HJC i90 Helmet Review 

Question. Is it easier to put on a modular helmet with earbuds rather than a non modular one? My normal non modular helmet always rips my earbuds out of my ears when taking it off or even putting it on sometimes.

@@davidgesell Try Decibullz earplugs.

*At any age

Modulars still aren't as good as true full face though.

What bike is wearing ANY style of helmet when your face gets ripped off?

A late realization, but better than after the fact I've always hated full-face, but I always wore them. Really glad that modular's are around now… Just trying to pick the right one without spending 800 bucks question for you: two years later are you still happy with this one, or have you seen any other modular is that look like they might be a better helmet (under 300 bucks)? any blatant downsides to this one that you've discovered?

Alex, Can you tell me how well you can hear? I have a seidici modular right now and was looking at this one because the Seidici I couldn't hear a thing when riding at highway speeds. Forget about phone calls (I ride alone so a comm with other riders isn't important to me) because no one would be able to hear me and vice versa.

Adam Eldred I can hear very well, the Pack Talk has an option with larger JBL speakers so I would recommend that for modular helmets. Even with ear plugs I am able to hear music, podcasts/audiobooks, GPS navigation, etc. Not sure how the noise level of the RPHA 90 compares to this model, though, as I haven't worn this one.

Just like Schuberth has been doing for almost a decade. HJC copied almost everything else, dunno why they didn't do the sun visor slide too.

Thanks. Just looking at lower-priced modular helmets to buy now. After two years are you still pleased with this one, or would you recommend that I look elsewhere?

@@Yowzoe Still pleased i bought it. Just be carefull of buggs if you ride with the sunvisor down, and the chinbar up. It sctatches easily if you clean it the wrong way. I think that counts for every brand though. Pinlock visor is easy to change aswell, and the padding is still good after 2 years of allmost daily use.

@@Ronald8434 fortunately I am up in the PNW were bugs are a minimal problem. On the other hand I don't get to ride year-round. Glad it's working out for you nicely. Have a couple questions: Is peripheral vision relatively limited? I have heard this a bit in reading comments. Do you remember if the pinlock *lens* come with the pinlock shield? sounds like some people get it and some don't. With RevZilla it doesn't come with it. Also did a chinstrap come with it?

@@Yowzoe i have no issues with perifferal view. The helmet came with everything included. Even a fleece storage bag. The chin strap is a non detachable safety feature, and if i remember correctly it even stays on the helmet when you remove the padding for cleaning. So i am amazed it is even possible to get any helmet at all without a chin strap.

Idk the chin switch felt more natural then having to reach to the too of my head

This was an excellent, thorough, and helpful review. Thank you. And thanks for letting us know your wife liked her ECE rated one as my helmet is a size large as well

What about the vent in the chin area? Was that of no help?

Could you share some photo where exactly you have drilled the additional holes?

@@adamy2927 location isnt critical. having 4 holes probably is to account for 1" of exhaust air flow. try to space them equally from each other if possible. top left bottom left top right bottom right. look up a trapezoid. at each point of the trapezoid is how my hole location appears. remove the insulation and pre-drill with 1/8" first. the sides of the helmet is more ideal as the back of your head will block more air, but again its really not critical. anything is better than nothing and exhaust wont increase decibels.

HJC offers a large range of helmets with small details changed as they hear feedback from customers on what they would like to purchase. Not too hard for them to modify from the factory to help everyone out. If you have any other questions or concerns, please feel free to reach out to our Gear Geeks at 877.792.9455 or cs@revzilla.com. Ride safe, -Pat

i use mine works fine. whats so critical about the ones mounted on the exterior of the helmet?

how are you liking that? I need something with minimum 25in which usuallys ends up being more than a 3xl lol

@@BaltazarMartinez727 I really like it. But since I have such a huge melon, I have almost nothing to compare it to. I definitely recommend getting a pin lock for it, as well as a tinted visor. I also have the Smart HJC 10B Bluetooth system on it. It’s good, but not great.

I have one ventilation is good! I have had any problems with heat.

Just rode with this helmet in 91 degrees. Poor airflow. The “venturi” vent in the back is tiny. Single small intake vent on top. It was really hot inside the helmet.

I have the Harley version. The only difference is the colors and H-D branding. It’s a hot helmet. The two vents up front are narrow, and the one on the back narrower still. If you wear the chin strap that makes it even quieter but also hotter. Without it, it’s not too bad while riding. It’s the only draw back I could find for this helmet so far. I will say that out of the 7 different modular helmets I tried sub$300 it was the most impressive with the features and weight. Specially since I wear a 5x. The helmet is “intermediate oval”. I am am long oval. So I had to go 5x to find the right fit. On helmets with long oval shapes I am a XL/2XL. Totally recommend for a sub $200 helmet. Will hold me up until I can afford a nice top shelf carbon helmet.

@@killdozer3464 Thanks, that's very helpful info for me now as I'm looking for the right inexpensive modular. Any other thoughts to add a year later?

The i90 Helmet is a modular helmet whereas the i70 is a full face helmet. The RPHA 90 is a Modular as well and would be their top of the line helmet in the modular options. If you have any other questions or concerns, please feel free to reach out to our Gear Geeks in customer service! - Pat

Should help a lot, the first couple of times I wore my helmet it kind of smashed the curtain into my chin. Then I realized that I should pull the curtain under my chin with my thumb as I closed the chin bar and it helped quite a bit.

@@apetsel My same experience. Improved noticeably once I put chin curtain on, but now that summer is here, get earplugs or deal with the crap dilemma or either wind noise or heat. Still, not a bad helmet for the price I got but it's definitely in the anything but summer commuting category

This is what exactly happened to me today . Ordered a MAX II but then received the i90 . I’m debating to keep it or exchange it

Interesting and unfortunate that the problem occured on both helmets. Did HJC get back to you?

You're not supposed to ride with the chin guard up on modular helmets; they're pretty much only to be let up when you're at a stop. The force pushing against the chin guard while you ride is probably causing the mechanism to fail.

Thx for sharing your experience. Maybe I'm thinking to simple, but a little bit of loctite didn't help?

@@GildedAlien That's not what my dealer said.

You can ride with chin up in the city and chin down on highway

Since we tend to ride with shields closed at speed, we weren't able to test if the outer face shield will stay fully open when at speed. The inner sun visor will certainly stay deployed at speed though. -DrewZilla

I have this helmet love it and wear prescription glasses with it high speeds that visor stays down or up whatever position you place it in very secure

@@OtKID I can attest to this. Got on the highway 65mph and realized immediately I forgot to put visor down..... it's so damn hot so I kept it that way and it never budged

You probably need a scutberth helmet. They gave cutouts for glass wearers,

According to the specs online this one also has cut outs for glasses wearers. :)​@@DJGENOTYPE

It uses the HJ-33 i believe, got the helmet and will buy the mirrored vizor

@@furbaey so did it fit ? I can’t find anything on changing the clear visor

Yeah, feel free to check out the 7:20 marker of the video where we show/discuss the speaker pockets!

Oh, the slots are the pockets you were refering to! Sorry for the confusion. English is not my first language. Thanks for the reply.

You sure can!

@@Ryan_H22 can i wear my moms lipstick underneath it?

@@SIRA063 Of course! But only if it's bright red and you get her permission first!

O have one and it’s not with a strap.

You can get a metal Ryde Wear strap Buckle for under $20

Does anyone actually buy Harley's anymore? There is a reason they always near bankruptcy

@@DavidKnealy understood but it would be hard to use sena in the left due to the visor placed.

Nah. Throttle on the right, my guy.

Oh man, I hadn't considered this..

it has an internal visor, external would go against the aero of the helmet

@@MagicBrownMan DONT LIKE

I love my internal visor. It’s a major selling point for me. Good thing there are so many helmet options

Your first point isn't entirely true. While it is true that materials like carbon fiber and fibre glass are more rigid, providing better protection in the event of a high speed crash, polycarbonate still provides adequate protection. One of polycarbonates advantages is the lower tensile strength, which helps disperse more energy in the event of a crash at lower speeds. There are plenty of polycarbonate helmets out there getting 4 or 5 star ratings. Shell material alone isn't a way to judge the safety of a helmet. You have to take every part of the helmets construction into account. Your second point though I have to agree on. RevZilla as a seller can't really be objective when it comes to reviews. Still a good overview as a kind of guideline. Edit: spelling

Philip E. soo I'm guessing your deciding what type of crash you gonna get into. High speed or low speed. Along with the crystal ball. And notice of you said adequate not good protection

@@emmetmcgarrigle3219 I'm not going to argue about the definition of the word "adequate". I very well could have used "sufficient" or "good for" or "suitable" or "ample". Why didn't I? Because English isn't my mother tongue and I didn't think of these words when writing my comment. I still think that I made my point clear. In your comment you said that polycarbonate helmets are not very protective and that they should be illegal. Objectively speaking that's just wrong. As I said, shell material isn't the only measurement indicating the safety of a helmet. That's what certifications like ECE or SNELL are testing. And by looking at helmets that are certified we can see that there are plenty of polycarbonate helmets that have passed these tests, indicating that they are indeed safe. I personally would always choose a polycarbonate helmet with a high quality, well made EPS liner, than a carbon fiber helmet with a cheap EPS liner. You simply have to take the entire construction of the helmet into consideration. By saying that polycarbonate helmets are not protective you're ignoring the rest of the helmets construction, as well as some of polycarbonates strength, like the pricing for example. Carbon fiber and fibreglass are expensive. Not everybody is able to make that investment. In fact I'd argue that most people aren't able or willing to make such an investment. But that doesn't mean that you're automatically stuck with an unsafe helmet. I myself ride with a fibreglass helmet, partially because it adds that little bit of safety. So I partially agree with your logic. But straight up saying that polycarbonate helmets should be illegal is just wrong. Bottom line is that a well constructed polycarbonate helmet can still perform well in the event of an accident.

Philip E. well I guess the real bottom line is that we all have the freedom of speech and opinions and you don't need to take my opinion on polycarbonate helmets literally Use it as a figure of speech I'm just say that polycarbonate isn't a good option for a persons head when compared to fiber glass or carbon fiber

@@emmetmcgarrigle3219 You are correct. Everybody is entitled to their own opinion. To me it just sounded like a fact which I kinda had a problem with. Anyways keep the rubber side down and ride safe, mate

My sun visor gets hidden completely. You'll feel a bit of resistance on the side mechanism. Push past it and the visor goes in all the way