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Rain riders: What helmet do you prefer?

My old RF-1000, after a few seasons, leaked to the inside of the shield in heavy rain.

Would applying silicone grease to the top rubber strip help?
 
FreeRyde said:
If your visor is leaking, it's probably due to the visor itself not being lined up with the shell.

Loosen them adjuster screws play with the seal a bit.
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This is probably the answer that will actually solve the problem. :thumbup
 
I learned my helmet has adjuster screws lol
 
Fiddle with the adjustment screws, add a pinlock, and throw some silicone on the seal. FWIW my new Arai came with a pinlock insert and a bottle of silicone. +1 for Arai.

If I had more $$$ I might have gone with a Bell Pro Star. Their concussion-reduction stuff is neat for sure.
 
LakeMerrit said:
Fiddle with the adjustment screws, add a pinlock, and throw some silicone on the seal. FWIW my new Arai came with a pinlock insert and a bottle of silicone. +1 for Arai.

If I had more $$$ I might have gone with a Bell Pro Star. Their concussion-reduction stuff is neat for sure.
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my rf-1200 also came with pinlock and bottle of silicone, for what it's worth.

and a helmet bag:x

:twofinger
 
Smash Allen said:
my rf-1200 also came with pinlock and bottle of silicone, for what it's worth.

and a helmet bag:x

:twofinger
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Arai VS Shoei fans be like

giphy.gif
 
I think the face shield makes the biggest difference, more so than the helmet. A good anti-fog face shield is real nice. My Bell RS-1 was great in the rain, no leaks as long as you keep it shut.
 
Corb said:
Work great except during True Grit rides. Had to duct tape the top of the visor at the top shut to keep it dry.
But in all the true grit rain rides I've never been able to stay completely dry. Regardless of the effort and money I threw at gear. Enough water dumps on you, it will find a way in.
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I've thought sometimes the only way to keep rain out from the faceshield was tape, but never done it (and I'd like to be able to open and close it while riding). Barring that it seems sooner or later it's gonna leak.

As far as the gear, it's not about throwing money at it, at least from my perspective, it's about buying cheap fully waterproof (non breathable) raingear rather than expensive "waterproof" breathable. Vents are good. But if you're talking lots of cold rain, PVC and similar are more reliable than breathable raingear. It also won't wet through while it's hanging up to dry (or stuffed in a bag to keep it from getting wetter while you're camping).
 
RF 1200 no leak but sometimes when I collect a bug on or I should say in the chin vent it may come through in a fine mist or a splat depending on size and weight.
 
davidji said:
I've thought sometimes the only way to keep rain out from the faceshield was tape, but never done it (and I'd like to be able to open and close it while riding). Barring that it seems sooner or later it's gonna leak.

As far as the gear, it's not about throwing money at it, at least from my perspective, it's about buying cheap fully waterproof (non breathable) raingear rather than expensive "waterproof" breathable. Vents are good. But if you're talking lots of cold rain, PVC and similar are more reliable than breathable raingear. It also won't wet through while it's hanging up to dry (or stuffed in a bag to keep it from getting wetter while you're camping).
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After two sets of cheap pvc two piece both leaked completely through in multiple rides I bought top of the line Rev'It one piece pvc suit and even then my neck sock got soaked with so much water even though a very small portion was exposed to it [top part tucked in my helmet skirt, bottom part tucked in my rain suit] that by the end of the day my whole chest was completely wet.
My next try at staying dry was to tape a helmet tube from the bottom of my helmet to my shoulders. That way water rolled straight over with no chance to get under
Something like this http://www.revzilla.com/motorcycle/schampa-helmet-skirt
Sadly never got the chance to yet.
One of the reasons I enjoyed true grit rides was the constant try to somehow find a way to remain completely dry. I think that was the last piece.
My complete gear was TCX Infinity goretex boots, Rev'it 1 piece suit rain suit over Dainese leather pants and Alpinestars Bionic jacket. Alpinestar goretex leather gloves [can't remember the model] worn inside waterproof lined bar muffs. Shoei X11 helmet with duct taped on chin skirt and anti fog insert for the face shield
Way to much for the average wet commute where I just had goretex Joe Rocket overpants and Frank Thomas or Alpinestar three quarter cordura jackets.
But anything less would leave you soaked 30min in to a 5-6 hour true grit loop of the Santa Cruz mountains during a storm.
 
I rode about 20 miles one time in heavy rain on a cold fall day with a dirtbike helmet and safety glasses instead of goggles.
Over half was highway and it was damn uncomfortable with the rain hitting my face. I'd hold my glove up as best I could to block it.
I had to get in bed after getting home. My head was freezing and I felt like crap, almost delusional for hours later. That was maybe 5 years ago and I haven't felt anywhere near as bad since.
 
Blankpage said:
I rode about 20 miles one time in heavy rain on a cold fall day with a dirtbike helmet and safety glasses instead of goggles.
Over half was highway and it was damn uncomfortable with the rain hitting my face. I'd hold my glove up as best I could to block it.
I had to get in bed after getting home. My head was freezing and I felt like crap, almost delusional for hours later. That was maybe 5 years ago and I haven't felt anywhere near as bad since.
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Oh boy. Sounds like a severe case of the vapours. Be happy you don't live in a cold climate.
 
Corb said:
After two sets of cheap pvc two piece both leaked completely through in multiple rides I bought top of the line Rev'It one piece pvc suit a
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Have't seen a PVC Rev-it suit. The rev-it rain suit I have isn't PVC, it's waterproof/breathable. It can wet through anywhere. I've had two. Pretty waterproof at first, until the waterproof coating starts wearing off against my textile motorcycle gear--it would probably last longer worn over smooth leather. Leaky rainsuit over never quite waterproof gear would keep me mostly dry. But cheap PCV over the same stuff kept me dry through hours of rain.

PVC raingear will only leak at holes, and you can duct tape over holes. Yeah you can use tape to repair waterproof/breathable raingear, but it can leak anywhere.

I think the best is raingear that combines PVC and fabric, but I haven't tried it. Should be more rugged than plain PVC.
 
davidji said:
Have't seen a PVC Rev-it suit. The rev-it rain suit I have isn't PVC, it's waterproof/breathable. It can wet through anywhere. I've had two. Pretty waterproof at first, until the waterproof coating starts wearing off against my textile motorcycle gear--it would probably last longer worn over smooth leather. Leaky rainsuit over never quite waterproof gear would keep me mostly dry. But cheap PCV over the same stuff kept me dry through hours of rain.

PVC raingear will only leak at holes, and you can duct tape over holes. Yeah you can use tape to repair waterproof/breathable raingear, but it can leak anywhere.

I think the best is raingear that combines PVC and fabric, but I haven't tried it. Should be more rugged than plain PVC.
Click to expand...

My Rev'it suit never leaked through [discontinued model, bought it 6years ago]. My slightly exposed neck sock got soaked enough that it brought water inside the suit

The Motoboss PVC jackets I had both did. Without any holes. And I'm not the only one this has happened to in those rides.
 
As to the suits, I've been looking for a long while and I think I may have found the Holy Grail. On a recent three week tour of the Canadian Maritimes, my new RevIt Poseidon suit kept me perfectly, completely dry even in 8-10 hour days of high wind and driving rain. Truly stellar.

To there OP's question, my Shoei RF100 and then RF1200 were good about keeping the rain out but fogged relentlessly. The roads I ride beat up face shields so badly I have to replace them 4 or more times a year, and the extra cost of pillock visors is a bummer.

That said, my new Scorpion EXO-GT920 is freaking awesome in the rain. Completely dry inside no matter how wet outside, and if you flip the full front instead of just the visor you don't get any of that annoying drip down the inside when you're standing around.
 
Even when I had a cheapo $130 BELL Qualifier it didn't leak in the rain. My RS-1 doesn't either
 
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