Bell and HJC Helmets to Protect Really Big Brains

. . . and some sources for giant hats.

by Jeff Dean

Bell Helmets and HJC make helmets for riders with very large heads — up to size 8¼. The Bell Star XL (a.k.a., King Head Pro Full Face), left, is a full-face model made with Kevlar weave. The Bell Mag XL (a.k.a., King Head Pro Open Face), right, is an open-face or 3/4 helmet of similar construction. Both are very reasonably priced and are available in white or black. Of course, Unfortunately, these helmets may now be out of production.

Recently, Bell has introduced new, more modern, Snell-approved helmets (photos above) available in very large sizes. They are the large eyeport Bell M3 Pro Xtra (left) and the Bell M3 Xtra (right), available in sizes up to 8½. For more information or to order these helmets, or to order parts for any Bell helmet, e-mail Scott Dudek at Bell Helmets.

Of course, when ordering a helmet, I always recommend ordering a plain white model. Why? Read this.

In 2007, I learned that HJC Helmets makes three styles of helmets in size XXXL — full face, flip-front (photo above), and open face. I have the first two, and with some minor interior adjustments they fit my long head just fine. It is the first time in my 40+ years of riding that I can wear a flip-front helmet, while recognizing nevertheless that a full-face helmet offers better protection.

Arai makes its Profile and made its Signet series helmets in XXXL, and also make two styles of open-face helmets in this size. Personally, I tried the Arai helmets on and they were a little too tight front-to-back. Every helmet manufacturer uses different head forms, so you really need to try them on. Often dealers will not carry XXXL helmets for you to try and may not be willing to order one just for your to try out. I was able to try them all on at one of the several Cycle World International Motorcycle Shows held around the nation every winter.

What about regular hats for “fat heads?” I have some good news. I have found three internet sources for hats for extra-large heads. Big Head Caps offers a wide variety of styles in large sizes up to 8½, including the Wisconsin and Arizona caps shown below. The Big Hat Store offers baseball and golf caps up to size 8½. The Cooperstown Ball Cap Company offers an incredibly enormous assortment of high-quality baseball caps, both contemporary and historic, in sizes up to 8-3/8.

The table below gives hat sizes for those large of head.