We try stuff out.

Flip-front lids are great if you’re out and about on tour: you’ve got the protection of a full-face, with the flexibility of an open-face so you can chat and converse without whipping the damn thing off your noggin all the time! Many of today’s flip-front lids like this Evo-one are homologated in both positions, so you can ride with ‘em open on hot days and know you’re not breaking some daft law – even if the chin-bar on the top of the helmet doesn’t make you very aerodynamic! Thankfully the Evo-one’s chin bar rotates all the way to the back of the helmet. Nice. The Evo-one is built using two shell sizes across the XS to XL range, comes with a Pinlock Maxvision for a fog-free visor, a ratchet-type strap adjuster, space for Bluetooth speakers, a removable lining, and has an integral, drop-down sun shield. What’s handy in the winter is the elasticated neck skirt and pull-down wind deflector which keeps draughts out of the lid. One thing we did find in bad weather was water ingress through the visor/helmet seal, which was a bit of a pain. Overall though, we’ve been impressed with the fit, function and general ease-of-use of this helmet – especially with the chin-guard operation, which wasn’t too fiddly even getting it from the rear of the helmet back to the front. It’s an action though which does take time to learn when riding the bike at the same time! Official prices start at around £340, but we’ve seem ’em as low as £200 for plain colours – which makes this lid a right bargain! www.nevis.uk.com