How hard is it to buy a helmet?

So I need a new helmet. Currently have a Zeus but it is getting worn and the trim is broken. I like the fit of Arai so I was looking at the XD4 in a 2 colour, white with black stripes. I live in Adelaide which being the sleepy small place it is, there aren't any, only plain colours.

I found one on eBay from roadridersheaven (really MXfactory in QLD) and ordered it. After many emails they finally sent it. Except it was the wrong colour, an all grey, $100 cheaper than the 2 colour and what I paid! They said to send it COD back to them and they would send the right one back. We'll that never happened, I sent the wrong one to them and only heard promises from them and no helmet. I had to get a refund after opening a dispute with Paypal (their payment even bounced once) which all took about 3 weeks. When I ordered it their ebay rating was 98.6%, a bit more than a month later and it is down to 78% - scary!

I still need a new helmet. Adelaide still only have plain colours. So I went to an online store that has been around for years - TeamMoto (motorcycle superstore). They had one advertised so I sent an email to check that they had it in stock which they replied YES. So I ordered it and after about 3 days it arrived.

The wrong colour :huh I couldn't believe another store had made the same F***wit mistake

I have a close look on the Arai box and I see that the TeamMoto sticker says that it is a White/Black one but the sticker is only partially on, revealing the original Arai sticker underneath which says White. FFS can't they read?

Are there any regular online motorcycle stores that aren't idiots? They are both in Queensland, surely it isn't a Queensland thing? I note that the specialist Adventure stores in Australia have always been great to deal with.

Anyway, that's 2 stores off my shopping list and a heads up to any one thinking of buying either of these two.

I've sent an email to TeamMoto offering either to send the correct one or give me $100 back and I'll keep the plain white one, which will be a pity because I could have supported a local store for that.

Another argument for changing the Standards to accept snell or the eu standard so we can shop from suppliers that are good.

Mate I feel your pain.

I have had similar dealings with other products and yes its all been from Queensland vendors. One of which is a popular supplier of brake discs and sprockets. I know I'm not the only one. How he stays in business is beyond me.

Needless to say, after three very bad experiences, I never deal with businesses based in Queensland. If any of the advertising bumf waxes on about "being a Queenslander" its a real red flag.

I purchased a helmet directly from TeamMoto at Moss Street. Had lots of problems dealing with the shop muppet. The distributor rep was in the shop and dealt with him direct. Shop muppets are a waste of space.

If you're only complaint about Adelaide dealers is that they stock the wrong colour, why wouldn't you just order one in in the colour you want? :huh

I made the mistake of buying a helmet online once too. The fit was terrible and aftersales service non-existant.

A couple of months ago, I went into an Adelaide store, got to try on heaps of different ones (lucky, cos the one I wanted didn't suit my head shape at all) and after a bit of haggling, ended up buying a Shoei at 50 bucks less than the cheapest price I could find on eBay.

Who was it?
I'm looking for a new lid.

Peter Stevens. But pick the oldest bloke in the showroom to talk to.
All the younger folk just kept ignoring me.......

Yep, I go there a fair bit, I've had great dealings with their Triumph service dept.

Got my Sidi ADV boots from them, first young bloke didn't know what I meant
when I said "how much for cash", he went & got an older bloke.....deal done..

the approach i find works well is when you're about to pay for something mid priced, ask how much discount on the whole lot if i also buy this… and this… and one of those too.

works a treat.

http://www.mcas.com.au/motorcycle-helmets-road/arai/arai-xd-4-explore-graphic-helmet

I've just been through the process of buying a new helmet for my Mrs. recently.

Some shop staff are useless with customers, I was happily and patiently getting my Mrs. to try on numerous helmets [it had to be a certain colour, some patterns she didn't like, in others the helmet was the wrong fit, then it had to have a tinted inner visor, then it had to etc. etc.- worse than shopping for bloody shoes/dresses for her :huh ].... and then the shop assistant turned up.

After him arguing with my Mrs. about how the helmet has to "fit right", in spite of her saying different helmets hurt her head in different places, I told him to leave us alone.

She was ready to walk out of the shop without the new helmet and we were doing a Cancer fund raising ride the following day so really needed one pronto [I'd already binned her old helmet as it was stuffed].

Once I got rid of the sales guy I finally convinced the Mrs. to try on helmets in sizes other than the size the sales person stated she needed.

Finally we got one that suited her for style/colour/size/comfort- what started out as being a medium in the first one she tried [and the sales bloke insisted she would be a medium in every brand/style of helmet she tried on] we ended up buying a small that fitted correctly, didn't roll up/down on her head/caused no painful spots and was a colour scheme she was happy with.

Then we started looking for riding pants for her..... enter muppet number two. :huh [it is a very big accessory store]

I would never buy a helmet or riding gear online unless I'd already had the same thing previously and knew the correct size I needed.

And as previously mentioned, just get your local supplier to order one in.... building a good relationship with your bike shop will end up getting you good prices on both gear and perhaps your next bike as well.

While buying the gear for my Mrs. I ended up buying yet another new helmet for myself [in a small non flip, even though my relatively new Nolan flip is a medium], the discounts on the total was almost enough to cover the cost of my helmet.

Or so they led you to believe.
They have not lost money on the deal, do the math!

To the OP's point, go to the locals and make it ordered in, spares you the need to chase the people who shipped the wrong thing and you can check the fit before in the store.

No they won't have lost money, I'm not stupid enough to believe they sold under cost [I have worked in retail as well as delivered wholesale goods to retailers- even to shops in your home town ]

I bought two identical helmets [other than the colour], one for the Mrs.- which was the original reason for going to the shop in the first place- plus riding pants for her, and a few other bits and pieces.

Upon reaching the checkout I asked for discount based on the motorcycle club I'm a member of, on top of that the checkout person rounded the cost down a bit more [not the original two sales staff I first dealt with].

I have purchased in the store before, and also ordered parts over the phone and online with them.

The total dollars discounted off the bill almost equalled the ticket price of the my helmet [which was about $20 cheaper than the one bought for my wife, due to the fact hers was a coloured design while mine is plain white].

My point to my original post was twofold.

By purchasing in a local store:

1- You get the right fit on goods that are size specific [brake pads/oil filters and other parts I'm happy to order online or by phone].

2- Building a personal relationship with a shop/workshop can ultimately get you good service as well as discounted prices.

An added bonus is you keep local Aussies in a job.

Ock.

Interesting thread.

To summarize -

• you want the dealer to have required product to be in stock.
• you want professional service, advice and fitting.
• you are not prepared to pay the recommended retail price.
• you in fact want the dealer to charge no more and hopefully less than what an online store with minimal overheads and possibly zero stock can afford to sell the product.

The reality is every business needs to make at least a reasonable profit - even motorcycle dealers. When the profit is eroded away by consistent discounting then overheads have to come down to compensate. That is often achieved by losing experienced staff who normally cost more than the "idiots" and "muppets" you berate and struggle to deal with.

Ultimately the consumer chooses and in the end you get what you pay for.

Ron you have articulated this very well mate!

While not helmet related, I have had similar issues.

Ordered a valve core removal tool instore and I was told to get the one that has a small cross bar that allows you to re-thread the valve. I explained that the GS has spoked wheels and that the tool needs to rotate between the spokes. I was assured that the cross-bar removes.

Just received the tool, but didnt open the packaging till I got home and no, the cross bar does not remove. To remove the core you need to stick it in, rotate it a bit, take it out, re-position it between the spokes and rinse and repeat.

Just be patient while removing the core I guess...or dont puncture the tyre.

Yep sounds about right Ron, us old farts want it all, after all we have been supporting bike shops for decades and don't have the patience any longer to deal with 18 year old know it all's who are yet to enter puberty. It has been a lot of years since I entered a bike shop, all too easy to buy what I really want on-line for a better price and not have to put up with erupting pimples and pierced noses.

Well put.

And why I prefer to buy/order through Australian shops and suppliers where possible- even if it does cost a little more.

At least two of the suppliers I deal with do online/phone/in store sales, and I've bought from them by all three methods.

Unfortunately "muppets" are an unavoidable hazard in the store I bought the helmets and stuff at.... they are big and have probably 20 or more staff on the floor at any given time.

The "muppets" have to learn somewhere, but some are either slow learners or don't learn at all.

I don't berate them, if they are causing me more problems than the "help" they are giving then I give an excuse to terminate their involvement for the time being [as I did when my wife was getting seriously pissed off trying helmets and having the sales person insisting certain ones were "the right fit" when they clearly caused her pain].

I actually sought out the same sales person to complete the helmet purchases so he could see that not all helmets are "the same size" even though marked as the same. [you can't learn if someone doesn't teach you]

We then went to the clothing/riding gear section to look at pants for the Mrs., that section has different staff allocated to it so we dealt with another sales person.

As I mentioned, at the checkout we got discount when we asked for it based on my club membership... the store does that for certain clubs, as well as for customers doing large purchase values [if they ask for it]

And it is already built in to the store pricing I'm sure, so they are ok with giving it if requested for.

If you expect a store to have stuff in stock for you to try on, then do the right thing and buy it from them, or get them to order it for you in the style/size/colour you want.... don't just use them as a sizing point before ordering from another online supplier.

Then if the store doesn't look after you, speak to the manager/owner [most will respond in an appropriate manner to resolve your problem].

If no satisfaction comes from speaking to the manager/owner then take your business elsewhere- but keep in mind, the resolution will involve some negotiation or "give and take" from your side as well as the store's, so if they ultimately fix things for you give them a chance again next time.

Threadjack but why buy a separate tool to carry? These cost next to nothing at big w or auto stores and are always on hand.



Its not obvious from the photos but these are valve caps/covers.

Up to this point didnt even know they existed. Nice work, will look into them.

supercheap. 4packs i think.