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How often is it generally considered appropriate to replace your helmet ? My road helmet is now 5 years old and I did bounce off it last year when I broke my shoulder (but there is no cracks at all and just a couple of scrapes)
Whats the consensus on this ? Am I being stupid and should I just replace it now ?
Or am I being a big sook and should just harden the f%^& up ???
Thank you and good afternoon
Helmets degrade with time and with uv exposure. 5 yrs is often quoted as their life and should be replaced after any significant impact
I replace mine every 3 years or if I have a big off - whichever happens first.
Coincidentally I replaced my helmet last week. While I was butchering my old one for salvageable parts for others (Blue Giro E2 Visor still free to anyone who wants one chaps!) I noticed that I had a crack all the way through one of the main foam members. I dont remember a substantial enough off to have caused it so it could well have been just the rough and tumble of being thrown around in the shed.
In future I will check it more often for damage.
Afterall, if you've made the decision to wear a helmet, it only makes sense if the helmet is in the best condition it can be.
On stoner's thread Met were quoted as saying their helmets had a 8 year life span.
3 yrs do to U.V. or when I drop it or hit head -especially if it has crash exchange discount program always helps.
A new helmet is anything from £50 - 100. My feeling is that after 3-5 years, or any crash/drop that gives you that "sucks in through teeth feeling", it's worth replacing the lid for the sake of £30 a year.
After a medium sized spill last year, I replaced the helmet.... for some reason I kept the old one, and thought i'd try and split it by hand. Without even trying there was a crack and the helmet split in two. There was no obvious visible damage prior to this!
DrP
dropping it isn't likely to do a lot imo - nowhere near the same force as landing with your weight inside it. I dropped my Giro Hex quite a few times and a year or two later it still saved my head nicely when I landed on it!
cynic-al - MemberOn stoner's thread Met were quoted as saying their helmets had a 8 year life span.
[url= http://www.bikeradar.com/feature/article/how-do-met-make-their-helmets--21044 ]
[/url]How long will my helmet last?There are many theories regarding when you should replace your helmet – which is why MET decided to answer the question by testing their own models. And the result? For eight years a MET helmet will do its job just fine, as long as you don't damage it in a crash.
But d'you know what? I reckon I'll keep it as 3-4 years...