Review: Casco Attack Helmet

Update (September 14th, 2012) – I’ve had this helmet nearly three years now and it’s still going strong.  It was stolen from me in a bar in 2010, and then resurfaced on Craigslist three months later – suffice to say I paid the thief a visit and reclaimed my beloved helmet!

The exterior is pretty scratched up and the leather has been stained very dark from sweat, but it’s structurally sound and quite comfortable.  I replaced the chin strap last year as the originals were a bit short (or maybe my face got fatter?  I hope not!)  To answer some of the size questions, the interior measurements of the helmet are 17cm at its widest point, and 20cm from the front of the helmet to the rear.  I wear it daily, except in the winter, when I wear a Casco E-Motion Cruiser helmet.  I’ll try to post a review of that one soon.

casco_attack_330

Perhaps you’ve heard of the Casco Attack before, having attracted press as the helmet of choice for Olympic cyclist Theo Bos and getting top style points in many blogs and forums.  I recently decided to treat myself to an early Christmas and bought one through Ebay UK.  While I am not a professional cyclist, I commute daily around NYC by bike as well as taking part in century rides, and day tours whenever I can.  I wanted a helmet that would be comfortable and stylish enough for me to happily wear every day.  I justified the expense by reasoning that a head injury would cost me a lot more than the $350 price tag of this helmet.

I’ve been wearing it now for about a month – read on for my review and additional pictures.

casco_detail2

The Casco Attack features a hand stitched leather interior fit band and a hand riveted aluminum sub-frame based around four sturdy roll bars.  The chin-strap connects to the braided soft-rope side straps via small screw clamps:

casco_strapadjust1

This system works great – it provides a lot of adjustment and is easy to use, and the screws hold the position very firmly – no worries about having to re-adjust them later.  The side tension is adjusted with nifty draw cords (the little red cords in the picture above), and the overall tightness of the interior fit band is controlled by Casco’s proprietary “disc fit” mechanism:

casco_strapadjust3

I’ve been very happy with the helmet so far; it is a blend of simplicity and quality that nearly perfect.  The only drawback to the Attack helmet, and this is an important one, is fit.  Apparently they come in only one size, and that one seems to run a bit small.  My head just barely fits; it’s comfortable on my bare head and with some cycling caps underneath.  However some of my thicker hats won’t work with it, and I wish the chin strap was just a few millimeters longer, because when I wear a thicker hat the strap pulls uncomfortably at my neck.  I feel like I’ve found the right combination of cycling hat recently, and so it works for me.

I highly recommend trying this helmet on before buying.   If you don’t live in the E.U., however, this will be difficult since it’s not sold in the USA.  However, I was lucky enough to have a friend who owns one, so I was able to try it on first.  Fit is the most important thing in a helmet, especially one this expensive, so don’t take this lightly.

In general, I’m sure you can find a helmet just as good for less than half the price of this one, but not with such good looks or luxurious construction.  They are apparently limited to only 250 helmets a year, with “super-limited” versions in red and white… good thing I like black the best!  It’s a good feeling to be proud of your helmet and I’m glad to have such a well-made product protecting my head.

casco_detail1

12 thoughts on “Review: Casco Attack Helmet

  1. What is the weight of this helmet? And how effective is it in ventilation or keeping head cool? It looks like your head maybe a bit warm in this type of helmet. Thanks! 🙂

  2. I don’t know the weight, but I can tell you that it was lighter than my Catlike Kompact 2 – probably the lightest helmet i ever wore.

    the ventilation was excellent, no complaints about it being too warm.

  3. Your in NYC? I am looking to purchase but was woundering if I can try the fit before I do. Im in the midtown area.

  4. Tony you should go to Continuum Cycles down in the Lower East Side at Avenue C & 12th. One of the guys who works there, Fritz, has this helmet and will probably let you check it out if you ask nicely.

  5. Hi,

    long time I know, but just saw this helmet after having bought far too many that did not fit perfect.

    Please inform me how wide the helmet is.
    Most helmets seem made for people with a narrow head shape, but I am not so fortunate to have a wind tunnel shaped head, thus many of the high end helmets are not really great. I use a LAS Victory size 59 and this is the most tolerable of my helmets, the next best is a Mavic Plasma SLR size large and it only fit well when my hair is not too long.

    Have a nice day

    john

  6. Hi again,
    The pictures I have seen of this makes it still to be a fantastic helmet of a quality that is not rivalled by any other on the market.
    Leather instead of foam that after a few months of training in above 40 degrees will still be new and not soaked with residues from sweat, so it need to be washed. Wash the standard inserts 4 or a few more times and they start falling apart.
    I found a guy who has a lot of new ones of these in black available at only around a bit more than 200 Euros included shipping, but he seems too busy to have time to answer questions about how wide they are inside.
    If you still have possibility to measure the helmet and will inform me how wide it is so I can have an idea of how comfortable my “round” head will fit inside it, I will appreciate it.
    Have a nice day

    john

  7. At it again, and again back to square one. Going tomorrow to see Fritz. Hopefully if he’s still working there. But if he isn’t there would you be willing to allow me to try it on for size? John, I agree, this is still the most estheticly pleasing helmet

  8. Hi John, the interior measurements of the helmet are 17cm at its widest point, and 20cm from the front of the helmet to the rear.

    Tony, Fritz is still at Continuum as far as I know, good luck on the search!

  9. I can tell you that I bought one of these helmets and it really is fantastic.

    They are still available in small numbers in Germany.
    If you should want one again I will tell you where.

    Real lasting leather instead of cheap polstering that need replacement after a few monts of heavy use.

    Thank you for the tip.

  10. Hi John, if you could let me know where to get another one, that would be much appreciated. Mine is pretty beat up after 3 years of use.

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