Helmet Hunter

The Nolan N42 is what others consider a 3/4 helmet. It’s an open-face that has a full-face visor. Such helmets are often used for touring and/or on big scooters. Primarily, Nolan designed this series for use with its N-Com communication system. It is made out of polycarbonate and has a small spoiler at the back for improved stability.

The Vision Protection System has a small tinted shell on top of the main visor, which you can retract depending on your shade preference. Interior pads are fully removable and washable (shall we expect anything less?), and comes with an extra neck roll for noise reduction.

So, how’s it?

The N42 has one vent on top—not that ventilation is as important on a 3/4, but we found the vent easily accessible (open/close) even with gloves. One more thing you’d notice different from a full-face is how much wider your peripheral vision becomes—quite important for longer trips and/or older riders.

At speed, the N42 seems very stable even if plenty of air came under the face shield. The visor is really clear, and can open up to full, just make sure you have some form of eye protection like sunglasses when you do this. The smaller sunshield can only be lowered if the main visor is closed all the way.

The clasp is not the standard latch we see on helmets, it is this sort of grooved tongue that slides and clicks as you tighten it—quite innovative and easy to use we should add.

We recommend you use this helmet only if the weather is too hot for a full-face to bear, other than that a full-face should be the only way to go. By the way, we haven’t tested the communication system on it, we know, bummer, but we haven’t gotten our hands on the additional N-Com system.

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