shield fogs up? reviewing 3 anti-fog inserts

[jwflower53]

The helmet: Shoei RF-1000 and RF-900. The climate: chilly and humid, very "foggy". The products: Fog City (available all over the web): Least expensive at about $18. Easy to install, definitely fog-free and stayed that way for several years. Seems pretty scratch resistant, though being on the inside it's not vulnerable. Downs: significantly smaller than the shield, so field of view was decreased. Also, streetlights either "star" or "halo" at night, distracting but I got used to it. Shoei Pinlock system: Very expensive, must buy special Shoei shield AND the insert, which by itself is spendier than either of the other inserts. Otherwise, all comments for the Fog City apply to the Pinlock. Oxford Ultra Clear OF298: I think this one's the best. About $30 (http://www.bikebiz.com.au/products/Oxford-Ultra-Clear-Shield.html). I bought it a year ago, then today the Pinlock sprung a leak. (Just like double pane windows, when they leak it's safer to tear 'em off and ditch 'em, since you can't clear the fog from between the insert and the shield.) I just mounted it and took a half-hour test ride: Completely fog-free, even sitting for three minutes pretending I was at a stop light. It's way wider and taller than the other two; I can barely see the edges from the very corners of my eyes; a big safety plus. No "starring" or "haloing" either, another safety plus. I'm ordering another one for the second helmet. Note: I tried to follow the mounting instructions on the package, though they didn't make sense. Sure enough, I had to unstick and re-position the insert twice, though that doesn't seem to have compromised function. Only when I went to the maker's site (http://www.oxprod.com/index.php?pg=3&action=dept&id=28&pid=138) did I find a video with very different, much better instructions. Following them would have made mounting easy enough. It's new, so longevity/scratch resistance unknown, but it seems as strong as the others on visual inspection (you can destruction-test your own, I ain't gonna).