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Home / Culture / Clothing / Helmets / Full Face Helmets / Survey

Half Shell or Full Face Helmet for Mountain Biking?

With full face mountain bike helmets becoming lighter and better ventilated, and convertible helmet offerings increasing, more and more riders seem to be upgrading the safety of their skid lid.

By Jeff Barber
February 16, 2020 Last Updated: June 15, 2021

7 comments

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With full face mountain bike helmets becoming lighter and better ventilated, and convertible helmet offerings increasing, more and more riders seem to be upgrading the safety of their skid lid.

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Jeff Barber

Jeff Barber has been mountain biking since 1992 and has tested hundreds of mountain bikes and components. He is the co-founder of Singletracks and serves as Editor in Chief. Contact him at [email protected].

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7 Comments

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raggedyedge Wyoming // 2016
Feb 17, 2020

After a brief fling with full face helmets in Motocross, I returned to open faced for both MX and MTB. I feel the full face protuberance provides too much leverage and generates excessive rotational forces on head and neck. I would be interested in seeing some solid research to confirm or disprove my suspicions.

2 reply

xbd 2017
Feb 17, 2020

After smashing my face in and breaking all my front teeth, I wear a full face every ride now. Teeth are expensive AF!

0 reply

FSTRTHNU California // 2019
Feb 20, 2020

Bike Park, Lifts, Crazy Jumps/Tech/Downhill=Full Face
Trails, Normal Tech, etc.=Half Shell
PS-I'm also old, but injuries heal and are worth the memories and experiences from pushing the envelope. Love the ride.

0 reply

m.krupp Kentucky // 2018
Feb 18, 2020

I don't believe I ride anything gnarly enough to warrant a full face. I think I would feel like a tool wearing one where I normally ride. If I rode stuff that required a full face I think I would also need to add additional body armor.

0 reply

Oldandrolling South Carolina // 2018
Feb 16, 2020

I gave up full face helmets a long time ago. Those helmets and associated body armor assume one is going to take some big risks. Which is fun and very exciting if you are in your teens and twenties. I am a bit too old to risk potential severe injury. Not to mention the healing time and costs. With my half shell and minimal body armor, I am constantly reminded not to try anything to spectacular.

0 reply

Gerow Washington // 2014
Feb 16, 2020

It depends on the trails paired with how hard I want to push myself that day, and if there is a shuttle involved the full face always makes sense.

0 reply

kay oh 2016
Feb 16, 2020

It entirely depends on where I am riding. Blankets Creek on a random Wednesday is a half-shell helmet. Anything near Brevard is a full-face and some pads.

0 reply

Tagged: bike helmets, chin bar, convertible helmet, full face helmets, full face mountain bike helmets, helmet, helmets, mtb helmet, mtb helmets, opinion, survey, culture, full face helmets, dh, enduro

First published February 16, 2020 @ 4:35:00