Old Motorcycle Helmet? Recycle It!

Have you just upgraded your faithful old motorcycle helmet for a newer model? Are you wondering what to do with the old one?

There isn’t an official way to recycle a motorcycle helmet, but it’s possible that your lid could continue to serve for years to come, albeit not on anyone’s head.

Here’s four things you could do with your old motorcycle lid:

1) Let off some steam – or treat it as a learning experience:

Buying second-hand lids is a mug’s game. You shouldn’t do it, and you shouldn’t let people do it. So take the opportunity to let of some steam and destroy your helmet beyond possible use (but be safe and sensible, of course!).

Alternatively, if you’re a more sophisticated type, why not make it an educational experience? You have worn your helmet for years, but did you ever really think about what makes a helmet? Why not take the opportunity to learn about helmet structure and construction and conduct your own helmet post-mortem? It is quite amazing to see the technology that goes into the construction of some lids, and it is also quite startling to see the lack of technology that goes into others. At the very least, you’ll ensure that no one else uses your old, potentially defunct lid again, and at the most, you’ll learn something about what makes a good helmet (or a bad one).

2) Let the emergency services learn from it:

Believe it or not, your helmet can continue protecting people beyond it’s days of active duty on the roads. How about handing your helmet in to a fire station, rescue centre, first-aider or some other emergency service, so that they can practice handling motorcyclists in an accident? Using your trusty old helmet on dummies and models, emergency services and trainees can perfect the skills necessary to look after rider who has been involved in an accident.

3) Recycle spare parts, and then bin it:

There may be several component parts of your helmet which might be salvageable. Every full face helmet should have a visor, and most lids nowadays have removable cheek or crown pads, nose guards or chin curtains. Whilst these are helmet specific, if you’re going for a similar helmet (say from a Shoei XR-1000 to an XR-1100), you might find some parts are interchangeable. Otherwise, you might be able to spruce them up and pop them on eBay.

4) Make a contemporary flower pot out of it:

We kid you not. This has been suggested many a time. And it is surprising (or not surprising) how many guys think that their better half will take the greatest of pleasure in filling your beloved lid with soil.

So, there’s a few ideas. If you come up with anything clever, please let us know in the comments box below. We’ll be happy to add it to our list if we think it is a good idea!