Helmets For Trackdays

[Sol]

Its about time I invested in a helmet rather than shelling out cash on the day. As I understand it, it has to be a BSI Type A 6685 or Snell something..

 

Where is a good place to get one from? Had a look at Demon Tweeks and they seem to be quite expensive, checked Ebay and nothing comes up..

 

Any good resources that anyone here knows of?

[Dixie]

I used a bike hemet when i did Mallory last year. I think they're type B, or rarther the one i used was. I think some of the cheaper ones arn't up to scratch. They have to be the one peice ones.

 

I think on some tracks you need a type A though.

[chorton_1]

Two things are important with helmets - fit and history. If the fit is good and it has never been involved in a knock then its OK, but both of these things make it harder to buy of Ebay.

 

First off, I'd take a look at a few local bike shops and see if any of these have the Type A approval you require. It will also give you a chance to try them on and see how a selection of makes fit (as they are all different). Failing this, you could pop up to Silverstone and give Grand Prix Racewear a try (a quick web search should tell you their pricing, although I presume it will be a similar range/cost to Demon Tweeks).

[Mark A]

Be careful, type A isn't what you want, Type A/FR or SNELL 2000 is what is needed.

 

Currently no circuit is enforcing the use of Type A/FR but that is about to change. From the Demon Tweeks catalogue the cheapest Type A/FR available is Sparco Pro-Jet £151 (Open Face).

[Sol]

Yes, I wondered about the "FR" bit..Had been ages ago to a bike shop and was told that none of them had the nomex lining and were unsuitable for motorsport. With 2 weeks to go, its probably not worth internet buying for the sizing requirements..

 

I would assume full face is better than open faced from the safety point of view?

[RobS]

Prefer open face myself, cooler in a rather warm Exige.

 

Always thought full face for open cars, open face for coupes etc. Personal preference I guess.

[chorton_1]

Type A is OK for club racing (as is Snell 95 but for this year only) but not for International grade race meetings, so I'd imagine either would have to be OK for track days (although worth checking). I completely agree though that a A/Fr or Snell 2000 would be more future-proof.

[Bramble111s]

Theres a local motorsport shop to me with a basic helmet at £69, so you shouldnt need to pay loads. It is correct type, try and find a motorsport shop near you....

[Scott_Mac]

I went to Demon Tweeks for this very reason... i tried on all sorts of different ones, and ended up spending £250 as it was the most comfortable and fitted the best.

 

You can buy cheaper ones, but you've only got one head! So get to the shop and try them on, its the only way!

[Sol]

This may be a stupid question, but what can I search under in yellow pages to find helmets? Tried "Motor sport" and "Motor sport accessories" and cant find anything! Need to get to some shops soon. Planning a trip to gp racewear this weekend, but I want to try a few places. Help!

[chorton_1]

There aren't a huge number of specialist motorsport shops around. I think theres one or two around Brands Hatch (names escape me), Grand Prix Racewear in London and Silverstone (and France...), Redline Motorsport up in Middlewich, AWS ( http://www.advanced-wear.co.uk/ ) in Kent and Demon Tweeks in Wrexham.

 

As said above motorbike shops are a good start (just look for the appropriate standards stickers). Don't know what you've got in Bedford, but in Northampton we've got Heine Gericke, Avonvale Honda (although v.limited helmet selection), Mick Berrill (small independent Honda dealer who carries some stock) and a BMW dealership (name escapes me). By the time you've trawled through all those you should have a good idea of the market...

 

Also worth a try is phoning up you local kart track and asking for local suppliers.

 

Finally it's worth doing web searches on Arai, OMP, Simpson, Bell, Sparco and AGV for suppliers.

 

If you can't find one after all that, then I would say it's just not meant to be!

[Sol]

Thanks for the info..So its not just me then!

Found AWS, Demon Tweeks and GP Racewear. Gonna pop along to GPR on Saturday, so might check out other places in Northampton while Im there.

 

Had tried a couple of bike shops and they dont seem to carry the /fr type lids.

 

Just spoke to Bedford Autodrome and gonna check with a guy tomorrow who buys them in and knows a couple of local places apparently! Will post back..

[VTECMatt]

Thanks for the info..So its not just me then!

Found AWS, Demon Tweeks and GP Racewear. Gonna pop along to GPR on Saturday, so might check out other places in Northampton while Im there.

 

Had tried a couple of bike shops and they dont seem to carry the /fr type lids.

 

Just spoke to Bedford Autodrome and gonna check with a guy tomorrow who buys them in and knows a couple of local places apparently! Will post back..

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Could you let me know where you thought was best replacing my old one soon.

 

Thanks

[Sol]

No probs..will do

[chorton_1]

To avoid dissapointment it's worth checking up on the places I mentioned as I haven't been passed or into them for a fair while.

 

Good luck!