 Poster: A snowHead
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My wife took a big hit to the head on Friday and ended up in hospital for a check up. It was a side impact which didn’t help.
She’s home now and recovering from likely concussion.
Her crash helmet is ummarked but is quite old. However The foam/polystyrene liner is quite hard and I wonder if this material goes off over time.
As an occasional ski helmet wearer a motorcycle rider I’ve always been relaxed about swapping them out but it does make you wonder.
I have a Shore value hardness tester so I might see how it compares to my newer helmet.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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Any helmet that has any serious impact I personally replace.
Hope your wife recovers well.
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I only realised that the helmet I had before my present one was old, when people in the lift lines were complimenting me on my 'classic' Giro Bad Lieutenant lid. I also realised, like you, that the polystyrene liner was almost rock solid, and about as impact absorbent as a housebrick. Currently using a Smith Vantage MIPS, and enjoying the wonders of adjustable venting, which the Giro certainly didn't have.
Bin the old lid/keep it as a conversation piece, get a new one. As for how much to spend, use the old adage you probably think of when getting a new bike helmet: What price is your brain worth?
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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I'd be more worried about compression of the poly' foam under the shell, which might have returned to shape after leaving a void between the two. I've seen that on cycling helmets but as the shell on those is so thin you can press and feel that void. Are there any witness marks on the shell to suggest it deformed?
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She’ll pick up another before next season as obviously could be some deformation after the hit.
Out of interest I did a hardness test on the polystyrene and both old and new helmets gave a similar result of around Shore A 45 on most faces.
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@Yoda, I mean that I’ve used helmets older than 3 to 5 years.
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@adithorp, no obvious deformation at all.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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Hairline cracks in the polystyrene and delamination from shell could also be issues which aren't always visible. If its enough to end up in hospital id replace it myself.
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| Glosterwolf wrote: |
| If its enough to end up in hospital id replace it myself. |
This.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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For clarity, the purpose of posting was to prompt those with old helmets to consider if they need to replace them.
It goes without saying (  ) that after the accident my wife will sort a new one.
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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Makes you wonder about rental helmets. You know, the kind of buckets handed out to school ski trips and beginners generally. You don't know anything about their long history, they get dropped and kicked around the ski room week in week out, they are involved in accidents, yet the people using them must be among the most likely to receive a smack on the head. Italy can mandate helmets but there doesn't appear to be any kind of 'MOT' on the helmets being worn.
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| Yoda wrote: |
| e.g. people on chair lifts pulling the bar down before checking everyone is out of the way |
I never once got hit on the head by the bar UNTIL I wore a helmet.
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You know it makes sense.
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@Phantom Phil, just like one never walks into anything on construction sites unless wearing a helmet 
always amuses me when sites insist on helmets when out in the open air - bird poo defence?
..and of course the knobs who used to drive around with a loose "safety" helmet on the parcel shelf behind them - they really were "special".
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Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
Otherwise you'll just go on seeing the one name:
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Bike helmets have a munufacture date as they don't last for ever and should be replaced every 3 to 5 years.
I believe the suggestion is similar for ski helmets
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Poster: A snowHead
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Weirdly my motorsport helmet has been approved to two standards. One is Snell SA2015 and the other is FIA8859-2015. The Snell standard has an expiry date and cannot be used after the end of this season. The FIA standard currently has no expiry date. This makes things confusing for some, because if it was just SA2015 then I wouldn't be able to use it, but because it is also 8859 then I can. I suppose the point is that at least one body considers that there are limitations on the age of such things.
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Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
Obviously A snowHead isn't a real person
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Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
Well, the person's real but it's just a made up name, see?
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I think a big chunk of wearing helmets on site at all times is about habit building, especially if a site is both open air and enclosed. E.g a roofer being able to work without a hat, then at lunch comes down from the scaffold and doesn't think to put one on. Also you get into the habit of not hitting your head...at least I have.
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You need to Login to know who's really who.
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I should have been clearer - I was referring to sites that are literally open-air, not building sites. Many a time I have attended places where there were simply no natural or artificial objects above head height, or even ground level if you exclude the people, but they still insist on helmets being worn. CYA I guess.
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Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
Anyway, snowHeads is much more fun if you do.
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I think you’re meant to wear them on your head.
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You'll need to Register first of course.
You'll need to Register first of course.
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I had a head injury once that ended in surgery. My goggles actually took the impact, and were fine once I'd cleaned out the suncream, but I did consider the helmet too. It looked fine, but I did give it too my partner for a second opinion. “Yeah, it looks fine to me, apart from this big crack”  I bought a new helmet.
Helmets sometimes have the manufacturing date inside somewhere, so you can see roughly how old they are. That one was about 10 years old anyway, so well due for replacement.
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@rob@rar,
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I really wouldn't want to hit my head hard enough for my actual head to deform the PS layer, it's there to spread the impact from hitting something hard or angular such as a rock or a ski. If you hit your head on something of similar hardness to the PS, I doubt that the helmet will do anything to prevent concussion.
There's one theoretical scenario where the unhelmeted head hits snow that is similar or softer than the PS helmet lining, the head deforms the snow and the snow itself absorbs the impact. The helmeted head, being bigger, hits the snow sooner & harder, being bigger, also means that it doesn't penetrate the snow as much and more energy is transferred to the head.
I spent 15 yrs evaluating the impact resistance of various polymers.
I would guess that a harder helmet lining would be better at absorbing the impact from a harder, more angular object that could fracture the skull, wheras a softer helmet lining would be better at absorbing the impact on a softer surface that ia likely to cause concussion but not fracture the skull.
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You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
You'll get to see more forums and be part of the best ski club on the net.
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@tangowaggon, surely if the head deforms the snow then the helmeted head deforms more snow and therefore spreads more energy?
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| SnoodyMcFlude wrote: |
| @tangowaggon, surely if the head deforms the snow then the helmeted head deforms more snow and therefore spreads more energy? |
The smaller, unhelmeted head hits the snow later, allowing other body parts such as shoulders & back to absorb more of the energy, a smaller object will penetrate the softer suface & absorb the energy, a larger object will not penetrate so easily & stop much quicker.
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snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
snowHeads are a friendly bunch.
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@tangowaggon, later? Surely the time difference of that extra inch of padding is tiny, certainly not enough for anything meaningful in terms of other body parts absorbing anything?
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And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
And love to help out and answer questions and of course, read each other's snow reports.
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An unhelmeted head might not even touch the snow.
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