Tinted Motorcycle visor. Question for the motorcycle experts

Morgan3820

Morgan3820

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During the summer, even with the internal drop down tinted visor, it can get bright with the glare. So, I ordered a smoke tinted visor for my helmet. Thinking, tinted visor for the summer, clear for the winter. Use the drop down visor as needed.Anyway, the visor shows up with a tag attached to it warning that the visor should not be for street use but only for track or off road use.

Is this an actual safety issue? Should I send it back?
 
I wouldn't use it if you ever ride at night. I've never used one because I ride after dark every day, but I see no reason why it would be concerning to use if riding is limited to daytime hours.
 
If you don’t ride at night, tinted visors are great. This is all I use. It’s workable at night in a pinch, but you do lose a lot of vision of anything not lit. So depends a lot on the road lighting. It’s a lot better than sunglasses.

But if you ride at night often, I wouldn’t recommend it. Unless you carry clear one with you and they are easy to switch.
 
I don't ride at night, as a rule. Lots of deer around here.
 
Dark visors are fine during the day. If out on tour stash a clear visor in your luggage in case you get caught out after dark.

Another option is to have a pair of clear shooting glasses in your jacket. You can put those on and ride with the shield open. I carry them because one time the shield was not properly installed and it departed the helmet only to be run over by the pickup following me. The ride home with no glasses or shield sucked, so now I carry them. Just in case.
 
My Shoei has an internal sun visor. So I ride with a clear visor, and sun glasses. Pull the internal visor down when needed. Than I carry clear glasses for when it starts getting dark. But as said, I try to limit my riding when the deer and elk are out. As for legal, no idea. sounds like the lawyers limiting their exposure to lawsuits.
 
I rode with a dark visor for years because I didn't wear sunglasses back then. I kept a clear visor in the lining of my jacket in case the bugs got out of control after dark.
 
I have found that the mirrored “iridium” shields seem to cut the glare with a slightly lighter amount of tint.

If riding at night, I just switch to a clear shield.
 
Add me to the tinted at night no vote. Think that makes 8-0. I had a scooter as my only ride, no car, for many years and did a lot of night riding.
 
Yep, should be fine if you don’t ride at night. And that’s one of my rules - all my “I almost died on a motorcycle” stories were dusk or night.

Or when I was doing something stupid, but that’s my fault not the sun’s fault.
 
Put me in the sunglasses and clear shield camp. Easy to pull off the glasses if the day becomes cloudy or rainy, or after dark, of course. It’s also easier to stuff the sunglasses in a pocket than it is to stow away a shield.
 
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Im a sunglasses and tinted shield guy. When it’s nice I like to ride with shield open below 45mph but without blinding myself and doubling up on the tint doesn’t have a major affect. I keep clear glasses with me if there’s a chance of night riding but really try to avoid it at all possible.
 
I normally ride with a dark visor during the summer and clear in the winter. I find condensation on a clear visor in cold weather to be a bigger problem than a dark visor at night.
 
IK04 said:
Oh yeah, my newest Bell came with a auto tinting visor.

Problem solved.
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My current helmet has a transitions visor as well, love it, no changing needed. I also keep a pinlock insert permanently installed, makes those steamy rainy rides a breeze, no fogging inside. I still carry the clear shooting glasses in my jacket in the event the visor is damaged or lost.

thumb_1499125449CP_N2062.JPG
 
I have an auto darkening pinlock as well. It doesn't get dark enough on its own, but my helmet also has a retractable tinted visor. The two put together are perfect for bright sunny days, and gives me options.
 
EdFred said:
More deer get hit during the day though.
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More folks on the road. I ran a tinted visor for awhile, the thought being that I'd switch it to the clear one if I can out at night. Got caught out a couple times though, and wound up abandoning it.
 
Depends on the helmet, too. On some, changing visors is a PITA.

What I really want are tinted tear-offs.
 
When I rode on the road, (early 1980's) I had a bell full face helmet with a clear shield. And a bushy beard. And wore glasses all the time. I could not close the visor all the way without it fogging up. I'd leave it one click open. But I never had trouble closing it over glasses. It bugged me that I couldn't close it without it fogging, but I never found a solution.

I'd stay away from tint and simply use sunglasses myself. Because I don't want tinting in cloudy conditions much less at night.
 
jsstevens said:
It bugged me that I couldn't close it without it fogging, but I never found a solution.
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Pinlocks are great!

543-838_A_V1.jpg
 
Bill said:
Pinlocks are great!

543-838_A_V1.jpg
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I wasn't familiar with those (or maybe they didn't exist in 1983?). Sounds like a great idea. If I ever decide I want to ride again I'll remember that. I haven't ridden in the US since the early 1990s. And the last riding I did was in Uganda in 2005. THAT was different. Clay and gravel roads at 50+ mph (to not lose our guide) and everyone takes their half out of the middle.
 
jsstevens said:
I wasn't familiar with those (or maybe they didn't exist in 1983?). Sounds like a great idea. If I ever decide I want to ride again I'll remember that.
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Fog city inserts came along first, but they relied on glue at the edges to seal the insert to the inside of the visor. They were fidgety to install and the seal didn't last long. Pinlock is the better mousetrap and works very well.

https://pinlock.com/what-is-a-pinlock-anti-fog-insert-lens/
 
Morgan3820 said:
So riding at night is safer?
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I don't think, for me at least, it's less safe or more safe in regards to deer. Every deer I, my dad, and my uncle, have hit have all been during the day time. There are other issues with riding at night, but deer is the least of my worries.
 
I've found sunrise to about 8:30am in the morning and 7pm to dusk in the summertime to be the most dangerous time for deer. I had a deer hit me on the bike once, a glancing blow. It's nose impacted my left saddle bag, laying it open and sending all of my stuff tumbling down the road. The bike gave a little wiggle and that was it. I was very lucky, I turned around and found everything except for one shoe, maybe the deer took it as a souvenir, who knows? The left saddle bag lid had some deer snot on it, but was otherwise unharmed and it closed right back up. This was right at sunrise, again damned lucky.
 
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I've always had Shoei helmets. Full faced Snell rated Shoei helmets are pricey indeed, but I can't ride with anything else. For me Shoei is the only one that I can comfortably wear with my glasses.
 
I've had Shoei and Arai and Shoei fits my head better. And I'm well overdue for a new helmet.

My last several have been the RF series, but I'm considering this:

51102937936_7f031027db.jpg


I've never had a helmet with a built-in sun visor and that seems like a nice feature. Has anyone tried the "Air" series? Pluses/Minuses?

As an aside, I was once riding behind a bunch of bikes on the Blue Ridge Parkway in fog. The one rider in a yellow helmet stood out way more than the others. Since then, nothing but yellow for me.
 
I’ve been riding since the 70’s and always liked sunglasses with tinted shields. Way less eye fatigue from the sun’s rays. Of course, it’s clear shield/clear glasses in the dark.
 
FastEddieB said:
As an aside, I was once riding behind a bunch of bikes on the Blue Ridge Parkway in fog. The one rider in a yellow helmet stood out way more than the others. Since then, nothing but yellow for me.
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White is nearly as visible, and living in the south I love the heat rejecting qualities of the white helmet.
 
Morgan3820 said:
Anyway, the visor shows up with a tag attached to it warning that the visor should not be for street use but only for track or off road use.

Is this an actual safety issue? Should I send it back?
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My guess is that if you look hard enough in your state’s statutes, you’ll find some compliance standards for visors that yours doesn’t meet. Whether by design or by choice is another matter (see all the discussions about parts for experimental aircraft being the same as the certified parts) but the manufacturer clearly believes it’s not legal for street use.
 
MauleSkinner said:
My guess is that if you look hard enough in your state’s statutes, you’ll find some compliance standards for visors that yours doesn’t meet. Whether by design or by choice is another matter (see all the discussions about parts for experimental aircraft being the same as the certified parts) but the manufacturer clearly believes it’s not legal for street use.
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Yeah I called up and asked Revzilla customer support. They say that northern meet DOT requirements it has to ship with a clear visor.
 
Morgan3820 said:
So riding at night is safer?
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Personally I feel this is a very strong no.

Ed's family may have hit more deer during the daytime, but most people I know have hit more deer at night. In our family, my wife hit a deer in January at night. I've never hit a deer but all my close calls have been dusk/dawn/night time.

Additionally at night it's a lot harder to see debris or other junk in the road. Back in Pennsylvania we had a good group of motorcyclists at work. I was following my boss back on a ride after several of us had gone out to dinner. All of a sudden he pushed his Goldwing over to a 45 degree lean or so and back to avoid a muffler that had fallen off of another car.
 
I don't ride much at night anymore, I don't fly much at night anymore.
 
Bill said:
I don't ride much at night anymore, I don't fly much at night anymore.
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Night flying was always my favorite (other than in the 414), but I was always flying twins.

Night riding, yeah, I just avoid.
 
I don't go OUT for a ride at night, but if I'm out, I don't rush home because it's going to be night before I get back.
 
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