# MTBR Bell Sixer Review



## objectuser (Oct 27, 2013)

I was reading the MTBR review of the Bell Sixer. The reviewer mentioned that he had an issue with sweat dripping into his eyes. Other reviews (like Pinkbike's) indicate that their sweat system keeps sweat from dripping off the front.

Anyone that has one want to give their take, especially with regard to sweat management?


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## snakemau (Feb 9, 2007)

I haven't had any issues with sweat dripping, nor my boys who just did a race last weekend. My only issue is with the adapter for the GoPro/light that goes on top of the helmet....it keeps falling, its not secure enough, too loose on the end tabs, had to buy a strap adapter.


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## objectuser (Oct 27, 2013)

snakemau said:


> I haven't had any issues with sweat dripping, nor my boys who just did a race last weekend. My only issue is with the adapter for the GoPro/light that goes on top of the helmet....it keeps falling, its not secure enough, too loose on the end tabs, had to buy a strap adapter.


Thanks. Good on the sweat management but not so good on the mount.

When you say it keeps falling, falling off? Or just shifting? Would hate my camera to go tumbling down the mountain, I'd never find it.


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## snakemau (Feb 9, 2007)

So we have 3 of the Sixer, and one of them you connect the base and if you just pull it up it comes off. The second Sixer holds the base securely and so far hasn't moved and the third one is kinda loose so I haven't put anything on it yet., but my son took a tumble on the race, nothing big and the base came off....so


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## objectuser (Oct 27, 2013)

snakemau said:


> So we have 3 of the Sixer, and one of them you connect the base and if you just pull it up it comes off. The second Sixer holds the base securely and so far hasn't moved and the third one is kinda loose so I haven't put anything on it yet., but my son took a tumble on the race, nothing big and the base came off....so


Great info, thanks!


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## SoCal-Rider (May 25, 2009)

I bought a Sixer a couple of months ago after a long search for a new helmet. I started off not wearing my normal Halo II headband, but I soon realized that the Sixer either makes me sweat more than my old helmet or it just doesn't manage sweat well. Even on cool days I was getting sweat dripping in front of my face. Going back to the Halo II headband, improved things a bunch. 

Fastforward a month and something about the fit of the Sixer with the Halo II headband causes the helmet to slip down in my vision on hard compressions. I tried tightening the ratchet on the helmet, but then it gave me hot spots on my head. I finally gave up and went back to my old helmet. ... The search continues.


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## BraaapTastic (Mar 24, 2013)

Howdy - just saw this after the mtbr weekly email. I was a bit perplexed after writing the helmet up (I'm the reviewer), then looking around to see what others thought. My guess is since I've got no hair and sweat heavy, it gets more saturated that what the others experienced. 

Personal preference is the specialized ambush liner, because it has low points on left and right temples, so drips in those location, not the center of my face. The ambush is definitely a lighter weight helmet, about 100g lighter, so good for longer rides just doesn't seem as robust.

Anyway, if you've got any other questions. Cheers!


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## objectuser (Oct 27, 2013)

BraapTastic said:


> Howdy - just saw this after the mtbr weekly email. I was a bit perplexed after writing the helmet up (I'm the reviewer), then looking around to see what others thought. My guess is since I've got no hair and sweat heavy, it gets more saturated that what the others experienced.
> 
> Personal preference is the specialized ambush liner, because it has low points on left and right temples, so drips in those location, not the center of my face. The ambush is definitely a lighter weight helmet, about 100g lighter, so good for longer rides just doesn't seem as robust.
> 
> Anyway, if you've got any other questions. Cheers!


Thanks for contributing! I've been curious about this helmet. I have a Bell Stoker and mostly like it (the visor is not the best) and have been looking at the Sixer as a possible upgrade.

I also cut my hair very short, but typically wear a Buffs-style head covering on my rides for sweat management, so it may not be a big deal for me.

Looking at your review, didn't seem like you had any issues with the camera mount. I guess that's been hit or miss for people.

Your comment in the review makes me think I really need to try it on first, since my head is a little more long oval:



> Sizes: S, M, L, XL - shell profile tends towards rounder skull shape, though full floating


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## BraaapTastic (Mar 24, 2013)

For sure!  Most of the sweat management devices (you're inspiring a product shoot-out) feel like wearing a micro fiber towel on your head, which I cannot stand. One thing I love about Smith's koroyd is that bees cannot get through the vents, it just doesn't breath well!

My head is definitely oval shaped - was just slightly too big for the medium lid, so went with the large - not for width, just length. Their halo accommodates different shapes nicely though, unlike previous models. Agreed on the camera/light mount seeming to be hit-or-miss. I used it for a night ride up mount saint helens last summer and it was solid, plus some viddy, but not extensive use. I'd suspect Bell will stand by their product if issues are encountered.


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## objectuser (Oct 27, 2013)

BraapTastic said:


> ] ... you're inspiring a product shoot-out ...


 :thumbsup:



BraapTastic said:


> My head is definitely oval shaped - was just slightly too big for the medium lid, so went with the large - not for width, just length. Their halo accommodates different shapes nicely though, unlike previous models.


I don't hear much about this with bike helmets, but it's a big deal in motorcycle helmets. Sites like Revzilla will list the optimal head shape for a helmet, from round, round oval, intermediate oval, to long oval. Important for comfort on longer rides.


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## Liquidmantis (Jan 5, 2008)

I ran a Sixer all of 2018 and overall I really like the helmet, but the sweat "tab" isn't that great of an improvement. I still have to use my Halo II when it gets warm. Comfort wise though, it's great for my "long narrow" large head.


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## objectuser (Oct 27, 2013)

Liquidmantis said:


> I ran a Sixer all of 2018 and overall I really like the helmet, but the sweat "tab" isn't that great of an improvement. I still have to use my Halo II when it gets warm. Comfort wise though, it's great for my "long narrow" large head.


Good info, especially on the fitment, thanks!


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## matfo (Mar 20, 2019)

*Sixer review*

I bought the Sixer few weeks ago to address 2 main issues with my last helmet (Louis Garneau Raid, which is an awesome helmet for the price!!):

Issue #1: goggles fit with a half shelf helmet. The Sixer is pretty good when wearing goggles. The rubberized logo behind the helmet keeps them secure and the shape of the shell seems to fit particularly well with the elastic strap of my goggles (Oakley Mayhem). It is not a 100% perfect match, but about 90%.

Issue #2: backward limited movement of my neck while wearing goggles: Because of the rear straps and ratchet system on a lot of helmets are bulky or misplaced-poorly designed. When wearing goggles, the helmet doesn't have any play toward the front since it is held on tightly on your head with the large strap. It is pretty hard to keep your head up when riding down if the back of your helmet is limiting your neck movement. Even when adjusting the straps-ratchet vertically, which a lot of company now offers. The Sixer is very comfortable in that regard, and doesn't interfere with my neck movement. I tried a lot of different model in the last month, and just 4 other models did well with goggles: Oakley DTR5, Specialized Ambush, Giant Rail, and Troy Lee Design A1 Drone.

I did not buy the Oakley because it had a weird bulky system to hold your sunglasses, but was useless for goggles. And it was about 60$ more expensive $Can. The Oakley was very comfortable, held well the goggles, and had a very nice sweat strip system made of silicone I think.

Specialized Ambush was on par with the Sixer for comfort and design. It felt great on my head and had the ANGi option (device to notice someone when hard impact is detected on the helmet, free at first, but then, a year subscription with Specialized I think). It did not have the camera mount and was 10$Can more. I almost pulled the trigger on that one... In the end, I felt I did not want to pay for the ANGi device since I was not expecting to use it...Make it 30$ less without the ANGi, it would probably be my helmet by now.

The Troy Lee Design was comfortable, but the visor was not going up enough to let you put your goggle on top of the helmet. In fact, there is very little movement for the visor and the system is not well made.

The Giant was comfy with goggles, had a small elastic to hold them on the back, but I did not like the overall design-look compared to others. Also, the visor movement was very limited-useless and it felt a bit flimsy, but this is only an opinion.

Other helmet I have tried: Giro Montaro, Smith Forefront, Smith Session, Poc Tectal (did not try the spin version), Troy Lee Design A2, SixSixOne Evo AM, and few others I can't recall. All of these were uncomfortable wearing goggles, and limited my neck movement on the back. And to be honest, none of these were more comfortable than my old LG Raid that sells for about 99$Can, and a bit more with the MIPS! So for the price, I would have kept my LG.

Sixer Pluses:
great fit, great with goggles, can throw my goggles on top before riding or when stopping mid-trail because of the well designed visor, well vented, no fogging issue, camera mount, expensive but less expensive than competitors, very stable on the head event if the MIPS seems at first to wobble when wearing (gopro 7 Black footage is very very stable while using the mount), and it looks great in my opinion.

Sixer Minuses:
Camera mount is flimsy. I pulled it out without applying any force. I still use it, but I had to put 2 tie wraps to secure it in place. I don't want to loose my camera, and I'm 200% sure it would fly off with any medium velocity impact-fall. To be honest, I'd rather have a fix camera mount. I don't see any real advantage to have it as a quick release mount, since I can't think of any other place where I could use that mount, and the Sixer doesn't come with 2 mounts which would mean you could easily and quickly swap different accessories on the helmet (camera and light as example), although it would need to be a secure fit!... And if I was to put a mount on an helmet, I would intentionally misaligned it a bit on the right side so a Gopro lens would be filming straight ahead in the middle of the visor... a 90 degree adapter overcome this, but, hey! why not...

















I have no hair, so yes, sweat comes out in the middle of the helmet and goes directly into my eyes! My goggles save me when riding down. And I had this issue with all helmets for over the last 20 years, so I can live with it!... The Oakley seemed to be very well designed in that regard.

So, all in all, I'm very happy with my purchase. 90% satisfied I would say.

There are 2 other models I wish I could have tried: Kask Rex (goggles strap on the back) and especially the Mavic Crossmax Pro (designed to be wear with goggles).

Helmet are very personal as in term of comfort and fit, but I hope it might helps others who has questions and who knows, a similar head!! Cheers!


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## chrisbtsc (Nov 10, 2010)

I have the Bell/Fasthouse version of the sixer and love everything about it. I will admit, at first, the sweat management thing didn't seem to work quite well. But then I learned how to use it and now I think it's amazing. Like others, I have no hair and sweat quite a bit, especially when a good portion of the year I'm riding in 100+ degree weather. The key with making the sweat management pad work for you is to not wait until it is ready to drip. Instead when you feel the time is right, lean forward a little and tilt your head slightly downward. Now push on that little pad with a finger and a good stream of sweat should drain off of it. Do that periodically and it will never drip in your face again. It's a game changer for me as I now never have sweat dripping down my face on super hot days.

Now that the days are getting shorter I've decided to mount one of my lights on the camera mount and see how it works. Feels really solid to me.


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## wildh (Jun 20, 2011)

I have a kask Rex and Bell sixer on order to try. I'll come back with more info.

I've been trying to find helmets that fit me for years. I have a long oval shaped head and often have to go to a large so that I don't get forehead pressure. But my head and face are pretty narrow so large look like trash cans on my head and flop side to side. 

The best road helmet I've tried is the protone. Although it's a size large, it is a very low profile helmet and had a unique style. I tried on a medium Rex and it was too tight. No large to try so I ordered one from Amazon to try on (free return shipping). I tried on a large sixer and it was gigantic! No medium so I ordered that too. 

I tried the ambush in medium today. That had a really nice fit to it. It was the non angi version. Personally I'm hoping the sixer in medium for like the ambush. I like the style. Again, I'll post so more info when I get them.


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