Here’s an interesting video taken by the UK importers of Arai, showing how crash helmets are pretty effective in stopping riders involved in accidents from smearing their features down the tarmac. Specifically, how it did just that for John Reynolds a few years back, by looking at the aftermath of the helmet that, arguably, saved his life during a career-ending accident. It also highlights just how important it is to have a helmet that fits correctly.
Take it away…
If you’re looking to buy a helmet, check out our reviews of crash helmets in the reviews section.
The Shark Evoline 3 was launched early 2012 and is a little lighter than it’s predecessor (though still relatively heavy because of the extra components needed to open the chinguard), good for glasses wearers and added an extra SHARP star to its safety rating. It’s also bluetooth (sharktooth) ready. Click to see reviews of all our other reviewed flip-up (modular) helmets – or here for our top rated modulars.
A well-built, SHARP 5 star safety rated (maximum) flip-up helmet that’s popular with owners. Open face only good up to about 50mph before things get noisy and it is noisier than many full faced crash helmets. If you want a flip-up though, this has some great features.
Sharp 5 Star safety rating
Weight – 1.8 Kg
Injected thermoplastic shell
Integrated sun visor & anti fog visor
Fully washable interior
Great for glasses-wearers
Sizes XS to XL
Expect to pay £250-£270 (£300-£400 for pro carbon version)
Shark Evoline Series 3
Safety
The Evoline 3 has been ECE approved for sale in the EU and was the first flip-up crash helmet to receive dual homologation. That means it was tested and approved to be worn with the chin guard up as an open face helmet and with the chin guard down as a full face helmet. Not all modulars are.
It was also tested by the UK SHARP safety testing organisation where it received a five star rating, which is the maximum possible score available. So far so good.
However, there’s a fly in the ointment.
If you check SHARP’s results, they also reported that the chin bar remained closed and locked in only 57% of impacts during testing. It’s not uncommon for chin bars to open occasionally during testing, but 57% is a pretty low mark by modular helmet standards. That’s especially true when you compare with a company like Nolan whose four tested flip-up helmets all scored 100%. The most recently tested AGVs (the Compact and Numo (discontinued)) both scored 100% too.
Because of this, we’ve knocked a point off our review stars for safety (at the bottom of the page).
Looking to buy this Shark?
We recommend SportsBikeShop (UK) for competitive prices, free delivery and 365 day returns backed by outstanding reviews, and Ghostbikes (UK) for amazing ratings, free delivery & free 30 day returns. Or you can click through to the Shark helmets pages at Amazon if you prefer to buy from there. If you like to buy in Euros, Motoin (Ger) are a quality German operation with decent prices and great review scores.
Four of the Evoline 3s sixteen colour schemes
Noise
When the chin guard’s up, it’s reported to be pretty noisy above 40-50mph. This is dependent on the bike you’re riding of course (noisier on unfaired bikes) but with the chin guard raised, it catches some wind and therefore makes more noise.
When the guard is down, it’s obviously quieter but it’s relative – some owners report that it’s noisier than they expected and you need to wear ear plugs to make it tolerable.
That’s about par for the course with most system helmets – they are generally noisier than the equivalent full-face helmet and expect to wear ear plugs for most journeys.
Ventilation and Visor
That said, the latest Evoline 3 was designed to be slightly more aerodynamic than it’s predecessor and is reported to be slightly quieter and have better ventilation than the Evoline 2.
It has the usual chin and upper forehead vents which are easy to operate wearing gloves, as can the moveable chin guard. Owners say it’s reasonably well vented – about average for a modular.
The main visor on the Evoline 3 generally works without any problems. One nice feature is that when you open the chin guard and push it up past the visor, it’ll automagically open the main visor too, so you don’t have to. And, of course, the chin guard on the Evoline pushes around the helmet right to the rear of the helmet (like the dual homologated Roof Desmo) keeping the chin guard right out of the way.
Chin guard fully open
The Evoline has an integral tinted sun visor too which folks say works well.
Fitment
As for fit, Sharks are often reported as being on the large size, and the Shark Evoline 3 is no exception – so you might want to order a size smaller than normal. Eg. on one review site I found, a geezer was saying his head was usually a 63 or XL, yet with the Evoline, he wore a 58 M!
That said, one or two people do mention that it’s an over-large helmet shell too – making the helmet look large on their heads when wearing it. This can be a problem with some flip-ups and is probably because Shark have had to fit quite a lot of mechanism into the helmet shell to cater for the sun visor and moving chin guard.
Video
If you want to have a tour around the Evoline 3, here’s a vid from MotoLegends taking you round its features.
Please click below to visit the Shark helmets pages at our recommended stores or Amazon UK. And if you buy from any, we get a small sum from the sale at no extra cost to you - a massive THANKS! (it's how we finance the site).
Click above to drop onto their Shark helmets pages or *quick view retailer T&Cs here.
I’ve often wondered who builds F1 driver’s helmets. Here’s a short video I found about Lewis Hamilton’s, whose crash helmets are manufactured by Arai apparently. Pretty good recommendation I’d say!
Interested in buying an Arai crash helmet?
If you’re interested in seeing a range of the latest Arai crash helmets for sale (or just want to check out some prices) – please click the picture below to visit the Arai page at Sportsbikeshop below. If you buy from there, we get a small sum from the sale – thanks!
Top quality construction, vents that really work, quiet and good peripheral vision. Worth the price (if you can afford it!)
Sharp 4 Star Safety Rating
All-day-long comfortable
1.6kg weight
Quiet
Good ventilation
Great build quality
Price range – £510-700 depending on model
Overall
The Arai RX-7 is a damn good helmet. While not the most recent helmet in our crash helmets for sale section, that does mean it has been widely tested and reviewed and it is almost universally seen as one of the best helmets on the market. It’s also one of the first helmets to meet the US Snell M2010 safety standards. The build quality is second to none, the visor size, fit and ventilation are all very good. Comfort is also reported as excellent. The only slight hiccup is the missing star in the Sharp rating meaning it ‘only’ scores four out of five.
Safety
The RX-7 has been given a 4 star Sharp rating in the UK – the maximum is 5. Front & rear safety were rated as very good with side impact test rated as above average (but which appears to have lost it the fifth star). Having said that, Arai’s are widely regarded as one of the best constructed helmets around and are used by some of the highest profile motorcycle and F1 racers in the world. It’s also worth noting that the RX-7 uses a variable thickness shell with a thicker shell in parts which are prone to taking heavy impacts in an accident and thinner shell in parts which typically don’t (including around the ears). Which will keep the weight down but may have also, inadvertently, lost it that extra star. The Arai bumf states that it uses a peripheral strengthening belt as used in their Formula One helmets. Also has quick release cheek pads to make the helmet easier to remove if you do have an accident.
Looking to buy this Arai?
We recommend SportsBikeShop (UK) for outstanding service and online reviews along with free helmet delivery. Or if you like to buy through Amazon (UK), click the link to visit GearedBiker's Arai helmets pages: they're highly rated at 93% at the time of writing. Finally, Motoin (Ger) are a quality German outfit with good service and decent prices (even with the current £-€ exchange rate). Please click any link to see their full range of Arais and latest prices.
Noise
No problems reported. Arais are generally quiet and the aerodynamic shape of the RX-7 with its adjustable rear ‘Air Wing’ spoiler contributes to the lack of noise. Nothing to worry about here.
Size
Arai say they use more outer helmet shell sizes that any other manufacturer. Which means that where some manufacturers will produce one external shell size covering XXL, XL & L and another for M, S & XS, varying the internal size by using more or less padding internal, Aria use up to 5 external shell sizes for some models. This is important for two reasons. Firstly, it’s the internal padding that is critical in shock absorbing much of an impact and in ensuring a correct fit to the head – again key to safety. Secondly, and of critical importance, it ensures your helmet is in proportion to your body so don’t look like you have a giant head wobbling on the top of tiny shoulders!
Ventilation
The RX-7 has chin and three forehead vents which are particularly good at keeping the head cool and the visor mist free. Users also report that all vents are very easy to operate – even with gloved hands on the bike. Coupled with an anti-mist visor and tight visor seal, the venting system is regarded as top notch.
RX-7 GP crown vent exhausts with Air Wing adjustable diffuser
Comfort
All day comfortable although, as always, that’s as long as you have an Arai-shaped head. However, because Arai use more helmet shell sizes than many other manufacturers, this does mean you generally have the correct amount of internal shock absorbing material and a higher chance of getting the right sort of fit (i.e. not too tight or too loose) which in turn means that if you’ve tried on an Arai, found it fits nicely, then you’ll generally be happier in it for longer.
Visor
Larger aperture (5mm larger) than its predecessor means better peripheral vision. Comes with anti-fog visor as standard which, coupled with excellent ventilation, is one of the best fog-free systems. Also comes with silicone gel to keep the visor/rubber seal lubricated to maintain the seal.
Video
Here’s Randy with a presentation on the RX-7 GP (we like Randy!)
Also, here’s Josh Brookes talking about why he uses an RX-7 GP (no it’s not just because he gets lots free – honest!)
For other Arai helmets, see also our review on the Arai Tour X3.
Please click below to visit the Arai helmets pages at our recommended stores - all highly rated for excellent service and keen prices. And if you buy from one, we get a small sum from the sale at no extra cost to you - a massive THANKS! (it's how we finance the site).
Click above to drop onto their Arai helmets pages or *quick view retailer T&Cs here.
In part 1 we looked at cleaning the visor and external shell of your crash helmets. In this part, we have a look at how to clean the inside. Road muck, rain, blasted grit and dirt, sweat, tears – you name it and it can end up dribbling over your face and into your helmet lining. I’m not into cleaning for cleaning’s sake but we’ll all probably want to clean the inside of our helmet from time to time. I myself tend to clean it at least once every 5 years, whether it needs it or not 😉
So here’s a quick guide on how to clean the lining of your crash helmet.
Removable linings Some helmets – notably those that cost a little more – have removable linings. Which is nice and handy because it makes cleaning them really simple. You can either hand wash the lining in a bowl of warm water and use some baby shampoo (baby shampoo because it doesn’t contain conditioner). Or, you can put it in the washing machine on the delicates (30 degree C) setting. But always read the manufacturers instructions before you do, just to be on the safe side. Rinse, hang dry (not tumble) and it’s job done.
Non-removable linings Many helmets have fixed linings (like my Shoei XR-800 in the photos), meaning you can’t remove the linings to clean them. So you have one option – to dunk the helmet in water and clean them in place! Remove the visor and anything else that might be removable – such as a breath guard or cheek pads – and clean them as above. For the rest – the non-removable part – fill a bowl with warm (not hot) water. This can be just water with a bit of washing up liquid, or you could again use baby shampoo.
Dunk the helmet in soapy warm water
Give it a good dunk, use a sponge and swill the water around the inside. Use the sponge to squirt the water into the innermost corners – don’t get too physical with it but let the water do the work. You can then use a shower head to rinse out the cleaning water and get all the shampoo out. Make sure you get as much soapy water out as possible so plenty of clean water here.
Leave the helmet to dry naturally and don’t use any artificial drying tools such as hair dryers on it. Dry it somewhere with a bit of ventilation – it will probably take at least 48 hours so leave plenty of time for drying otherwise you might find yourself with a soggy bonce.
Let your crash helmet drip dry before finding somewhere warm and well ventilated
Because the inside of the helmet is well insulated, you might find it takes 3 or 4 days to dry. I put mine upside down on top of a central heating boiler (nice and warm but not too boiling) but the heat barely permeated through to the insides because it was so well insulated! So be patient.
Bit dated but here’s a video from the show everyone secretly loves to watch – How Do They Do It on the Discovery channel. It shows how Schuberth manufacture their helmets – including cutting the apertures with water cutters (I want one of those!) – plus how they test their crash helmets and reduce noise.
Best place to buy a Schuberth crash helmet?
First off, we suggest you check out SportsBikeShop. They're based in the UK, offer free delivery with 365 day refunds, have really competitive prices (they'll price match too) and offer outstanding service (9.8/10 on Trustpilot at the time of writing).
GetGeared are another recommended UK retailer, with free delivery, a no-quibble 365 day returns policy (with free return postage) and scoring 4.8/5 on eKomi at the time of writing.
Motoin are based in Germany, have decent Euro prices and get great feedback (4.9 and 4.5 out of 5 on Idealo and eTrustedshops at the time of writing) though note, there's a delivery charge to ship outside of Germany, so factor that in (see here for details).
Or you can jump through to the Schuberth helmets pages at Amazon if you prefer to buy from there - but make sure you only buy from the most reputable sellers.
Please click any picture/link to drop onto their Schuberth helmets pages. And if you buy from them, we get a small sum from the sale at no extra cost to you - a massive THANKS! (it's how we finance the site). Click here for more info on our recommended retailers.
Click above to drop onto their Schuberth helmets pages or *quick view retailer T&Cs here.
The only part of my crash helmets I clean regularly are the visors. But when the lid gets too many splattered flies and bugs on there I do give the shell a clean too to get the worst off, maybe twice a year. And then occasionally (very occasionally!) I’ll give the insides a clean. So here’s a quick guide on cleaning crash helmets – based on my own experience. This first part discusses visors and exterior shell of the helmet. Next article will cover cleaning the insides.
And if you have any other tips – especially shortcuts – I’d love to hear – so please leave a comment at the bottom to share it with me and the world!
Cleaning your visor
Ideally remove the visor. It’s not essential but I always feel you can do a better job if you take the visor off though it is perfectly doable to clean a visor with it still on the helmet.
Don’t ever use any cleaner, including window cleaning fluid, on a visor as this could well damage it. Use only warm water as follows:
Run a bowl of warm water with some detergent like washing up liquid in it.
One tip I’ve heard if you’ve got lots of dried-on flies on the visor is to first soak some kitchen towel in water and lay the towel over the visor for an hour so it to soften the flies, making them easier to remove.
Dip the visor in the water to get it really covered and get it starting to remove flies/dirt without any rubbing (reducing possible scratching).
Use warm soapy water
Get a soft cloth, washing up cloth or microfibre cloth. Wet it and gently clean the visor until it’s clean. Let the water not the rubbing action do the cleaning.
Clean inside and out.
Once done, run the cold tap and run the visor under it to remove the soapy water.
Rinse off – inside and out
Leave the visor to drain and dry. Don’t use a cloth to dry as it’ll leave fibres on the visor (at best) or smear oils over the surface (at worst).
Cleaning the External Helmet
The external isn’t usually as delicate as the visor for obvious reasons. But it will still scratch so care is needed. It’s also worth removing the visor so you don’t end up getting muck from the helmet onto the visor.
Cleaning is more or less the same as for the visor.
Warm, soapy water and a soft cloth is required. Try and avoid any type of scourer as it will leave tiny scratches on the surface as that’s what scourers are designed to do.
Some thoughtless flies leave really hard-to-remove fly-juice on the surface so soaking with a wet kitchen towel is a good way to soften this up. Leave it on for at least 30 mins.
Same warm soapy water to clean the shell
Lots of soapy water and a microfibre or washing up cloth is best for removing filth. Work in circular motion.
Rinse helmet with clean water and leave to dry.
If you’re a real tart, once it’s dry – and only on painted helmets – you can use something like car polish to get a nice shine on your lid. Don’t use other cleaning sprays or liquid cleaners as they may damage the helmet or visor. If in doubt – only clean with water and don’t use any polish. Also (disclaimer alert) always check the cleaning instructions that came with your helmet before cleaning. If it suggests cleaning only with panda skin and rocking horse spit – ignore me and follow their guidelines 🙂
My first crash helmet was one that was kicking around my bedroom when I was a kid. I’ve no idea where it came from (and no idea where it went!) but it was the type of helmet you’d see someone wearing in a 1970s sit com. It was a cream colour with an integral peak and made of what looked like compressed cardboard! This was one helmet without an ACU Gold sticker! It was the type of dodgy hat you’d see someone like Twiggy wearing in the times before helmets were compulsory. It probably looked good on her but it was a godawful thing and about as safe as wearing a hair net. Crash helmets before the 1980’s really were kinda pointless and thankfully I was too young to need a crash helmet at the time so was saved the embarassment.
I don’t exactly know who made my first proper crash helmet. I can picture it vividly though – firstly in my mate’s bedroom where I coveted it deeply and profoundly. It was a big blighter – this was the mid-80s though so it’s allowed be – and at the time it was a real object of desire. It had browny and reddy airbrushing and then two or three circular areas with German Iron Crosses in them. It also had a brown corduroy interior. Sounds beautiful doesn’t it?!?
It was big, cool and expensive looking and I really wanted it. And when I got my first bike, I bought it off my mate for £10 then peeled the makers name off it which was slapped across the chin guard in thick black stickers.
Having said that, I’ve still no idea who made the helmet but I’d love to know – if it rings a bell with anyone, please comment below.
Update. I eventually found a picture of it online… and here it is:
This is the elusive helmet. My bro reckoned it was probably an AVG. But thanks to Tim (see comments below) I now know better. Cheers Tim!
Summary: The Shoei Qwest has been around since 2010, replacing the Raid 2. Based on lots of info on crash helmets around t’interweb, here’s the low-down.
Claimed organic fibreglass (whatever that is!) with multi-layered composite fibres. Multi-compound inner to provide different levels of shock absorbancy. Shoei helmets are usually well made and this will come with all necessary ACU Gold label and British standard kitemark approvals for road and track use.
Noise
Shoei reckon this helmet is particularly quiet – typically 2db quieter than the Raid 2. However, some people are saying that it’s actually a bit noisier in practise. Guess it might depend on the bike and riding style.
Update – there are one or two reports of whistling Qwests. Whistling seems to come from around the visor and from around the chin area. Shoei may suggest you put a chin guard on the helmet – which does solve one of the whistles. They also suggest closing the visor firmly from the centre of the visor rather than using the small lip to the bottom side, to seat it better. For further information, I found this post which includes a letter from Shoei to a guy in the US who sent his Qwest back for a slight update. However, it’s worth checking with your retailer that they’ll be happy to refund if you find the problem.
Size
Worth noting that people are finding Shoei helmets a bit on the small side compared with other brands – so you might need to go up a size when ordering.
Ventilation
Chin and head ventilation – with exhaust outlet on back to helmet. Ventilation reported to be very good. Though, as always, not enough on its own to stop the visor misting up in rain. Vents easy to operate.
Looking to buy a Shoei?
We recommend either Sportsbikeshop (UK) or GetGeared (UK) for outstanding service and competitive prices, or FC-Moto (Ger) for the widest range. Please click any link to see their full range and latest prices.
Visor
Comes with pinlock anti-fog insert. Good sized aperture reported for wide field of view.
Overall
Middle of the range Shoei helmet should provide a high degree of safety and performance. It’s sold as a mostly touring helmet and replaces the Raid 2 in their model line up. It looks good, comes in over 20 different colour schemes and is known for being comfortable and pretty quiet.
Video
And should you want to see a video on the Qwest – complete with lots of slick, jargony nonsense in the commentary, here’s one I found earlier!
Here’s a well cool Special edition – the Shoei Qwest Passage Helmet.
We've chosen some of the best places to buy from - whether it's a Shoei or any other helmet/gear.
If you want piece of mind when you buy,SportsBikeShop is based in the UK and offers outstanding service (9.8/10 on Trustpilot) including 365 day refunds. They may not always be the cheapest but are our recommended retailer for quality of service.
FC-Motowidely offers the best range of helmets in Europe and scores a decent (8.7/10 on Trustpilot) - and are based in Germany. If you want the biggest selection to choose from, we recommend you buy from here.
GetGeared is another recommended UK retailer, with no-quibble 365 day returns, free UK delivery and scoring 4.8/5 on eKomi.
Please click any picture/link to visit their Shoei helmets page where you can see all the latest colour schemes and prices. And if you buy from any, we get a small sum from the sale at no extra cost to you - a massive THANKS! (it's how we finance the site). Click here for more info on our recommended retailers.
Click to visit Shoei at SportsbikeshopClick to visit Shoei helmets at Get GearedClick for Shoei at FC Moto (then use site search to find the helmet)
Summary: comfortable, average wind noise, good visibility, typical Arai high quality. Good buy.
Double-D ring strap
Good Quality
Dual purpose lid – kinda
Bargains to be had
RRP was £350. Deals for as low as £220 if you click our link to FC Moto below.
The Arai Tour X3 is potentially a great buy now it’s been replaced by the X4. It’s a dual purpose off-road helmet with a triple density inner shell, visor and colour matched peak. Reports are generally good. MCN readers report it’s comfortable although if you do quite a bit of road-riding, it’s not the best as the peak can catch the breeze and buffet you a bit (no shit sherlock!). Can be a bit noisier than a road helmet but average wind blast noise reported for this sort of helmet. Good visibility and the removable peak is useful if there’s low sun. Should be some good deals out there now it’s not a current model.
For a review on other Arai helmets, see also our Arai Crash Helmets Section or if you’re after one of the best full-face helmets on the market, how about our review of the Arai RX-7 GP.
Best place to buy this Arai crash helmet?
Please click below to visit the Arai helmets pages at our recommended stores - all highly rated for excellent service and keen prices. And if you buy from one, we get a small sum from the sale at no extra cost to you - a massive THANKS! (it's how we finance the site).
Click above to drop onto their Arai helmets pages or *quick view retailer T&Cs here.
