This is a brief review of my HJC 90s flip front helmet. The first thing to note is that this helmet comes up a bit small compared with other brands (AGV, Arai, Shark, Shoei etc) and I had to order an XL rather than my usual L. The lining is not a plush as some helmets I've had before but looks incredibly hardwearing and is actually very comfortable & washable too. The micrometric ratchet fastening is a revelation and it's the first helmet I've had with this style of fastener and I have to say I am a convert. The helmet comes with a pinlock insert ready to install and it fitted very easily and without drama - it works brilliantly too. Sadly, the drop down tinted visor was fogging up a bit on my last run but it was a bit damp, I'll have to keep an eye on that one. speaking of the drop down visor it is very easy to operate with a side slider but I think it could do with being a bit darker? Possibly just me but I wa struggling into the low sun at the weekend. Thankfully it doesn't have an annoying gap at the bottom where brighter light gets in.
The flip front mechanism is simple to operate and the chinbar 'locks' into the full up position with ease. It's not a lock as such but a reassuring click and is easily lowered without having to faff about, just pull it down. The visor also locks soundly into place and the central location is second nature after a while. The lower front vent only allows a modest amount of ventilation into the visor area, but that may be because I am sitting behind a very tall and efficient screen on my tiger 1200 ? The top vent allows a lot of airflow across the scalp and this will be lovely in the summer months. The standard chin curtain is very snug and will have to be removed in the warmer months but is more than fine at the moment creating a very cosy environment.
I fitted the Sena 50S from my previous Shark helmet and it was the easiest install I've done taking about 5 mins from start to finish. The standard speaker cut outs are perfect and the padding between the speaker and my ear is quite thin meaning they are very clear and a lot louder. The Sena does create a little bit of wind noise under certain conditions but no worse than on any other helmet to be honest. All in all this is a very quiet helmet, especially for a modular item.
At £240 from The Sportsbike Shop I think this is a bit of a bargain as it's not plastic but a composite shell and weighing in at 1600g (XL) it's not too heavy either (relatively). The fit, finish and features are very good and the flip mechanism is a genuine joy to operate. Very happy and the metallic white matches my Tiger perfectly. If you are thinking about a flip front helmet you could do a lot worse than to try one of these, just remember to go up a size.
