TROY LEE DESIGNS HELMETS

D3 Carbon and D3 Composite

Don’t fear the first scratch

Troy Lee started custom-painting helmets for himself and his friends in a garage using only masking tape and razor blades to create the elaborate paint schemes. These helmets, with their striking looks, deliver more than a fashion statement; they’re great protection

Tech features: Troy Lee Designs offers two tiers of their flagship D3 helmet. Both helmets share the same mold but are made from different materials. The top-of-the-line version features full-carbon construction for weight savings, tipping the scales at 2.3 pounds. The less-expensive composite version weighs 2.65 pounds. Both helmets feature 20 intake vents, dual-density shock pads, removable MX-style liners made from Coolmax and Dri-Lex materials and purpose-built internal cavities for your headphones. The helmets also have quick-release cheek pads that are marked for paramedics should you fail to keep the rubber side down. This composite version (with the trick Palmer-signature paint) sells for $395, and the carbon version goes for $450. Troy Lee Designs also offers the composite version with non-signature paint schemes for $350. You can reach Troy Lee Designs at (951) 371-5219.

D3 Carbon

D3 Composite

Field test results: The two helmets are two different prices but deliver the same level of protection. These are not motorcycle helmets, so they fall under the single-impact rule. Crash while wearing either one of them and you’ve got a very expensive decoration for your garage. That being said, both helmets offer excellent comfort and great ventilation. In fact, when riding with either version, you can feel cool air being sucked over your dome. The addition of the removable cheek pads is an excellent safety feature. The only feature we found difficult to use was the dedicated audio cavity. It positions the earphone so far from your ear that it becomes tough to hear, even at maximum volume. Maybe our earbuds weren’t up to the challenge, but they left something to be desired.

The fastening system is easy to use and not intrusive, and the titanium hardware on the visor offers some weight savings. The guys at TLD refuse to make helmet production a race to the scale if that means sacrificing protection. The carbon version is noticeably lighter and worth the price of admission if
you can deal with the
extra C-note. If you’ve fallen in
love with a previous-
generation D2 helmet,
 don’t run out and buy the
 same-size D3 and expect it to feel
the same. The shape of the D3 is slightly narrower. The wrecking crew found the best fit with a half-size larger than the comparable D2. Fortunately, TLD offers replacement liners with varied pad thicknesses to fine-tune the fit.

A common ritual among gravity racers is to drop a brand-new helmet to put a scratch on it so that the first one doesn’t happen in a crash. We don’t condone this. These helmets are far
too beautiful to damage on purpose. Every aspect of these helmets is flawless. We really only listen to
 our tires buzzing on the ground, so
 we can’t even take off stars for the audio ports. The edge goes to the carbon for the significant weight savings, but either is a perfect choice. Regardless of how fast you are, either one of these will make you feel faster.



Reprinted from our January 2012 issue. Like us on Facebook