Quote Originally Posted by Bella70 View Post
As I compare brands and models, the top end models brag about ventilation and cooling, but I want one that brags about durability, safety, beefiness in construction.
No standard bicycle helmet is durable. One crash and they are all done. Frankly you don't want them durable as it is the crushing/destroying of the helmet that saves your head.

All helmets sold in the US pass the SAME safety standards. A few provide slightly deeper coverage in the rear, but are geared more towards mountain biking (Giro Hex and Xen and the Fox Flux to name the most popular of this type). I'll emphasize again that even though they cover "better" they pass the same test (and unfortunately we the consumer never know by what margin, etc.)

What you definitely want to look for is fit and comfort, that's what you are buying. Midrange to expensive helmets come in sizes (as opposed to one-size-"fits"-all), are lighter, and are vented better. That's their selling points. Getting a helmet that is sized is a huge advantage for fit if you don't have an extremely average head though; more than that is gravy (but I really love my well vented helmets in the summer heat!).

As has been said, Giro and Bell are one and the same, but the helmets are not shaped the same so likely one label will fit you better than the other. There's really no substitute for trying them on. IMO it's worth paying a little more at a bike shop to make sure you are getting a helmet that is comfortable, fits well, and is actually "new" (lots of the helmets you see as major bargains online are actually 3-4 maybe even 5 or more years since the "manufactured on" date inside the helmet. Helmets should only be considered "good" for 5 yrs from this date (NOT the date of purchase) so if you buy one online tomorrow and it gets to you with a "manufactured May 2004" sticker you are SOL). Even in the shop expect to find a good many 06, 07 and 08 stickers; that's not a bad thing, but you should be aware of the remaining expected lifetime vs. price, etc. (I replace my helmets every 2-3 years anyway due to use, so I just bought one labeled 06 and was fine with that).

Just to add another brand in there; I've been very happy with the fit of my Specialized brand helmet.