Adjustable riding hats

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racmun

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I need to buy my daughter a new skull cap and have seen that Karben have bought out a new adjustable skull hat.

I have one of their peaked hats which is adjustable and I find it really comfy but I'm sure i've read somewhere that the adjustable hats aren't actually as safe.

Have I remembered this correctly and if so why is that( just so I can understand) and what would be your recommendations for the safest hat and I get then find a stockist.

Budget up to £300 do no sam shields 😂
 
Hat safety and hat design has changed a lot since my grand children started to ride. Improved hats for cyclists have begun to influence riding hat design as well.
I suggest you look at threads here discussing mfi.
I am an elderly rider and not familiar with modern hats for child riders. But I can point out that the word adjustablke can be applied to riding helmets in many different ways.
Even old fashioned hard hats were adjustable in the sense that the outer case would be padded out with foam so it didnt slip around on a rider's head.
Modern hats may have an outer shell in basic sizes, but are worn with an inner cap designed to minimise the impact of the brain crashing into the inside of ones skull. The size of my inner lining was determined by a qualified hat fitter at our saddlers.
I do not agree that if a hat meets the safety standards, it is as good as any other. There are different safety standards, some of which are a minimum, set for riding schools.
My original hat was a Gatehouse and was designed for cross country eventing. I keep it as a yard hat. It was and still is noticeably larger than my current hat and the hats now worn by most people on our local yards.
 
I’ve always ridden in dial adjustable hats, and have fallen off in them many times and in a couple of nasty ways, with an unscathed head (I did get concussion once, but that was a mixture of my head taking ALL of the impact from a gallop, and horrific whiplash). Not dead or a vegetable yet! 🤣

They’ve managed to keep this idiot safe, so they can keep anyone safe 🤣
 
I am a convert since buying my Uvax. I think I was a bit old fashioned about it, but this hat is the first one ins 40 years that I forget I am wearing and accidentally drive home in!
 
I really like my dial adjusted Uvex. It fits, it's lightweight, ventilated, has MIPS and meets modern safety standards so it's perfectly safe enough for me.

I think you have to think about what you are doing in it too - I believe XC isn't usually an option in a peaked hat. I do a lot of long rides, usually with a decent amount of trot & canter - so a jockey skull in the middle of summer probably isn't going to the ideal option for me even if it has 'better' credentials - as after 20.miles in the heat I'd probably get so hot, I would pass out 🤣 So a peaked ventilated option is a much safer and more practical option.
 
I've got a dial adjusted Uvex.

It doesn't FEEL as safe as my big HS1 skull cap, purely because it's so lightweight and comfortable, however it is safe and meets the required safety standards.
 
Skib said:
But the big HSI skullcap (I have one too) is not as safe as a modern mfi. My current hat is Charles Owen mfi.
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I know ... ? That's why I said it doesn't FEEL as safe but I know it is.
It's purely a feeling thing, the HS1 feels heavy and sturdy and solid which is oddly comforting. The Uvex is so lightweight and comfortable in comparison but I wouldn't wear it if I didn't think it was safe.
 
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