| Author | Message | ||
     Jramsey |
Anybody wear the Arai Profile series helmet? Looking for a new lid and I'm limited on helmet selection because of my 7-3/8 long oval head. Tried one on the other day and the fit was excellent and felt very light. Curious about wind noise, ventilation. | ||
| Gentleman_jon |
I wear an Arai. Never take it off, in fact. No reason to. It is that good.  Seriously, it is very well made, fits my long oval head better than any other helmet I have tried. In addition, the attention to detail and the build quality really is superb. As far as ventilation and wind noise is concerned, they are well taken care of, but nothing super special. Riding at the Gap during the heavy rains of this years March Badness, I had to open the visor from time to time riding in heavy rain and fog conditions. PS: Picture shows a previous model. | ||
| Hughlysses |
James- I have the same head shape. Tried to find a Profile to try on in two different cities and couldn't find anybody that stocked one. I ended up going with a Shark RSI helmet which is also long oval for about $200 less (list) than the Arai. I got mine much cheaper than that. Webbikeworld.com gave the Shark a really good review and said it was quiet and VERY light. I agree with the light part, but it seems normally noisy (I haven't found a quiet helmet yet). Ventilation is probably not as good as an Arai. The RSI is worth trying while you're in the market. | ||
| Spiderman |
you should have seen him trying to eat at TWO with that thing on  | ||
| Ft_bstrd |
Great fit. Superb ventilation. Average quiet. I HATED the quality. I lost the rear wing, front vent, and broke 5 side pods. The visor swap mechanism is fussy. The visor fogs, and parts are expensive. Customer service is great. I spoke with them a lot! My Profile is why I won't buy another Arai. For the money, I think the Scorpion is a better helmet. | ||
| Gentleman_jon |
Better safe than sorry, as my father always said. Either one takes the "All the Gear, All the Time" thingy seriously, or one does not. It's also rather useful on the motorcycle.  | ||
| Jramsey |
Jonathan, thanks for the frontal pic. wearing glasses, that's exactly what I wanted to see. I've been wearing Simpson Bandits since the early '80s but get tired grinding the tops off my sunglasses to get them to fit in the smaller eye port. Hugh,no Shark dealers in my area but I did look at their web site and they don't seem to offer it in solid white. Jeremy, I tried a Scorpion and it just didn't fit as well as the Profile. BTW how the hell did you lose and break so many pieces. Thanks guys. | ||
| Froggy |
Noise is subjective and will vary based on many factors including bike, windshield, speed, tank bag, your riding position and what jacket you are wearing. Unfortunately the only way to find out if a helmet is noisy or not is the hard way. | ||
| Rkc00 |
Jon,  Nice photo!!!  Mike 06 XB12X Red/Black Long Island, NY | ||
| Hughlysses |
+1 to that. When I bought my previous helmet (a Shoei) the salesman did offer to let me take it out for a test ride. Unfortunately, I wasn't on the bike at the time. I own 3 helmets (an HJC, a Shoei, and a Shark) and they're all so noisy (for me) that I always wear earplugs, even for a short hop. | ||
| Etennuly |
Jeremy, I tried a Scorpion and it just didn't fit as well as the Profile. BTW how the hell did you lose and break so many pieces He grew up wearing meat helmets. He probably tried to cook a piece, or just ate it raw.  | ||
| Glitch |
I have an Arai and would own another. It's the best fitting helmet for my shaped head. Comfy! Jonathan, good form! Looking ahead through the turn. Elbow to knee. Nice straight wrist. Very relaxed looking.  Great photography also | ||
| Froggy |
If you are on a budget you can try these:  | ||
| Gowindward |
I agree with Jeremy the shield system is fussy, and I have broken three side pods while trying to get a shield back in. I just bought a new helmet a few months ago and didn't buy another Arai, because of the shield system, and the parts are expensive. James, if you're up for a trip to KC, Motorcyclecloseouts.com has a retail store in Gladstone. They carry Arai, Shoei, Shark,....etc and are good people to deal with too. | ||
| Rkc00 |
Glitch, How about those calander prices? Both sizes. Mike 06 XB12X Red/Black Long Island, NY | ||
| Gunut75 |
COOL! Biodegradable helmets! | ||
| Court |
The Arai AdSis system can be a bit tricky but once you cotton on to it . . . it's a breeze. | ||
| Hughlysses |
The Shark shield release is cool as heck. I'd post the animated GIF here but it's copyrighted. See review here with animation near the bottom: http://www.webbikeworld.com/r2/motorcycle-helmet/s hark-rsi/ | ||
| Fresnobuell |
Sparx helmets...VERY good quality for the price. Great quality graphics (paint.) Nice visor retention system. Removable liner. and if it gets ripped off, no crying! IMO easily the best sub-$150 helmet on the market. I bought my first at Fontana a few weeks ago and have since bought 2 more on sale(for way less than $100/each.) It will be sort of nice to be able to just grab a helmet with the clear, mirror or smoke visor and GO. **edit** Forgot to mention: Sparx are surprisingly light & the noise protection is good--probably has to do with the helmet venting only on the visor and chin. (Message edited by fresnobuell on April 14, 2009) | ||
| Sanchez |
I have an Arai Corsair. The fit is excellent, particularly in the glasses department. The shield release mechanism is not as easy to use as my old Icon Alliance SS, but it is significantly easier than my ex-girlfriend's Suomy was. I dropped the helmet once, and the top vent broke off. It's a bit noisier than the Icon, but it's also lighter and more aerodynamically stable. The vents are far superior to the Icon's. Bottom line, I'd buy another one. Whatever you get, do some shopping around on eBay. I got my Arai brand new there for $100 less than anywhere locally or elsewhere online. | ||
| Gentleman_jon |
Glitch - Thanks for the critique:-) Mike, Thanks for the photo! | ||
| Glitch |
How about those calander prices? I'm having to go through another printer, the one I was going through, isn't giving me a break at all... You'll know as soon as I do. Thanks for your patience! Jonathan, I calls 'em like I sees 'em! | ||
| Corporatemonkey |
This topic seems to come up every so often. I think Ft_B and myself are of the few who own a Profile here. He dislikes his (as stated earlier) I love mine. In fact I would buy another one in a heartbeat. I have not had any quality control issues. I have been through 3 visors (my fault). For me it was one of the only helmets that worked really well with my glasses. Let me know if you have any specific questions. | ||
| Ratbuell |
I have an Arai (I want to say its a profile,but would have to check...typical "guy" thing, "it's silver" LOL). I like it except in truly cold weather (like single digits). It vents TOO well - and yet, still likes to fog up in the recent 50s temps and rain. I also have a Shoei Multi-tec modular that seals up nicely in frigid temps. | ||
| Hughlysses |
Jamie, I'm pretty confident I would have bought one too, IF I could have found an Arai "dealer" with a couple in stock. I may buy one yet. | ||
| Danger_dave |
I have an Arai Viper and a Tour-X. I really like them. Been wearing the Viper heaps lately because I have several triumph test bikes. Erik's autograph is on the Shoei X-spirit.  |
