I'll be wearing mine for the first time at ACC N. this sunday. Anyone else have one? Love it? Hate it? Meh? The video reviews sold me on the quality and I found a deal on the WERA BBS too good to pass up. I'll post up how I liked it on mon.
I have the vortex. I'm interested in how much better the star really is. The vortex has been a nice helmet. Super easy to change visors and the wind collar has kept things quiet. I got alot of compliments on the design too when I first got it. The helmet is more round overall than some of the others I've used. Meaning the chin bar is alot closer to my nose/mouth than I'm used to. This took a little getting used to for me. I think this rounded shape has helped reduce wind drag. SI notice that while coaching, I have had no problems turning around to check on students while flying down the front straight at Road America. With other helmets, I've gotten into the habit of putting my hand on the visor to hold it all in place. See ya at ACC. Mouse
:lol: I catch myself still doing that occassionally with my Bell, even though I know that it's locked.
Wow, I wore the star this sun. at ACC N. and and can truly say I love this helmet. The best way I can sum it up is the helmet disappears when you are on track. I never thought about it ONCE all day long as it just didn't offer any distractions. Period. When I first got the helmet, I tried it on and and it felt like it should pull down further over my head than it did. It also felt a tad loose around the base of my head, like the sides of the helmet could have been shrunken in at the bottom. The chin bar was also noticably closer to my face like Mouse said. What I didn't realize was that this 'fit' is part of what makes the Star better than my last helmet. My last lid sat lower around the back of my head, limiting my range of motion. In a full tuck, I was looking over the top of my windscreen. With the Star, I can truly lay on the tank and look through the windscreen cause the back of my helmet is not hitting my back. The shorter chin bar is nice on long sweepers, carousels, etc. T8 at ACC N. is a long right hander and I like looking thru the turn as far as I can. I remember my chin bar pressing against my shoulder on my last lid. Not so with the Star. The rounder shape on the bottom would probably make it more stable looking behind you (like Mouse said), but I didn't so I can't comment on that. The ventilation on the Star blows away (no pun intended) anything I have ever owned. I've worn my buddys X-11 and it's on par with it on air flow. Twice on sun. I got the 5min. call, suited up, and pulled into hot-pit just in time to see the crash truck pull on the track.(checkered flag crashes :roll It was hot sunday. I did the best I could to wipe the sweat from my eyes with my gloves on but you know how that goes. I pulled onto the track blinking the sweat out of my eyes, by the time I hit start/finish my face was dry. The aerodynamics on the Star is awesome. No buffeting, no fluttering, no lift, no pushing, pulling, whatever. No matter how quick I popped out from behind the windscreen, the helmet just sat there, like I was on my couch. The liner is comfy, no complaints there. I had my doubts about the magnetic strap holder (didn't seem very strong) but it seemed to stay put all day. I forgot the star had a visor lock, never used it all day w/out incident. I'd like to see how the magnetic strap would do at road America. Visor changes are simple, I got the dark smoke visor and I am happy with the tint level. I've read that the light smoke visor is VERY light. I believe it. The dark smoke is more like a medium tint. Now, I'm no helmet expert, and I'm not pretending I've worn every top of the line helmet to come out in the last 20 years. I'm just an I group track day rider giving an average joes opinion of a relatively new product. If there was something about this helmet I didn't like, I would let you know. I mean, the friggin helmet bag is nicer than my luggage... Keep in mind, I've only worn this helmet one day. But, If you are in the market for a top of the line helmet, I would suggest putting the Bell Star on your short list. Oh, and Mouse, I've never worn the vortex so I can't compare the two. BZ
Although this is an old thread; others may be curious. I prefer my Bell Star over my Shoei X-11 and X-12. Only complaints - noisy and you must wear the chin curtain if you're planning a long ride, a FAST ride or hitting the track. Otherwise the air that flows from beneath the chin area aggravates my eyes and insects/debris can also be a problem entering through that opening.
Heres my take because im a helmet junky. I loved my Cnote (gen1 Star) most air movement ever for me. X11 more comfy than my Star. The 2013 Star is MUCH better but my RS-1 is the king !!!!!! Just not the same airflow.