Is this helmet still safe to use

[wheel_of_steell]

Hi all. I'm curious as to whether I should replace my lid. I bought a shoei gt-air almost exactly a year ago, love the comfort and features of this helmet, but the chin strap is beginning to fray where it passes through the D rings. This is what it looks like:





Unfortunately, the chin strap is not a replaceable item on these helmets so replacement strap = replacement helmet. Not an option for 800 odd dollars. Should I worry about it? If so, would this be warrantied?

[Kristy]

Actual pic would be helpful. Fray would be wear and tear and thus, wouldn't say it would be warrantable - who's to say you don't like wearing a cheese grater on your collar or something?

Edit: Loud

[Thomas Peel]

Time to go, you only have one head and you don't want a faulty chin strap.
Tp.

[TurboR1]

That should still be ok.

Your neck would break before that does, as would the rivets which secure it to the shell.

Provided no actual complete thread/weave has worn through, which would lead to an unravelling of the webbing.

[ApatheticEnd]

I agree that it’s fine. A strap 1/4 that width is stronger than a wombats neck.

[Kristy]

If it's not warrantable and you're stuck with a lid you have a question mark over try pulling it apart where it's fraying. If it doesn't tear, happy days. If it does, probably should have been replaced anyway.

If you're worried to do it in case it does tear and thus have to throw away the helmet, it means you might not/shouldn't trust it in a crash anyway? Nothing to lose by exerting a bit of non-crash tension to test it out - much better to know when sitting on the couch rather than sliding down the road?

If it's not warrantable you could still ask the helmet dudes their opinion.

(Just thought I'd go and check my strap - all good )

[GsxInShed]

Don't do this !!!!!

It can be unfraid by applying heat to the fraid bit to weld it back together..

Do not do this......!!!

As an example.....Lifting chains and shackles etc have a minimum std. if only ..say trailer safety chains 10% of total dia. in any 1 spot..is replacement

Fall arrest harness is a fail with any fraying / overspray / glue residue / chrome peeling from D rings .....etc

[Loud]

Take it back to your place of purchase with your receipt or bank statement. It is wear and tear but there's a chance they'll take care of it.

If they don't then maybe look at using heat to melt the fraying and stop it from getting worse and to stop TEG looking at it too closely.

Edit: Beaten to the heat suggestion.

[wheel_of_steell]

Thanks for the comments guys. Thankfully the helmet has a 5 year warranty, so if it gets five times worse I'll definitely be hitting up dat shoei customer service email address. Lol. In the meantime I will test it with tension and see what happens. I'm no material scientist, but I'm not too keen on putting a heat source near a synthetic fibre. Could well end in tears/tears.

Kind of bizarre to think of it as wear and tear. Imagine the uproar if you had to replace the seatbelts in a 2017 japanese car due to 'wear and tear'...

[Loud]

You have a good chance at a warranty claim right now. If you're concerned enough to start a thread then why would you be reluctant to spend the little time involved to get a warranty claim rolling?

It's wear and tear. At one year old though I'd be pushing that it's "abnormal" wear and tear. That's why sooner is better than later - it becomes less "abnormal" the longer you leave it. And going through the place of purchase is going to be better for you - it's better dealing through the store and sales rep than through an email to the supplier.

If that fails then get a nylon shoe lace, cut the ends off and melt the end with the flame from a cigarette lighter. Should make you comfortable with tidying up that strap. Again - only if the warranty process fails. Don't present it for warranty afterwards because they'll immediately refuse it as you've tampered with the strap.

[AZAZL]

Geeze. that's a shit strap. I'm with peel and the shed pretty much.
If it is like that the strap is lame. If the strap is lame what is the rest of the construction quality.

[nos]

I'll go with:
See if they will fix it under warranty.
Wouldn't put heat anywhere near it, just live with the fraying. 10% of the diameter of webbing will rip your head off.
Check the D rings and deburr with some fine sandpaper if necessary.

[Stephan]

I would not touch the webbing of the strap or sand the D-ring. Leave it as is and go back to where you purchased it. This is not normal wear and tear after one year.

If the rings have sharp edges, then they need to see them, so again, do not try to fix anything on the helmet!

[TurboR1]

Kind of bizarre to think of it as wear and tear. Imagine the uproar if you had to replace the seatbelts in a 2017 japanese car due to 'wear and tear'...

Seatbelts aren't subjected to being pulled through a pair of locking D-rings. The heat generated by friction between the nylon webbing and metal is what has caused this, and as such, don't go applying heat or modifying ANYTHING!

I would not touch the webbing of the strap or sand the D-ring. Leave it as is and go back to where you purchased it. This is not normal wear and tear after one year.

If the rings have sharp edges, then they need to see them, so again, do not try to fix anything on the helmet!

^^^ times 1000.


One final thing is that everyone has said one year, I believe that the accepted average for a motorcycle is still ~10,000km/yr. Even if every single ride you have done is 200km it means that your helmet has been done up and undone 100 times, but most likely more than that. While I would certainly attempt to pursue the warranty avenue, as you have nothing to lose, consider how many years of equivalent use your helmet has endured.

I just had a look at my old race helmet which shows the heaviest wear on tear on the straps, and upon reflection it doesn't seem as bad as yours. While I still wouldn't have any safety concerns about using yours as is. It does seem a touch excessive.

[AZAZL]

With a bit of practice it is easy enough to loosen and tighten the strap without fully undoing it, reducing wear.

Much quicker at the servo too.

[Loud]

I'm not sure what you folks that are concerned about heat are worrying about? Done right only the frayed fibres will be affected by the heat, causing them to shrink back in to the weave and prevent further fraying.

Again this is a last-resort measure. At a year old I think.you'll have success with the "unreasonable wear" angle.

Leaving it as it is will see it fray further and it's already something that's going to get frowned at by the police.

[BusaSteve]

I have a much cheaper helmet and at one year old the strap is a good as the day it was made...fray wise anyway. That is not acceptable on a one year old Shoei Helmet.

[Bill-2014]

Take it back it should be covered under WTY
I know shark helmets also cover the strap I don't see why Shoei won't

[Stephan]

I'm not sure what you folks that are concerned about heat are worrying about? Done right only the frayed fibres will be affected by the heat, causing them to shrink back in to the weave and prevent further fraying.

Again this is a last-resort measure. At a year old I think.you'll have success with the "unreasonable wear" angle.

Leaving it as it is will see it fray further and it's already something that's going to get frowned at by the police.

I wouldn't have an issue if it was my helmet and it was older than a year. But, if you want to claim it on warranty, then Shoei might have an issue with applying heat to the item you want to claim on...

[Para045]

I have a much cheaper helmet and at one year old the strap is a good as the day it was made...fray wise anyway. That is not acceptable on a one year old Shoei Helmet.

+1 I have an old OGK Aeroblade II helmet I bought when I got my BB in 06 and probably has 80 000km+ on it over ~4 years of commuting/country ride use and while the inner liner is a bit out of shape the straps are like new so IMO this is unacceptable on a helmet like a Shoei