An article on helmet noise and hearing .

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Sibbo
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Joined: Fri Aug 06, 2010 3:18 am
Location: Oz , half way up ,sitting on a wet spot .

Re: An article on helmet noise and hearing .

Post by Sibbo »

Airbear wrote:
Sibbo wrote: I was just out for a ride and tested Charlies solution, it worked ! Very strange! I put my gloved hand to various parts of my helmet, on the left side only and got complete silence touching some places but little difference in others.

I wonder if it somehow changes the turbulence around the helmet or dampens resonations ? Either way it works so I think I'll try Charlie's idea of taping on a few bits of foam to try to change the air flow .
Sibbo, I'm now thinking that it's the hole under the helmet (where you stick your face) that causes the problem, and the act of putting your hand up beside the helmet is affecting the turbulence. It'd be easy to test, if we just had a hand without a life-support system attached.

Something I've noticed recently is that if I wear a balaclava under the helmet, the noise is a lot louder. I think this is because the balaclava is stretched over the ears and is making a mechanical connection that amplifies the sound.
I wonder if a thick scarf wrapped around the neck would make a difference. Some helmets (eg BMW) come with sound attenuating devices - panels that clip in around the neck and block off the unruly turbulence.
My dearly beloved made up a velcro-on air flow retarding accessory that fitted around my neck on my last helmet, it slowed the rush of air a lot and helped ... I think, but that helmet was rapidly becoming useless as the foam was losing it's springiness. It has been permanently retired .

I recommend the experiment to you, it would be pretty easy with your sewing skills.

If you have a friend who pillions with you an independent hand would be easy to find .

I've bought one of those electronic noise cancelling devices but have yet to try it as the little earphones stick out of me ears a little too far to be comfortable under my helmet. More experiment is needed but right now I've been buying and trying a wide variety of foam ear plugs, I can wear them without discomfort .
"You ain't gonna learn what you don't want to know"
The Grateful Dead
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