Helmets Arai Defiant Helmet

Joined
Mar 10, 2005
Messages
84
Location
Indy
Bike
'91 ST1100
STOC #
4925
Looking to replace my Arai Vector-2. Seen some good reviews on the Arai Defiant. Anyone have experience with the Defiant helmet?
 
Joined
Apr 9, 2011
Messages
1,024
Location
Canton, GA
Bike
2006 ST1300
I had an Arai a few years ago, and liked it so much that I bought one for my wife. In the intervening years, though, Arai seems to have lost their interest in quality control. The Wife's Arai literally fell apart- the visor supports were flimsy, and fell off, the bottom trims fell off, and had to be epoxied on, and the liner had numerous defects. Last time I'll buy or even consider an Arai. Her next Helmet was a Shoei- far superior in quality and finish. She says it is much quieter too.

Note: I now wear a Scorpion EXO-700, which seems to be a copy of the Arai. Although you can SEE the difference in fit and finish on the helmet as compared to an Arai, it is a VERY nice alternative to the Arai for less than 1/3 the price.
 
Joined
Dec 4, 2004
Messages
232
Location
Rura Penthe, Arkansas
STOC #
2933
I have had several Arai helmets & recently bought the Scorpion. What a POS! IMHO. My main complaint are the cheek pads prevent my use of my favorite pair of eye glasses. Part of that problem has to do with the headset. There just isn't enough room for headset, eye glasses & my head. So, I am looking to replace my Scorpion with the Arai Defiant. YMMV
 

slmjim

Hopeless Tool Junkie
Joined
Jan 16, 2011
Messages
175
Location
Derby City - Home of The Louisville Slugger
Bike
Which one today...?
No experience with the Defiant, but we bought a RX-Q (her) and a Vector-2 (me) a couple of years ago. If we had it to do over again we'd go back to Shoei.

We rode under Shoeis for over 20 yrs. I was happy with them, but we were "sold" Arais at a rally. Both Arais suffer from the same shortcomings compared to Shoei:
Poor ventilation,
Flimsy, cantankerous shield changing mechanisms,
Noisy,
No built-in accommodation for helmet speakers.

We'll be buying Shoei again next time.

Good Ridin'
slmjim
 
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