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certified.? What do they mean, and which one will protect me??

 
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Make sure you buy a helmet that has been DOT approved. It means that it has been approved by the department of transportation and is street legal. Have fun. Be careful.

 
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As noted above, DOT is Department of Transportation. They create minimum standards with which a helmet must comply. A helemt must be DOT certified I believe in order that a rider is considred in compliance with helemt laws. Snell Memorial Foundation (http://www.smf.org/testing.html) also tests helmets and is considered more stringgent than DOT. The website describes their testing. A manufacturer voluntarily submits to Snell for testing. Some of hte more expensive brands (Arai, Shoei) are DOT and Snell approved or certified. Comfort is an important feature, both for purposes of fit and airflow (venting). Pick one that will be comfortable, try it on in the shop and pay attention to any points of pressure as they will become more pronounced on longer ride. Helemts all fit differently, depending on the shape of one's head.

 
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If you are buying from a motorcycle dealer all helmets will meet the current legislation as they cannot sell it if it doesn't. You will find a European Conformity tag on the strap of the helmet which tells you which standard it has attained. Many helmets have a gold ACU sticker on the back which means it is approved for racing in- and this is what I tend to look for.If you are thinking of buying a helmet from somewhere other than a motorcycle shop -DONT especially if its second hand.The most important thing when choosing a helmet is the fit and staff in any motorcycle shop should be trained to assess the fit for you, as judging by your question you do not have a great deal of experience in this area. If a £50 helmet fits you and a £500 doesn't the £50 is the better helmet for you. You don't have to spend a fortune to get a decent helmet but do make sure you take the time to get the right one for you.

 
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DOT approved is the new way of saying that it is up to british standards. I note that you ask...what will protect me. As you will be very aware riding a motorbike is a dangerous hobby. You should spend as much as you can afford on a helmet. You should never buy a second hand one and you should always be careful not to drop it. If you do the safest thing to do is buy another. Ensure that you try on many helmets and buy one that is slightly tight to begin with. Helmets have a padded insert to mould around your head and as it ages the elastisity of the padding will become less. This make it looser and more suseptible to turning when you turn your head. If its loose to begin with this will happen more and there have been instances where the helmet has turned to such an extent where the rider cannot see anymore. Good makes include Shoei and AGV. If you want as much protection as possible dont pay any less.

 
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DOT is US Department of Transportation. the DOT standard is the absolute lowest standard that a MC helmet must comply to, meaning it is often the flimsiest helmet that can be legally sold, some DOT legal helmets are not more than plastic hats.If you want to protect your head buy a Snell rated helmet, their standards continually change and get more stringent, and the number following the Snell reflects which years standard it conforms to. It's one of those things where you get what you pay for, and if it does not fit well do not buy it.