LS2 FF323 Arrow full face helmet review

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LS2 FF323 Arrow – feature-rich, track-developed bargain sportsbike helmet

Chinese crash helmet maker LS2 worked with the likes of Moto GP rider Yonny Fernandes and Moto 2 rider Isaac Vinales (Maverick’s cousin) to develop the FF323 Arrow series of helmets.

So you can probably guess the type of rider the Arrow FF323 is aimed at – sportsbike riders and track day junkies who spend most of their time in a tuck position. Usually, it also means a helmet that’ll cost an arm and a leg, because top-of-the range sportsbike helmets just do.

Not so with the LS2 Arrow though, because LS2 has managed to make a track/sports helmet that can be found as low as the £200 mark which, if you know anything about sports-focused motorcycle helmets, is a fantastically low price.

So the big question is – will it deliver?

There’s precious little information out there about how well the FF323 Arrow performs – so we’ve scoured around for all the information we can to see what owners actually think of their helmets. So here’s the lowdown.

  • Full face helmet
  • Sportsbike-focused
  • Fibreglass and carbon versions available
  • SHARP 4 star safety rated
  • FIM homologated (size M)
  • ECE & DOT certified
  • Optically correct class A visor

    LS2-FF323-Arrow-C-Solid-Carbon-Crash-Helmet
    Mean-looking plain carbon fibre LS2 Arrow-C
  • 3 shell sizes
  • Double-d ring fastener
  • Pinlock Max Vision anti-fog insert included
  • Weight 1.35Kg (3lbs) – that’s light
  • Sizes XXS-XXL
  • Expect to pay around £250-£370

Best places to buy an LS2 Arrow?

Please click below to visit the LS2 Arrow helmets pages at Amazon. 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).

Safety

The LS2 FF323 Arrow is both ECE tested (Euro) and DOT certified (US), and was tested by the SHARP labs in July 2016 where it scored a creditable four stars out of a maximum 5.

ECE testing is actually a pretty comprehensive testing regime to pass (read about it here) but the SHARP test adds to this and allows us to get a fully independent or comparative view on how safe the FF323 Arrow is compared to other motorcycle helmets.

A four star score is very respectable and shows the Arrow should perform well if you have an ‘off’.

A size M LS2 Arrow has also been tested by the official motorsports governing, the FIM, and approved to be used in professional circuit racing. Which is a nice thing to have if you’re looking to buy a track helmet.

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Yonny Hernandez replica LS2 Arrow FF323

As always, if safety is your No.1 concern, you’ll find some decent alternatives to the Arrow by checking out our safest crash helmets pages – or looking at our suggested alternatives at the bottom of the page – all those are SHARP tested.

Of course, it’s not just the helmet shell and EPS liner that contributes to safety (though it’s worth noting that the helmet shell is constructed in 3 shell sizes and contains a multi-density EPS shock-absorbing liner – tick/tick). Other features of the FF323 Arrow that we’d consider make for a safer crash helmet include: the double-d ring fastener; a very large visor aperture with 3mm lockable visor and anti-fog insert; and the emergency quick-release cheek pads.

All in all, we reckon the LS2 FF323 Arrow is probably a safe helmet – and certainly has lots of features that make it easier and safer to live with.

Helmet Noise

Like many track and sportsbike focused crash helmets, the LS2 FF323 Arrow is generally regarded as pretty noisy.

When you’re developing a sports helmet, light weight, reduced buffeting and a host of other features take priority over noise suppression – and after all, riders who spend lots of time on the track wear earplugs pretty well all the time so a quiet helmet doesn’t really matter.

It’s fair to say that one or two owners do think their LS2 FF323s are reasonably quiet – and as we always say, how quiet you think a helmet is is very personal and down to lots of factors including your type of bike and how quiet your previous helmet was. But they’re in the minority with most folks saying it’s a noisy helmet.

As usual, if you’re going more than a few miles or taking your LS2 FF323 Arrow onto the track, stick in a decent pair of ear plugs and you should be good to ride all day without any problems.

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Solid white Arrow FF323

Size

A couple of important things to note here, so read on.

Firstly, the LS2 FF323 Arrow is designed for people with longer, narrower heads – long oval as they’re often called. Most helmets these days are designed to fit people with slightly rounder heads (i.e. most of us), but LS2 have mentioned it on their website and reviewers mention it too – so if you’re not sure whether that’s you, I’d recommend trying before you buy (or use a retailer you can send it back to with no quibbles like our recommended retailers).

Secondly, the fitment size is noted by a couple of owners as being slightly small. So if you’re between sizes, we suggest you go for a size up.

Ventilation

Overall, owners reckon the FF323 Arrow is a decent venting helmet.

It has a system called Dynamic Flow-through Ventilation, which is really the kind of design you find in most helmets these days.

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Showing top vents on the FF323 Arrow carbon fibre hi-viz Fury

There are four vents in the chin guard – the upper two vents push air onto the back of the visor and are opened/closed with the front slider on the chin. Weirdly, the bottom two of the four chin vents, which are designed to direct air to the chin, are opened/closed by a separate slider on the inside of the chin guard. We’ve seen a system use a hidden slider before on AGV helmets, though I can’t remember another helmet with both external and internal sliders on one lid.

The top front vents are there to pull air through channels in the shock absorbing liner and around the scalp. Both these vents are closeable with sliders and all sliders are ok to operate in gloves – once you’ve got used to finding them!

Finally, there’s four exhaust vents to the rear – two towards the top and two near the collar.

Whatever the configuration, owners and reviewers who commented on ventilation were all very positive – so if good ventilation‘s important to you, which it probably will be if you go on the track regularly, then you should be good with the LS2 Arrow.

Visor

Like quite a few of the most recent track-focused helmets, there’s a very large visor aperture on the LS2 FF323.

When you’re on a sports bike in a tuck position, you need a high visor opening to be able to see ahead well and, like most modern racing helmets, having the maximum peripheral vision is important as well to see when someone’s ducking inside you (pretty damn vital when riding on the road too of course!). So LS2 have made a really large visor opening – one which several owners commented is excellent – including one guy saying it’s worth buying the Arrow for this feature alone!

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LS2 FF323 Arrow-R black/white Matrix design

The visor itself is a 3mm thick, class-A optically correct visor which means you should have distortion-free vision. It also comes with a Pinlock Max Vision anti-fog insert in the box too which is great (they’re worth around £30 alone and really good at reducing fogging).

It has an excellent quick-release visor mechanism too – press a lever and out it comes – that’s up there with some of the best we’ve seen.

Like many racing helmets, it has a locking mechanism to keep the visor closed at high speed (or when you’re rolling through a gravel trap!) but press the lock and the visor cracks open a little to let some air in, which is a nice feature.

I did notice one reviewer who mentioned that, while the visor has a ratchet mechanism, there’s not enough positions in the movement, i.e. the visor only has a cracked open and fully open ratchet position and nothing in between. Having said that, no other owners seem to have a problem with it (or didn’t think to mention it as a problem!) so it doesn’t seem to be much of an issue, and all in all the visor system on the LS2 FF323 Arrow seems to have pretty well every conceivable base covered!

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Fibreglass FF323 R Burner showing rear spoiler and vents

Comfort

The FF323 Arrow comes with a fully removable/washable internal comfort lining that’s hypoallergenic, moisture wicking and breathable.

It also has an emergency cheek pad removal system which could (but hopefully won’t!) be useful if you have an accident as it’s designed to help the emergency services remove your helmet more easily and reduce the chance of aggravating any neck/spine injuries while removing it.

As mentioned briefly above (and in pretty well all our reviews) the most important thing when buying any motorcycle helmet is to ensure your helmet fits correctly in the first place. That’s vitally important to ensure your helmet offers max protection in a crash. But it’s also important for comfort too – and especially with the LS2 FF323 Arrow because of its longer, narrower head form.

So if you’ve the right shaped head for the helmet and you get the fit right, then the FF323 Arrow seems to be a comfortable helmet.

Looks & Graphics

The LS2 FF323 Arrow is a reasonably aggressive and sporty looking helmet, and because of its race-bred development, there’s a couple of race replicas available in the form of the Hernandez and Vinales reps. There’s also the usual solid white black colours, but there’s also four other designs, the Comet, Ion, Matrix and Burner as well as a couple of nice carbon variants (plain carbon weave and hi-vis).

We’ve put examples of all these designs around the page; but helmet manufacturers are always releasing new designs and colours, so please check out the recommended retailer links below to drop onto their LS2 helmets pages and see the latest designs (and prices).

Best places to buy an LS2 Arrow helmet?

Please click below to visit the LS2 Arrow helmets pages at Amazon. 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).

LS2 FF323 Arrow Video

Here’s a dude from LS2 giving us a 3 minute look over the FF323 Arrow.

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White/black LS2 Arrow-R ‘Comet’

Other stuff – fasteners, weight, buffeting, build quality, chin curtain

Like all track-focused helmets, the LS2 FF323 Arrow has a double-d ring fastener. While they can be a bit fiddly, they’re about as safe as fasteners come and a must if you’re planning to take your helmet on the track.

Similarly, you don’t want a really heavy helmet on the track – or anywhere for that matter – so LS2 have worked hard to keep it as light as possible. The Fibreglass version weighs in at a very light 1.35Kg for the medium version (1.39Kg for the large) which is very respectable – the average for a full face helmet is about 1.48Kg.

Buffeting and stability have also benefited from the track development because owners reckon it’s a stable helmet with a slippery shape that reduces buffeting.

Many also commented on the great build quality of the LS2 FF323 Arrow – especially at this low price point and for such a well-featured helmet.

Finally, along with a Pinlock Max Vision in the box, you should find there’s a breath deflector and chin curtain already fitted and there to reduce noise and stop fogging.

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Arrow R Ion design FF323 (also available in cool matt black variant)

Crash Helmet Buying Guides & Top 10s

For (hopefully!) other useful information to help you when buying your next helmet, check our various Motorcycle Helmet Buying Guides - or have a look at our Top 10 best helmet lists where we've got the top 10 best rated helmets overall along with Top 10 Best Budget/Top 10 Safest/Top 10 Best Full Face/Top 10 Best Modular/Flip-up/ Top 10 Best Sportsbike/Track helmets.

Alternatives to the LS2 FF323 Arrow

You can find some cracking alternatives to the FF323 along with all our other sports bike crash helmet reviews on our sportsbike helmets page.

But if we were to pick out some other lower-priced sportsbike helmets (though not as low as the LS2!), then you might want to read about the Kabuto RT-33. That’s another SHARP 4 star tested sports bike helmet that is comfortable and surprisingly quiet.

AGVs lower priced sportsbike focused helmet is the AGV Corsa – that’s SHARP 5 star rated, light, and also has an optically-correct visor. Similar to the Corsa but a bit more sports-touring is the AGV GT Veloce – that’s another SHARP 5 star helmet with a wide/tall visor aperture but that’s a little less track-focused.

Finally, we suggest you check out the Shark Race-R Pro. Another SHARP 5 star lid, this one’s made from carbon fibre and is even lighter than the LS2 – though it’s a bit more expensive.

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Looking into the FF323 Arrow Carbon – showing one of the red emergency cheek pad removal tabs

Overall/Summary

The LS2 FF323 Arrow is a great helmet – especially at this price. Track/sports focused helmets are usually at the upper end of the price range, but somehow, LS2 have managed to develop and sell a helmet you can see on the Moto GP grid at a fraction of the cost of their competitors.

It’s SHARP 4 star tested and FIM homologated, so is almost as safe as they come – which is not to say it’s perfect – you’ll need to have the right head shape to fit it.

But with its large visor opening, class-A optically correct visor, good ventilation – and a host of other useful features – if you’re in the market for a sportsbike helmet and you have a longer/narrower head shape, then you really should think about checking out the LS2 FF323 Arrow.

Best places to buy an LS2 Arrow?

Please click below to visit the LS2 Arrow helmets pages at Amazon. 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).

Star Ratings

REVIEW OVERVIEW
Safety
Comfort
Noise
Features
Value
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ls2-ff323-arrow-full-face-helmet-reviewIf you're after a fibreglass or carbon sports bike helmet and you're on a budget, the you really should check out the LS2 FF323 Arrow. It's pretty noisy - but with a SHARP 4 star safety score, a large optically-correct visor, great aero and ventilation - not to mention development by MotoGP and Moto 2 riders - if you're after a track or sportsbike focused crash helmet, then the LS2 FF323 Arrow is worth a very close look.

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