[cshaw07]

Start out buy purchasing a new in box 1985 bell helmet from your old neighbor. Ride with it for two years, wreck with it on, drop it, attach it to your bike and have the tire rub it, etc.. It looked like junk, plus there was basically no foam left inside after 30 years.

So get a new one right? NO!

start by removing everything. There were two rivits holding the straps in that had to be drilled out. That allows you to pull everything out of the helmet shell. Then you remove the styrofoam inner stuff and pull the old cloth and form out of it.

I then sanded the outer shell down and used some dolphin glaze on it to smooth the chips and stuff. IT was all visually checked for cracks because of the wreck.

Pic with (way too much) glaze on the chips:

I then sanded it smooth and mixed my paint. I'm also restoring a 75' john deere garden tractor and i really like the JD blitz black paint. It's a low gloss black. I used hardener and thinner then sprayed with a paint gun.

While the paint hardener was setting up (says wait 30 min before spraying) I cut my new foam to shape:

It's glued in with spray glue, then i took red cloth sprayed the inner foam with glue and glued it in wrapping the excess around the inner helmet shell. sorry, no pics of that..

Then sprayed the helmet:

I then let it sit for the night, before putting it together in the morning before work. Here she is!



Hope you like it!

 

[gat803]

I like it, but I suspect most here won't.
People are so afraid of outdated and/or non certified hats they'll likely be way scared of this one.

My only safety question is on your replacement foam. It appears to be soft, resilient stuff as opposed to the industry standard crushable foam. I'm wondering if your liner might transfer to much shock to you melon, in the event of a crash?

On the other hand....if you don't care, I certainly don't. Live free or die trying.

 

[cshaw07]

It still has the styro foam. All i did was replace the non existant stock "comfort" foam. It literally kust desentrafeated when i pulled it out. It was snell and dot approved in 85, better than no helmet!

 

[GR8]

Looks good man, does the color match the bike?

 

[cshaw07]

Sorta, i havent decided what to do with my bike regarding color yet, some of its flat black somes gloss and some just isnt even painted at all yet.

 

[jpr1968]

I wouldn't wear it but then again I don't wear a helmet very much. What you are calling comfort foam isn't really there for comfort. It's to keep your head from bouncing around inside the outer shell.

 

[cshaw07]

Ok then, I replaced my non existant foam with real foam so my head doesnt bounce around. Causing increased comfort bell used to sell "liner kits" it was new foam sewn to new cloth. They dont sell them anymore, so i made my own. If you guys wanna throw old helmets away, ill take em!

 

[cshaw07]

Im getting the feeling you guys aren't understanding what i did... Ignore the nerd in the photo. I lined the styro foam with a new liner and soft foam, for comfort. The inner 1/2 high density foam does nothing other than make it comfortable and hold it toght to my head. The styrofoam is the stuff that actually protects your skull, along with the outer hard fibreglass shell.

 

[Harryc]

Nice job on the restoration. Personally I trust my mellon only to the experts, but each to his/her own.

 

[cshaw07]

Thanks! bell made the helmet, i trust them!

 

[big poppa pump]

I wouldn't be touching that helmet with a 20 ft pole. I don't care how good of a condition that helmet is, but I am not wearing a 30 year old helmet. Then again I will not wear a helmet once it gets past the 5 year limit. My head/brains are way too important to me.

 

[cshaw07]

Good, i dont want you touching my helmet anyway! More money for gasoline and tires not buying a new helmet all the time. It kept me alive once, probably will again. If not, my face will look pretty still i'd hope for the viewing.

 

[Bow&Aero]

My less then 2 year old Bell looked like your 30yo Bell and I took care of mine. I guess thier quality declined over the years. Not a fan of their helmets and will never buy one again. Good luck.

 

[vito]

I like it. Great idea for a thread too.

I'm not big on the 'gotta replace it at 5 years' scam, but 30 years could take its toll on the styrofoam even if the helmet was kept in a cool, dark corner of the garage. If you checked it and you think it's fine....then Keep Calm and Ride On!!

Helmet looks good, and I like the way the nerd did the foam fitment.

 

[cshaw07]

It really was in the box brand new in a dark corner for 28 years, then i got it haha and with the fitment, you know... Technical stuff! Glad you like it!

 

[cshaw07]

So you guys got me thinking... http://www.csuohio.edu/sustainability/fun-stuff-and-fast-facts This says it takes 1 million + years for styrofoam to decompose, id say after 30 its still brand new.

 

[jwinker]

I like your idea and everything you did....

...........EXCEPT.........

Seriously? If you're going to use a John Deere color, you choose BLACK???? FOR REALS????


I mean, COME ON!!! :lol:

Honestly, the fiberglass itself has not decomposed in 28 years of storage. With new foam, you're probably safer than my 2.8-yr old Bell with 5000 miles on the clock. Heck, moreso because my 2.8-yr old Bell is probably 3.5-yrs old!

You may want to look closely at your clear visor to see if it's yellowed and brittle, or wear new goggles behind the helmet. Otherwise, from a safety stance, I think you have an awesome write-up of rejuv'ing a vintage helmet.

Just...painted the wrong color... :lol:

 

[Scared]

Looks good. I like it.

 

[C5rider]

well, for me it would be a 30 year old helmet protecting a 45 year old brain! :roll: It'd be a newer model than what it's protecting!

All joking, and safety-seriousness aside, good job on making-do with what you have. Part of the charm and individualism of motorcycling is that each person's experience is an open palette to which they choose to mix the colors.

 

[cshaw07]

It definitely matches my 30 year old bike! I could buy a new helmet, but this hobby of doing things with bikes as cheaply as possoble is really fun to me. just seeing what you can do with almost nothing but time and some tools and junk you find laying around is pretty neat. My helmet is safe, custom (boring paint job right now), and fits me and the look of the bike well. Its way better than it was before i changed it, so im happy as ever!