Modern Buddy

newbie rider here, my GMax 68S helmet arrived last week and it's a keeper. Tons of vents which I will appreciate when the weather warms up.

Yesterday afternoon I switched the clear face shield for the tinted one and took a ride around the neighborhood. The tinted shield is great--peripheral vision is better with the dark shield than with my sunglasses--but I'm thinking that as the sun gets brighter on its way back north, it might not be dark enough.

What do you folks do about bright sunshine? Do you find your tinted face shields to be enough, do you use sunglasses with the clear shield, or even sunglasses with the darker shield?

The GMax is a great buy, by the way. Amazing ventilation, price was only $117, and it comes with both clear and tinted face shields! I had also ordered a Nolan N43 Trilogy but sent it back even though it's a beautiful helmet and it's manufactured in Bergamo, Italy, where my dog's ancestors originated (breed name: Bergamasco)

well i use sunglasses
if you get caught at dusk or dark with a tinted visor you will have to ride with it up and with clear glasses on

I use sunglasses. I have been trying to find tinted goggles that don't have the foam around them, as I would be wearing them under a shield and don't need the seal, and it inhibits sight a bit. My husband uses a tinted shield, but that means on longer trips when the light will change he has to take the other shield with him. I find that very inefficient. I have been looking also for a pair of auto tinting sunglasses but they don't seem to get dark enough.

I had a tinted shield on my last helmet that was pretty much a medium darkness. I liked it much better than wearing sunglasses, but I ride about half the time at night. That was a pain because I had to either ride with it down (think driving at night in sunglasses, not very safe) or keep it up and have no eye protection (illegal in my state and also annoying/dangerous) or hope I had my glasses on. I never found keeping a second clear shield with me to be a very practical option.

What I'd really like on my next helmet is a tinted visor that flips down inside the shield. Best of both worlds. But for now, I'm back to sunglasses. I bought a spare pair that fits well under my helmet to keep in my pet carrier.

I have a dark tinted visor for day, and clear one for night. The unused one lives in the pet carrier and I just swap them out as needed. Only takes a second.

Skootz Kabootz wrote:I have a dark tinted visor for day, and clear one for night. The unused one lives in the pet carrier and I just swap them out as needed. Only takes a second.

yeah, I was thinking the same thing, that I could carry the clear in the storage space under the seat, so if I do get caught out after dark I'd just swap visors. My helmet takes a little longer than a second, but it's not too bad.

Right now I have no interest in riding at night, but that will probably change with more time on the bike.

You have a pet carrier on your bike? Is this for carrying stuff other than pets, or is it for carrying pets too?

pimaCanyon wrote:

Skootz Kabootz wrote:I have a dark tinted visor for day, and clear one for night. The unused one lives in the pet carrier and I just swap them out as needed. Only takes a second.

yeah, I was thinking the same thing, that I could carry the clear in the storage space under the seat, so if I do get caught out after dark I'd just swap visors. My helmet takes a little longer than a second, but it's not too bad.

Right now I have no interest in riding at night, but that will probably change with more time on the bike.

You have a pet carrier on your bike? Is this for carrying stuff other than pets, or is it for carrying pets too?

The "Pet Carrier" is the tongue-in-cheek name for the storage compartment under the seat, so named because of the now famous Vespa sticker located there.

I am too lazy to swap out visors; so I use sunglasses. I use a wide, wrap around lens for better peripheral vision. They work great.

Skootz Kabootz wrote:
The "Pet Carrier" is the tongue-in-cheek name for the storage compartment under the seat, so named because of the now famous Vespa sticker located there.

doh! that's pretty funny.

Probably not a surprise to find out that there are folks who carry their dogs on their bikes. I had visions of doing that too--until I read about the stuff that happens when you crash, how protective gear can mitigate some of that, but they don't make full face helmets for dogs.

They do make doggie helmets and goggles. They call them doggles.

Take a look here:

http://www.dogsonbikes.com/

And here:

http://www.doggles.com/doggles.html

Skootz Kabootz wrote:I have a dark tinted visor for day, and clear one for night. The unused one lives in the pet carrier and I just swap them out as needed. Only takes a second.

I want to time you doing this.

JNV wrote:I am too lazy to swap out visors; so I use sunglasses.

Me too. Also, I only want to have to buy and replace one visor. Don't want another taking up space in the pet carrier. One more thing to keep track of.

I have problems with photosensitivity and pretty much wear sunglasses outdoors and while riding until it's dark out. Easier to pull of the sunglasses and stash them than stop to swap shields.

I'm in the tinted face shield camp. I have a Suomy Spec 1R, and their shield change system is a bit complex to say the least. I can swap out a shield on the helmet in less than a minute. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zQu3YoSz6b4 I take the other shield with me when I'm going on a long ride, but don't if I know I'll be back before dark. Not had a problem with getting caught out after sundown with a dark visor. Dark Visors are illegal in England, another reason why it sucks.

I use a clear faceshield, sunglasses in the day, and clear glasses at night. The glasses keep the wind from drying out my eyes.

ericalm wrote:Me too. Also, I only want to have to buy and replace one visor. Don't want another taking up space in the pet carrier. One more thing to keep track of.

I have problems with photosensitivity and pretty much wear sunglasses outdoors and while riding until it's dark out. Easier to pull of the sunglasses and stash them than stop to swap shields.

Yes, it is a pain in the ass to switch and keep track of. I do have to admit, however, that on a bright sunny day (if I am going to be riding most of the day) I will switch to a tinted visor and wear sunglasses also.

I am extremely nearsighted and that causes me to be pretty photosensitive. I also can not tolerate the odd color patterns I get when I wear a colored lens behind my visor-It bugs the crap out of me and is way too distracting.
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I have a helmet that has a tinted visor that I use when I am sure to be home before dark.
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I have a helmet that has a stripe of dark tint that I applied across the top for all purpose riding-it helps a ton with sunlight but the bottom is perfectly clear so it is safe after dark.
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I also have a smaller helmet that has a clear face shield that I stash in my pet carrier if there is a chance that I might get caught out after dark but the sun is so bright I need the tinted visor.
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Cheers,
-v

Vic wrote:I have a helmet that has a stripe of dark tint that I applied across the top for all purpose riding-it helps a ton with sunlight but the bottom is perfectly clear so it is safe after dark.

I forgot- I did this as well on a shield with some cheap window tint film that I bought at an auto parts store. It looked VERY homemade (no one has ever accused me of wielding a mean pair of scissors) but worked in a lot of cases. I think there are some shields out there that already have this tint stripe.

jmazza wrote:

Vic wrote:I have a helmet that has a stripe of dark tint that I applied across the top for all purpose riding-it helps a ton with sunlight but the bottom is perfectly clear so it is safe after dark.

I forgot- I did this as well on a shield with some cheap window tint film that I bought at an auto parts store. It looked VERY homemade (no one has ever accused me of wielding a mean pair of scissors) but worked in a lot of cases. I think there are some shields out there that already have this tint stripe.

Fog City makes a stick on version of this for clear visors.

My input is this:
I like a clear visor with sunglasses in the day because I don't have to carry a spare shield and I don't have to store it (I don't always have room). However, my full-face helmet is crap for this setup. I have to use a tinted visor because my glasses fog up instantly.

If I know I'm going on a long ride in all daylight, I'll swap on a tinted visor. Clear is the usual default, though.

If you're carrying a spare visor around, be sure that you have something soft to store it in. Visors are expensive to replace and if they get scratched, it's always going to be at eye level, never in a corner.

^ a visor that fades from very dark at the top to clear at the bottom would be sweet.

Wonder if they've tried making photochromatic visors.

Kinda nerdy for glasses, but it might work well for this application.

Well, they do:
http://www.webbikeworld.com/r4/photochr ... cle-visor/

Never in the inexpensive helmets, but a few companies do offer built in slide down sunglasses in their helmet. A Scorpion EXO 1000 comes to mind. And if memory serves me right Nolan has some too.

nissanman wrote:Never in the inexpensive helmets, but a few companies do offer built in slide down sunglasses in their helmet. A Scorpion EXO 1000 comes to mind. And if memory serves me right Nolan has some too.

yeah, the Nolan N43 that I sent back had that feature. Push a lever on the side of the helmet and sunglasses slide down inside the faceshield. Push it the other way and they slide up and out of sight. Cool feature. I believe HJC also makes a helmet with built in sunglasses.

pimaCanyon wrote: I believe HJC also makes a helmet with built in sunglasses.

The HJC SY MaxII Modular has the internal visor, there are other HJC FF models that do also.

Some of the less expensive helmets have started integrating this feature. The problem for some is positioning and fit.

That reminds me. The other thing I was going to mention is that those helmets that have the retractable sun visors in them are heavier and sometimes bulkier. This can tire you out if you combine it with wind buffeting over a long day of riding. Just keep that in mind if you're looking at one of those models.

Good point LMC. One of the reasons I stayed FF over a Modular. A 3rd possibility is some of the MX sytle street helmets coming out. They've got a visor like the brim of a hat to block the sun. Reminds me... need a new lid for this summer, the Arai is about to expire

i rock the 1940s or what ever fighter pilot goggles i got at costume shop,they are huge and are UV safe, (has the sticker).and they dont fog up . i get asked about them all the time, they go great with the italia

I think tinted shields simply make the helmet look better, but eh.
I wear my sunglasses all the time. They do not block any kind of vision what so ever. They are also 10x more clear than looking through a shield.
Gotta love costas

cmac wrote:I think tinted shields simply make the helmet look better, but eh.

Kind of depends on the face behind the shield.

ericalm wrote:

cmac wrote:I think tinted shields simply make the helmet look better, but eh.

Kind of depends on the face behind the shield.

heh...

In my case, the reflective blue shield looks way better!

I've been riding with the tinted shield on all the time (but no night riding yet), and it works great. It's a bit brighter than my sunglasses, but I actually like that for driving, things seems clearer. I also like the wide open peripheral vision with the face shield which my sunglasses do not have.

I'm starting to venture further from home and play around in the traffic a bit. Fun stuff! (But still a bit scary at times. )