Five of the best flip-front helmets

The latest flip from Japanese maestros Shoei continues to show the company's expertise, collecting an average rating of 4.8 from the first 156 reviews on Sportsbikeshop. Customers praise comfort, build quality, the chinbar mechanism, the sun visor, ventilation and the effectiveness of the visor rain seal. Feedback on noise is better than the Neotec 2, but some still find it noisy. Concerns mostly surround the chinstrap and fastener being close to the throat and the fact that mountings for Shoei's dedicated SRL03 communicator makes it tricky (though not impossible) to fit any other type of comms.

Schuberth's main strength is on noise, and owners are strong in their praise of the acoustic performance of the C5. It impresses for its build quality, ventilation,  the action of the chinbar mechanism and the way the visor remembers its previous position when the chinbar is returned to the closed position. The fit isn't as universal as some helmets, though many riders find it comfortable after either taking advantage of the pad adjustment scheme or giving it time to bed in. Some have issues with condensation or water ingress on long, wet rides. 

The Duke Evo is considerably cheaper than the other helmets in this list, which makes a lot of owners appreciate the value for money. Most recognise they're not getting the premium quality of the main two helmets featured here, but are happy with the equation of performance against cost. They also point out its four-star performance in the UK's SHARP impact testing scheme. There are issues - wind noise is a relatively common beef, a short chinstrap annoys some and the way the sun visor stays slightly in view even when retracted is criticised too. The over-riding comment, however, remains praise for the high value proposition.

Owners are firm in their praise of most aspects of life with the premium version of HJC's flipfront helmet. Comfort seems almost universally liked, ventilation gets outstanding feedback and the noise levels are generally considered to be very good. The smoothness of the chinbar mechanism, and the range of peripheral vision are praised. It's the same for a reduced amount of drag when riding with the chinbar raised, thanks to the design of the chinbar pivot. The main drawback is a sun visor that some find too light in its tint, and also lacking optical clarity. Ratings aren't as high for the composite-shelled HJC RPHA 91, but it's essentially the same helmet but slightly heavier and considerably lower in price.

Schuberth's E2 is heavily based on the regular C5, but with the addition of a peak to protect against sun glare. Its popularity is similar to the street-based C5 with a 4.6 rating from the first 60 customer reviews. Owners like the comfort, quietness, premium materials, and practical features like the sun visor and adjustment for the peak. Some raise minor issues with peak vibration, visor fogging and visor leaks, but most riders feel the quality, fit, and integrated comms justify the premium price. If you're torn between C5 and E2 and feel a peak may ever come in handy then this is the one to go for. The E2 will convert easily to run peakless, while it's quite pricey to add a peak to a C5.