Suomy Scrambler Helmet - Review

Design

Suomy could cross-pollinate their tech and marketing from their range of flashy motorcycle racing helmets but, somewhat surprisingly, they haven't gone down that road. Instead, the Scrambler is a pretty straightforward lid that's almost free of annoying acronyms and tag lines. Almost. At the back of the helmet, you'll find the 'Biaxial' retention band that employs a single, eight-position dial to fine tune the fit from 52 - 58cm on my medium-sized test helmet. The band also has four height options - it snaps into the shell via push-tabs - so you can adjust where it sits on the back of your head.




Air flow happens courtesy of twenty-three vents, with fourteen of those facing forward and the others doing exhaust work. The vents, along with all of the eleven color options, give the Scrambler a futuristic appearance that grew on me, but the look is certainly polarizing. Other details include a removable chin strap (the anchors snap out), an adjustable visor that can be pushed up nice and high for that enduro look, and anti-bacterial inner padding that can be pulled to wash the salt and grime off.




While a lot of other brands are making claims of improved protection by way of inserts that look like Haribo candy, slippery hair nets between your head and the shell, or even dual-shell designs, Suomy took a much more straightforward, traditional approach for the Scrambler when it was released back in 2015. Its construction consists of a polycarbonate outer shell and an EPS foam inner shell, which is all run of the mill stuff, but it adds up to a not so run of the mill weight: my medium-sized Scrambler weighs just 274-grams on my scale.

For some perspective, Giro's Montaro weighs 370 grams, a TLD A2 weighs 370-grams, and a Kali Interceptor comes in at 390-grams. Hold your horses, please; I'm not saying that the Scrambler is better because it's lighter than those options, or less safe for the same reason, but the weight is worth noting.



Performance

The Scrambler has a few things going for it, one of them be the aforementioned low weight. The 100-ish gram difference between the Suomy all-mountain helmet and some of the competition isn't just noticeable, it's also a big deal, at least to me. Having less weight perched on the top of your head means that your neck doesn't have to do as much work and, just so long as the fit is good, it'll also help the lid to go even more unnoticed.




And the Scrambler does fit quite well, at least on my head. The shape of the shell feels Giro-esque to me, which is to say that it's not odd in any way and will agree with most people's heads. It does feel like it sits high, however, something that's amplified by the sides and back of the helmet not extending quite as far down as some other all-mountain styled lids. I found it to be very comfortable, mind you, and the low weight and slim shape make it the most invisible feeling helmet that I've ever worn, but I'd also say that it's not as confidence inspiring as some of the heavier options out there that offer more coverage and make use of inserts or dual-shell designs. There are no add-ons with the claim of being able to reduce rotational impact forces, but it does carry EN 1078 CPSC, AS-NZS 2063 2008 certification.

The low weight and great fit make the Scrambler a favorite of mine, but it didn't feel overly airy to me at any point during our Sahara-like summer riding season. Decent air flow, yes, but maybe not as cool as I'd hope for. The shell, which is super slim, also plays nice with glasses and goggles, and the adjustable visor stays put.



Pinkbike's Take:

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