ShoeiRF-1000
I did this write-up in the wiki but decided to throw a copy over here! Enjoy :thumb:
The Shoei RF-1000 Helmet
I bought this helmet at Central Florida Power Sports in Kissimmee Florida. I got it 08-21-2007 so as of this writing I will have had it two years.
First impressions it is very light it weighs 3.32lbs or 1510grams. I have a very small head and the size small Shoei fits me comfortably. There are two perks of fitting that the Shoei has over a lot of helmets. First, it has adjustable cheek pads and a 3-D comfort liner that stays in place very well.
Second, it has four different shell sizes and 5 different liners. Why is this a big deal one may ask? Think about this analogy imagine a basketball and a cantaloupe. Then imagine using a helmet made for the size of the basketball on the cantaloupe. Way too big! Most manufacturers to save money don’t use different size shells they just stuff in more padding. In my experience that has resulted in neck fatigue and the “bobble” head affect. Also, I always wear a pair of Oakley Half Jackets while on the bike and they fit inside the helmet with no pinching or pressure points. There is ample space for you ears in this helmet as well. So much in fact that I have two small Nike speakers glued in for listening to my IPOD
The helmet is secured to your head by "D" ring hook and loop closure. This can be a bit finicky to attach with gloved hands.
The shell itself is made out of Shoei’s proprietary AIM + (Advanced Integrated Matrix Plus Multi-fiber Technology), which embeds ultra strong organic fibers into fiberglass. This allows the helmet upon impact to absorb and disperse the energy from impact. The helmet does comply with Snell, FMVSS218 (Dot), ECE22.05 and ACU Gold European standards. From the looks and feel of this helmet it seems as if it will take a good hit and protect your brain. Although, I have not crash tested this helmet and pray I never have to!
The visor for this helmet is known as CX-1V that also fits other models of Shoei. I currently have the clear visor that came with the helmet but Shoei does offer a wide variety of different colors from colored to mirror. All, visors have UV protection incorporated. The visor also has three preset lever selectors so the visor can be barely open halfway open or all the way open. There are a total of seven adjustments you can have for the visor too
On the left of the visor there is a small lip that allows you to pop open the visor with a gloved hand. I find this very useful when coming to red lights to get some extra air flow. I have noticed that the visors do fog up when at a stop. I always have to crack the visor to keep this from occurring. There is a breath guard that comes with the helmet that is supposed to eliminate this from occurring but for some reason it makes breathing a bit difficult for me and cracking the visor is the logical alternative. The visor is held together with Shoei’s quick release base plate mechanism that allows you to change out a visor in less than a minute! This is really nice when going from tinted to clear for varied riding! As I stated I have had this visor for two years it has a few scratches on it from normal wear and tear. One larger scratch came from a massive bug that knocked my head to the side when it came into contact. The other came from an antenna we were moving and the helmet got in the way. I only clean the visor with Oakley lens cleaner and that has done well for the visor.
The vents on this helmet are superb! You have one on the chin to help with fogging of the visor. There are two on the front that slide up and down.
These are a little hard to maneuver when going at increased speeds. My gloves seem to slide over the top of them keeping me from opening them. Shutting them is not a problem. They do allow quite a bit of air in because the location forces air in and behind the visor. Then there is the rear vent known as the Aero Wing Spoiler that helps with interior cooling. It also increases negative air pressure and allows the air to flow out of the back easier. It has a slide under the wing to adjust how much air you want in or out. Even with this multitude of vents the helmet is relatively quite. If I am riding with the visor in the “up” position I will get some whistling that comes in from the top vents. But, when the visor is closed it is very quite. Another cool feature is the chin curtain it really buffets the wind and makes for a much better ride. One does not get that pulling sensation that occurs when a breeze catches the helmet just right forcing the head to the side.
This helmet looks fast just sitting on the counter. It has very sleek lines and curves that don’t look like something out of RoboCop. There is a choice of 35 different combinations so it would be impossible to not be able to find one to match the bike which is important right? I bought the gloss black helmet. Although, I liked the Dragon one and it was very nicely painted on but I could not justify the extra $150 for vanity’s sake. What I did do was add two blue dragon decals from Fatal Threat and I get a lot of compliments on them!
In essence this is a magnificent helmet and I would gladly pay $350 for a quality helmet as this. Honestly, there is only two down sides the fogging and the price. Other than that an awesome helmet!