Kali Protectives Kru helmet

Drawing on inspiration from NHL helmets, Kali’s Kru brings the breathability of a three-quarter helmet, with the added peace of mind of a full-face. While definitely different in aesthetic, it’s a reasonably comfortable lid that completely dispels the claustrophobic feel of regular full-face helmets. It could do with a bit of refinement, however.

Kali Protectives Kru – Technical details

Let’s get the most glaring thing out of the way – the chinbar. It’s built of titanium and rather bolted to the helmet; the rest of the helmet is kind of built around it, as it stretches throughout the lower perimeter continuously. It’s then added to provide the protection of a chinbar (to DH levels, apparently), but without being all that noticeable.

The helmet itself benefits from Composite Fusion tech, which fuses the outer shell to an EPS foam. Inside that foam shell is then Kali’s ERT Low Density layer that addresses low-g and rotational impact energies, says the brand. Kali also says that LDL reduces rotational impact forces by 25% and low-g forces by 30%.

With that, the Kru meets ASTM F1952, CPSC, and EN1078 certifications.

Moving away from the shell, a selection of Kali Kool Draft Pads are included in the box to help dial in the helmet’s fit, and there’s an adjustable dial at the rear to snug everything up.

Along with an adjustable visor, there’s a Fidlock magnetic buckle, and the helmet comes with a sock to keep it in when not in use. Oh, and there are two colours available, black and white, as well as two sizes – XS-M and L-XXL.

Kali Protectives Kru – Performance

With its interesting looks, I approached the Kru with a healthy hint of scepticism, and I’ll admit, it took a bit of bravery to wear it, but aside from its aesthetic, it’s a very valid and appealing entry (in practice) into the helmet market, though there’s definitely a bit of room for improvement.

But what’s great to see is that Kali includes a whole bunch of different-sized pads and comfort liners of varying thicknesses. These can be swapped around to fine-tune the fit, and with them, it doesn’t take long to find the helmet’s happy place. Where many competing helmets rely on messing about with pad sizes alone as a form of fit adjustment, it’s always excellent to see a dial adjuster on the rear of the helmet, which helps make it more secure when worn.

After a bit of time chopping and changing the pads, the Kru’s comfort is rather good, but not perfect. The comfort liner around the top of the head offers an appreciable cush and there’s an excellent soft but supported feel to the cheek pads. That said, the cheek pads are placed quite high on the face, so I’ve found them covering parts of my ears, which hasn’t been as comfortable as I would expect. There is no adjustment to how the cheek pads are placed, which makes sense, but if it were me, I would move these pads a little further down the cheeks so as not to cover parts of my ears. Though, this would also require a small redesign of the helmet’s shell.

It’s definitely a feeling I could get used to, but when switching between three-quarter helmets, others definitely arrange their pads in a way that promotes better comfort. In that respect, the Kru feels a little unrefined in comparison.

Additionally, I’m not the biggest fan of how the straps are placed in the helmet. I’ve found that these can also cover the ear, and when closed via the Fidlock buckle, it sits very far back under the chin.

Though there are areas in which the Kru has really won me over, mostly, that’s the titanium chinbar. Breathability of the helmet is just how you would expect of a three-quarter helmet, but it offers some peace of mind that you’re not going to cave your teeth in when you hit the ground. Admittedly, and thankfully, I’ve not tested this yet, but it gives the helmet a heightened air of confidence over regular three-quarter lids.

But importantly, although it’s most definitely there, the chinbar pretty much disappears, running completely unnoticed.

Because of that, it brings very impressive visibility. Where most chin bars are comparatively chunky, the titanium bars fade out of vision, leaving a clear and uninterrupted view of the trail ahead. It’s not a particularly heavy helmet, either, which helps everything feel rather natural.

But where breathability is rather good, it could be better. That’s because the comfort liner is equipped with bug nets. While air flows through the helmet and over the head, these bug nets hinder that immediate air contact with the head, so it’s more noticeable and cooler at speed. This could be seen as a positive in the cold, but while reasonably cool in hotter weather, it doesn’t offer the refreshing feel of cool air blowing over the head unless you’re going proper fast, that is.

Kali Kru Protectives – Verdict

The Kru’s price is where it gets interesting because at £300, it isn’t cheap, and there are a lot of competitive products at this point. Granted, none of them boast a titanium chin guard, and offer the claustrophobia-free feel quite like what the Kru achieves.

But at this price point, you could be looking at something like Troy Lee Designs’ Stage 2. It’s a lightweight (680g), enduro-style full-face helmet that’s more conventional in its looks. If you’re not after the whole chinbar shebang, Troy Lee’s Stage Stunt is a belter, and costs £249.

If you’re looking at this price point, Fox’s Proframe comes in at £294.99. It’s a comfortable helmet with interchangeable pads for fit adjustment and a Boa dial. Again, it looks a little less jarring, but it’s an excellent choice. That said, it is heavier at 846g.

All three of those helmets, while not offering that chinbarless-like chinbar, are very comfortable and breathable. Though, at its price, Kali has produced a compelling and certainly different option, to say the least.

The Kali Protectives Kru is best described as a three-quarter helmet for those who don’t want to go without a chinbar. While comfortable, some simple changes could be made to make it more comfortable. Other than that, with its quirky looks and bug nets, the Kru is an interesting full-face-ish option for those who can see past its unique look and get an unimpeded field of view in return.