I am writing this review based up on my real life experience on 3/14/10. My husband is a lifelong cyclist. Together we have worn bike helmets our entire adult lives. Friends joked about how we looked wearing our helmets in the past. They don't joke anymore. My husband was riding solo at about 18-20 MPH and became startled by an unleashed dog that appeared out of nowhere. Expecting to be nipped at the heel, the dog instead crashed into the front bicycle wheel, sending him over the handlebars onto a paved street. His 1 year old Schwinn Thrasher helmet took the fist impact, destroying itself in order to save his skull and brain. Reconstructive orthopedic surgery was required for his shattered left collarbone. He is still healing - but he is able share his experience with others today. I spent a mere $20 bucks at a discount store. The Schwinn Thrasher helmet saved my husband's life. Thank you Schwinn. Schwinn Thrasher Adult Micro Bicycle Helmet (Adult)
OK. Let's just all agree that bicycle helmets are ugly and that it's likely that you'll feel ridiculous wearing one. Get over it! These days with increasing numbers of distracted drivers, you'd be crazy not to wear a helmet. That being said, the Schwinn Thrasher Helmet is a great choice. It is comfortable, adjustable and was even able to fit my giant head. It is sculpted to allow ample air flow to keep your head cool and the basic black/charcoal design keeps the look simple and clean. I don't find the plastic visor to be of much use, but it can detached if necessary.
As a bonus, it is a "Best Buy" from Consumer Reports.
If you ride a bike don't expect a baseball cap to protect you. You need a helmet and the Schwinn Thrasher Helmet is a good choice at a great price.
While this helmet is not the fanciest around, it does do the job it is supposed to. I use this riding my bike early in the morning and so far so good. I have a large head, so finding a helmet to fit me is rather difficult. This one has an adjustable strap in the back that can fit a large range of heads (mine is adjusted to the largest size). I looked at helmets that were around $80 before finding this one, and I am glad that I chose the Schwinn Thrasher.
Happy Riding!
I bought this helmet after reading the very convincing top review about how it saved someone's life. Looking a little dorky is a small price to pay for that protection. Overall I'm pleased with this helmet. For the price it offers quite a bit. Keep in mind when you read my 'cons' that this helmet is regularly around twenty bucks.
Pros:
1) Light design--appears insubstantial actually, but that is the way it's made. It's created to break up on impact, thus absorbing the blow that your head would have taken.
2) Fits very well and is super comfortable to wear. I really like the strap design, as well as the adjustment knob inside the helmet that controls the harness width to accommodate many different sized heads.
3) Aesthetics are pretty good, especially with the visor. For an inexpensive helmet, I'm pretty impressed. No one looks awesome in a bike helmet, but at least it doesn't look too dorky.
4) Is not so amazing looking that it is a thief magnet.
Cons:
1) The plastic exterior shell is not that well affixed to the foam. It floats around a little bit, and looks like it may develop problems after years of use.
2) The visor attaches to the helmet using plastic pins that will eventually break off. It also doesn't stay in place as well as I would like. I simply glued mine in place since I never plan to ride without it anyway.
3) The interior of the helmet has thin, felt pads that are connected to the foam using small circles of Velcro. They are a tad too small, and so the pads shift around more than I would like. I can't glue these in place, because ideally you want to pull them out and wash them once in a while. My solution: add my own sticky-sided velcro to bolster what's already there. This works great.
Conclusions:
For the price, you'd be hard pressed to find a better helmet. Also, based on other reviews, a few of which talk about the product actually being tested in a real life crash, it appears to work well. It's a decent looking helmet, and although I wish it did have a slightly higher build quality, it's still a good value.
This is a great helmet. It fits well (6'3" 200 pound male). The adjustment wheel works perfectly and is well made. There is a lot of cooling airflow when you are out riding and the visor blocks the sun quite well. I was surprised with the build quality given the price and it even looks good on top of it all! (In fact it's good enough/stylish enough to steal apparently and I'm back for my second helmet. If someone wants to steal this helmet and save their thief head I will happily purchase more and pass them around to anyone who wants one.) Thanks Schwinn!
I bought this after the Giro didn't fit my head. This is nowhere as good of a quality as the Giro but if you wear the largest hats/caps and even then your head barely fits, then this is for you and the Giro is not.
I bought my bike at a time when I wanted to start getting out and exercising more. Being on a very limited budget, I sprang for the very best bike I could at the time (maybe even over-extended my budget just a bit). This left me with very little $$ left for accessories, and as everyone will tell you, a helmet is the most important thing you need when you go riding.
This helmet is not flashy and doesn't have any big exclusive brand name, but it's a quality piece from a reputable company. It fits well and offers adjustments for various size heads. I also personally like the color and carbon fiber finish.
About the only benefit of buying those other helmets that cost upwards of 2 or 3 times the $20 cost of this one is that they may look better and may be slightly smaller. But that's about it - this helmet is comfy, adjustable, and has all the safety certification included with it. Even the absorbent cushioning pads that line the inside of the helmet are attached with velcro for easy removal/washing.
If you're really strapped for cash and need a quality helmet, I'd highly recommend this one. I don't regret buying mines, and even though I've recovered from the initial outlay of my bike purchase and am now able to spring for a more expensive helmet, I still use this one and don't regret buying it. - Bike Safety - Bicycle Helmet - Cycling - Helmet'
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