A helmet is designed to protect its wearer. To do this, however, it has to pass a number of tough tests. All helmets sold in Germany must be tested and certified in accordance with the European standard EN 1078. They are subjected to various tests. For example, if the helmet slips off the head in the event of a fall, it fails the "slip-off test".
You can find these MTB helmets for touring bikers in the test:
- Abus S-Force Pro
- Bell Stoker
- Bontrager Circuit (BIKE tip price/performance)
- Endura Singletrack Helmet
- Giro Phase
- Lazer Ultrax
- Limar 885 Superlight
- Mavic Notch
- Met Veleno
- Northwave Scout
- Scott Wit
- Specialised Tactic 2
- Uvex Ultra SNC (BIKE Tip test winner)
Not every helmet protects equally well
The shock absorption properties of a helmet are also tested by testing institutes such as TÜV Rheinland. A value of 250 g must not be exceeded. The g-Force refers to the load caused by acceleration. All models in the test passed the standardised test, but not every helmet provides the same level of protection. In order to filter out the relevant differences, we invited 13 touring helmets with prices of up to 120 euros to the crash test at TÜV Rheinland. There, the helmets had to pass two criteria: First, the helmet hits a flat anvil, then a wedge-shaped anvil that simulates a kerb or a rock. A special test head is equipped with measuring technology for the measurement. The candidates are pulled to a defined height and hurtle towards the obstacle at 5.47 or 4.6 metres per second.
Ventilation test in the laboratory
For a helmet to be worn properly, it must not only look good, but also be well ventilated. We carried out the ventilation test in our laboratory. We use an infrared camera to visualise the different temperatures on the head. Each helmet is correctly adjusted on an artificial test head and aligned at an angle of 20°. The test head is then ventilated with constant warm air for a period of three minutes. The thermographic image is then taken without the helmet.
Small colour theory
The different colours allow temperatures to be read directly. Weakly ventilated areas appear in red, cool areas in blue. The average temperature differs only slightly from helmet to helmet. Precise analysis of the image is therefore important for the evaluation, as well as the practical test - because even longer hair can influence the ventilation.
You can find the complete test of MTB touring helmets below as a PDF download.
BIKE is also available as a digital edition for all devices.
Downloads:
Stefan Frey
Editor
