the manufacturers say to replace every 5 years..but they would say that!..if it was mine and it had never been dropped and it was only worn once or twice a week for the past 12 years i would still wear it..as for open face i do wear one occasionally but if you land on your face they aint gona protect you
Let me first declare an interest. I sell motorcycle safety helmets. 12 years old - I'd buy a new one from a quality brand such as Arai. Technology has moved on significantly since yours was designed, and material structures disintegrate over time, particularly if exposed to sunlight and the shit thrown up from the road. Once or twice a week is more than enough for the unseen damage to be done. Open face? I've got one, but only really wear it for occasional bimbling ride outs like the DGR. If you value your teeth, like Dougie says, you ain't protected.
Some of us Rich don’t wear one because not only do we want to protect our teeth but also our good looks
Wore my Arai for 5 years and 60k+ miles and it was knackered. Lining coming away, smelt like a bookies toilet (think trainspotting) and was generally no longer fit for purpose so I agree with what manufacturers say about 5 years, but that is 5 years use, not sat on a shelf for 4 years and 11 mths. Didn't realise how knackered till I bought a new one. 12 year old, I would put it on display and look at it. The plasticisers in it will have gone by now, mainly due to UV, so seriously doubt it is as good as it was, plus as Rich says, technology has moved on a lot. For £300 ~ £400 you get a top drawer helmet, and as ugly as I am, I still think my head is worth that much money. I suffered a brain injury many years ago, and would always spend as much as possible on a helmet. If you cannot afford that much, look at some of the Caberg's or AGV's (if they fit), decent helmets can be had for £150~£200 mark. I certainly wouldn't do 70+ in a £50 helmet. Open face / full face, pays your money takes yer chances !!!
The biggest issue is shell construction. Fibreglass and carbonfibre are much more durable than polycarbonate which goes brittle in a very few years. Exposure to sunlight is the killer. The liner and strap are relatively cosmetic and easily checked for condition but the shock absorbing liner (often expanded foam) is also liable to deterioration - it will harden and lose some elasticity. Frankly after 12 years it owes you nothing. What do you owe your head?
We sell Cabergs, top end HJC and Shoei. I have a cracking good HJC RPHA 11 and a fantastic Shoei Hornet Adv (and an open face Shoei J.O. which I wouldn't wear for regular riding). I wouldn't shop at the cheap end like Caberg or cheap HJC. As others have said, what's £300-£400 every five years compared to the value you put on your head. Also a tip, never put your gloves inside your helmet. The road sh!t such as diesel that clings to the gloves will quickly cause the inner shock-absorbing shell to deteriorate.
And the Velcro rips the shit out of the lining! A guy I know, his liner looks like a feckin teddy bear its that pulled out, like some kind of reverse afro !!!!
Hi Rich before recommending Arai as a quality helmet, have a look here (they look a bit mediocre from this test centre) : https://www.crash.org.au/ratings.php
This Arai was very mediocre Apparently, I couldn't use it any more after bouncing on me head in several directions at 100mph Looked ok to me....
I reckon the Arai was a good investment, an Arai dealer gave me £50 part ex* for it against a new one ! *apparently he didn't resell it, it was for display purposes.
Yes it's worth checking repeatable test data (not all are) before buying any helmet. As for Arai, which I've never owned, under the UK SHARP system a couple of top-end Arai score 5/5, and even the £250 GP5X gets 5/5, while some of their models score only 2 and 3 out of 5. When it comes to fit and comfort it's also worth bearing in mind that premium brands such as Shoei and Arai make different shaped shells for the same model for different markets - typical Asian, European and US heads differ in shape. And in each market there are people with 'Arai shaped' heads and 'Shoei shaped' heads. I don't know about the dummies used in these tests, but one size head isn't necessarily representative of all users in that territory. The trend in recent years has been to flatter/narower front profiles, but Arai have persisted with the older fashioned round profile which they say is more impact resistant. I think the bottom line is that premium brands like Arai and Shoei spend considerably more on R&D than do Caberg for example. I forget the exact ratio, but more than 3,000 helmets are pulled from final assembly by Shoei each year and tested to destruction to ensure manufacturing standards are maintained. I imagine Arai and other premium brands like Bell do similar. I do think the old adage of you get what you pay for pretty much applies to helmets. A way to save a little money is to buy at the top end but choose plain and forgo the £50 and £100+ fancy graphics.