ENDURA X TR ACT II
£59.99 Breezy budget lid
Endura’s Xtract II is the Scottish brand’s entry-level road helmet, sitting below the FS260-Pro and the Koroyd-lined Pro SL. Despite its budget credentials, the Xtract II carries over a lot of design features from its pricier siblings, and it looks good too.
It boasts lightweight and well-placed antibacterial pads that wick sweat fast, and are removable and washable. The occipital cradle system has a quality feel with its rubberised backing, and offers three-point adjustability horizontally plus two-point vertical mounting adjustment. The rubberised micro-adjust dial is easy to operate whether wet or dry, even with full-finger gloves. The straps have adjustable dividers and a quick-release buckle, and the webbing is thick and hardwearing but sufficiently soft so as not to irritate the skin.
The shell’s matt/gloss finish also belies the budget pricing, as does the fact that the hard shell wraps fully over the EPS foam core’s exposed underside, making for a helmet that won’t befall accidental damage when not wearing it. Ventilation is very good. The five huge, forwardfacing vents push plenty of air through the helmet, while deep internal channels help keep the air flowing across your head and out through the eight rear-facing exhaust ports. The fit on the large is generous but, with the exterior dimensions kept compact, it looks great on without any of the weird mushroom shaping often seen on lower-priced lids.
A weight of 270.7g for a large/XL-sized helmet is impressively light at any price; at £60, it’s almost unheard of. The Xtract II may not carry an anti-rotation device like MIPS, but MIPS helmets are rarely found at this price point, and rest assured it does meet European (EN1078 + A1 02/2013) standards.
It’s hard to fault the Xtract II. Its compact shape appeals and its quality finish is excellent for the price. On the bike, its weight and airy feel are impressive too. It’s easy to be drawn into thinking that you need to spend serious money to get a quality helmet, but the Xtract II proves that you absolutely do not. Now if they’d just add MIPS into the mix, they’d have the absolute complete package for a top-performing helmet at a fraction of the price of its rivals.