Nolan N104 Outlaw review

JacktheBagger · #1 11-28-2012, 07:30 PM

Well now that I've worn it every day in the last month in temps from mid 20's to upper 70's ...
I was going into the modular with a five bill self imposed limit ... I was biased going in towards the Shark Evoline 3 ..
After much video at revzilla comparing them , I narrowed it down to the Evoline and Nolan N104 .. The Nolan won out based on better ventilation and a huge field of view .. With this helmet , you cannot say it restricts your peripheral vision .. No doubt it is a huge helmet , only one laid sideways will fit in the tourpak ..
Mine came from revzilla with the VPS , vision protection system , sunshade a la fighter helmet style , one button extends and another retracts the visor .. Some claim its distracting to them , but I love it .. There are several different colors , mine came with the light smoke visor .. These work very well even with heavy winter gloves ..
It also has the pinlock system which is another smaller visor that snaps into the inside of the outer visor .. The idea is it keeps the visor from fogging up and you dont have to raise the main visor to let air in to clear it .. That works and it works fine .. However it does not prevent your eyeglasses from fogging over and they do pretty quick with the main visor down .
To open the chin bar there are two pieces you grasp with thumb and index finger , kinda squeeze them together and it unlocks smoothly .. Very easy even with heavy winter gloves on .. On the side with the chin bar raised is a latch to lock the bar up ..
There are two ventilation openings , one in the chin bar , which I will say , sucks in the open position , and one on top of the helmet that has two open positions , the upper ventilation is by far the best I have ever had in a modular or FF helmet , I think part of that is the reason the helmet is so big .. There is a gap between the top of the liner and inside top of the helmet , you can see it in the pic that follows ..
The chinstrap is a qd type setup that I love , really easy , again with heavy gloves on ..
There is some wind turbulence across the top of the helmet ( stock windshield ) , but to me , not an issue , this is a motor sickle after all .. No cold air leaks except when I forget to close the vents .. In the warmer weather it is very comfortable as well ..
The only fault I find is the chin vent , and that is closed most of the time anyways , so that may be an unfair judgement on my part ..
The sticker on the back says 1900 grams which is around 4# 4 oz , give or take an ounce or so .. It doesnt feel like four pounds to me , I have had lighter helmets that felt heavier than this one .
I did not get the comm system with it , but will after the first probably ..
You will find several different models of the N104 , they are all the same helmet , the models are different color schemes . I chose the Outlaw because it is a plain black helmet , no graphics or fancy paints here
If the ultimate in protection is what you desire then a modular is not for you , there is no arguing that a Full Face is a much safer helmet than the modular ..
The chin bar is the weak spot in the modular , no way around it ..
Overall this is a great helmet for the price , there are cheeper and more expensive ones out there .. It pays to shop around . I got mine from revzilla with the VPS visor , pinlock visor and helmet bag for less than what some places charge for the helmet without the visors ..

JtB

JacktheBagger · #2 11-28-2012, 07:36 PM

JacktheBagger · #3 11-28-2012, 07:41 PM

TRUBlue · #4 11-28-2012, 09:12 PM

Good review Jack, thanks. I need to try one on somewhere but can't find a single place that carries them. Only choice is to order and send back but hate to pay the return shipping if it doesn't fit.

Captain13 · #5 12-13-2012, 06:56 PM

Good review, Jack.

I've been wanting to see one. Can't find a dealer around here. I'm really interested in the Nolan because it is modular. I've been going back and forth between the Shoei Neotec and N-104. The Nolan appears to have the edge in that the comm system from Nolan fits right in and hooks up to my bike.

I guess I will have to go to Atlanta and see if I can find one up there.