Is your helmet too tight?
 

Hey guys I just bought a Shoei RF-1000 Monza Red helmet in Medium. I have some questions about the fit of motorcycle helmets.

When I put on the helmet I have to part the opening of the helmet a bit or it will hurt my head when I put it on. But once it is on it is okay, but my cheeks are pushed up a bit. It feels real snug.

The guy at the store measured my head and said I was a medium but I also tried a large. It was not as snug but I felt like it would still stay on. And I didn't have to open the helmet up and it didnt hurt at all.

But the guy told me to go with the medium because he said the padding will form to my face.

Hmmm I am not sure what to do. Does anyone have any advice? Any Shoei wearer's out there? Does the helmet really loosen up afterwards? I kinda do not want to have to spread my helmet everytime to put it on.

Shoei is really expensive for me and I want to make sure I get one that I can wear for a long time


Thanks!

Cheek pads will break in. Give it a month on consistent wearing and see how it feels. Also it's fairly common to open up the padding to squeeze your ears through when putting a helmet on. That way they don't fold up and hurt.

My Suomy hurt my cheeks for about two weeks.

For proper fitment, there's one easy method of checking - put it on and wiggle your head. If it stays where your head looks, you're golden. If there's slack and it can move on it's own a lot, it's too big.

Random: I bought a used RF-1000 and hated it. I also have a medium head, and it was a bit too loose, and the wind noise was insane for me. I hope you like yours better!

with Shoei's they have two styles, one for those with round heads, and one for those with eggheads. Think Arai is they same way.

But a helmet is pose to fit snug just like all your other gear. Baggy != good when it comes to riding attair!! lol.

I grab the chain guard n yank it back n forth, it should yank your head along with it n not move on your head. My GF looked at me like I was being a mean ol asshole when we went n bought her new helmet LOL

I didnt know that, is there a way I can choose? I am an egghead!



LOL

thanks man; yeah I keep hearing about the damn wind noise. I just hope it's not bad.


I hate helmets that are too tight but is it actually better to wear something tight than something that is a bit loose? A larger helmet might fit me well but will it dramatically become loose as I wear it consistently?

And what about those people with gigantic hair! Don't they have to size up higher than what they normally would be? I have a lot of hair right now but what if I get a haircut?!

yes tight it better than loose. the cheek pads will form to your face. But not too tight, think how it was described to me is, when you try chewing motion with your jaw with helmet on, you should almost bite your cheeks. A helmet that is too small or tight will be very hard to get on, and with me brings a headache on real quick. I just got a EXO-1000 n love it. When I got my AFX last summer it was real tight at first but after a few rides it fits great now. When I got my KBC the year b4 last it fit perfect out of the box.

Ppl with big hair or alot of hair need to pull it back into a pony tail when riding. But even with long hair it shouldnt affect how the cheek pads fit your face. :icon_razz:

And about the diff types, the RF is for round heads I believe and the X-11 for egg shaped heads, and the TZ a more universal fit. I dunno on the Arai's.

just got an rf-1000 caster myself in large. i love it. wind noise is less than the scorpion I had. what the salesmen told you is correct. did he mention that they could change out the padding for a different fit though?

The helmet should be snug, if you can move the helmet around without pulling your face with it it is to big. Finding a good fitting helmet is hard and can be expensive. Things like cheek pads and liners can be switched to bigger and smaller sizes.

+1 to everything. Sounds like you're in good shape. Helmets usual break in to about a half-size down soon enough.

It sounds like you got a real motorcyclist to help you in a Cycle Gear which is really rare. Normally they higher people with no clue what they are doing and they don't even own a bike. The helmet is supposed to be tight in fact you are supposed to bite your cheeks if you were chewing gum. The helmet pads will get much much thinner with wear and it will be easier to put on, you do not want a lose helmet or it wont absorb the impact like it should.