Lidl bike gear

[TomL]

Lidl are doing bike gear again on 2nd March.

http://www.lidl.co.uk/en/our-offers-2491.htm?id=499

[bobtail]

Tom is it any good?

Bob

[TomL]

Don't know about the bike gear and probably wouldn't ever need it myself, but things like the lid come with a three year warranty. The full face lid comes with an anti-fog visor like the old Schuberth helmets used to have rather than the crappy pin lock crap.

I don't have any problem with buying things from Lidl or Aldi and know that in Germany they don't have the reputation that they have here. A couple of things that I've bought have been excellent and not available at half the price elsewhere. They were a wireless cycle computer with heart rate monitor for £14 and a digital calliper for £8, both with a three year warranty.

[Steve F]

Lidl bike gear? Thermal bits have been okay, but I wouldn't want to put my faith in a £40 lid ! The GOV.UK SHARP helmet ratings haven't thus far included Crivit (who?) helmets.

I guess "you pays your money, you takes your choice…."

[Lightning_650]

I've got Lidl base layers and can't fault them in any way.Good kit.And I'll be tucking in to those helmets on Monday,as long as they fit ok and they've passed the relevant EU tests I'm happy to wear them..
I've got an Arai and a Scorpion gathering dust,but I prefer my 50 Euro Auchan supermarket special,because I can see so much more out of it,(open face with hinged full visor)
Used to to help out part time in a bike clothing store,and I know that a properly fitting cheap lid is better than a badly fitted dear one..oh yeah,and flashy,(read expensive), paint doesn't protect any better than a plain colour.
Horses for courses,but then when I started out no helmet was required:riding sans casque makes you feel very,very vulnerable,and you modify your behaviour accordingly...

[Steve F]

Attraction of cheap lid price aside for a minute…..when you read into the numerous research articles written on crash helmet integrity/safety etc, there's a significant aspect that keeps being flagged up, that surely needs to be considered, that of the outer shell and inner lining construction, i.e. fibreglass lids with generally more impact absorbent polystyrene inner lining .v. ABS plastic lids (e.g. Lidl) with firmer but less impact absorbent polystyrene inner lining. When you factor in what happens to the warm jelly-like brain as it collides with your skull during a head impact…..and that massive 'g' force has to be arrested in a controlled way, preferably into a softer, impact absorbent inner lining…??

I know SHARP ratings are seen by some as unreliable and dubious, but why don't Lidl/Aldi offer up their cheap helmets to SHARP for scrutiny, as they are indeed cleared to EU safety standards…..??

Like everyone else, I don't know what the 'best' helmet is, but I would rather put my faith in a respected brand when it comes to looking after the single most important body part!

Just my two penneth…..

[Lightning_650]

I just went to the SHARP website and noted that some very expensive,i.e Arai,helmets do not perform as well in some of the tests as do some of the cheaper ones
I also copied this from a Lidl user manual-it may well be that as the helmets are TUV certified in Germany,they don't feel the need to put in for further regional testing.

Product Characteristics
ECE-R 22.05 Homologation
This helmet is in compliance with ECE-R 22.05 standards and is homologised
accordingly. The ECE-R 22.05 standard consists of uniform conditions for the
approval of protective helmets and its visors for drivers and passengers of motorcycles
and mopeds. The basic principles for these tests are the so called ECERegulations
of the Economic Commission for Europe.
Significant Tests of the ECE-Regulation 22.05
- Shock absorbance
- Dynamic test of wear features
- Field of vision test
- Design strength
- Sustainability test (Strip-off test)
- Chin straps and lock test
- Shear test for outside edges
- Friction performance test of the outer shell
- Visor test (mechanical and visual characteristics)
- Chin bar, chin part damping test
TÜV certified wearing comfort
The TÜV Rhineland evaluates performance and comfort of helmets by means of
test subjects. Only helmets that meet these stringent requirements are awarded
the desired logo. Aspects such as aerodynamics, acoustics, ventilation, comfort
and fit are rated.

[Steve F]

Yes, interesting how they can market an EU approved lid for such a cut-price, given the stringency of the German TUV testing for personal protection. I guess materials such as the ABS plastic outer shell and flip-front visor mechanism are lower budget materials? When I look at the last two Shoei full-face lids I've owned, each for approx 5 years, visor and materials are still in a pretty good condition, allowing for wear and tear. How does a Crivit lid hold up over the years when used regularly??
Any forum members have such experience, ie using a Crivit lid for approx 5 years on a daily basis, in all seasons?

[Phmode]

I think all the stuff that LIDL sell on the biking, cycling, sporting goods front are excellent, for what they are.

When I started out in biking a couple of centuries ago, there was almost no specialist clothing other than Cromwell and Everoak pudding basin lids, generic boots and sea-boot socks and jeans and leather jacket. Most of the bikers I knew in my teens were dead by the time I was in my 20's, that's how much protection they had.

Today, a 16 or 17 year old just starting out can get leather gloves, textile jacket and trousers, boots and a certified helmet for a hundred quid! Another 20 will get them some waterproofs.

It will all last a year two and it is better than wearing jeans and trainers with a second-hand lid with no gloves at all and getting to work frozen stiff in the morning and back home pi$$ wet through in the evenings.

If it keeps them alive till they pass their car test or trade up to a bigger and better bike, it has done its job. Simples.

Brian (who wouldn't want to wear any of it, but would rather see kids in this stuff than nothing)

[Lightning_650]

If you can stay awake,this makes interesting reading:
http://motorcycleinfo.calsci.com/Articles/MotorcyclistHelmets.html