By: Séan Hendley
I have often been called ‘Difficult’, ‘Fussy’ and even to some degree ‘Close-Minded’, and you know what, when it comes to motorcycle helmets I consider all of those compliments. Why? Well because I possibly have a better understanding of the technology that goes into helmets and how it all works compared to the average person in the street. For very many more years than I care to remember, I sold helmets, and in order to give my customers the best advice I had to know what I was talking about. So, I studied up on helmets, went on courses, read every forum and bit of feedback on every lid I could get my hands on, watched every video I could and then I came across this series of videos about Arai helmets and that settled it for me. A little while later I actually ended up working for Arai SA for a long time.
I have also been riding motorcycles since 1974, so 50 years this year in the saddle, and in that time I have had occasion to appreciate the protection a decent helmet offers, especially now in my current career reviewing motorcycles and motorcycle products…
That all being said, I have owned most brands of helmets in my life and have had every new Arai Tour-X since the Tour-X 3.
The latest Arai Tour-X 5 is a bit of a polarising addition to the range. All of its predecessors were based on Arai’s Moto-X helmet shells, the Arai Tour-X 5 has its very own Arai Touring helmet shell.
Why is the Tour-X 5 a ‘Love it or Hate it’ helmet?
Well, the looks for one thing. The shape is more road with quite an interesting looking peak added to it, less Adventurie/off-roadie, less aggressive styling and more road/touring.
Where the big difference does come in is in rider comfort over long distances. In my humble opinion, my Arai Tour-X’s have always been the most comfortable adventure helmets I have owned.
They are noisier than some of their competitors and when you’re on the bike for 8 hours a day in 40˙C plus, like I was on recent trip up to Vic Falls in Zambia, that can become a factor.
With the new Arai Tour-X 5, I have spent days in the saddle on various rides, photo and film shoots and I can confidently tell you that the new Tour-X 5 is significantly quieter and more comfortable than any of the old Arai Tour-X’s that I still own and is now my ‘Go To’ helmet for all occasions.
Just like the previous Arai Tour-X’s, the Arai Tour-X 5 can quickly be changed from an adventure helmet to a road helmet sans the peak fairly easily, so it is an all purpose helmet, a ‘one helmet does it all’, so in one clean sweep I have replaced both my Arai adventure lid and my now 12 year old Arai road lid with one helmet.
I am completely happy with the performance as far as venting, airflow, aerodynamics, noise levels and overall comfort.
A hugely appreciated change/upgrade for me is how quickly and easily the peak can be removed for cleaning, fitting pinlocks or changing to a road helmet. They’ve gone from 4 plastic screws to a simple push button system that pops the peak off, then all you do is lift the visor to the max open position and it literally pops off. The peak is held onto the base plate with a screw on either side, so all you have to do is loosen them, pop the cover plates off, remove the peak, cover plates back on, refit and tighten the screws – any coin will work, less than one minute per side.
I really like the fact that the visor is not dependent on the screws and cover plates to stay in place. On a recent trip, I dropped my TX4 at a fuel stop and managed to break two of the plastic screws and didn’t have replacements I tried every hardware and builders yard between Palapye and Kasane, most of which were closed on a Sunday afternoon.
I ended up trying to duct tape everything well, which went as well as you might expect, anything over 100 km/h and the peak would come ajar and the visor would flap around. 650 km later, I eventually found the last packet of 8mm gutter bolts in a hardware store in Kasane – I would have happily paid a thousand rand for that R30.00 packet of 10 gutter bolts.
Had I had the TX 5 I would have simply removed the peak and continued on my merry way unhindered.
Speaking of 8 hour days in the saddle with the sun blazing down at a temperate 45 degrees celsius, venting is super important.
With all the vents open, the TX4 has fantastic airflow, which can be directed where needed most. The venting on the TX5 is better in my humble opinion. The sliders to open and close vents are simpler to use, the apertures to allow airflow in and out seem bigger and more efficient, especially on the chin bar.
Shut the inside vent and it directs the airflow up to your visor for those cold or wet rides – basically like a windshield demister.
The visor also had me raising an eyebrow, particularly when I noticed the ‘Eyebrow Vents’ had been deleted, but they have been replaced with a much bigger and seemingly more efficient vent just above the visor, under the peak. The visor now also features a full contour recess for the Pinlock, which is also now a lot simpler and quicker to fit and remove for cleaning.
Instead of two removable vent covers on the rear, which owners either damaged or lost until they worked out how to remove and refit them correctly, there is a big aerofoil designed vent on the rear now, with one simple slider to open and close both vents. Easier to use, more efficient airflow and looks cool as well.
Basically, Arai has listened to the end users feedback, and have come up with a workable solution that meets their inhouse safety standards which, in many cases are a lot more stringent than the industry requirements.
In doing so they have managed to keep the overall weight gain to just 30 grams, going from 1,670 grams to 1,700 grams, but then again, every other helmet on the market has also gained weight in an effort to comply with new homologation laws.
They still retain the double D-ring chin straps.
The shell is rated as the hardest on the market and the interior is still as soft and as comfortable as your favourite pillow, retaining all the antibacterial, dry cool upholstery.
The tip of my, not insignificant, schnozz still touches the top of the aperture but I am less bothered by it now, and I am willing to work with the new look because of how well the Arai Tour-X 5 works and feels.
I don’t rate a helmet on its looks, I rate it on its protection, comfort and usability because I have bounced my head off the terrafirma more regularly than perhaps I should have.
Yes, Arai is not a budget helmet, but you do get what you pay for.
Arai has been making helmets since around 1935, just shy of 90 years by the same family, now moving into their third generation.
They won’t list publicly, because they are worried about shareholders compromising quality for price and profit, and the Arai family will not compromise on quality and protection for anything.
To find out more about Arai or your nearest stockist go to Bikewise SA, and while you are there have a look around at what else they do.
