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A helmet can be the difference between a long time injury or simply walking it off. Here’s the ultimate guide to choosing the best longboard helmet for you.
Longboard Helmet Types
The Half Helmet – This is the typical helmet used in all sports from biking to skateboarding to rollerskating. This type of helmet is lightweight and does not cover face any part of the face.
It typically consists of a hard shell made out of ABS with foam inside to cushion the head. It offers a significant level of protection above a bare head.
The Full Face helmet – This helmet is typically reserved for more high-speed applications such as downhill longboarding, mountainbiking, or even on motorcycles. This design uses an aerodynamic design and highly impact resistant materials to provide the protection to the rider.
It consists of two main parts, a helmet body and a visor which can often be tinted in different colors for different styles. These are often more expensive than half helmets but provide the highest level of protection.
Longboard Helmet Certifications
When looking for a helmet, you want one that can withstand multiple impacts without any damage to your head. To help with this several companies and agencies have created certifications to classify protection levels.
The Consumer Product Safety Commission (CPSC) certifies a number of half and full face longboard helmets for impact resistance. Also look for ASTM certifications as they provide certifications for a number of different helmets that often directly apply to longboarding helmets.
The best downhill longboard helmets are also certified by the International Downhill Federation. This company requires full face helmets during races and is the world authority on downhill longboard racing.
Pricing
The type of helmet determines the price with drastic differences between half and full helmets. Half or shell helmets typically cost between 30 to 60 dollars.
Full face helmets meant for downhill can cost anywhere from 100 to 400 dollars. 400 dollars for a helmet?!
Ask yourself what’s cheaper? A helmet or the possible consequences of a crash (dentist bills for broken teeth, a doctor for a concussion, or even facial reconstruction surgery in the worst cases?
Full face helmets are designed for high-speed impacts and as such, use highly impact resistant materials. This causes the higher price.
Sizing
When buying a longboard helmet, it is essential that you buy the correct size. You want a helmet that is secure to your head without being uncomfortable. If it can easily move around on your head, its too loose and will be useless in a crash. If it’s too tight and squeezing your head, it’s too tight and you should go a size bigger just for comfortability.
There are two main ways to determine your size. Do you wear hats? Simply choose your hat size and you’ll have a good idea of what size longboard helmet.
For the majority of the population, simply wrap a tape measure or measure a piece of string that goes fully around your head. You want to measure just above the eyebrows and ears. This is where the brim of the helmet will sit.
Top Longboard Helmets
To help choose the best longboard helmet for you, we at Review Longboards decided to provide you with some mini-reviews of our favorite helmets. Two of these helmets are full face helmets and two are half helmets to ensure that you will find a helmet that will fit your needs.
TSG Pass Helmet
The highest rated full face longboard helmet that has ever been manufactured, the TSG Pass helmet is made out of a multilayered glass fiber shell. The visor is made out of a shatter-resistant material that is also highly lightweight cutting down on the helmet’s weight.
All of the foam pads within the helmet are completely adjustable to ensure a comfortable fit between the helmet and your head. It is designed to be aerodynamic and provide minimal drag while providing the maximum protection to the rider.
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One of the key features of this longboard helmet is its visor. It has a wide viewing angle allowing riders to use their peripheral vision while going downhill.
You never have to worry about this visor fogging up. The visor has an anti-fog coating on the inside and this combined with the ventilation slots ensures you will constantly have a clear field of vision when racing downhill.
One feature that makes this helmet particularly attractive is that it is certified by the International Downhill Federation for longboard racing. If you are ever thinking of getting into longboard racing at all this is the helmet for you.
The one drawback to the TSG Pass helmet is the price. What you have to remember, though, is that this longboard helmet is meant to last. It also comes with a bonus visor that you can easily switch for different conditions.
Triple 8 Downhill Racer Helmet
If the TSG Pass is out of your price range, the Triple 8 Downhill Racer helmet should be perfect for your downhill needs. This full face helmet is fully made out of a fiberglass shell with a shatter resistant visor. The visor stretches across the front of the helmet to provide the rider with a big field of view.
Meeting both CPSC and ASTM downhill mountain bike racing standards, this helmet is guaranteed to protect you at the highest speed crashes. Longboarders going any speeds above 35-40mph need these helmets to be adequately protected.
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The Triple 8 Downhill Racer longboard helmet has an option to come with a tinted or a clear visor. Once you choose a visor color, you cannot switch them so be careful. I personally prefer the tinted visor, as it cuts down on sunny day glare and looks cooler.
To make this helmet especially suitable for downhill, it is slightly cut in the back to allow for it be comfortable in the tuck position. It also comes with an extra fit pad insert to customize the fit to your head shape.
One minor problem with Triple 8 Downhill Racer is that it does tend to slightly fog up at times when you are breathing very heavily. Now, before you worry, in downhill this isn’t really a problem.
I don’t know about you but when I’m flying down a hill, I typically don’t breathe heavily with exhaustion. If the visor does start fogging, though, you can simply tilt the visor slightly up to allow some air in. When going up hills, you should definitely raise the visor to allow for airflow.
The fogging is also partially caused by the lack of ventilation holes in the helmet. While this helmet comes with a sweat absorbing liner, the lack of holes can cause your head to feel a little hot at times.
If you can get over these minor flaws, this longboard helmet is absolutely amazing for downhill.
Triple 8 Longboard Helmet
Called “the perfect visorless helmet”, the Triple 8 Helmet consists of a half shell with foam padding. This makes this helmet incredibly comfortable and perfect for nearly all riders who are just looking for something to protect their noggin.
With only a half shell, the Triple 8 Helmet is incredibly low profile and does not constrict your head at all. It also comes with terry cloth padding that absorbs sweat from your head. Get sweaty too often? You can also simply replace the terry cloth padding instead of replacing the entire helmet.
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This longboard helmet is perfect for daily use and light – medium downhill riding. After you start riding >35-40 mph, you should definitely upgrade to a full face downhill helmet for the best protection.
Another factor that you should be aware of is that this helmet does not meet any of the safety standards discussed above. While this is not typically discussed, there are stickers inside of the helmet that state it.
That being said, this longboard helmet was my personal choice as an avid longboarder 2 years ago and it is still going strong today.
Protec Original Classic Helmet – CPSC certified and ASTM
The Protec Original is another classic longboard helmet from a trusted brand in the helmet business, Protec. This half helmet consists of a standard high impact shell made out of ABS with internal layers of foam to cushion the head from impacts. It is CPSC and ASTM certified against impacts.
To ensure you don’t sweat too much, the helmet also has 11 large vent openings to allow some air to flow over your head. While this longboard helmet also has a sweat absorbing liner, when compared to the Triple 8 Helmet, it simply is not as absorbent and you will get sweat running down your face.
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Similar to the other helmets on this list, this helmet is available in a variety of different colors to fit your personal style. One minor annoyance though is that the matte finish of the helmets does scratch very easily if you hit something solid. Either slap a sticker on the scratch or keep it as proof that you’re a serious rider!
Another feature to keep in mind before purchasing is that the sizes for the Protec Original tend to run small. While they provide a sizing chart, you should always buy a size larger than what you measure your head at.
If you keep these features in mind, the Protec Original Classic Helmet will serve you well.
