The best full-face helmets for PEV riders.
Roughly half of electric-unicycle injuries involve the head or face, and a normal bicycle helmet covers neither jaw nor chin. Above about 25 mph, on a one-wheel, or on anything that can throw you forward, a chin bar stops being optional. These picks separate the two things that get muddled together: a chin bar that is certified (ASTM F1952 tests it for deflection) and a shell that is certified for e-bike speeds (NTA 8776).
Our top picks
The short answer. Every pick is written up in full below.
Compare the Picks
| Product | Virginia Tech | Certification | Chin bar | Weight |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Sweet ProtectionStrayer 2Vi MIPSTop pick | 5 stars (#8 of 304) | CPSC + EN 1078 + NTA 8776 | Fixed | — |
| OutdoorMasterRhino Full FaceBudget pick | 5 stars (#42 of 304) | CPSC + EN 1078 + ASTM | Fixed | Just under 750 g |
| LeattMTB Gravity 5.0 | 5 stars (#34 of 304) | CPSC + EN 1078 + NTA 8776 + ASTM | Fixed | 710 g (size M) |
| 6DAlterra | 5 stars (#16 of 304) | CPSC + EN 1078 + NTA 8776 + ASTM | Fixed | — |
| METParachute MCR MIPSBest convertible | Not tested | CPSC + ASTM (chin bar tested) | Removable, magnetic release | 840 g with chin bar (size M) |
| TSGPass Pro | Not tested | EN 1078 + ASTM F1952 | Fixed | — |
| BluegrassVanguard Core | 4 stars (#55 of 304) | CPSC + EN 1078 + NTA 8776 + ASTM | Fixed | — |
| BluegrassJetro | 5 stars (#14 of 304) | CPSC + EN 1078 + NTA 8776 | None, three-quarter shell | 595 g (size M) |
| O'NEALSonus | 4 stars (#115 of 304) | CPSC | Fixed | — |
| Demon UnitedPodium | 3 stars (#215 of 304) | CPSC | Fixed | — |
The Picks in Full
Strayer 2Vi MIPS
Only four full-face helmets on earth hold a current 5-star Virginia Tech score AND the NTA 8776 e-bike standard, and three of them are Sweet Protection. The Strayer is the cheapest of those three, which makes it the default answer for a fast PEV rider who wants a chin bar.
- 5 stars and NTA 8776 together, which almost nothing does
- 8th best measured score of all 304 helmets tested
- Dual-layer MIPS plus front impact shields
- 17 vents and a Fidlock magnetic buckle
- Expensive
- No ASTM F1952 downhill certification listed
- Virginia Tech
- 5 stars (#8 of 304)
- Certification
- CPSC + EN 1078 + NTA 8776
- Chin bar
- Fixed
Rhino Full Face
A 5-star Virginia Tech full-face for around $130, which should not exist and does. It is the cheapest genuinely high-scoring chin-bar helmet available, and the reason a PEV rider has no real excuse for skipping face protection.
- 5 stars at roughly a third of the price of the Sweet Protection
- ASTM certified chin bar
- 27 vents, EPP collarbone impact system
- Washable liner and two chin pad thicknesses
- No NTA 8776, so not certified for 28 mph shell impacts
- Amazon listings do not always use the Rhino name, so check the vent count and size range
- Virginia Tech
- 5 stars (#42 of 304)
- Certification
- CPSC + EN 1078 + ASTM
- Chin bar
- Fixed
- Weight
- Just under 750 g
MTB Gravity 5.0
The most certified helmet in this list: NTA 8776 for e-bike speeds and ASTM for the chin bar, both. Leatt adds its 360 Turbine layer for low-speed rotational impacts and a BOA dial, which is a better fit system than cheek pads alone.
- 5 stars, NTA 8776 and ASTM all at once
- BOA FS2 dial fit rather than pads alone
- 360 Turbine EVO layer for low-speed impacts
- Expensive
- Race-oriented fit and looks
- Virginia Tech
- 5 stars (#34 of 304)
- Certification
- CPSC + EN 1078 + NTA 8776 + ASTM
- Chin bar
- Fixed
- Weight
- 710 g (size M)
Alterra
The other 5-star helmet carrying both NTA 8776 and ASTM. 6D builds its shells around a suspended inner liner rather than a sliding one, which is a different route to the same rotational problem MIPS solves.
- 16th best measured score of all 304 helmets tested
- NTA 8776 and ASTM together
- ODS suspended liner instead of a slip layer
- The most expensive fixed full-face here
- Limited retail availability in the US
- Virginia Tech
- 5 stars (#16 of 304)
- Certification
- CPSC + EN 1078 + NTA 8776 + ASTM
- Chin bar
- Fixed
Parachute MCR MIPS
The chin bar comes off with two clips and a magnetic release, and goes back on one-handed while you are wearing it. Crucially the chin bar is ASTM certified, which is not true of every removable one, so the convertible convenience does not cost you the certification.
- ASTM certified chin bar, unlike many removable ones
- Converts one-handed while worn
- MIPS-C2 and a BOA FS1 dial
- 21 vents plus a vented chin bar
- Not rated by Virginia Tech
- Heavier than a fixed lightweight full-face
- Some race organisers ban removable chin bars outright
- Virginia Tech
- Not tested
- Certification
- CPSC + ASTM (chin bar tested)
- Chin bar
- Removable, magnetic release
- Weight
- 840 g with chin bar (size M)
Pass Pro
The helmet the electric-unicycle and e-skate communities converged on, for reasons that are practical rather than marketed: a compact shell that does not look like race gear, an anti-fog visor with nose vents, and an ASTM F1952 certified chin bar.
- ASTM F1952 certified chin bar
- The de facto standard among EUC and e-skate riders
- Anti-fog visor, nose ports, exhalation deflector
- Two visors included
- Not rated by Virginia Tech
- No CPSC listing, so it is certified to the European standard
- Very little ventilation by mountain-bike standards
- Virginia Tech
- Not tested
- Certification
- EN 1078 + ASTM F1952
- Chin bar
- Fixed
Vanguard Core
A fixed full-face carrying NTA 8776 and ASTM together, at 4 stars rather than 5. Worth knowing about mainly because it fits heads that the Sweet Protection shape does not.
- NTA 8776 and ASTM together
- Different shell shape to the Sweet Protection helmets
- 4 stars, not 5
- Priced with the 5-star helmets
- Virginia Tech
- 4 stars (#55 of 304)
- Certification
- CPSC + EN 1078 + NTA 8776 + ASTM
- Chin bar
- Fixed
Jetro
A three-quarter shell: it wraps down around the jaw and the back of the head but stops short of a chin bar. For riders who will not wear a full-face but want more than a bicycle helmet, this is the honest middle, and it scores 14th of 304.
- 14th best measured score of all 304 helmets tested
- NTA 8776 with much more coverage than an urban helmet
- Wide field of view, no chin bar to get used to
- No chin protection at all
- Heavier and hotter than an urban helmet
- Virginia Tech
- 5 stars (#14 of 304)
- Certification
- CPSC + EN 1078 + NTA 8776
- Chin bar
- None, three-quarter shell
- Weight
- 595 g (size M)
Sonus
A 4-star fixed full-face at around $100. It is the pick when the OutdoorMaster does not fit your head and the Sweet Protection is out of budget.
- 4 stars for about $100
- Moto-derived fit and venting
- CPSC only: no ASTM and no NTA 8776
- Heavier than the mountain-bike shells
- Virginia Tech
- 4 stars (#115 of 304)
- Certification
- CPSC
- Chin bar
- Fixed
Podium
The cheapest full-face here at around $70, and the answer to "any chin bar beats no chin bar". Three stars is mid-pack, but mid-pack with a chin bar protects your jaw and a 5-star open-face helmet does not.
- The cheapest real full-face in this list
- Low profile, lightweight for the price
- Nine colours
- 3 stars when measured
- CPSC only: no ASTM chin bar test, no NTA 8776
- Virginia Tech
- 3 stars (#215 of 304)
- Certification
- CPSC
- Chin bar
- Fixed
How We Pick
We do not lab-test this gear. These picks come from published manufacturer specifications, the certifications that carry real weight in each category, and what long-term owners report. Where a manufacturer does not publish a figure we leave it blank rather than estimate it, which is why some cells in the table read as a dash.
Badges are ours and reflect the trade-off each product wins on, not what any brand paid for. Placement is never sold. When we start testing gear hands-on, this section will say so and will name what changed.
As an Amazon Associate, we earn from qualifying purchases. Picks are chosen editorially; placement is never sold.