Why Shoei?

[Socalsixpack]

Perhaps PCI can chime in, but I'm just curious why everyone seems to use Shoei instead of sasy, Simpson. Simpson has a Nomex liner whereas Shoei has a nylon liner. Are they easier to modify? Stronger? Alan Pflueger uses one, I'm just curious why...


**No need to be disrespectful*** - MODERATOR

[wrightracing.net]

That is a good question. I am going to be racing a class 3 bronco for the first time this year and I have to get some helmets. From my experience it tends to be personal preferance when it comes to helmets. How they fit and if you like a larger visor opening. In some cases price just may be the issue. More money does not allways make a better helmet, but it does help.

Like a $700 Simpson helmet v $300 pyrotect helmet.
And of course when you start adding radio hook ups that is a $140 more or something like that. I like Shoei helmets, I have a street bike helmet by them and it fits well. I a not sure what I am going to get yet.

[pciscott]

When racing most forms of racing you wear your helmet for an hour in off-road racing this can be days at a race like the Baja 1000. The number 1 most important consideration is comfort and fit. The Shoei comfort is unmatched! Shoei helmets have an open space where your ears go so they do not hurt your ears after hours of racing especially if you are in a louder vehicle and where ear plug speakers. The other considerations are weight and the Shoei extreme is one of the lightest helmets on the market. In Score and BITD M rated helmets are allowed and the impact rating is the same on SA(nomex liner) or M(nylon liner) rated helmets, we use a nomex skirt wrapped around the helmet to keep the dust out and to protect you in case of fire. I wore a Simpson helmet for years and with earpieces in your ears they hurt in my opinion although they make some good looking helmets. Look around at any race and you will see that the off-road elite choose Shoei; Ragland, Collins, Herbst, Post, Pflueger to name a few and with these greats money is no object! Sorry for the blatant sales pitch, and I wear a Shoei as well:)

[Socalsixpack]

When racing most forms of racing you wear your helmet for an hour in off-road racing this can be days at a race like the Baja 1000. The number 1 most important consideration is comfort and fit. The Shoei comfort is unmatched! Shoei helmets have an open space where your ears go so they do not hurt your ears after hours of racing especially if you are in a louder vehicle and where ear plug speakers. The other considerations are weight and the Shoei extreme is one of the lightest helmets on the market. In Score and BITD M rated helmets are allowed and the impact rating is the same on SA(nomex liner) or M(nylon liner) rated helmets, we use a nomex skirt wrapped around the helmet to keep the dust out and to protect you in case of fire. I wore a Simpson helmet for years and with earpieces in your ears they hurt in my opinion although they make some good looking helmets. Look around at any race and you will see that the off-road elite choose Shoei; Ragland, Collins, Herbst, Post, Pflueger to name a few and with these greats money is no object! Sorry for the blatant sales pitch, and I wear a Shoei as well:)
No need for the sales pitch, I already have one :) . Thanks for the response.

[Next-Gen]

Choosing a helmet is mostly personal preference. We have been using simpson helmets for decades. We switched over to Impact a few years ago and cant be any happier. They fit so much better. The inside of the helmets are easily disassembled for cleaning. I think there just an all around nicer helmet. Try one out

[AZ45]

I Istruggle with motorcycle helmets being used for desert racing, everything Scott says about the helmet is true, and he didn't mention the shield seals better than most helmets as well. I never really believed it until I actually put one on a few months ago.
Yes SCORE and BITD allow the use of non auto racing helmets, but there the only professional sanctioning bodies that I've ever seen that do, but I can't believe it will be like that forever. You would think with as many of the Shoei helmets that are being used, they could make a few changes that would make them SA rated for auto racing.

There are auto racing helmets that are very comfortable and light, desert racers are not the only ones that drive for extended periods of time. The obvious examples are the 24 hour endurance races; the NASCAR and open wheels guys are in their helmets for a few hours at a time with way higher g-loads and similar amounts of noise. I've got hundreds of hours in very comfortable Nomex helmets and never had a problem with my ears hurting.

The fresh air systems in the purpose built auto racing helmets have come a long way in the past few years because of there popularity in NASCAR and sports car racing. The newer stuff has air passages that give fresh air through the whole helmet, which helps in cooling and keeps the air from blowing in your eyes. If you have the space, the helmets with the fresh air inlet on the top work very well for dispersing the air into the helmet. Many of the new helmets now use Carbon X instead of Nomex which makes them more comfortable. Put a flame to nylon and it melts, not a pretty site when it's melting onto your face.

The Shoei is a good choice and has protected a bunch of racers for a long time, but when you're ready for a new helmet, you may want to check into an SA rated auto racing helmet.

Pflueger has a Shoei, but usually wears an Arai GP5 that's been converted with a fresh air inlet. It's the same helmet that most F1 drivers wear.

This was not a sales pitch, it was a safety pitch.

[retroblazer]

As the guy that got the Cup guys into full face helmets, I'll share a couple of thoughts.
First, the Shoei's have one of the better stock eyeport seals. The fit and finish tended to be better than most relative to its price. With PCI attending most races, there is a convience factor. The are virtually no Shoei's in Cup racing, I didn't say none. The new G-Force helmet has air passages that were designed my my former company, Fresh Air Systems. At three hundred bucks, it's a steal. If drivers took an hour, virtually any helmet can be made to fit better. It takes nothing more than a razor blade and a hot glue gun. Most drivers will compromise the fit so they avoid pressure spots. Better to reduce those pressure spots than to go up in helmet size, imho. Most cheek pads need to be trimmed. Your cheeks shouldn't be forced into your mouth when you open it.All cup and indy drivers have their helmets fitted by the helmet companies. None of those guys buy off the shelf product. none. You couldn't buy the helmet that Dale Earnhardt used, because he had them cut the sides back to his temples. Most air passages can be improved significantly. I use to spent two hours a helmet putting in custom duct work. I would split the airflow between ducts at the mouth and the base of the shield. My personal favorite is the Bell Vortex. It's very light, with a good eyeport seal and a decent size eyeport. I did these and afx's for Richard Petty. Unfortunately, it is expensive.
p.s. This issue of sa vs. motorcyle helmets for most off road guys is a moot point. If you wear a helmet skirt and your shield is closed, then it doesn't really matter what the material is inside the helmet.

[partybarge_pilot]

I,ve had Simpsons, Shoei"s and AGV's. Simpsons are heavy and the face shields never really fit well. Shoei's are lighter and fit better plus they have fitting services ant track days if your a motorcycle guy. AGV's, best fit of any helmet I have had. Plus they have a fitting service too. The main problem I have is when running a pumper My contacts want to dry out. I usually block off about 3/4 of the air inlet. With My old AGV it had a "breath guard" shield that went over your nose to prevent the shield from fogging. This also helped keep the wind from the pumper out of My eyes. Was sad to see it go.

[retroblazer]

I,ve had Simpsons, Shoei"s and AGV's. Simpsons are heavy and the face shields never really fit well. Shoei's are lighter and fit better plus they have fitting services ant track days if your a motorcycle guy. AGV's, best fit of any helmet I have had. Plus they have a fitting service too. The main problem I have is when running a pumper My contacts want to dry out. I usually block off about 3/4 of the air inlet. With My old AGV it had a "breath guard" shield that went over your nose to prevent the shield from fogging. This also helped keep the wind from the pumper out of My eyes. Was sad to see it go.

Simpson's carbon fiber helmets are lighter than Shoei's.The fiberglass ones are slightly heavier. Simpson changed the way they made helmets, by vacuum bagging them vs. hand squeeging them. They were able to pull more excess resin out of the mold, with out compromising the safety of the helmet. With respect to the shields, yes the injection molded poly carbonate Jap helmet shields fit better, but I'd still rather have the Lexan shield that simpson uses, that is twice as thick.

[Ramsey_ElWardani]

SA2000 0r SA2005 will soon be required for four-wheel vehicles at SCORE, buy accordingly.

[johnboy]

There are several good reasons to think about SA rated helmets if its time for you to purchase a new helmet. The rules will soon be changing in SCORE and as usual the other promotors will soon adopt the SCORE rule requirements of SA rated (automotive rollcage impact rated helmets). The material requirements a bit more strict in the fire resistent materials used in construction, and the view areas have been made larger than what some were in the past. SA rated helmets provide more padding around the cheek area that motorcycle helmets dont provide which in turn holds the helmet in a more firm position on your head. There is greatly improved air flow throughout the newer helmets that are designed from the factory to be forced air helmets, rather than getting all the air right in front of your face.
To suggest a few; Bell, G-Force and Pyrotect are all factory designed force air helmets and are all SA rated.
The simple fact of the matter is like Scott (PCI) stated, the helmet has to fit correctly and be comfortable for long periods of time. Every head is shaped differently and no one helmet manufacturer makes a helmet to fit everyones head. You should come to any of the contingency sponsers and simply try on all the different makes and determine which best fits your head. Make sure the company you select supports (attends) all the races and carries plenty of sheilds, skirts, etc. to assist you in your future needs. Lastly, I also agree that its not the cost of the helmet that makes if better or worse. Plan on spending around $300 for the helmet alone, add $100-125 to have it wired. Skirts average around $35-40 with velcro installed.
Hope this helped!
John
Mobile Radio Communications

[Dez_Annihilation]

I own a pyrotect but have used shoei's and G-force and i like the g-force and pyrotect the best especially when hooked up to a blower the air in those two helmets doesn't just enter at the mouth piece the air comes in at different areas in the helmet providing cool air all around your head.