Leatt Helmet 5.5 V.04 Adequate Intrustion Protection?

[Moto7man]

I just bought one of these from Rocky Mtn ATV, it arrived this afternoon. This is a high quality piece of gear. The fit,finish and detailing are excellent. I like the helmet, it is comfortable and looks great.

Unfortunately, there are 4 very large composite vents on the main body of the helmet with two vent exhaust holes at the back. Through all of these "holes" there is no intrusion protection for your head. You can put any type of small long stick or rod straight through the grill opening and touch the exposed head. Even the headliner does not cover these grilled openings.

For me, the intrusion protection seems inadequate. I do believe I am going return this helmet tomorrow and buy a new Shoei, which is what I have now. This is a shame because I really like the Leatt helmet, it just seems like an unnecessary risk. Does Leatt make any accessory parts to close these vent holes? Does anyone else have experience with the Leatt helmets?

 

[Simmo737]

Have a look at this review, you can still get the very light weight and good ventilation in other brands.

http://www.dirtbikeworld.net/forum/showthread.php?t=117147

I did a lot of research last year and purchased a Kali prana, my previous helmet was a shoei , I couldn't go back.

 

[Moto7man]

That is a great video, very informative. The Leatt helmet is ECE and DOT certified. It does not have a Snell certification. The Snell certification has been revised after several studies found the Snell standards for rigidity were leading to rider injury.

Part of the DOT certification is a spike test on the vent openings that I was originally concerned about when I received the helmet. The Leatt helmet manual describes the area around the vents as "3D reinforced" and the edge around the vent is raised up and angled. In the Leatt spike test video and the DOT test the vents are hit directly by the spike with no intrusion.

Also, Leatt offers a Wet Weather/ Cold Weather kit with plugs that close all the vents. I just ordered the kit, I will post an update after it arrives. I think that I am going to keep the helmet because my concerns have been addressed so far.

 

[Moto7man]

This is a picture of the new helmet.

 

[Moto7man]

This is a pic of the 3D reinforced sections for the vents.

 

[Moto7man]

This is the hydration rail mount.

This is the 360 turbine core inserts, with the dual density liner and the vent system. They say they spray in the liner which takes up less space.

I am still waiting for the vent plug kit to arrive.

 

[Simmo737]

It looks really good I reckon!

 

[Moto7man]

It looks really good I reckon!

Thanks for that, I think it does too!

 

[Moto7man]

I just received my Cold/Wet Kit for the new lid.

 

[Moto7man]

Very straight forward install,just remember to remove cheek pads to install the nose mask.