Helmet purchased at LBS today - manufactured in Jan 2007!

[GuyGadois]

I purchased a bike helmet for my kid today in a LBS and when I got home I noticed it's born-on date was January 2007. Correct me if I am wrong but I think I got *#^%#. Don't bike helmets have a life where the foam starts to break down?

Opinions?

[toaster]

Yeah, take it back.

I read somewhere that Specialized throws out old inventory helmets based on date of manufacture.

[AngryScientist]

Yeah, take it back.

I read somewhere that Specialized throws out old inventory helmets based on date of manufacture.

i agree, that lid's 4 years old already. now i believe the expiration rating is based on presumed hours in the sun and heat cycles, UV ray exposure, moisture and sweat intrusion, etc, so it's probably still safe to use, but still, if it were me, i'd return it, and tell them why. best case they get a new one in your hands, worst case you go elsewhere.

[rugbysecondrow]

i agree, that lid's 4 years old already. now i believe the expiration rating is based on presumed hours in the sun and heat cycles, UV ray exposure, moisture and sweat intrusion, etc, so it's probably still safe to use, but still, if it were me, i'd return it, and tell them why. best case they get a new one in your hands, worst case you go elsewhere.
Agreed.

[jeo99]

Thats just a Marketing ploy to get people to buy a helmets every other year. IMO

:beer:

[Dekonick]

Wish you could do the same for medications... pharm companies and distributors seem to believe in LIFO but if I am paying I want FIFO.

[vqdriver]

i agree, that lid's 4 years old already. now i believe the expiration rating is based on presumed hours in the sun and heat cycles, UV ray exposure, moisture and sweat intrusion, etc, so it's probably still safe to use, but still, if it were me, i'd return it, and tell them why. best case they get a new one in your hands, worst case you go elsewhere.

+1 to all that

[jeo99]

Wish you could do the same for medications... pharm companies and distributors seem to believe in LIFO but if I am paying I want FIFO.

Based on some of the News Agencies lately you are getting ingredients from those pharm companies that are not the ingredients on the label! BTW, they are foreign made now as well. Closed a plant in Jamaica based on a whistle blower that got millions.
:crap:

[troymac]

Thats just a Marketing ploy to get people to buy a helmets every other year. IMO

:beer:
Certainly could be a ploy but our domes are worth more than any bicycle helmet. I'd rather be safe than sorry. I'd certainly take it back.

[CNY rider]

The key I think is how the helmet has been stored the last 4 years.
The odds are very high that it's perfectly fine and would perform as well as the day it was made, as long as it's been stored in a controlled environment.
If it spent a lot of time alternately baking and freezing in a damp shipping container somewhere, that might be a problem.
The question is how are you supposed to know where it spent the last 4 years.........

[Bob Loblaw]

I am a skeptic about helmets breaking down. Okay, I am a skeptic in general, but be that as it may.

I first heard of this in the motorcycling world. Common lore in motorcycling is replace the helmet every five years, but that info comes mostly from manufacturers who have a vested interest in turning over helmets.

And Specialized tosses old helmets because who wants to buy a brand new helmet with last years style? Clothing companies do the same thing.

Furthermore, since when does polystyrene foam break down? According to the greenies, aren't there coffee cups from the 80's still floating around in the Pacific Ocean?

If I'm incorrect, and old helmets are truly less able to protect from impact, I would love to see the data.

Bottom line, I seriously doubt the helmet is any less safe now than it was on the date of manufacture. That said, if you have doubts, or if you feel like child helmet technology made significant advances in the last four years, by all means try for a refund or replacement. Should be a no-brainer.

BL

[onekgguy]

Call me a skeptic about this as well. Sort of like the need to change you car's oil every 3000 miles.

I'm currently using a 4 year old helmet and have every intention of using it again this year and I don't wear it for looks.

Kevin g

[rugbysecondrow]

Being a skeptic is fine. The issue for me would be that I paid retail for a brand new helmet which turned out to not be brand new. If I go to a lbs, I expect better. If I buy off of eBay, the a 4 year old helmet might suffice. If it was on significant discount, then that might change things as well.

[Bruce K]

Coming from a motorsports background (Sports car racing) I can tell you that I have seen helmet material break down over time.

Some of my older helmets that I kept for sentimental reasons have liners that are turning to dust.

Now that isn't happening in jsut a few years but it does give you some insight into what is happening with your helmet.

The materials are constantly being improved and refined over time which translates into better protection.

For me it's 3 years or one impact and adios amigo!

BK

[StellaBlue]

I think it's ploy to get you to buy a new helmet but if you're not comfortable with the helmet I'd exchange it.

[onekgguy]

Here's an interesting link from Bicycle Helmet Safety Institute (http://www.bhsi.org/replace.htm). This paragraph stood out for me considering the helmet in question has not been used:

"At least one shop told a customer that the EPS in his three year old helmet was now "dried out." Other sales people refer to "outgassing" and say that the foam loses gas and impact performance is affected. Still others claim that helmets lose a percentage of their effectiveness each year, with the percentage growing with age. All of that is nothing but marketing hype to sell a replacement helmet before you need it. There is some loss of aromatics in the first hours and days after molding, and helmet designers take account of that for standards testing. But after that the foam stabilizes and does not change for many years, unless the EPS is placed in an oven for some period of time and baked. The interior of your car, for example, will not do that, based on helmets we have seen and at least one lab crash test of a helmet always kept in a car in Virginia over many summers. Helmet shells can be affected by car heat, but not the foam. The Snell Memorial Foundation has tested motorcycle helmets held in storage for more than 20 years and found that they still meet the original standard. EPS is a long-lived material little affected by normal environmental factors. Unless you mistreat it we would not expect it to "dry out" enough to alter its performance for many years."

Kevin g

[GuyGadois]

Thanks for your replies. I think I still feel better going down to the LBS and getting a newer helmet. Starting off with a 4 year old helmet isn't bad but since my kid kept his helmet for 3 years that means it would be 7 years old when he replaces. By getting the new one I remove the doubt and second guessing.

GG

[dimsy]

The key I think is how the helmet has been stored the last 4 years.
The odds are very high that it's perfectly fine and would perform as well as the day it was made, as long as it's been stored in a controlled environment.
If it spent a lot of time alternately baking and freezing in a damp shipping container somewhere, that might be a problem.
The question is how are you supposed to know where it spent the last 4 years.........

in this case, i think your point, though valid, is irrelevant. the helmets have a finite life, let alone shelf life, so if OP's shelling out retail dollars for something which, once manufactured, only shortens the amount of time of permissible usage, then he should have as many seconds as possible for the money he paid.

my favorite LBS gives me discounts on anything older than the current year's stock, (even then I get a hook up from time to time). but I think a return for a NEW helmet is in order. If they don't comply, take your business elsewhere, FOREVER. that's what I'd do.

(CNY, i wasn't trying to be mean or an ass or anything, hope it wasn't taken that way :))

good luck.

[Black Dog]

Considering the abuse that kids helmets get from their users I would hardly worry about EPS denigration, since that is a non-starter. The helmet will receive more damage in the 1st week of use than 4 years of sitting in a store could ever do.

However, selling a 4 year old helmet at full retail price is not nice. A discount is in order for old merchandise.

[Pete Serotta]

I would trade...probably that one was cheaper buy though..............................

No I would not give to my kids and when my helmets reach 4 years they are history and I do not sell them (some people do like them and take them for free - they find them by the trash bin.)

PETE