Helmet - choice and fitting - leeds area?

[shirt]

Long shot, just wondering if there is a recommended helmet shop within an hours drive of leeds (manc/sheff etc).

My head is arai shaped so preferably arai stockiest and similar. Looking to deal with someone who can tweak the pads etc for a top fit.

[Krikkit]

Sportsbikeshop in Leeds would be my first port of call

[shirt]

Are they good for fitting? Would be handy as they have the rx7v on sale which is my current first choice.

Any others I should try as direct comparison?

[lazybike]

Once you know your size buy from Motocard and save some money..

[shirt]

I normally do just that but at circa £520 for the rx7v less the VAT it’s a totally decent price as long as I can get the fit fine tweaked by the vendor.

[lazybike]

I've only used the Harlow store, but they (sportsbikeshop) keep all the sizes and are very helpful.
£458 at motocard free delivery, no import fees as it's safety equipment.

Edited by lazybike on Saturday 29th January 18:57

[Onelastattempt]

Krikkit said:

Sportsbikeshop in Leeds would be my first port of call

Same here, when my son passed his test he went to Sportsbikeshop for everything he needed, ( had previously been borrowing my gear ) , he must have tried over a dozen helmets before picking a Shoei that was on sale. The staff were really helpful and patient.

[shirt]

lazybike said:

I've only used the Harlow store, but they (sportsbikeshop) keep all the sizes and are very helpful.
£458 at motocard free delivery, no import fees as it's safety equipment.

Edited by lazybike on Saturday 29th January 18:57

That’s a good price, thanks!

SBS say they price match which is handy. My reference to vat being that I live outside the EU. If I can get the rx7v for £366 that’s a bargain in my book.

[Triaguar]

J and S at Doncaster...Good selection...loads to try on

[Drawweight]

I tried J&S in Hamilton.

I was looking for a particular helmet Shoei Neotec 2. I wanted to try a C4 Pro but they didn’t have any in stock and not much prospect of getting any.

Maybe I was unfortunate but price matching didn’t seem to work for me. They would only price match what they had in stock and I think they only had white in at the time. I asked if they would do a discount but was given a pretty flat no.

In the end I bought a pair online from Infinity motorcycles. I don’t mind paying a few quid extra to support a bricks and mortar store but I saved nearly £300 and I got what I wanted rather than what was in stock.

[Piston-slapper]

Is J&S in Leeds still there on Regent Street? Across the road from SBS. (Hein Gericke last time I was there). Infinity in York would be a good shout. I discovered my head does not fit Bell helmets there, years ago!

[Onelastattempt]

Piston-slapper said:

Is J&S in Leeds still there on Regent Street? Across the road from SBS. (Hein Gericke last time I was there). Infinity in York would be a good shout. I discovered my head does not fit Bell helmets there, years ago!

There is a Get Geared next to SBS , not sure if the J & S is still there now .
Hein Gericke long gone now, I still have a pair of their summer gloves that I got from their shop in Bradford many years ago !

[Krikkit]

I like J&S but want blown away by then when I was shopping last year - they had the lid I wanted (AGV K6), but none of the exciting colours, wouldn't price match, and wouldn't order stock into a branch for me.

By contrast SBS do all of that through their website alone and incredibly helpful staff.

[ThreadKiller]

lazybike said:

Once you know your size buy from Motocard and save some money..

I can understand the rationale for this. But you’re also paying for the service, selection and convenience at the shop?

It’s a dog eat dog world, but I don’t think this is fair.

[Piston-slapper]

Onelastattempt said:

There is a Get Geared next to SBS , not sure if the J & S is still there now .
Hein Gericke long gone now, I still have a pair of their summer gloves that I got from their shop in Bradford many years ago !

I was going to say Powersport in Bradford at one point, which made me feel REALLY old...

[shirt]

ThreadKiller said:

I can understand the rationale for this. But you’re also paying for the service, selection and convenience at the shop?

It’s a dog eat dog world, but I don’t think this is fair.

Agree as this is what price matching is for.

Popped into sbs and tried a few, they’re bringing some more in for me tomorrow. They’ll price match but there’s no vat on helmets it seems.

Torn between the rx7v which is clearly a very well made lid, and the scorpion r1 which has a plusher feeling liner and the cheek pump thing. Erring toward the arai for the guarantee and seems much better vented. Also trying the top end shark and hjc kids tomorro

[Onelastattempt]

Piston-slapper said:

Onelastattempt said:

There is a Get Geared next to SBS , not sure if the J & S is still there now .
Hein Gericke long gone now, I still have a pair of their summer gloves that I got from their shop in Bradford many years ago !

I was going to say Powersport in Bradford at one point, which made me feel REALLY old...

I remember them , weren't 't they called " Strokers" before? Or is my old brain getting confused ?

[airsafari87]

The other thing about SBS is their customer service.

I had a pair of RST gloves that failed in a couple of ways about a year after purchase. I got a full refund on them without any quibble.

And only last week. I had a minor problem with a pair of TCX boots that were just under 6 months old.
I emailed them on Monday.
Posted the boots back to them Tuesday (FOC)
Had a brand new replacement pair delivered on Thursday.
Again, without any quibble whatsoever.

[Piston-slapper]

Onelastattempt said:

I remember them , weren't 't they called " Strokers" before? Or is my old brain getting confused ?

Strokers might even be before my time! I bought a GSX250 from Powersport in about 1990 in Sunbridge Road anyway. (And spent most Saturdays having Austin Stross botch-fix it at the bottom of Hollis Hill...)

[lazybike]

ThreadKiller said:

lazybike said:

Once you know your size buy from Motocard and save some money..

I can understand the rationale for this. But you’re also paying for the service, selection and convenience at the shop?

It’s a dog eat dog world, but I don’t think this is fair.

For me the question is how can Motocard and other European shops supply equipment at such low prices, I'm happy to use SBS for all my other stuff,locks,gloves jackets etc, and in fairness to them I didn't ask them to price match the two helmets I bought, Motocard are offering £10 off on top of that £458 at the moment.