Wilsons Sandbox

At 100+ mph, the XD will try to tear your head off if you look up. But, you won't be going 100+ on your KLR much, if ever, so it's fine for highway use. I wouldn't use one for a high speed sport bike, but for the KLR, it is one of the best choices, if not THE best choice. I'm sure some XD owners are going to chime in. Mike

----- Original Message ----- From: Steve Gochenour To: DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com Sent: Saturday, July 22, 2006 11:02 PM Subject: [DSN_KLR650] Arai XD question Has anyone ever used an Arai XD helmet? A salesman, at a local shop, said I would have trouble driving on a highway with the visor. He said the wind would try and push my head back. Does anyone have an opinion? Thanks. Steve [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

--- In DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com, "Steve Gochenour" wrote:

> > Has anyone ever used an Arai XD helmet? A salesman, at a local shop, said I > would have trouble driving on a highway with the visor. He said the wind > would try and push my head back. Does anyone have an opinion? >

Mine is better at speed than a regular dirt bike helmet. Up to 75 or so, depending on wind conditions, no problem. Faster than that, it may pull, but not a real problem, until maybe 85. My speeds on DS bikes are more often 70 and under, so I will wear it on the highway without a second thought.

On Jul 22, 2006, at 9:26 PM, Jud Jones wrote:

> Mine is better at speed than a regular dirt bike helmet. Up to 75 > or so, depending on wind > conditions, no problem. Faster than that, it may pull, but not a > real problem, until maybe 85.

And don't forget that the visor is removable, too. -- Blake Sobiloff http://sobiloff.typepad.com/blakeblog/> http://sobiloff.typepad.com/klr_adventure/> San Jose, CA (USA)

Not about the Arai but I sure have lots of visor experience. Go back and tell that "salesman" that he's full of s.. sweetpotatoes. In fact, one of my big complaints now days is that few helmets come with the snaps that allow you to use a visor. Try riding into the sun without one. You'll be dangerous. With my full face, I've resorted to a strip of black tape across the top of the shield to help with the sun. Helps some. don a17

On Jul 22, 2006, at 10:02 PM, Steve Gochenour wrote: > Has anyone ever used an Arai XD helmet? A salesman, at a local > shop, said I > would have trouble driving on a highway with the visor. He said the > wind > would try and push my head back. Does anyone have an opinion? > > Thanks. > > Steve > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] > > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

The XD is a great helmet. It's pretty quiet and has great ventilation. I paid extra for the motard version with the added vent and it's well worth the extra cost. I had a motorcross helmet (now a backup) prior and the difference in noise level is astronomical. The XD lets through less than 1/3 the high-pitch noise of the MX helmet. The visor doesn't catch the wind as bad as the MX helmet. The tug backward in the wind is very manageable. I look at the mountains and Big Sky of Montana frequently without worry. The only issue I've found is I bumped one of the vent switches and the black button broke. The replacement vent wing is tough to get. Strange coincidences ended up getting me a new vent wing for free so, it cost me nothing more than half and hour to fix. -----Original Message----- From: DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com [mailto:DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com]On Behalf Of Steve Gochenour Sent: Saturday, July 22, 2006 9:02 PM To: DSN_KLR650@yahoogroups.com Subject: [DSN_KLR650] Arai XD question Has anyone ever used an Arai XD helmet? A salesman, at a local shop, said I would have trouble driving on a highway with the visor. He said the wind would try and push my head back. Does anyone have an opinion? Thanks. Steve [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] Archive Quicksearch at: http://www.angelfire.com/ut/moab/klr650_data_search.html List sponsored by Dual Sport News at: www.dualsportnews.com List FAQ courtesy of Chris Krok at: www.bigcee.com/klr650faq.html Member Map at: http://www.frappr.com/dsnklr650 Yahoo! Groups Links -- No virus found in this incoming message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.1.394 / Virus Database: 268.10.3/395 - Release Date: 7/21/2006 -- No virus found in this outgoing message. Checked by AVG Free Edition. Version: 7.1.394 / Virus Database: 268.10.3/395 - Release Date: 7/21/2006

An outfit in Sedona AZ makes a stick on visor for just that purpose. DC Don Bittle wrote:

> Not about the Arai but I sure have lots of visor experience. Go back > and tell that "salesman" that he's full of s.. sweetpotatoes. > In fact, one of my big complaints now days is that few helmets come > with the snaps that allow you to use a visor. Try riding into the sun > without one. You'll be dangerous. With my full face, I've resorted to > a stri >

[Non-text portions of this message have been removed]

Steve, I suspect your salesman is basing his opinion on conjecture rather than experience. I do not feel any strange effects from the wind on my Arai XD visor when facing forward. When I turn my head to check for traffic before a lane change, I feel the effects of the visor. This is really only noticeable at 60mph and above. It only takes a couple of rides to get used to it. Now that I expect the slight tug when turning my head, it's not an issue. Lars Soylent Green A20

On Jul 22, 2006, at 10:02 PM, Steve Gochenour wrote: > Has anyone ever used an Arai XD helmet? A salesman, at a local > shop, said I would have trouble driving on a highway with the > visor. He said the wind would try and push my head back. Does > anyone have an opinion? > Thanks. > Steve

I have an Arai XD and while it is quite a nice helmet, it hasn't been quite as great as I expected from comments I had read. It is noisy and while I knew that going in, it is probably louder than I expected. As to the visor, it isn't a real problem until over about 120 kph (80 mph), but I do find it a bit annoying when looking around when cruising about 115 kph and shoulder checks when passing at higher speeds definitely give your neck muscles a workout. On a trip with sustained 50+ kph (30 mph) crosswinds and higher gusts, I eventually found my neck getting sore and removed the visor (easy to do with just a quarter) and found I liked it so much better without the visor I have yet to put it back on. That will probably change when I next find myself riding into a low sun, but I suspect the helmet will spend most of its time from now on without the visor. The great feature of the helmet is being able to switch to goggles and leave the shield up on warm dusty days. The visor does get coated with dust inside and out in this case though, so you need some gentle way of cleaning it if you want to switch back when returning to the highway. Craig

On 22-Jul-06, at 9:02 PM, Steve Gochenour wrote: > Has anyone ever used an Arai XD helmet? A salesman, at a local > shop, said I > would have trouble driving on a highway with the visor. He said the > wind > would try and push my head back. Does anyone have an opinion? > > Thanks. > > Steve > > [Non-text portions of this message have been removed] > > > -- Craig Morris - craig@... Fernie, B.C., Canada