Kali Protectives Loka helmet

Best known for their motorspot helmets, Kali Protectives have in the last few years ventured across into cycling. Their road selection ranges from this the Loka, their entry level helmet, to their racing helmet, the Phenom. At £80, it's a lot more expensive that most manufacturers' entry level helmets, though.

The Loka features many of Kali's ideas from moto helmets, including their Composite Fusion Plus technology. This involves the combination of EPS foam being moulded directly into the helmet shell and a layer of pyramidal EPS cones within the cross-section. On other words, the two-layer EPS section is shaped to form a 'crumple zone' under heavy impact. Moulding directly into the shell also helps to remove any gaps between the foam and shell, though such co-moulding is not terribly new in bike helmets.

At 275g it weighs about what you'd expect for the price. It's a little heavier than my Giro Atmos bug not enough to be noticeable, in part thanks to the snug fit formed by the Micro Fit system which can incorporate a wide range of head sizes with plenty of room for refinement.

You do have to adjust it while you're wearing the helmet, though. You have to press in the thumbwheel before turning it, so it can't easily be knocked out of adjustment. That's no problem with the helmet on your head, but with it off it was nearly a two hand job as the system would just bend with nothing to push against, which I found quite annoying.

The chin straps have plenty of adjustment allowing for the positions around the ear to be refined as preferred. The buckle itself is fairly large and yet surprisingly stiff and hard to undo quickly. It seemed like a fairly cheap option.

The most surprising aspect for me however was the lack of ventilation. Despite having 12 inlet and 10 outlet channels, the Loka was still extremely hot even on short commutes on relatively mild mornings. The main culprit seemed to be the front padding. The edge of the helmet sat much lower on my forehead than I was used to, which meant the inside layer of padding got particularly hot and uncomfortable. The vents are noticeably smaller than the more expensive Phenom too which added to the issue.

With this being Kali's entry level helmet I can understand why a little less care has been taken with the design and there is room for improvement, but for the price I would still have expected better.

Verdict

Comfy fit, very warm and details need attention