05-06-2017, 08:39 AM
I theorized that having a more aerodynamic helmet would be beneficial when riding a naked CB1100. My hypothesis was that air moving more smoothly over my head would reduce noise in the helmet while also reducing helmet lift and helmet shake. Of course, most of the online reviews of the most aerodynamic lids were from sport bike riders who were riding in 3/4 to full tuck. Not much help, actually. Add to the mix that my Honda dealer does not let folks "test ride" helmets and I was, to some degree flying blind and risking $500-$600 in the process.
After doing as much research into price and performance, I settled on a white Shoei X14 which my Honda dealer sold me for a bit over $500. A lot more than my previous HJC helmet, but it felt good on my head and the price was as good as anything I found online and significantly better than most places.
[url=http://s1318.photobucket.com/user/emptysea43/media/CB1100%20Miscellaneous/B3C10746-FEF0-4398-8A6C-74356F56B2D0_zps4sgdapi5.jpg.html]![[Image: 30835f7af7c7f368a7076f304d9d251f.jpg]](https://cb1100forum.net/forum/uploads/imp/201705/30835f7af7c7f368a7076f304d9d251f.jpg)
I took a 30 minute ride today to test out my hypothesis and I am happy with my purchase.
It's pretty windy today (north @ 15-25mph), sunny and cool (55f). Pretty good test conditions, I think. I headed out on the three or four miles of side streets and arterial roads which would deliver me on to I-294 North. The X 14 was quiet. Maybe not the quietest helmet on the market, but much more quiet than my previous helmets. I tested the venting which is advertised as exemplary and it is. As it was cool outside, I didn't really need venting, but I immediately felt the cool air moving over and around my head inside the helmet even at slow speeds. That will come in handy when the temperatures rise.
Quiet and cool at in-town speeds, but what of it when the needle on the left gauge starts to tick past 12:00? 294 was fairly crowded for a Saturday and there were quite a few trucks out. Again, the X 14 was much more calm and quiet than my HJCs, but I was still feeling a bit of shake, particularly near trucks. Not a lot, but some. No lift though. The Shoei comes with a chin spoiler and a chin skirt. I'm not 100% sure if they intended for both accessories to be used together, but I squeezed them both into the little slot at the lead edge of the helmet and I think that helped a lot in keeping the air from pushing my head up. I reminded myself that it was very windy and that trucks kind of suck anyhow which served to dissolve most of the slight feeling of buyer's remorse. I exited 294 at Lake-Cook Rd., crossed to the west side of the interstate, and headed back south.
With the wind at my back, the X14 was absolutely amazing. Very little wind noise until I got up to about 90mph. At that speed, a low rumble kind of noise came up, but I found that opening up the chin vent just one notch changed the tone of that rumble to a much more palatable drone. I'm quite sure that when I ride with earplugs as I usually do, I won't even hear that. Now, the wind was still blowing, mostly from the rear, but some from my right side. Zero shake. Zero lift. With my last helmet, I could barely hear the CB1100's engine because of the wind noise. With the X14 I could hear that beautiful inline-4 rev. Easily the most comfortable I've felt on the highway at speed. Any lingering doubt about dropping $500+ for a motorcycle helmet evaporated completely on the way back home.
I have a friend who has a sign-making business and also does vehicle wraps. He and I are going to come up with some graphics to break up some of the Battlestar Galactica color and shape. I probably will unveil that at the Eureka Springs Rally at the end of this month.
I have heard some complaints about the size of the speaker openings so we'll see what happens when I install the Bluetooth device. Also, I think that this helmet could be overkill on a bike with a windshield; I'd probably look at the Shoei GT-Air or the HJC RPHA10/11 or any number of full-featured helmets out there. For my naked CB, though, I could not be more pleased with my purchase.
After doing as much research into price and performance, I settled on a white Shoei X14 which my Honda dealer sold me for a bit over $500. A lot more than my previous HJC helmet, but it felt good on my head and the price was as good as anything I found online and significantly better than most places.
[url=http://s1318.photobucket.com/user/emptysea43/media/CB1100%20Miscellaneous/B3C10746-FEF0-4398-8A6C-74356F56B2D0_zps4sgdapi5.jpg.html]
I took a 30 minute ride today to test out my hypothesis and I am happy with my purchase.
It's pretty windy today (north @ 15-25mph), sunny and cool (55f). Pretty good test conditions, I think. I headed out on the three or four miles of side streets and arterial roads which would deliver me on to I-294 North. The X 14 was quiet. Maybe not the quietest helmet on the market, but much more quiet than my previous helmets. I tested the venting which is advertised as exemplary and it is. As it was cool outside, I didn't really need venting, but I immediately felt the cool air moving over and around my head inside the helmet even at slow speeds. That will come in handy when the temperatures rise.
Quiet and cool at in-town speeds, but what of it when the needle on the left gauge starts to tick past 12:00? 294 was fairly crowded for a Saturday and there were quite a few trucks out. Again, the X 14 was much more calm and quiet than my HJCs, but I was still feeling a bit of shake, particularly near trucks. Not a lot, but some. No lift though. The Shoei comes with a chin spoiler and a chin skirt. I'm not 100% sure if they intended for both accessories to be used together, but I squeezed them both into the little slot at the lead edge of the helmet and I think that helped a lot in keeping the air from pushing my head up. I reminded myself that it was very windy and that trucks kind of suck anyhow which served to dissolve most of the slight feeling of buyer's remorse. I exited 294 at Lake-Cook Rd., crossed to the west side of the interstate, and headed back south.
With the wind at my back, the X14 was absolutely amazing. Very little wind noise until I got up to about 90mph. At that speed, a low rumble kind of noise came up, but I found that opening up the chin vent just one notch changed the tone of that rumble to a much more palatable drone. I'm quite sure that when I ride with earplugs as I usually do, I won't even hear that. Now, the wind was still blowing, mostly from the rear, but some from my right side. Zero shake. Zero lift. With my last helmet, I could barely hear the CB1100's engine because of the wind noise. With the X14 I could hear that beautiful inline-4 rev. Easily the most comfortable I've felt on the highway at speed. Any lingering doubt about dropping $500+ for a motorcycle helmet evaporated completely on the way back home.
I have a friend who has a sign-making business and also does vehicle wraps. He and I are going to come up with some graphics to break up some of the Battlestar Galactica color and shape. I probably will unveil that at the Eureka Springs Rally at the end of this month.
I have heard some complaints about the size of the speaker openings so we'll see what happens when I install the Bluetooth device. Also, I think that this helmet could be overkill on a bike with a windshield; I'd probably look at the Shoei GT-Air or the HJC RPHA10/11 or any number of full-featured helmets out there. For my naked CB, though, I could not be more pleased with my purchase.
