The Bell Bullitt Carbon Chemical Candy Helmet is a very old looking helmet, in the sense that its profile is a bit unconventional. This is apparent from the shape of the bubble face shield. The silhouette will feel weird to the millennials since this is a ‘modern take on the original’ as specified by Bell. Worry not though, a flat shield is also available for a more contemporary look and you can order it separately.
While the original Bell Star-120 may not be up to the current standards if you manage to find one, the Bell Bullitt Carbon Chemical Candy is DOT and ECE 22.05 certified. So you are getting a nice throwback to the old school eras, but not compromising on safety and with additional feature sets.
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What Would You Love?
The graphic has a retro feel to it with lots of flakes in the paint which was the norm in the late 70s to the early 80s. It is festooned with yellow, orange and red lines starting at the front in a horizontal fashion and going all the way towards the sides and an off-white accent going all the way to the back and running parallel to the neck ridge and carrying it forward.
The clear coat paint on top of the carbon fiber is transparent and shows the underlying weave quite clearly.
The trim and inner padding has a very premium finish to it and has Double D rings made of chrome to complete the look. This helmet gives out a sense of care taken while manufacturing to offer that luxurious look that some riders long for so much.
Bell has added some nice bits and pieces of technology like cutouts for speakers in the cheek pads if you need to attach a com unit to the helmet. It would look very weird with the com unit sticking out on this style of helmet, but some riders wouldn’t bother about the end result.
The Top Features to Look Out For
Shell
The shell is a composite of carbon fiber which combines the lightness of the carbon and the strength of the compounds used in the composite.
Round oval shape. So people with intermediate oval shaped heads ‘might’ have a problem, but with 3 different shell sizes and 3 different EPS sizes, your optimum fit is just a trial away.
The Bell Bullitt Carbon is super lightweight at 2 lbs. 14 oz. in medium size. You won’t even feel the weight on that café racer of yours.
We have worked closely with RevZilla, Amazon and 2Wheel over the years to provide our testers with products to review. They are all great partners and unique in their own ways, so make sure to check out their prices. Please don’t forget we may get a commission if you buy from them.
Visors
When it comes to face shields, you have a multitude of choices available to you. There are flat shields and bubble shields with clear as well as smoked, and retro styled colored tints available to choose from. This one ships with a clear bubble and a flat dark smoke.
The face shield can be removed as easily as fitting a coin in the mount screws on both sides and rotating it a bit.
The locking mechanism is surprisingly simple. It consists of a magnetized strap which comes out from the bottom left end and snaps on to the other magnet half embedded in the shell of the helmet.
Ventilation
The chin vent on this helmet has a very simple design, reminiscent of the newer cyberman style straight face mouth piece. It is an active vent, which means you can open and close it from the inner side of the chin bar.
The ‘studs’ or rivets that you see on the front above the brow line are actually vents which connect to the wide air channels in the EPS liner.
Moving on from the traditional ways, but keeping with the shape, Bell has also incorporated a Venturi exhaust at the back below a little ridge. The desired effect is a very subtle but effective exhaust which should not be visible at range and keep the helmet looking stylish.
We have worked closely with RevZilla, Amazon and 2Wheel over the years to provide our testers with products to review. They are all great partners and unique in their own ways, so make sure to check out their prices. Please don’t forget we may get a commission if you buy from them.
Padding and Lining
A non-removable, feather grain neck roll protects the cheek pads underneath which can be removed from their snap mounts. The pads are sufficiently perforated to wick out your sweat quickly. The fabric on them is a mix of suede and grain leather which makes them very soft.
The comfort liner is fit with two snaps at the brow and two at back below the occipital ridge, making it quick and easy to remove for washing. It has enough foam padding where needed and premium material all around and a mesh that facilitates the airflow coming from the front vents.
Customer Reviews
For a great attempt at a retro look with modern features, Bell seems to have missed out on some important issues. There have been complaints regarding the comfort liner metallic snaps on the forehead creating pressure points. Some people complained about rain water seeping through the face shield outline at the top without any gasket to hold it out.
Others were not satisfied with the anti-fogging capabilities of the helmet and asked for a PinLock attachment system.
Bottom Line
The helmet is really nice if all you need it for is a great retro look and the functionality of protecting your head. If you expect anything else from it like low noise, amazing airflow, attachment points for your cameras and Bluetooth units, you will be left hanging because some features are inadequate and others don’t exist.
Moto-Vloggers, stay away.