LS2 Spitfire open face ABS motorcycle crash helmet review.
The LS2 Spitfire is LS2’s take on a classic bobber-style, open face helmet.
They’ve tried to make a helmet that’s compact, so it doesn’t look big on the head, and is lightweight. They’ve also fitted it with a goggles loop at the back in case you want to wear it with goggles, and they’ve added a pull-down sun visor to give you some in-built eye protection and protection against the sun.
That’s all offered at a nice low price point, making it suitable for cost-conscious riders who might want to use it as a second helmet or who’re maybe commuting and want a budget lid.
Obviously, if you’re wanting the best protection, you should go for a full face or one of the best performing modular helmets.
But if you’re looking to buy a regular open face helmet, then here’s what the LS2 Spitfire offers and what owners think of theirs.
- Open face helmet
- Thermoplastic ABS shell
- Integrated pull-down sun visor
- Micrometric fastener
- Goggles loop
- ECE and DOT versions
- Medium oval fitment
- Sizes XS-XXL
- Expect to pay £60-£80
Looking to buy an LS2 Spitfire?
Please click below to visit the LS2 Spitfire helmets pages at our recommended stores. 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).
Overall/Summary
Not only does the LS2 Spitfire look the part, but with its integral drop down sun visor and light weight, it’s really liked by the vast majority of folk who’ve bought one.
There’s a question mark over the kind of protection it’ll give – yes because it’s an open face helmet, but also because LS2 helmets have tended to score average ratings in SHARP tests over the years.
But if you want a reasonably low profile, unfussy, and easy to use open face helmet and like the idea of having a sun visor when you need it, then the LS2 might well be a great helmet for you. Plus, it’s good value too which is always a big thumbs up!
Safety
(more about helmet safety)
The shell on the Spitfire is made from something LS2 advertises as HPTT. That’s actually an ABS plastic so similar to many other thermoplastic helmets.
Does it give good protection?
Well, looking at SHARP helmet test data overall, it seems LS2 tends to make thermoplastic helmets that offer about average levels of protection.
LS2 helmets on sale in the UK, Europe and Oz are all ECE certified, so that’s good because it means they’ve been tested to make sure they don’t fall apart at the first knock.
But SHARP test data shows (SHARP release information showing how well helmets perform on a scale of 1-5 with 5 being the best) that LS2 lids don’t always offer the protection we’d like.
If you look at other tested LS2 thermoplastic helmets, they’ve scored an average of 3/5 stars over the years. Their best recent score is the 4 star rated LS2 Stream Evo, though the LS2 Rapid full face – which is the only other LS2 HPTT ABS helmet that’s been tested – that scored a lowly 2 stars.
So, if we were asked to guess, we’d expect from the LS2 Spitfire to score between 2-4 stars – though of course SHARP don’t test open face helmets because they inherently give less protection than helmets that cover your face.
On the plus side, the LS2 Spitfire does come with a dual density liner to help manage lower and higher impacts. And weighing around 1.2Kg (2.65lbs) it’s really light weight, which helps keep inertia generated by a helmet under impact to a minimum as well as making a helmet nicer to wear.
It uses a micrometric fastener which are the easiest fasteners to live with as well as being nice and secure.
And of course that integrated sun visor will be useful for giving some eye protection as well as protecting from the sun. Just remember, you can’t use it when it gets dark (though you can buy a clear replacement visor separately – part number 800599SV02)
Overall then, it’s an open face so it will leave your face unprotected. And there are better performing helmet shells out there (see alternatives section at the bottom).
So in terms of safety, we’d expect the LS2 Spitfire’s helmet shell to give around average levels of protection – though there’ll be no protection to your face at all.
Helmet Noise
(more about helmet noise)
The LS2 Spitfire is an open face helmet, so don’t expect it to be particularly quiet. There’s always going to be plenty of space for air to get inside and, while it’s got a nice round shell without any wind-catching vents or studs on it, it’s never going to have the aero capabilities and sound-insulation of a full face.
The word from Spitfire owners is that, for an open face helmet it’s OK – especially if you’re riding behind a fairing of course.
But if you up the pace and you’re in the wind, it’s going to be noisy.
But then you’re not going to be buying an open face helmet to do plenty of miles at speed are you? And shove in some decent ear protection and you should be OK.
Ventilation
(more about helmet ventilation)
Again, because it’s an open face helmet, you’re going to get plenty of fresh air on your face which will help keep you cool on hot days.
And if you look closely at the pic, you’ll see LS2’s hidden a large air vent above the visor opening to take air into the helmet where it’s moved across the head in air channels moulded into the internal EPS lining.
That’s a nice bit of design and the word from owners is that it offers good ventilation.
Except… if you pull down the sun visor, that covers over the vents and stops air getting inside the helmet. Hmm, not such a nice bit of design as it turns out.
That said, most owners seem to be happy with the amount of ventilation.
A couple of useful links…
– All our open face helmet reviews –
– Top 10 modular helmets –
Sun Visor
(more about sun visors)
The Spitfire comes with an optically-correct drop down sun visor that can be pulled down using the two tabs on the bottom of the visor.
Two tabs are always useful on a helmet, meaning you can adjust it with your right hand if you want while you’re stopping at lights for example.
It works on a ratchet so you can pull it down in steps, and it’s scratch resistant and gives UV protection too (typical protection levels are 95%+ for all polycarbonate visors).
The Spitfire only comes with a dark lens though so if you need a helmet for riding when it’s dark, you might want to give it a miss.
You can buy a replacement clear visor though (part number 800599SV02) and it’s a pretty easy process to swap visors.
And if you ride in glasses, a few owners have said that the sun visor drops down fine and doesn’t interfere with your glasses.
Comfort and Sizing
(more about comfort and sizing)
The LS2 Spitfire has been designed to fit medium oval shaped heads internally.
It has a breathable and hypoallergenic internal liner that’s removable and washable.
It does have a couple of shallow speaker pockets in there too, but most Spitfire owners reckon they’re too shallow to fit most bluetooth headset speakers.
Earbuds should work fine but we found one Cardo Freecom 1 owner who couldn’t get his headset to fit because the speaker pockets were too shallow and pushed the speakers into his head too much.
Most owners we came across said they find their Spitfire’s nice and comfortable, though a few did say they found their cheekpads too tight at first, though they do break in quite quickly by most accounts.
Sizing seems to be true though, so read our fitting guide before order the correct size helmet.
Looks & Graphics
If you’re after a modern looking open face helmet, then the Spitfire’s fits the bill.
Most of us who ride in open helmets want one that’s low profile so it doesn’t make us look too ‘bobble headed’. And while LS2’s tried to make it low profile, how compact it is really depends on where you fit in their shell sizes.
That’s because it’s made in 2 shell sizes – the smaller shell covering fitment sizes XS-M and the larger shell L-XXL. So if you’re a size M, it’s going to look proportionately smaller than if you’re an XS for example.
A couple of owners said it looks around middling size for an open face – so reasonably low profile and certainly not too much of a bobble head.
As you’d expect for an open face, the Spitfire tends to come in plenty of ‘urban’ and darker paints.
If you’re after a matt lid, there’s matt black, matt titanium as well as the matt Inky and Skull Rider helmets (both with skulls on the side) and matt Black Flag with a subtle Old Glory motif on it.
There’s also solid gloss white, black and a few other retro styles like the Jeans, Rust and Sunrise. Oh, and there’s a couple of chromed versions around if that’s your thing!
Most helmets get new graphics from time to time though, so please click through to our suggested retailers below – all highly rated online and all with good reputations for selling only genuine helmets.
Best places to buy an LS2 Spitfire helmet?
Please click below to visit the LS2 Spitfire helmets pages at our recommended stores. 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).
LS2 Spitfire video
Here’s a 7m look around a matt black Spitfire.
Other stuff – goggles, warranty
Obviously, the Spitfire comes with a built in sun visor but you can wear it with a pair of goggles too – and LS2’s put a handy goggles loop at the back of the helmet to keep the strap in place.
Finally, all Spitfire’s come with a 2 year warranty.
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.
Good Alternatives to the LS2 Spitfire?
There’s a stack of great alternatives out there – some are pure open face helmets while others can convert into open face helmets, but add the chin bar back in and you’ve got the protection of a full face. Here’s some we recommend you check out:
For another great open face helmet, check out the Shoei J.O – all day comfortable, integral clear visor with a premium quality build and fibreglass shell. It’s quality over price though, so it’s not cheap.
The Scorpion Exo Combat has a built-in sun visor too and it comes with a (non-protective) face guard to keep the weather out.
Not only does the Bell Broozer look badass, but it can convert from a full face helmet to open face by just pulling off the chin bar. It’s nice and light too.
For more alternatives, check out our Open Face Helmets pages.
Looking to buy an LS2 Spitfire?
Please click below to visit the LS2 Spitfire helmets pages at our recommended stores. 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).
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