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Radio Hat
Nolan N102
Rob Lovas goes remote control with the latest helmet from
nolan — or he will
I’d been using a BMW System 4 for about six years, so the concept of the Nolan was familiar. Both are full-face helmets that allow the jaw piece (together with the visor) to flip up when putting them on or taking them off.
I’m completely sold on these flip-up full-face helmets.
They give you the security of a full-face helmet but with the ease of an open face. I can keep my specs on when putting the helmet on; I can put the helmet on while wearing iPod earphones and without tearing | | them out of my ears; I can walk into a petrol station shop with my helmet still on and no one hits the under-counter hold-up button. (By the way, why is it forbidden to sit on a bike while refuelling? Do you have to able to run away if you explode in flames?)
The chin to the Nolan is released by twin-lever latch in the middle of the jaw piece. You need to pull on both levers in a scissoring action, so you use both your thumb and forefinger. This is more complicated than the BMW, which only requires one finger but once you get the hang of the Nolan, it’s a smoother action.
When I first got the Nolan, I thought it was considerably lighter than the System 4 but a detailed scientific study involving my kitchen scales (a bench test?) reveals that its only 10g or about 0.55 per cent lighter (1796g to 1806g) — not worth mentioning, really.
Another difference is a serious one. The System 4 chin strap does up with a mini seatbelt-type quick-release lock; so once you have set the tension, you just clip it up and then press a release button to get it off. Neat. The N102 uses the old fashioned double D loop and strap. So it’s “up-through-the two-and-back-through-one” at the beginning of each trip and the reverse at the end. You’re also re-thinking the tension every time you do it up. In the scheme of life, it’s not a huge drama but it does seem primitive to me. | | | |  | | | | | | |  Ride Safely With Rivet – visit www.speedsports.com.au to view quality leather and textile highway apparel. After 20 odd years we can guarantee every road in Australia has been riden by Rivet View products now>
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| | The Nolan comes with the typical clear visor that flips up in staged segments. There’s nothing new in this. The novelty is the two extra visors. An exterior half-height tinted one for dawn, dusk and glary days is great, especially if you don’t want to wear sunnies but are spending some of the trip riding into the sun. So far, my visors are unscratched but I can imagine this tinted onewill show up the scratches pretty quickly. I haven’t had a chance to use the third visor, yet. It’s detachable, clips onto the inside to make a double-layered visor and is supposed to stop fogging up. It’s something I look forward to trying.
Everyone’s head is different. All I can say is the Nolan is very comfortable on mine. It’s snug, nice and warm in winter and cuts out a fair bit of engine and wind noise (I don’t have anything in the kitchen that measures that so I’m left with “a fair bit”). The ventilation seems pretty breezy — there’s a big vent on top and two little ones in the chin —
so I’m hopeful of a comfortable summer.
The Nolan also has a feature-in-waiting. This is the real reason I got it. It’s designed with space to retrofit a mike, speakers and a volume control panel. The theory is that you can have a built-in set-up connected to your music player or mobile phone or communicator or maybe all three. I’m really looking forward to this but as I write, the bits haven’t been released for sale in Australia yet. |
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