Ultimate MotorCycling QuickShift Review
Most major helmet manufacturers are now offering their head protection with the Pinlock visor system. An example of this is the excellent Arai Signet-Q we reviewed in the Winter issue, the helmet arriving with with a Pinlock Max Vision visor fitted.
Made of porous, moisture absorbing material, the insert lens is slotted at each end and fits into a recess in the visor, where it is held in place by two small pins. The insert has a thin silicon-type bead around the perimeter ensuring a snug fit on to the visor itself, and a slight air gap is maintained between them to maximize anti-fogging.
On the Arai Signet-Q, the Pinlock is also shaped around the Arai eyebrow vents in order to minimize any interference with peripheral vision.
Trying the helmet on for the first time, I was a little put off by the Pinlock. The recessed join of the two items created a slightly distracting line that reduced visibility a little around its outside edge. Furthermore, the added thickness of the two layers, although technically distortion free, seemed to create a very slight soft focus overall.
My initial lack of enthusiasm changed dramatically when I had my first cold ride. Anyone familiar with visor fogging will know how challenging it makes riding, and wobbling around a race track at speed with a half open visor and a cold blast into the eyes isn’t the optimum way to help your concentration.
In response, I replaced the stock visor with the Pinlock and headed out on to the track again, without expecting much. I quickly found out that it worked flawlessly, as claimed. That would have been enough to convert my skepticism, but I also realized that my peripheral vision distractions had gone away; nothing interfered with my vision. For the rest of the day, I really didn’t give it another thought. I was able to clip the Arai’s visor down properly, seal it against the windblast, and it did not fog up at all.
Pinlock makes several interchangeable insert lenses in different degrees of tint (including yellow), as well as the clear version I tested; they all give 100-percent UV protection and are easy to clean and apply.
While I was not a fan of the Pinlock system at first sight, once I tried it in a real-world setting, I changed my mind – it works!
For additional information, log onto Pinlock USA.
