You choose your motorcycle helmet to protect your head every time you set-off for a ride. But have you ever questioned, What Are Helmets Made Of? Or what materials are used to construct a motorcycle helmet?

A motorcycle helmet has two essential components, including a hard outer shell constructed with Polycarbonate or Fiber Glass or Thermo Plastic Alloy materials and a protective EPS Liner typically made from Expanded Polystyrene Foam.

Well, today, we are going to discuss some of the most common material used to construct helmets. We will try our best to answer the most common query, what are helmets made of?

So, grab your seats and read on to find out the complete anatomy of motorcycle helmets.

Before we jump into technical details, let us enlist the most significant parts of helmets:

Without any further delay, let’s discuss in detail what are helmets made of? And what are the materials used to construct a complete helmet?

OUTER SHELL

The outer shell is one of the essential parts of the helmet which determines the quality, weight, shape, and above all, safety.

The primary function of the outer shell is to defend your head in the event of impact or abrasion and play a significant role in preventing penetration from outside objects.

The helmet’s outermost layer constructed from various materials listed down below:

You may wonder, what is a motorcycle helmet made of? With a doubt, most of the motorcycle helmets constructed with the Polycarbonate material due to its lightweight and durability. On the other hand, Fiber Glass also popular due to its sturdy nature.

EPS LINER

Secondly, the EPS Liner is one of the essential parts of the helmet, also known as Expanded Polystyrene. EPS is a compact, high-density form that makes the second layer of the helmet.

The EPS Liner fitted on the inside of the outer shell, and that what makes it a significant part of the helmet.

The EPS Liner designed to absorb all kinds of shocks, impacts, or abrasions. The sole purpose of this component is to cushion your head and adds the utmost protection from uncertain impacts.

The EPS Liner of helmets made of two materials briefly discussed below:

• Styrofoam: It is one of the most popular materials used to construct EPS Inner Linings in the helmets. Also known as thermocouple and reliable due to its exceptional impact-absorbing qualities.
• Koroyd: It is 30% safer than Styrofoam and made of tiny welding tubes. When your helmet hits something, these small tubes break and absorb the impact.

PADDED COMFORT LAYER

As we mentioned, the outer shell and EPS Liner defend your heads; the Padded Comfort Layer is another essential part of a helmet, which ensures the helmet fits comfortably on your head.

This Padded Liner typically consists of open-cell foam and covered in a soft fabric layer. This material generally features Antimicrobial & Antibacterial fabric designed to wick away sweat and moisture.

What interesting is –this padded lining offer removability and washability to avoid dirt, bacteria & smell.

The Comfort Padded Layer is one of the significant parts of helmet equipped with moisture-wicking liners to keep the headgear fresh, dry, and clean.

Moreover, this padded layer is an essential component for it has direct contact with your skin. For this reason, it should be comfortable and constructed from non-irritation materials.

The National Research Center, Egypt, conduct research on comfort properties of the inner padding layer for motorcycle helmet, the results showed that the 100% Cotton Fabrics with ¼ Twill and Weft Rib ½ structures achieved the best functional performance and protection properties.

VISOR/ FACE SHIELD

The visor is the movable shield that protects the front of your face and keeps the foreign elements, including dust, bugs, and debris out of your helmet.

It is no doubt; the visor is an essential part of the helmet constructed with high-quality transparent thermoplastic materials as a lightweight and shatter-resistant glass.

Materials Used in Helmet’s Visor:

• Acrylic: It is a transparent thermoplastic widely used to made helmet’s visors for it is lightweight or shatter-resistant and alternative to glass. It protects the rider’s eyes from ultraviolet rays, as well.
• Polycarbonate: Polycarbonates are strong & sturdy materials, and some grades are optically transparent, used in the construction of visors.Some of the best-quality visors created with polycarbonate materials because of their high impact-resistance and low-resistance.

Types of Visors:

CHEEK PADS

The Cheek Pads are an added comfort feature intended to provide extra protection to your face and to help keep the helmet in place on your head.

The Cheek-Pads usually considered a part of the padded comfort liner, for they made of the same material as the liner.

The high-quality helmets come with removable and washable cheek pads that help keep the headgear clean and bacterial-free.

RETENTION SYSTEM

Without a doubt, we can say that most people choose to ignore it; the chin strap is quite a significant component of the helmet. 

You know what –a retention system prevents the helmet from flying-off your head in case of a crash or accident. So, a chin strap or retention system must feature sturdiness and reliability.

The Chin Strap made from a woven material, including Nylon or Polypropylene, and fastened with two D-Ring Closure to stay secured. Further, the strap partially covered with a soft fabric to wick away sweat & moisture.

AIR VENTS

Last but not least, the air-vent is one of the essential parts of the helmet that allows ventilation and keeps the rider fresh and sweat-free.

The Air-Vents usually are located on the chin bar, over the brow, and at the back of the helmet body. Most of the motorcycle helmets equipped with two kinds of air-vents:

• Intake Air Vents –Let the fresh air in to cool the rider.
• Exhaust Air Vents –Let the warm air out of the helmet.

What interesting is –Some helmets have an adjustable Ventilation System or the ones that you close to control the airflow in cold weather.

FINAL THOUGHTS

PickHelmet creative team proudly answered your query about what are helmets made of?

From Outer Shell to Inner Liner to Cheek Pads to Comfort Layer to Face Shield to Chin Strap, we have discussed each element used in the construction of motorcycle helmets in the best way possible.

To learn more about, what elements are used in the construction of the helmet? Follow the link to explore.

We hope after following this short read, you will never wonder, what are helmets made of? Or what are elements used to construct a motorcycle helmet?

It is no secret; that helmets make motorcycle riders safe. Never leave your head unguarded while riding a motorcycle. This minimal piece of headgear can not only protect you from injuries but can also save your life.