Finally got to get a ride in and try out my new Shoei RF1000 so I thought I'd post a little review for anyone that might be considering this lid. I guess the first thing I'll cover is noise. I've started usin' hearing protection (plugs) while riding but I took a short ride without the plugs just to compare the noise level of the 1000 to my RF900. The first thing I noticed in the driveway and at low speed was that I could hear more "bike noises", like the engine, fan, etc... with the 1000. However, once out on the road and up to speed I found that the 1000 was considerably quieter overall than the 900 due the fact that I wasn't getting buffetting with the 1000 that I got with the 900.
I could hear some wind noise but it wasn't as loud as the bike it's self. I was very pleased with the noise level of the 1000 even without plugs. With plugs the only thing I really heard was the exhaust and a slight wind noise if I turned my head sideways either way. Sounds like airflow over/around the front vents above the visor. I don't remember noticing it without plugs in my ears. I don't know if I didn't turn my head far enough to hear it, or if it just wasn't audible with other noises mixed in. Either way, I'm happy with the noise performance of the 1000 both with and without plugs.
What really impressed me about the 1000 was how frickin' smoothly it slices through the air. I had read all the stuff about how Shoei done a bunch of wind tunnel testing during the developement of their newer lids. One ride in the 1000 proved to me that those claims weren't just sales pitches. The best analogy I can think of to explain the difference in smoothness between the 900 and 1000 is this... Imagine rollin' a billiard ball across hard packed gravel. The ball bounces around as it deflects off of the rocks and uneven surface. Then roll the same ball across a professional grade felt covered slate pool table surface. The ball glides smoothly across the surface without as much as a bobble. That is honestly not a very big exageration as to how much difference my head and neck felt between the 900 (gravel) and the 1000 (felt covered slate).
Not once today did I experience the dreaded bobblehead effect in the 1000, even at HIGH speed. I can't tell you how much less stressed my neck is right now compared to how it felt after rides in the 900. It even seemed like I was better able to process feedback from the bike at high speeds. I guess without the distraction of the buffetting and bobblehead I was able to focus more on what the bike was doin' than what my head/lid was doin'. It made the whole riding experience sooooo much more enjoyable.
Another thing I noticed is that the 1000 doesn't lift like the 900 tried to. I left ChikkinStrip's house one time and forgot to fasten the chin strap on the 900. I was rollin' along at around 80mph and the 900 started liftin' and almost came off my head. There were lots of times when the chin strap of the 900 felt like it was going to strangle me when I was railin' at 150+ mph. In the 1000 today I never once felt it try to lift. Never felt the chin strap dig in either. God it was nice.
The ventilation of the 1000 was also a nice improvement over the 900. I could tell a difference in how hot my head was with the vents on the 900 open and closed but don't remember ever actually feelin' any airflow. On really hot days there seemed to be very little difference between vents open and vents closed. With the 1000 I could actually feel a fair amount of air flowing over the top of my head. It was too cool out today to judge how well it will cool on hot days, but since I can feel a difference in the airflow I tend to believe that the 1000 couldn't help but be a little cooler. The increased airflow should help evaporate more sweat and keep my noggin' cooler than the stale flow of the 900 did.
As for comfort, I've got no complaints at all. No pressure points or excessive tightness anywhere. Fit feels good. It might be possible to get a better fit but if Shoei called me right now and offered to customize it to fix any fitment problems I could describe I wouldn't know what to tell them to fix. Out of all the other lids I tried on while shopping for a new lid this time I never found one that really felt any better on my head than the 1000 does. The only way I could see any lid bein' much more comfortable would be if the interior was fully custom molded to the exact shape of my head and face.
My impression after ridin' in the 1000 was that the engineers at Shoei actually rode in the RF900 and addressed it's weaknesses perfectly. The result being the 1000. Again, I really feel like Shoei did their homework on this lid. I'm extremely happy with the 1000 in every aspect I can think of. Good job Shoei.
I could hear some wind noise but it wasn't as loud as the bike it's self. I was very pleased with the noise level of the 1000 even without plugs. With plugs the only thing I really heard was the exhaust and a slight wind noise if I turned my head sideways either way. Sounds like airflow over/around the front vents above the visor. I don't remember noticing it without plugs in my ears. I don't know if I didn't turn my head far enough to hear it, or if it just wasn't audible with other noises mixed in. Either way, I'm happy with the noise performance of the 1000 both with and without plugs.
What really impressed me about the 1000 was how frickin' smoothly it slices through the air. I had read all the stuff about how Shoei done a bunch of wind tunnel testing during the developement of their newer lids. One ride in the 1000 proved to me that those claims weren't just sales pitches. The best analogy I can think of to explain the difference in smoothness between the 900 and 1000 is this... Imagine rollin' a billiard ball across hard packed gravel. The ball bounces around as it deflects off of the rocks and uneven surface. Then roll the same ball across a professional grade felt covered slate pool table surface. The ball glides smoothly across the surface without as much as a bobble. That is honestly not a very big exageration as to how much difference my head and neck felt between the 900 (gravel) and the 1000 (felt covered slate).
Not once today did I experience the dreaded bobblehead effect in the 1000, even at HIGH speed. I can't tell you how much less stressed my neck is right now compared to how it felt after rides in the 900. It even seemed like I was better able to process feedback from the bike at high speeds. I guess without the distraction of the buffetting and bobblehead I was able to focus more on what the bike was doin' than what my head/lid was doin'. It made the whole riding experience sooooo much more enjoyable.
Another thing I noticed is that the 1000 doesn't lift like the 900 tried to. I left ChikkinStrip's house one time and forgot to fasten the chin strap on the 900. I was rollin' along at around 80mph and the 900 started liftin' and almost came off my head. There were lots of times when the chin strap of the 900 felt like it was going to strangle me when I was railin' at 150+ mph. In the 1000 today I never once felt it try to lift. Never felt the chin strap dig in either. God it was nice.
The ventilation of the 1000 was also a nice improvement over the 900. I could tell a difference in how hot my head was with the vents on the 900 open and closed but don't remember ever actually feelin' any airflow. On really hot days there seemed to be very little difference between vents open and vents closed. With the 1000 I could actually feel a fair amount of air flowing over the top of my head. It was too cool out today to judge how well it will cool on hot days, but since I can feel a difference in the airflow I tend to believe that the 1000 couldn't help but be a little cooler. The increased airflow should help evaporate more sweat and keep my noggin' cooler than the stale flow of the 900 did.
As for comfort, I've got no complaints at all. No pressure points or excessive tightness anywhere. Fit feels good. It might be possible to get a better fit but if Shoei called me right now and offered to customize it to fix any fitment problems I could describe I wouldn't know what to tell them to fix. Out of all the other lids I tried on while shopping for a new lid this time I never found one that really felt any better on my head than the 1000 does. The only way I could see any lid bein' much more comfortable would be if the interior was fully custom molded to the exact shape of my head and face.
My impression after ridin' in the 1000 was that the engineers at Shoei actually rode in the RF900 and addressed it's weaknesses perfectly. The result being the 1000. Again, I really feel like Shoei did their homework on this lid. I'm extremely happy with the 1000 in every aspect I can think of. Good job Shoei.
