We’re often asked if there are benefits to using the various coloured visors that are available these days, and the answer is yes! Here we take you through what you can expect from each colour. Shoei offer one of the most comprehensive visor colour ranges, so we’re going to go through each of their variations.
Clear
This is the obvious one. A Clear visor is shipped with the majority of lids and offers a clear view of the road ahead. They are completely colour neutral and distortion-free, and are for use during day & night.
Photochromatic
The all-rounder of visors! This visor reacts to sunlight and darkens automatically due to its light-sensitive coating. The transition from completely clear to the maximum tint takes about 30-40 seconds. In strong sunlight this visor can darken to the equivalent of the ‘Dark Smoked’ visor. The colour view is more reddish, particularly when the visor has adapted to a strong tint.
Medium Smoke
The slightly tinted visor is pretty inconspicuous but very pleasant to ride with. It changes the colour tone of the road ahead to a slightly colder colour spectrum (grey-blue) when compared to the neutral tone of a clear visor. Even in overcast conditions, right the way up to dusk, this visor still offers a very good view. In the dark, however, it can not be driven according to the ECE standard.
Dark Smoke
This visor is especially good in very bright sunlight. Extremely bright parts look significantly darker when looking through this visor. It works very effectively. Area’s which are already dark and shaded appear very strongly toned. In terms of colour spectrum, the colour tone of the road ahead is slightly green.
Spectra Silver
This visor is the first on our list that is generally purchased for more cosmetic reasons. The silver mirror effect transforms the overall look of a helmet. This visor darkens slightly less than the “Dark Smoke”. The colour tone impression is relatively neutral with a slight red touch. The red touch is more prominent in bright sunlight, but it still slightly noticeable in overcast weather.
Spectra Blue
This one tends to confuse people. The “Spectra Blue“ colour tone impression is even warmer / redder than what you experience with the silver Spectra. Most people expect this to give a cooler/blue colour tone. If you are looking for warmer colours, this is the visor for you.
Spectra Gold
The “Spectra Gold” darkens more strongly than the silver and blue Spectras. In terms of darkness, it is more akin to “Dark Smoke”. As with the other Spectras, this behaves differently to what people expect. The colour tone when looking through is slightly bluish and very different from the rather warm impression from the outside.
Spectra Fire (Rainbow)
Here the inside view is almost the same as at the “Spectra Gold”. However, the visual impression is bluish-greenish and slightly warmer than with the pure golden visor. The main difference is obviously the view and colours from the outside of the visor.
HD Yellow
The approach of the Yellow HD is a contrast enhancement. This makes noticing potholes etc. on the Road surface that much easier. It’s loved by some and hated by others. You can either get on with the very strong Yellow tone of the world, or you can’t.
HD Orange
The approach of the orange HD is a contrast enhancement much like the yellow HD-visor. This makes noticing potholes etc. on the Road surface that much easier. This visor is more tinted than the “HD Yellow”, and lets in slightly less light. It’s loved by some and hated by others. You can either get on with the very strong Orange tone of the world, or you can’t.
Know what colour you need now?
