmet Performance: Blowing the Lid Off

I still can't bring myself to wear a cheap one. But an argument can be made (and well supported) that it is probably "good enough".

Click to expand...

As good as the other factors, like features, finish, venting, wind noise -- and fit -- in fact...

greenboy said:

As good as the other factors, like features, finish, venting, wind noise -- and fit -- in fact...

Click to expand...

Or just weight. A heavy helmet SUCKS.

If the helmet has passed the DOT or SNELL cert then it is probably safe to wear as far as protecting your head.

From reading info in the past some models provide a better level of protection than others and every once in a while I see them publish testing in articles. There really should be a simple to understand rating system that is displayed in a grading format and not just "DOT or SNELL certified" so that people know how well something performed in the testing. It would at least provide a rule of thumb for judging a helmet purchase at a glance while shopping instead of having to use the google kungfu to run down what helmets scored the best in testing.

So did the helmet just barely pass the test, or did it really do well in the tests?

greenboy said:

As good as the other factors, like features, finish, venting, wind noise -- and fit -- in fact...

Click to expand...

All of that plus safety reputation brings me back to over-priced Arai helmets. Especially fit on the Quantum and RX-Q series. I have a Neotec that I no longer wear because the Arai is much more comfortable and feels more secure. Everyone's head isn't shaped the same. I am with DDeulin that I would want to see it, examine it, and try it on if it was not a known entity. If you want to drive them crazy in the store, tell them you want to sit there in it for 45 minutes in order to decide if it is comfortable. You will never know just by trying it on and looking in the mirror.

But I imagine that I am an Arai customer for life. A couple more (or less) ought to get me to Happy Acres or the daisy fields..

Google Sharpes helmet ratings. I think they're British but they test helmets and actually show the weak points.

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MalcolmReynolds said:

If the helmet has passed the DOT or SNELL cert then it is probably safe to wear as far as protecting your head.

Click to expand...

Reading the piece that Beemerphile linked to is very interesting. For instance: A helmet manufacturer self certifies that a helmet meets the DOT standard. They don't submit helmets to the DOT, or a recognized test facility, to verify that the helmet meets requirements. There are issues with head trauma specialists over some of the Snell test requirements. Some of the test are more concerned with the strength of the helmet rather than reducing the g forces transmitted to the head. Many helmet manufacturers that sell Snell approved helmets in the US, sell a different version of their helmets in Europe because the Snell helmets can't meet EU requirements due to exceeding the g forces allowed to be transferred to the head.

Helmets, like most things, are more complicated than they at first appear.

my understanding from reading many articles is that there is something of a very general understanding, or perhaps interpretation, that the EU standards are more "street rider" oriented and Snell is more "race track" oriented given their respective g-force standards, sharp blow standards, etc. The fact that manufacturers self-validate DOT standards calls that into question in my opinion. Plus, I think i recall correctly that there are lot samples used to certify the EU standards, not just design or one production sample used.