We asked our helmet expert Frank Proksch, Head of Research & Development at Alpina Sports, to clarify the important questions about painting bicycle helmets.
FREERIDE: Why should you replace your helmet after just 5 years, as the manufacturers recommend? With a bit of new colour, it gets a second life
FRANK PROKSCH: We have to recommend 5 years because we manufacture PPE (editor's note: personal protective equipment). Helmets are personal protective equipment. We are therefore subject to the European regulation that stipulates this.
Anyone who has bought a helmet from Troy Lee Designs for 500 euros will now gulp. Why is the lifespan so limited?
You never know how the helmets will be used. So you assume the worst-case scenario.
In other words, I put my helmet on the back of my pickup. And there it is when I'm not driving, come rain, snow or shine.
I would still be quite cool in rain and snow, because the EPS foam copes well with that. The biggest challenge is the leisure cyclist. They put their helmet upside down in the bike basket when they go to the outdoor pool, for example. There it lies for a few hours in the blazing sun and bakes. The EPS foam melts, the structure changes and with it the damping properties.
I certainly don't put my expensive carbon full-face helmet in the bike basket.
Exactly. A helmet like this spends 85 per cent of its useful life in the cellar, on a shelf, in the dark, usually well ventilated and at room temperature. That's how you should store a helmet. Nothing changes even after 10 years. Especially if a hard shell surrounds the foam.
What are the legal consequences if I wear a helmet that has exceeded the 5-year period? Will I lose my licence or insurance cover if I injure myself?
No. As a manufacturer of personal protective equipment, we guarantee the 100% protective performance of the helmet as it was delivered for a period of 5 years. If you as the user exceed this period, we are no longer legally responsible and recognise that the helmet's protective performance has deteriorated due to UV radiation, prolonged wear, etc.
Can I sue the helmet manufacturer if I suffer a concussion in a fall, for example?
The public prosecutor's office becomes active at the latest when the biker dies. Let's take the example of Michael Schumacher. It was said that he had mounted a helmet camera on his helmet. Helmet mounts can massively impair the safety of a helmet. This is why helmet manufacturers generally rule out modifications to helmets because they cannot be tested by the manufacturer. In such fatal cases, the public prosecutor's office examines whether the helmet was permissible. However, it is almost impossible to reconstruct a fall. It is therefore only possible to check whether a helmet complies with the prescribed test standards.
Someone falls, injures themselves and tries to sue the helmet manufacturer because the helmet didn't protect them better - do such cases exist?
Very rarely, but it does happen. I remember one example: someone wearing one of our helmets fell in road traffic. Without a helmet, he would probably have suffered a traumatic brain injury or perhaps not survived the fall. As it was, he only suffered a laceration, because even EPS foam has its limits. Nevertheless, he wanted compensation for the injury.
Assuming I no longer like the design of the helmet, can I repaint my helmet myself?
Yes, but painting is also a modification of the helmet. This means that the manufacturer no longer guarantees the full safety of the helmet. I advise against this. A sticker is also a modification, although the solvents in the adhesive are not sufficient to attack the helmet structure given the small surface area. A possible alternative: Alpina offers a service for customised paintwork, as requested by pro riders. We deliver the primed helmets to licensed painters, who then apply the desired paint finish.
The painters know which paints they can use in consultation with the manufacturer. This is because the wrong paints can attack the substance of the helmet, e.g. it is not known how the solvent in the paint will react with the helmet's epoxy resin. If the solvent softens the shell, it can become brittle and break more quickly.
Professional paintwork is expensive. What do bikers who enjoy the design of their old helmet and want to grab a can of spray paint have to look out for?
Other materials are more critical, but I would have fewer concerns with carbon helmets. Because there is an outer layer of paint that I have to sand down so that the paint adheres. But I must not sand into the fabric. This weakens the structure. Personally, I wouldn't sand the helmet, but would go to a professional painter.
The internet is full of painting tutorials. We clarified the question here: Paint the bike helmet yourself - Is that even allowed?
Dimitri Lehner
Editor
