Used helmets, would you buy one?!

Following a recent thread regarding the discontinuation of a certain Giro helmet, I’ve been scouring the planet for any left over in my size that aren’t now suffering from the “rare and discontinued” tax

to be clear, I’d NORMALLY avoid used helmets like the plague,

the one I’m now talking about, there are a good 15 pictures of the helmet from various angles, inside and out, it LOOKS like it’s never been used, seller claims “used once or twice but don’t like how it fits”

for £12 is it worth breaking my self imposed rules of not buying used helmets or is it just asking for trouble?

WWSTWD?!

For £12 I’d absolutely go for it. You should be able to tell with it in hand whether whether it really has just been hardly used  – pads and straps should be a dead giveaway.

Funnily enough I similarly want a discontinued Giro Air Attack with the visor, it’s not one of those in large is it 😉 ?

Funnily enough I similarly want a discontinued Giro Air Attack with the visor, it’s not one of those in large is it

Thought I had some competition then ?

nope, looking at / for 51-56cm (small?!) Montaro lids

Not £12, but is this what you’re looking for?

Yes, you can tell if it’s been damaged/crashed.

Yes, if in good nick, have bought and sold a fair few used lids. Seems very wasteful not to move them on rather than send to landfill. See also kids car seats – you can barely give them away!

The lack of re-use of kids car seats is insane. We were shocked when we first had kids how resistant some new parents were to anything reused, even cots, plastic bits, changers.

It does look unused, plenty of pictures to show every angle, think for £12 (plus postage) I might take a punt

Concurring with the above comments, does seem a waste that a lot of people (myself included to a certain extent) will just sack off used lids and car seats too (been there as well)

@frogstomp I did look on Merlin but didn’t see them in stock in that size, well spotted, sir

I always read things like “never ever ever buy used helmets/car seats, this is because they work by compressing the foam internally on impact and it can be quite badly compromised without looking like anything’s happened”.

Even though I am pretty certain that I could tell if there was a problem, I’d still always feel that bit of uncertainty. We’re talking about protecting my child or my head here after all, both are fairly important to me!

a) they’re not worth the tiny risk

b) I’d worry too much

Better than used bibshorts. Just.

No, I wouldn’t

Did the previous user keep it well polished? If there’s no signs of it having been put places you’d not have put your current helmet, you could give it a punt. No shame in seconds if it’s a sort after model.

I have bought a used helmet before, but it was from a guy I know in real life and trusted him enough.

To be honest, I think you can kind of tell from certain ads if it’s been crashed or even used before…and if the person seems like they know what they’re talking about. Some of them say they bought it, doesn’t fit and CBA returning and they will often be correct. But – you never *really* know with any certainty and I’d be exceptionally cautious with it.

I suppose its what your buying the helmet for which will be the decider.

If its because you think this particular helmet looks the best on your head, so going for the purely fashion/looks reason, you can gauge its value by the condition of the straps and cushion … how much sweat of the previous owner have they absorbed.

But if your buying the helmet to actually give you the little bit of protection they provide – then with a 2nd hand helmet there is no way to guarantee you`ll get it.

Only if I knew the person I was buying it from, and why they were selling it.  Same goes for climbing equipment.

made an (accepted) offer of a tenner and took a punt on it, figured, for that much (or little) you cant go FAR wrong or lose too much

seller sent me a message before posting it to “warn me” that the package was “about 3 times the size it should be due to the two rolls of bubble wrap I’ve used to pack it up” so they SEEM to know the importance of keeping a lid well protected / in good nick,

-If its because you think this particular helmet looks the best on your head, so going for the purely fashion/looks reason,

definitely not this for me given some of the gear I have to don at work in the name of health and safety ha ha

you can gauge its value by the condition of the straps and cushion … how much sweat of the previous owner have they absorbed.

the pictures posted on the ad showed no obvious signs of any of this, the stickers that were / are inside don’t even show any signs of discolouration, all feeling very positive so far, feeling confident that this could be my addition to the bargain of the year thread

The lack of re-use of kids car seats is insane.

Nah, we get a lot here for tear down and examination. We’ve had a good percentage that need detailed breakdown and disassembly to even see that they are broken/crashed/damaged.

I’d only buy from someone I know and trust. Same as a car seat.

Giro you say?  Yours for a tenner…

Yep to “basically unused”, I bought an E2 (ages ago) off here from someone who just didn’t like it. I’d not buy an ‘old’ one but that’s a different matter.

nope, looking at / for 51-56cm (small?!) Montaro lids

Giro sizing seems to have been very consistent over the years, but you have to figure out which head shape they used on each model. If you look for other 51-56 helmets by Giro / Bell / 661 they’ll probably be exactly the same fit. Don’t trust their other sizes though, I once tried on a 661 XL that wouldn’t even go over my head whereas the other model was just fine, same with the MTB lids.

Decathlon sell used helmets like this one https://www.decathlon.co.uk/p/second-life-mountain-biking-helmet-expl-500-neon-yellow-excellent/_/R-p-301136-A?mc=8618745-A&c=fluo%20acid%20yellow

They also sell second hand bib shorts and bizarrely second hand thongs:

https://www.decathlon.co.uk/p/second-life-women-s-invisible-thong-black-excellent/_/R-p-349722-A

The Other side of the coin. I sold one once, same story – it just didn’t fit me. Advertised in good faith, lots of pictures, original packaging and accessories, great buyer feedback because it was a good lid.