Product Review [Warning: blood e.t.c.] Considering a Bell Super 3R... think again

[kezzad]

Item: Bell Super 3R
Purchased From: MTBDirect
Purchase Price (approx): $300
Usage: Fourth ride, first crash

Pro's: Stopped jaw exploding?
Con's: 'Crumple zone' of helmet is in the chin, and will punch clean through your face resulting in lost teeth, chunks of flesh torn from your face, interrupted beard growth, and plastic surgery.

Comments:

First post here. Only because the captcha has been buggered every time I've tried to sign up. but I worked out another way of getting in! You guys have a rock solid community here, glad to finally be part of it.

Thought I'd share something that happened on a ride today at Mt Narra. A couple of us sport Bell Super 3R's with the chin bar. One of my mates no longer sports 4x2cm of his chin and a few of his front teeth. OTB, face first after having his front wheel snag on a rock and falling into a berm.

Besides concussion, e.t.c, he's getting plastic surgery tomorrow to fix the hole in his face. Doctors reckon that the chin bar cracking was the cause of the hole in his face now. I know it's not an F1952 rated helmet either. But this level of failure in the chin guard is fucking scary given they're blatantly marketed to provide facial protection.

If anyone thinks the non F1952 version is offering protection, think again. I know there's the argument of "probably better off having it than not" and I accept that. But fuck.

Pics attached, post further down shows pre surgery. Most of the blood washed off the helmet whilst we were waiting in the rain for the ambo's to come. But where the chunks of beard and facial hair are, Dexter would have been excited.

 

[dropotaro]

WOW, hope he heals up ok.

 

[moorey]

How would he have ended up wearing an open face?

 

[kezzad]

How would he have ended up wearing an open face?

Mate I'm 70/30 split on how it would be. 70% of me says no chin guard would have been better. His face would be cut up and grazed to hell.... hole in face from chin guard? Either way he'd have the teeth from the impact I reckon. I'm no dentist. Ambo's reckon his lowers knocked into his upper teeth given the shallow hit on them.

I can't describe Narra properly, but the people building the track have done a top job. The berms at this jump area we found were soft compared to say, a corner in Lava at OMV.

 

[moorey]

Disagree. Anything his face hit hard enough to cave in the chin bar was going to do more to his face. Probably.
We’ll never know. All I know is that when I do long, hot enduros, I can’t wear an open face on runs, and die in a full face on the climbs. I can’t come at carrying a second helmet.
I have a old super2 r. It’s neither as good as an open face or a full face, but it’s still the best option for me.
People get horrifically injured sometimes, no matter what they wear.
Hope your mate is ok.

 

[Miguel75]

Man that sounds like a horrible situation for all of you. Being a bystander while a mate is badly injured is no fun. I hope your mate heals up physically and mentally, and the rest of you are ok too.

 

[Freediver]

Agree with Moorey here. It reminds me of a guy I know that dropped a big bluestone on his foot. The steel cap crushed and cut up a couple of his toes requiring stitches. He still goes on about how crap safety boots are but I reckon if he wasn't wearing them he would have lost toes.

 

[pink poodle]

That sucks man and sounds like a big crash. Which area of Narra was this on?

The helmet argument will go around in circles. If he was wearing an open face maybe he would have broken his jaw? Maybe he would have fallen differently and just bounced? Wear helmets people.

 

[Plankosaurus]

I thought the reason the 2r/3r didn't meet certification was the clamping mechanism wasnt strong enough? The chinbar on my parachute is considerably skinnier than the 3r but meets standards still, so I figured that made sense. I wonder if that chinbar was compromised somehow or had a manufacturing defect?

Sounds nasty as, did he take the full brunt of the stack with his face or was that just the worst bit?


I just take the 3r chinbar as I think it was intended, it doesn't transform the helmet into a dh helmet, it just adds a little more protection. Great for slapping in your bag for that one 3min gravity section on a 3hr ride but probably not ideal for your world cup trails.


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[slider_phil]

Agree with Moorey here. It reminds me of a guy I know that dropped a big bluestone on his foot. The steel cap crushed and cut up a couple of his toes requiring stitches. He still goes on about how crap safety boots are but I reckon if he wasn't wearing them he would have lost toes.

Have seen this happen to someone. These days safety boots don't use steel caps so there's less risk of steel bending and crushing.

Sucks about your mate. I feel those chin bars give you that extra bit of confidence but an illusion of protection. I don't think I've seen photos of a proper full face crushing like that.

Hope the recovery goes well and he heals up quick

 

[kezzad]

That sucks man and sounds like a big crash. Which area of Narra was this on?

It was my first time there yesterday so can't really explain. We were able to walk him out way (way...) down the trail, and ended up on Wakehurst Parkway between Middle Creek and Deep Water Park.

Sounds nasty as, did he take the full brunt of the stack with his face or was that just the worst bit?

I just take the 3r chinbar as I think it was intended, it doesn't transform the helmet into a dh helmet, it just adds a little more protection. Great for slapping in your bag for that one 3min gravity section on a 3hr ride but probably not ideal for your world cup trails.

Full brunt. Right OTB then the point of the chin guard hit the ground.

Thanks for all the well wishes. Wait and see game today.

 

[Paulie_AU]

Wow a lot of force there. Dent in the front of the helmet too. I would hazard a guess it protected him from a stoved in face.

I have a 3r but have been thinking a proframe will be my next helmet for racing. My current fullface from bmx racing is a bit hot for mtb. With the 3r I never run the chinbar any other time though so probably not getting the most out of the removable chin bar.

I once broke the front of a bell fullface faceplanting in a rock garden.... saved my face which allowed me to focus on my dislocated knee and other mess. Crashing bikes hard sucks.

 

[Shredden]

I don't really understand how people use these helmets? Personally I have a Fox Flux (due for an update) and a Troy Lee D3, and I kinda wear one or the other. Commuting/XC/Trail stuff I wear the Flux, and Downhill/Shuttles I wear the D3.

For helmets with a removable chin bar - do you take it off for the climbs, then clip it back on for the rides down? I just don't really see the utility of it, considering people bitch about the inconvenience of having to lock out their fork and shock for a climb - seems like a very long process of stopping, helmet off, unclip it, bag off, unclip it, put it in your bag, bag back on, ride up the hill, stop, bag off, clip it on, bag back on, helmet back on, ride down the hill, repeat.. I suspect I would just end up leaving it on or off for entire rides, in which case I'd feel better having a dedicated half shell or full face.

 

[kezzad]

I don't really understand how people use these helmets? ... etc

Full face all the time on trails. But I also got it because I was close to getting an electric longboard too. Bar off during the weekly rides to and from gym.

I've nearly fucked my life twice on moto's and have seen pancake face before.

The adaptability of it got me. But the use case Bell put forward ("ride XC then clip on bar for sketchy sections") would be a PITA.

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[pink poodle]

I don't think I've seen photos of a proper full face crushing like that.

I've seen it...bmx shop where grew up used to have one of the staffies' smashed helms as a reminder to play safe. He'd basically collapsed the entire chin bar in on track. One of my mates had a similar crash on the same track with his open face skid lid on and his face got fucked up good - broken cheek and jaw + gravel rash. His reason for the open face was that there was a bunch of teenagers at the track ripping some big tricks over the big line without helmets. So foolish.

I've also seem a DH helmet busted up on course and it takes a lot of effort.

That said I've also seen some pretty big crashes where even inexpensive full face helmets have come out looking like they were still new. Anyone remember the cheap netti full faces from about 10 years ago? They could triumph over some pretty big impacts. Always tossed post crash all the same.

It was my first time there yesterday so can't really explain. We were able to walk him out way (way...) down the trail, and ended up on Wakehurst Parkway between Middle Creek and Deep Water Park.

I think I know where you were. It's a rocky arse place to ride, but lots of fun. Hopefully you guys. Are it back out there again. Lucky he didn't rag doll down the roll in at the top!

 

[steve jobs' pancreas]

I've just purchased a 3r, took it for a spin today sans chin bar (xc loop of Ourimbah)

Putting it on at home with the chin bar attached it felt weird and flimsy, couldn't work out why for a while. Then I realised, a life time of wearing full face mc helmets had conditioned me to expect a more solid feeling from a full face.

Wearing a full face mc helmet on a mtb ? No thanks. I don't expect the 3r to be bullet proof, I expect to be better than nowt, there is a degree of compromise.

I hope OP's mate is ok.

 

[kezzad]

Yeah he's good mate! Will be out today. They had to extract teeth fragments embedded in his chin.

This is the before surgery pic.

Altered to preserve anonymity.

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[pink poodle]

Interesting that you picked a super hero who probably should use a full face.

 

[kezzad]

Interesting that you picked a super hero who probably should use a full face.

Haha, touchè!

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[Ultra Lord]

Glad he's doin alright, pretty messed up crash.