Sharp
 

So what do you all think of the new SHARP initiative from the government regarding crash hats, me I just cant make my mind up.http://sharp.direct.gov.uk/
My old XR-1000 only has a 3 star rating.

Any sentence which includes the words "sharp" "initiative" and "government" has to set the alarm bells ringing Murray :eek:

all the cheap lids seem to get higher ratings.... O_O

My Roof R020 isn't even listed so who knows....the R010 is 3 star

It seems a bit waffly to me, what does a 3 star mean? It gives all the test protocols, fair enough, but then under the heading of how they calculate the ratings it just says:

"An objective assessment protocol has been developed to enable the objective rating or ranking of the performance of each helmet to allow easy comparison for the consumer. There is no specific pass or fail criterion applied. This allows the prioritisation of relevant impact areas and provides the flexibility to refocus the target areas for improvement in the future"

What does that actually mean, especially the last sentence? Campaign for plain English anyone?

There is absolutey no way of telling whether each particular lid scored 3 stars in all the tests, or whether it was great in some and rubbish in others....nor any way of telling how the test protocols result in a given rating or how they're scored.

I'll only give the initiative 1 star for clarity

Jools if they stated exactly how they tested the helmets, Some manufacturers will as they have done in the past strengthen the tested areas to gain a better rating.
The other good thing about the tests Manufacturers no longer submit a helmet for testing, the sharps boys go down to the local shop and buy one....
Most people in the trade I speak too seem to think is is a good and positive system, Unless of course you are an Arai dealer....LOL Which as it happens i am not, I sell HJC and Box, Which is great especially when you show a customer how they compared to a £500 helmet....
I'm a Fan of Sharps

Some of the more "reassuringly expensive" Lid manufacturers have kicked off as their lids have come out poorly in these tests against some less expensive competition.

I think the random buying is a great idea as this will put a stop to specially prepared products being submitted for testing.

I'd take a look at the overall rating of the lid I was going to buy but not sure how much it would affect my buying decision unless I thought the lid I was looking at was only slightly more protective than putting a pyrex bowl on me noggin.

There still seem to be a range of standards that lids can be tested to BSI, Snell, IECE?? and now sharp.

Who does the most rigerous and reliable testing?

Ray.

You might say that Ray but a couple of the guys here are very influenced by the findings, maybe someone should come up with a helmet testing standards comparison web site.

There are other things to consider than pure safety.

£100 cheapo tat lid with 5 stars vs my £500 Arai (paid 300 direct from Japan), sorry but I'll still buy the Arai. There's a quality of materials and manufacture as well as fit of course and if you look at some of the cheaper helmets, they don't look lke they would last more than a few trackdays to me.

Sure there is a snobery about the bigger brands and a of course they will be making a lovely margin on the back of their brand loyalty and reputation, but you don't get to such a level for nothing in most product lines - if you want the best quality, you have to pay for it and £100 for a 5 star helmet doesn't do it for me thanks. Apart from anything else, I just wouldn't feel confident on the bike.

WeeJohnyB