Lifestyle Cycles Product Review: Biltwell Lane Splitter Helmet

Helmets! All right, welcome Davin. Thanks for being here.

Thanks for having me! Let’s get right into it. We’ve got the Lane Splitter helmets here. We just recently released the new 2206 Lane Splitters. That probably means nothing to anybody here in America, but it’s something we had to do because we sell the same helmet globally. You know, if somebody’s in the military here and buys this helmet, they can legally take it to Europe and ride their motorcycle with it. If it’s a DOT-only, it’s not going to cut it over there. So that’s why we do the ECE standard.

In the middle here, we have one of our previous 2205 helmets. The improvements from 2205 to 2206 are way more than what you can see. Looking at these two helmets, they look pretty much the same. The shape is the same, the shield is the same—lots of similarities.

The first thing you might notice is the Biltwell logo on the front. We had zero branding on any of our helmets for years, so we finally added a little Biltwell logo, and it looks kind of nice. The marketing department got smart on that one!

Exactly. Besides bold new graphics and colors, this helmet only came in two shell sizes. These new 2206 versions come in three. So what that means is extra small and small have one shell; medium and large have one shell; and extra large and 2X have one shell. The big point there is the medium used to be in the small shell, so it was a little bit loud. It didn’t fit really well because it was a little tight for a medium, and the 2X wasn’t really a true 2X.

So, you know, nothing wrong with this helmet; it’s still a great helmet. It’s just been a little improved with the new standard. The new standard also brings in a few different things to the testing. Now, the shields are tested for impact resistance and clarity, as well as how much light passes through them. We had to add a light smoke to the lineup this year because our normal smoke shield, which you see all over the place, was too dark for that standard.

So now we have clear, light smoke, dark smoke, yellow (which you see over there), gold mirror, chrome mirror, and rainbow mirror—so all those little options there. We also have about a dozen different color washers that you can buy. You can purchase these little kits; you pick a stainless steel or a black screw, and then there are blue, red, green, orange, silver—whatever colors turn out to even match your bike!

Exactly! You find the color that matches, you know, like we have a bronze one and a gold one, which look really slick with this helmet. The new STS and a few of the other bikes have a lot of silver and gold on them, so you can really lock up that color to your bike, which looks really cool.

Very cool! So why would someone buy a Lane Splitter helmet from Biltwell?

I think, you know, fit, finish, comfort, and price point. As you can see, the colors here are really, really good. Our paint factory is top-notch, so the paint’s really good, the clear coat’s really good. You don’t see any orange peel or bubbles in the graphics. The interior is very nice; it’s comfortable, it’s soft, and you can wash it. All of the cheek pads have snaps in the same spot for every size, so you can buy your helmet with the stock cheek pads that come with it. Whether you need thicker or thinner, we have sizes between 5 mm and 29 mm.

So, I mean, there’s a huge range. You obviously want to look for the fit on the crown—you want steady, even pressure—and then you can tweak your cheek pads as needed. I would say it’s got the tough-guy look, but it’s not going to break the bank. They’re pretty affordable. The new ones, the solids, run $299.95, and the graphics retail for $349.95.

So, good price point! A lot of, you know, like we talked about, where you can change the washers and the screws. You can add a shield. It’s just a great helmet for doing a lot of things, and you’re not going to look like a weirdo riding your Harley, chopper, street fighter, or whatever.

Well, it sounds like you guys have really learned a lot over the years of doing helmets, and you’re really trying to make something for the customer that he’s really going to enjoy and like, and that’s affordable for himself.

Absolutely! Yeah, we try every year to come up with new colors, just to keep it exciting. I’ve got history working for different helmet brands as well, so just trying to keep up with the latest and greatest as always, you know?

Well, that’s what keeps the company going. If you’re not coming out with new stuff, it can get stagnant.

Exactly! Yeah, no, if you have the same black helmet for the last 10 years, you’re probably not selling too many of them today.

Probably not! So again, thanks for coming out today, man. I love it when you start talking about all your stuff; it gets me excited, and I know we’re selling a bunch of it downstairs and online. Get yours today!

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