Bmacleod
Site Supporter
I decided to take the plunge to a modular helmet and thought I would share my thoughts on the switch. I was running an HJC RPHA 70 and while it was a decent helmet, I always thought it wasn't the quietest. I was reading that some were saying that the RPHA 91 was very quiet, so I thought I would give it a shot (a champion helmets review says it is the quietest helmet they have ever tested). First off, this helmet is indeed very quiet. Now, I got a new windscreen for my RT as the factory screen was horrible, IMHO. I wasn't sure if that was a big factor, but while running the screen low with the helmet open, it was as loud as any other helmet. Once closed though, it goes almost silent. The skirt around the bottom is larger, causing a tighter "hole" around the neck. I call it a hole because I don't want to refer to it as a seal as I don't want to give the idea that it actually seals. The skirt doesn't touch the neck, it just closes up the gap some. I'm very impressed with how quiet it is. One downside is that when I come to a stop, I have to crack the visor a touch or it starts to fog up a bit. I think this is because of the tight skirting around the bottom. I cant believe the night and day difference in noise between the 70 and the 91
I have always struggled to get a conventional full-face helmet on with earbuds and glasses. Obviously, i need to try and put my glasses aside in a safe place, which is sometimes difficult, while I don my lid and sometimes it takes a couple of tries to get it on without pulling my buds out. Doing this on the fly at a border crossing is futile. I usually pull away from the border booth with the lid off and pull to the side to go through the ordeal of putting it back on. The great news now is that I can take the 91 off and put it back on with my glasses on and it doesn't bother my earbuds (This, I am sure is a modular helmet plus and not just this helmet) This is huge, although, I was told that with a modular helmet, customs agents wont ask you to remove it anyway, as long as the front is open. That remains to be seen. The helmet has a quick connect strap which is really nice... so much easier than the strap/D-rings.
The weight is tolerable. My RPHA 70 claims to be 1485 gram and the 91 Carbon is 1600 grams. I do notice the difference, but it is not big and it still seems balanced. If I were riding off road, I would probably not like the added weight, but for touring, no big deal. I went with the carbon fiber as the regular RPHA91 is about 150 grams heavier.
The visor fit is good. My Rrpa 70 visor would not stay in any position as the detents were weak. the 70 visor was hard to close and seal tight when need. It always irritated me but the 91 visor works great. The detents hold tight and it seals closed with no effort and no wind leakage. problem solved. The internal sun shade is much better in the 91. The sunshade in the 70 didnt come down that far and sat close to my glasses. The shade in the 91 sits farther out and drops down further and I believe it is adjustable, as to as how far it drops.
The helmet front opens wide and there is a lock to hold it open if one chooses to ride with it open.
The interior padding is plush and very comfortable. Fit and finish of all aspects is top-notch
This isnt a full review as I have only tried it out for a few hours so far, but wanted to post up to say that I am very impressed with this helmet. I cant speak yet for the ventilation as the one ride i went on was cold, so the vents were closed, but it has all the venting of the 70 and then some. I dont anticipate any issues with ventilation. I wish I had tried modular helmets before this. I am looking forward to more miles with this lid
I have always struggled to get a conventional full-face helmet on with earbuds and glasses. Obviously, i need to try and put my glasses aside in a safe place, which is sometimes difficult, while I don my lid and sometimes it takes a couple of tries to get it on without pulling my buds out. Doing this on the fly at a border crossing is futile. I usually pull away from the border booth with the lid off and pull to the side to go through the ordeal of putting it back on. The great news now is that I can take the 91 off and put it back on with my glasses on and it doesn't bother my earbuds (This, I am sure is a modular helmet plus and not just this helmet) This is huge, although, I was told that with a modular helmet, customs agents wont ask you to remove it anyway, as long as the front is open. That remains to be seen. The helmet has a quick connect strap which is really nice... so much easier than the strap/D-rings.
The weight is tolerable. My RPHA 70 claims to be 1485 gram and the 91 Carbon is 1600 grams. I do notice the difference, but it is not big and it still seems balanced. If I were riding off road, I would probably not like the added weight, but for touring, no big deal. I went with the carbon fiber as the regular RPHA91 is about 150 grams heavier.
The visor fit is good. My Rrpa 70 visor would not stay in any position as the detents were weak. the 70 visor was hard to close and seal tight when need. It always irritated me but the 91 visor works great. The detents hold tight and it seals closed with no effort and no wind leakage. problem solved. The internal sun shade is much better in the 91. The sunshade in the 70 didnt come down that far and sat close to my glasses. The shade in the 91 sits farther out and drops down further and I believe it is adjustable, as to as how far it drops.
The helmet front opens wide and there is a lock to hold it open if one chooses to ride with it open.
The interior padding is plush and very comfortable. Fit and finish of all aspects is top-notch
This isnt a full review as I have only tried it out for a few hours so far, but wanted to post up to say that I am very impressed with this helmet. I cant speak yet for the ventilation as the one ride i went on was cold, so the vents were closed, but it has all the venting of the 70 and then some. I dont anticipate any issues with ventilation. I wish I had tried modular helmets before this. I am looking forward to more miles with this lid
I don't find the HJC to be particularly quiet...but it is not particularly noisy either. I think if I was to put on my Shoei Neotec again, I'd notice the difference. I was startled last summer when I stood up on the pegs at about 60-70 mph to stretch my legs and found it amazingly quiet. In the end, the noise level inside the helmet will depend on you and the bike's configuration.
