HAMLETS

Ive finally come to terms with the fact that I don’t need $300 helmets to look cool riding my commuter and got this $65 thing. Its comfy, has mips, doesn’t look too stupid and is bright af.

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Nobody loves Limar I guess

crashed this weekend. current helmet (Giro Aether) looks ok but I definitely hit my head, and I’m thinking I ought to get a new one.

looking at giro aether, giro helios, and kask valegro. anyone else have any that they like in the world of kinda spendy helmets? would like to be able to carry my sunglasses neatly and the aether rules at that.

Mojito cubed is either an expensive cheap helmet or a cheap expensive helmet, either way: it fits really nicely and looks kinda stupid, like they got 15% of the way into making an aero helmet and just kinda ran out of steam. Feels good though, after a minute of adjustment it disappears on my head.

ooooh that’s a good one. gonna see if I can get my hands on one to try one. thanks!

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From what I know helmets work by compressing the foam. If the foam is not crushed, I’d keep using it without second thought. Just have a good look and press down on the outer shell to see if the foam below it has moved. Flex it to see if it has cracked and if it looks fine, it is fine. It’s not a complicated structure, I can’t really imagine “hidden damage”. I’m sure hamlet makers will tell you to replace it after every crash but they want your money… Am I a dumdum? Well, I am a dumdum cuz I don’t normally use a hamlet in the first place. But am I a dumdum about this too?

I was just looking at the Mojito3 and was trying to figure out how they made it look worse than the earlier Mojito. Like, can’t you just keep making the previous model and knock the price down a bit?

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Tried the Mojito but had to return it. The extra plastic buckle that they need to attach the leather chin strap fell precisely on my jaw line and was unbearable after an hour on my head. Went with a Smith Trace instead and it’s excellent on my noggin.

Smith helmets are designed to accept sunglasses as well, though not sure if they do it better than others.

Latest helmet thoughts around the shop.

Kask Valegro is great for me. Glasses dock on the back is perfect. Kask fit seems to be polarizing though so definitely try first. The Protone still fits slightly better but the vents of the Valegro are better in the summer for sure.

Actual photos of the new Mojito suggest it’s actually not as ugly as the renderings on the website suggest. Will find out soon when we get some.

Fit on the Smith stuff is also really good. Had a bunch of samples in before deciding to carry them. The Trace fits really well. Can’t speak for how well the ventilation is yet.

POC has upped their mid level game significantly too. Omne Air Spin is really good and has gone with a much slimmer profile. Glasses dock is really good.

We just got in the new Kortal trail helmet. Also a big step forward from the Tectal IMO. Worth a look if you want something with a visor.

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I mean some parts of the design language used in the change are in line with where helmets have gone: fewer vents, smoother, more organic forms, less weird spiky bits and a million random mini-vents. It’s just that it outputted to a really dumb looking helmet.
Made worse for mine because I always get white helmets for visibility, so I’m bopping around the central virginia countryside with what looks very much like a big dollop of sour cream on my head.

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Also in white/visible color crü, and I have a big noggin so I look like a giant mushroom.

I learned much to my dismay a few years ago that I have a giant head apparently. The first helmets I ever bought were the Limar Ultralight, and those fit me fine in L/XL. Then when those were reaching the end of their lifespan I went helment shopping and found that most brand’s L/XL to were TOO SMALL, including new Limars.

I recently bought a Kask Utopia and it actually fits in L and doesn’t make me look like a mushroom.

BRB ordering utopia

Helmets are cheap compared to a cracked skull. Therefore it’s a lot easier to replace a helmet that’s been crashed than maybe find out there’s a hairline crack you can’t see the hard way :man_shrugging:

By the same logic you should replace your bike after every crash, and in fact after every ride, because you can’t be sure the frame or cranks or bars don’t have a hairline crack.

I don’t think the helmet foam forms hairline cracks. If hamlets cracked in half easily, they would just fly off your head in two pieces in a crash and provide fuckall in the way of protection.
From what I know this is what a throw-it-away helmet looks like:

Strawmen aside, the failure mode of those components generally is better understood, and the usage profile tends to be less traumatic. Helmets are both a very low cost of replacement and infrequently used for their designed purpose, and are often way older than we realize (mine are pushing 5 years!) so a replacment when a crash happens and you know you’ve hit your head isn’t a stretch. Same with hardhats and other protective headgear: you really want it to be in tip-top condition!

Also I’ve retired several helmets over the years where a hairline crack developed into a major crack. Foam is brittle and can crack along grain boundaries.

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And in addition to being brittle, it gets more so over time, and the effectiveness of it as a crush-zone is going to degrade.

You can buy a stellar bucket for $100 retail. Why would you try to convince someone not to replace it in the event of a fall where someones head hit pavement when “better safe than sorry” is comparatively so cheap?

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I got some new MIPS helmets from Costco for under $40 each AFTER tax. They’re the fredliest helmets in fredtown, but for commuting and farting around on bikes with the kids they’re fine.

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I can’t throw away my giro atmos from 2010 because it is the best colorway (black with party splatter)

I’ve had 3 helmets since and basically I’m keeping it around to just hang on the wall

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Anyone have experience with these lazer aeroshell things? Worth picking up if I have the matching hamlet?