Simpson is renowned for making some of the most stylish motorcycle helmets on the market. They have roots in the drag car racing world, and we can especially see that in their Bandit line of helmets. The helmet from this line that is the most similar to a car helmet is the Outlaw Bandit. But, is there a place for such a helmet in the motorcycle world? Find out in our Simpson Outlaw Bandit helmet review!
Table of Contents
Simpson Outlaw Bandit Review – Features
If you are in a rush, here are all the features of the Simpson Outlaw Bandit helmet you have to know about:
- Fiberglass composite shell
- Weighs 1,53 kg (3 pounds and 6 ounces)
- Neutral oval shape
- Pinlock-ready clear face shield
- Two sets of cheek pads
- Moisture-wicking interior
- Single-density EPS liner
- Chin vent
- Ridges on the top for extra stability
- DOT and Snell-certified
Let’s dive into our Simpson Outlaw Bandit helmet review, shall we?
Construction & Design
When we talk about the Simpson Outlaw Bandit helmet, we talk about safety, style, and comfort. It sports a fiberglass composite shell that weighs 1,53 kg (3 pounds and 6 ounces). The Simpson Outlaw Bandit motorcycle helmet certainly isn’t the most lightweight full-face helmet when you consider it as a feature package. But more on that later on.
Regarding the fitment of this helmet, it sports a neutral oval shape. It has a slightly longer front-to-back section, with more room on your temples. We also want to point out that the Outlaw Bandit has a chin bar area that is a bit closer to the face. Still, the helmet should fit as it says on its sizing chart, so no worries about that!
Now, the design of the Outlaw Bandit is absolutely wonderful. It sports an aggressive streetfighter look that complements naked and cruiser bikes most fittingly. It certainly looks badass with the combination of simplistic minimalism and the aggressive, elongated chin bar. We can definitely see some of the design DNA from the drag car racing world, and it translates pretty nicely to the motorcycle world!
Vision
As we continue with our Simpson Outlaw Bandit helmet review, let’s take a deeper look at the visibility aspect of this helmet!
Before we begin with the visibility breakdown, we just want to point out how nicely the chin bar and the clear face shield come together as a whole.
When we look at the face shield area, we can see that it provides a bit less field of view than your average motorcycle helmet. It has three detents: fully open, halfway closed, and fully closed. On the lower left part, you can notice a locking mechanism that works quite well.
Now, the visor sealing isn’t really beefy. That means that it can easily let in the rain from the top of the visor inside the helmet. Keep in mind that this isn’t a seasonal helmet, and it certainly isn’t built for riders riding in torrential situations most of the time.
We can see that the face shield has a screw as a pivot point. So, if you want to replace the face shield with another one, you will need to use a screwdriver to unscrew it.
When it comes to the visibility aspect of the face shield, it is optically correct and has an anti-fog coating on it. Also, the face shield is 3 millimeters thick, which is usually reserved for racing helmets. This hands out high impact resistance and some basic aerodynamic qualities.
Note: make sure to invest in a Pinlock insert to reduce fogging of the face shield. This can be a problem, especially if you are a mouth breather.
Comfort
Let’s take a closer look at the interior of the Simpson Outlaw Bandit motorcycle helmet! The whole material on the inside is made of antibacterial and moisture-wicking fabric, which is washable. Also, there are no snaps; everything is held together by Velcro straps.
First up are the cheek pads that feel quite nice, tight, and beefy. They have a great contour to them, and you even have the ability to customize them. You see, Simpson has put another, less thick cheek pad in the box so that you can add a bit more room to your cheeks.
There are no surprises on the chin strap front, with the double D-ring strap being a pretty standard ordeal. If it ain’t broke, don’t fix it, right?
Now, the inner liner has no pressure points as there are no snaps, only Velcro. The comfort liner is made with 3D mapping, and there are mesh areas on the crash hotspots. On the inside, we can see the more high-quality mesh that proves Simpson knows how to make a comfy and safe helmet.
We can see a fairly minimalistic single-density EPS liner on the inside of the shell that passes the Snell safety rating. Well, that’s the tradeoff that Simpson had to make because of the simple vent scheme.
Airflow
Next up in our Simpson Outlaw Bandit helmet review is the vent scheme!
Right from the get-go, we can notice there are only six vents on this helmet. Three lines on both sides of the chin bar, and these vents are passive. The chin vents flow air into the facial area, but there are not top or rear vents to let that air out of the helmet. This essentially means that this helmet will get a bit hotter on warmer days due to a lack of other vents.
The lack of vents is yet another tradeoff Simpson had to make to make that signature aggressive and refined styling. Instead of the top vents, Simpson added ridges, which are a remnant from their drag car racing helmet designs. Basically, this keeps the helmet more stable at higher speeds in the open cockpit, which also works in the motorcycle world.
At least the wind noise isn’t such a big issue due to the lack of more vents. It won’t distract you at least before you hit 75 mph (121 km/h). Still, this is nothing that can’t be fixed with decent earplugs.
Safety Ratings
The Simpson Outlaw Bandit helmet comes with DOT and Snell safety ratings. Simpson managed to keep these ratings thanks to the three shell sizes available.
Available Models
This helmet comes in select shell sizes:
- XS – 52 to 54 cm
- SM – 54 to 56 cm
- MD – 56 to 58 cm
- LG – 58 to 60 cm
- XL – 60 to 62 cm
- 2XL – 62 to 64 cm
Also, it comes in a different variety of color schemes:
- Black
- Matte Black
- White
- Red
- Gold
- Blue
- Gunmetal
Check out the gallery below to see how the Outlaw Bandit looks in different color schemes!
Price
Simpson has put up the price of $450/€370/£319 for the Outlaw Bandit helmet. You can get in online on Revzilla and Amazon.
Summing Up
Now that we are at the end of our Simpson Outlaw Bandit helmet review, what’s our final verdict? Is it worth its high price point?
First of all, let’s talk about the positives. The aggressive styling of this lid is absolutely phenomenal. It will turn many heads as you ride, that’s for sure! Also, the helmet feels comfortable and is safe to wear if you end up in a crash.
Now, the feature package is kinda disappointing and too minimalistic, especially when you consider the high price tag. There is only one vent in the package, and while this reduces the impact of wind noise, hot weather rides will be less bearable. Also, the visor sealing could use a lot of work to prevent rain from coming inside.
Overall, this is a great lid if you prefer style over the features. Yes, it is a safe helmet, but it lacks features to justify its high price tag. If it was priced $100 less, it would be awesome!
Interested in more helmet reviews? Check out our motorcycle helmet reviews section for more!
