peripatetic

So I lent my brand new Giro Transfer helmet to a friend, and she had a 0 mph crash on a street corner with another friend's bike (seems her hockey stick got tangled with the crashing friend's front wheel.) She said she banged her head pretty hard on the street, along with a couple of scrapes. She was relieved she had the helmet on. I looked over the helmet, and there's a small scratch on the outside, but I see no indication of damage to the foam. I know what Giro would say about this--time to buy another new helmet--but before I go and tell my friend, "hey, I'm glad your head's fine, but now you owe me a new helmet," I need to figure out the exact why for that reasoning, or reassure myself that I don't need to replace it.

Thoughts? She didn't skid, just fell over, so the momentum is all downward. I noticed tonight, however, that she's got kind of a large noggin. Should I be worried about the integrity of this thing?

Anyone have similar minor crashes and felt okay not replacing?

CHenry

She didn't offer to buy you a new helmet after obviously damaging it? Nice friend. Very considerate for someone "borrowing" another's gear, especially since the helmet did it's job for her.

No one reading here can tell you whether your helmet is still safe. How can you know for sure the styrofoam hasn't cracked part-way through beneath the hard plastic outer layer. I doubt there is a practical and non-destructive means to find out, which is why helmet manufacturers recommend replacing helmets after even one crash.

She ought to be thanking you for being so thoughtful as to lend her your helmet, apologetic for being so clumsy as to actually need it, and asking you where she might find you a suitable replacement, since she isn't able to return it to you in the condition you gave it to her. Good manners, you know. Being responsible and all that.

Philatio

1) I think it is very possible it never crossed her mind that this could possibly merit a replacement. Especially if the only visible damage is a small scratch.

2) Get a feel for how hard "pretty hard" is. Lots of people that overexagerate everything when it comes to how hard they were hit, how much it hurt, etc.

3) If it were me, I probably wouldn't replace it. But I'm still young and stupid.

shakeNbake

One way or another you should get a new helmet.

I understand the position you're in. I'm a big wuss, I get into bloddy fights all the time, but when I have to stand up to my friend, I usually just wimp out.

Here's what you can do if you're reluctant to tell her to get you a new one:
1. show her the sticker inside the helmet, the one that said you gotta replace it.
2. Tell her you went to a mechanic/LBS/someone who is knowledgable, and they say that there could posibbly be invisible damage.

BTW, Last years Giro Transfer is on sale for $20 at performance. You could at least get her to chip in a few bucks.

Philatio

does BF count?

UmneyDurak

Thats why I don't loan my equpiment to anyone. It gets damaged then I'm an ahole for trying to get it replaced because "there is a small scratch" or what not.
Get a new helmet, better safe then sorry.

gmason

https://www.bhsi.org/index.htm

powers2b

+1 everytime I loan a bike to a "friend" it comes back with bits missing or broken.
I ride hundreds of miles and rarely if ever have a mechanical problem.
I finally figured out that if I sell all my extra bikes I won't have any to loan out to my 'friends' when they come calling.

well biked

As stated earlier, I'm sure it never occurred to your friend that a new helmet might be needed with the only visible damage being a small scratch...........Based on my own experience, I've occasionally dropped helmets on the pavement and had crashes while mountain biking (with no impact to my head) and continued to use the helmet. But I once had a pretty bad crash among some rocks mountain biking, hit my head and got knocked out for a few seconds. And this was with my helmet on. This crash put a gash into the outer plastic, and probably into the styrofoam as well. I was very thankful to have the helmet on, I might be dead without it. I disposed of it and replaced it after that one. I was also riding with my brother-in-law once, and he endoed into a large tree, splitting his helmet in two. Once he realized all his parts were still in place, he got up laughing. He kept that helmet as a souvenir...............It's a tough call in your situation. For a few bucks, and especially since there's no way you can ever know exactly how hard your friend's head impact really was, I think I'd go ahead and replace it. In my opinion, it's kind of a tough call, too, as to whether you ask her for the whole amount, part of it, or none at all. One approach might be to go ahead and replace the helmet, and then show her the new one and say, "you won't believe this, but I had to replace that helmet you crashed in, the manufacturer recommends this even after a minor crash." That way, she might very well take it upon herself to pay you for it. Good luck-

maddmaxx 

The thing about a damaged helmet is not a crack or anything visable, but the "crush" that remains in the foam. When your head is protected in a crash, the helmet trades distance (the amount that the foam crushes) to lessen the g force that is applied to your head. This is a one shot crush, after that it never works as well again. Helmets for race car drivers are the same as ours only more complicated and more expensive. They are carried around in a pod carefully when not in use. There is really no way to know when a helmet is used up except when it doesn't work or when a lab cuts one up for test. Its your head, the helmet is insurance. You get to decide when to buy a new one.

peripatetic

Thanks for the input, all. The helmet really doesn't appear badly damaged at all. When I say scratch, I'm even exaggerating--it's actuall a nick in the outer casing. My friend was very thankful and appreciative that I lent her the helmet, and the first thing that crossed my mind when she called to tell me about the crash was "Oh, crap, now I'm going to have to explain why the perfectly fine looking helmet must be replaced." The thing is, though, since it was a traumatic experience, it's not too tough to make it clear that it's probably better to be safe than sorry. She emailed me this morning and said she a bit of whiplash from the accident, so I'm now certain that I'm going to replace it. For a non-rider like her, though, a helmet is something that can last forever. Most average non-cyclists out there don't realize that helmets are single-use disposable. In fact, most non-cyclists don't understand crap about bikes, and trying to explain stuff in advance usually gets me a glazed-eye look.

I already told her that it probably had to be replaced, and her first question was, why? I explained how the helmet works to her, though I described the potential for a small "stress fracture" in the foam as my reasoning. Madmaxx, your explanation makes better sense to me.

Thanks for the input, and FWIW, I consider BF to be the "experts" in this category (we all know what a manufacturer will say.) And also, thanks for the Performance tip--I thought the original 30 was kind of steep.

Ray Dockrey

My take on this is if there is ever any doubt replace it. My son took a nasty spill on his Trek mountain bike while he was riding on the street. He said that he never hit his head on the pavement but yet his helmet was scratched. Luckily he had gloves on because the palm's were all scuffed up and he took the hide off of his knee. We replaced the helmet. It just didn't seem worth taking a chance that it was okay.

JLauren

I've heard that some manufacturers will replace crashed helmets at a discounted price. Might be worth asking, anyway.

That might actually be more likely to crack the foam than a scratch, which might just indicate some abrasion rather than an impact.

I'd replace it.

OLDYELLR

How old is the helmet? Bell recommends replacing helmets after 3 years, but they're in it for the profit. But helmets are cheap now; they're all made in China even though the brand sounds American, Italian or French. Since your friend doesn't have a helmet, offer the one she damaged to her for half price and get yourself a nicer new one.

Cyclist0383

If you are looking for an execellent helmet not made in China, Uvex helmets are made in Germany and meet all US and European safety standards. They are very nice helmets.

Wogster

Louis Garneau makes some of their helmets in Canada, and they are nice, and meet all safety standards as well....

I think the real issue, you buy a $20 helmet it's made in a China, you buy a $40+ helmet, and it's not made in China.....

gmason

If you care about real ratings, see the link I posted above.