Car Parks, Top Boxes & Helmets

[CAPP0]

Public car park, commuting, bike parked all day. Helmet left in top box, or taken with you?

[Biker 1]

Depends where. Some places are simply swarming with scrotes........

[Bailey93]

mine sits under my desk all day next to my feet, and I work on a secure MOD site... no chance id leave it in a public car park. Call me paranoid if you like but I don't like the idea of people touching the one thing that'll save my swede in a crash

[Huffy]

I'd leave mine in the top box although I can understand why you wouldn't but then mine was in the bike parking at the station car park rather than say a public car park in a city centre and I found lugging the helmet around on the train made it probably more likely to be damaged than leaving it with the bike.......the other thing being I can't fit a top box to my bike as no one does a rack for it

[OverSteery]

I've left my helmet in top box whenever and where ever the bikes has been left for 15 years, including C London.

Clearly I've been lucky....

[Lavs]

Mine doesn't fit in my top box, not sure if it's a small top box or.....
But in answer I would leave it in if not being watched or if I thought someone was watching with a view to steal it but if that worried about helmet being nicked then probably would be more worried about the bike

Edited by Lavs on Tuesday 17th January 14:32

[sjtscott]

In London it totally depends where and for how long.. not that I have a top box anymore to have this worry lol
Certainly I used to keep my helmet with my blackbird all the time when parking it.. I should note most of the time in the office underground carpark.
I would not however keep the helmet with the bike parking it at home due to the amount of thieving of anything that happens in east london unless you've made an attempt to secure it properly.

[2wheelsjimmy]

What's the point in having a topbox if you're not going to use it.

Yeah I leave it in there. Sometimes my leathers and boots too.
That would be an expensive loss.

[podman]

Huffy said:

..the other thing being I can't fit a top box to my bike as no one does a rack for it

No rack, no problem...spotted this a few weeks ago, bolted straight to the grab rail..







Or buying a spare pillion seat and modifying that that is dead simple too.

[Harji]

my instructor used to just leave his Shoei helmet and gloves on the bike , unsecured while he devouring his tenth sausage roll of the day. Often we couldn't see the bike and we were in areas where there are a few tea leafs about.

[ccr32]

If the top box is lockable an of half decent quality (Givi, etc.) then I don't see any particular issue with leaving a helmet in there - as others have said you're probably more likely to damage it lugging it about rather than risk losing it leaving it in there. And if anyone is eyeing you up when locking it in there, you've probably got bigger problems to worry about... (see 'RJ almost got bikejacked' thread)

[Trabi601]

What he said.

I probably wouldn't do it with a no-name Chinese topbox.

Certainly wouldn't do it with a 1970s / 80s Rickman plastic box, as they had all the integrity of a tupperware box.

But I leave both our lids in a Kappa monokey box.

[castex]

Buy a bike with a helmet loop under the seat!

[Trabi601]

castex said:

Buy a bike with a helmet loop under the seat!

No, just no.

They're easy to break and in today's society, I wouldn't want to risk someone pissing, spitting or worse in my lid.

[castex]

Or just relax a bit and have some faith in human decency?

[Mags]

I put a D lock through my front wheel with a cable attached, I loop the cable through my lid and leave the lid sitting on the floor in front of the bike. My clothes go in the biggest chinese top box I could buy. Mines left in a car park all day.
I'm hoping to upgrade my bike soon and if I do I'm after a huge Givi Trekker top box.

[creampuff]

I leave it in the top box. Never had a problem.

I usually don't leave in in the top box overnight as I think changes in temperature shorten the lif of the pinlock.

[brrapp]

I just leave mine hanging, I don't mind other people touching my helmet.

[2wheelsjimmy]

Mags said:

I'm hoping to upgrade my bike soon and if I do I'm after a huge Givi Trekker top box.

I've the 58L one. It's great. So practical. Like having a handbag.

[Huffy]

podman said:

Huffy said:

..the other thing being I can't fit a top box to my bike as no one does a rack for it

No rack, no problem...spotted this a few weeks ago, bolted straight to the grab rail..


Or buying a spare pillion seat and modifying that that is dead simple too.

No grab rail either and whilst I have thought about the pillion seat option I keep my lock under the seat its also where the optimate lead resides so decides (aesthetics and having to get on and off aside) it was too much of a faff.

Ended up with one of these http://www.thevisorshop.com/en/gb/Oxford-Lid-Locke...

and locked it through the headstock leaving it sitting on the tank - works very well and no less secure than a top box