Suomy Vandal Helmet - Review Hot

For 2010/11 Suomy have a lighter version of the Vandal and are back in the UK with new distribution, having always wanted to give one a try I decided on the Suomy Vandal in Dream graphic and gave it a good few months wear to see if they are worth all the fuss.

Initial Thoughts

You would not normally expect to see a 200+ pound man walking round in a helmet containing glitter, flake paints and a purple octopus would you? Well as it happens if you come across me you would as this was my first choice design for the Suomy Vandal I got in to review, the choice was made for a few reasons really, first of all I have japanese sleeve tattoo's with waves and cherry blossom so it matches but also you can really tell a lot about a helmet from the quality of it's paintwork and the Vandal in Dream tells a decent story.

Construction

First of all you pick the helmet up and notice immediately how light it feels in the hand, other than full Carbon Fibre helmets most other manufacturers produce 1450-1500g as a regular weight in a size medium, the Vandal comes in closer to 1250g which is on a par with my Shark RSR2 Carbon! Light weight makes a massive difference to your ride, unless you have ridden in a truly light helmet you are missing a trick because the reduced strain your neck takes as a result makes longer distances easier to deal with, however the Vandal does let in a fair amount of general noise so make sure you wear a decent quality, well fitted pair of ear plugs (you already do this though, right?)

Overall comfort in the Suomy Vandal is what I would call 'plush' with an extensive soft liner which even comes across the brow you feel fully cossetted by this helmet, if the vandal fits you correctly you will hardly know you are wearing it at all. Touching on the fit, I had a little problem with tightness across the temple area which was building up pressure a little too much, it feels to me like the helmet probably runs a little on the small side compared to other mainstream brands and after a quick phone call I had a smaller set of cheek pads to try, I do have to say here though that other than the temple being a touch tight the Suomy is a snug but comfortable fit for my head - each head is different so don't be afraid to go and try some on if you are looking to buy.

With the new cheek pads in place (reducing the cheek thickness by 5mm) the Vandal is just peachy and is a dream to wear, the vents on the front all work quite well with the top vents being rotary 'knob' style and the typical front pull down affair, to the rear you have sliding exhaust vents which offer a couple of levels of customisation and appear to work as intended. The front vents are a touch fiddly however and on the move can be difficult to operate with gloved hands so use them in 'set and forget mode'

On to the visor, well this is one of the only points on the helmet that I found disappointing, the removal system using it's metal twist system works well and is simple enough but I found on a couple of occasions the metal fixing fell out of my hands while doing this and rolled away, while you probably just say stop being such a fat fingered idiot I would point out that if such an essential part can come away like that what happens if the visor is put on slightly incorrectly and it comes off while riding - having it fixed to the lid would be a much better option here. The other thing that disappointed about the visor system was the visor itself which steamed up massively on cold days and no amount of ventilation could clear it, on one ride in january I had to have the visor open a little at 70mph to clear the fog and subsequently the melted sleet and rain thrown up off the road coated the inside of the visor - pit stop into some services for a wipe required at regular intervals, of course all this could be fixed by shipping with a pinlock visor - I know, I should just go and buy one but the purpose of the review is warts and all right?

Finally, we go back to the paintwork and graphics options on this particular lid, other big name brands should take note here as the Vandal, which is typical of Suomy in general, carries an immense number of graphic options as well as plain paint bt what's more the depth of colour and intricate detail that goes into them in phenomenal. With layers of different paint and graphics including really eye catching flake's and pearl finishes you get a real WoW factor overall finish, infact the majority of people who have commented on any of my helmet designs or asked to take a closer look have done so while wearing the Vandal.

I am a spoilt product tester so I have an awful lot of riding gear to choose from, despite having helmets from most major brands there are only four that  I usually choose from to ride in casually, the Vandal from Suomy is one of them - as long as I don't forget my ear plugs that is...

• Polycarbonate and aramidic composite fibre shell made in Italy
• Differentiated density internal shock absorbing polystyrene
• Thermoformed face shield with permanent anti-fog and anti-scratch treatment
• Double D ring retention system
• Removable and washable cheek pads
• Removable and washable ergonomically designed interior
• Ventilation slots in the interior for thermo-regulation inside the helmet
• Coolmax Active fabric with Interpower treatment which is lightweight, soft and breathable and wicks away moisture keeping user dry and fresh
• Removable nose deflector
• Integrated air channels in the internal shell
• 360 degree rotatable upper air intakes with on/off switches
• Adjustable chin-guard air intakes
• Rear exhaust vents for the discharge of hot air
• Special shaped shell for aerodynamic performance
• Please note all our helmets are supplied with clear visors
• This helmet and visor passes standard ECE 22.05 for motorcycle helmet use in the EU.
• SHARP 5 star rated