Ol’ big ‘ead
Ol’ big ‘ead
Anyone solved the underhelmet-but-very-big hat problem? My bald head cant stand much helmet contact in warm weather. And I have quite a collection of cycling hats which just don’t quite fit under it. What i really need is a skullcap size 64 and silk. Okay, cotton if I must. I have a reflective beanie and which fits but doesn't go under a helmet. Perhaps there’s a gap in the market
Re: Ol’ big ‘ead
I use a Mavic Summer skull cap.Not sure if they're still available but there are plenty of other similar available.Very comfortable.Most a stretch lycra/polyester.I too have a clean shaven large head!nez wrote: ↑14 Jun 2021, 2:38pm Anyone solved the underhelmet-but-very-big hat problem? My bald head cant stand much helmet contact in warm weather. And I have quite a collection of cycling hats which just don’t quite fit under it. What i really need is a skullcap size 64 and silk. Okay, cotton if I must. I have a reflective beanie and which fits but doesn't go under a helmet. Perhaps there’s a gap in the market
Re: Ol’ big ‘ead
The trouble with deporvillage is that nice Mr Johnson has arranged things so the price may or may not double or treble depending on the caprice of customs officers/presentation charges etc. Who knows? But I've just turned to only buying things from UK sources.Hellhound wrote: ↑14 Jun 2021, 3:28pm https://www.deporvillage.net/cap-mavic- ... EoQAvD_BwE
or Decathlon do their own
https://www.decathlon.co.uk/p/aquafreez ... 93&c=WHITE
Re: Ol’ big ‘ead
They're also available on Amazon.
Castelli also do a similar cap available from Wiggle/Merlin etc.
Castelli also do a similar cap available from Wiggle/Merlin etc.
Re: Ol’ big ‘ead
If cost is a factor, then you can do what I do with my full-faced mountain bike helmets for free:
1. Find some material which fits the bill, i.e. stretchy, synthetic, lightweight, thin-yet-padded, breathable and perforated. The stuff that Mavic skullcap above is made out of looks like the sort of thing you're after, although I found some thin. spongy, honeycomb-textured/perforated material which looks more breathable and comfortable. Think laterally when hunting it down: I noticed some synthetic pillow cases I bought a few years ago from Lidl are also made of exactly the right stuff.
2. Turn a flat sheet of it into a cone. i.e. cut a 'clock-face' out of it and cut a slit from 12 o'clock to the centre, then pull the edges in so the '12 o'clock' position would be sitting on the 9 o'clock position - or wherever necessary to make the cone roughly approximate your head size. Then use one or two stitches (or glue) to set it in this position. Use scissors to trim off the overlapped section and to give it a roughly round shape.
3. Stuff this cone inside the helmet. If the material is stretchy and you've sized it right, the cone will mould into the helmet, completely covering and padding the helmet's internal fittings when you put it on your head. It should stay in position when you take the helmet off, and it should flare out into the helmet (as opposed to a cap, which will be held snugly onto your head with elastic) which means you're maximising the chance of a bit of air reaching your skin.
Doing long, steep climbs between downhill runs is the last thing you'd want to do in a full-faced helmet, but so far I've not had to resort to stuffing the helmet in my rucksack on the way up - this system works well enough with the helmet's vents to keep things tolerably cool and comfortable. In this hot weather, the material will still be drenched after a hard session, but you can whip it out and wash it easily. It takes a couple of minutes to make each one, so you could make a few to swap out. After using mine for a few months, I've not yet needed to clean the actual padding that's built in to the helmet, which saves a lot of hassle. Also, if you immediately dry the cone out after use (I just leave it on a window-sill in the sun) the bacteria doesn't get the chance to do its thing, and you can actually get away with reusing it several times without it giving any indication whatsoever that it's been used. (I also leave the helmet upside down on the window sill to be certain that any dampness gets dried out immediately, but this is just belt-and-braces - it's always seemed to be dry anyway.)
I came up with this after my previous experience using an open-faced helmet without this skull-cap thing. The thing was uncomfortable, the helmet didn't fit particularly well on my head and was probably something of a bio-hazard as cleaning out the internal padding was nigh-on impossible.
1. Find some material which fits the bill, i.e. stretchy, synthetic, lightweight, thin-yet-padded, breathable and perforated. The stuff that Mavic skullcap above is made out of looks like the sort of thing you're after, although I found some thin. spongy, honeycomb-textured/perforated material which looks more breathable and comfortable. Think laterally when hunting it down: I noticed some synthetic pillow cases I bought a few years ago from Lidl are also made of exactly the right stuff.
2. Turn a flat sheet of it into a cone. i.e. cut a 'clock-face' out of it and cut a slit from 12 o'clock to the centre, then pull the edges in so the '12 o'clock' position would be sitting on the 9 o'clock position - or wherever necessary to make the cone roughly approximate your head size. Then use one or two stitches (or glue) to set it in this position. Use scissors to trim off the overlapped section and to give it a roughly round shape.
3. Stuff this cone inside the helmet. If the material is stretchy and you've sized it right, the cone will mould into the helmet, completely covering and padding the helmet's internal fittings when you put it on your head. It should stay in position when you take the helmet off, and it should flare out into the helmet (as opposed to a cap, which will be held snugly onto your head with elastic) which means you're maximising the chance of a bit of air reaching your skin.
Doing long, steep climbs between downhill runs is the last thing you'd want to do in a full-faced helmet, but so far I've not had to resort to stuffing the helmet in my rucksack on the way up - this system works well enough with the helmet's vents to keep things tolerably cool and comfortable. In this hot weather, the material will still be drenched after a hard session, but you can whip it out and wash it easily. It takes a couple of minutes to make each one, so you could make a few to swap out. After using mine for a few months, I've not yet needed to clean the actual padding that's built in to the helmet, which saves a lot of hassle. Also, if you immediately dry the cone out after use (I just leave it on a window-sill in the sun) the bacteria doesn't get the chance to do its thing, and you can actually get away with reusing it several times without it giving any indication whatsoever that it's been used. (I also leave the helmet upside down on the window sill to be certain that any dampness gets dried out immediately, but this is just belt-and-braces - it's always seemed to be dry anyway.)
I came up with this after my previous experience using an open-faced helmet without this skull-cap thing. The thing was uncomfortable, the helmet didn't fit particularly well on my head and was probably something of a bio-hazard as cleaning out the internal padding was nigh-on impossible.
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axel_knutt
- Posts: 2920
- Joined: 11 Jan 2007, 12:20pm
Re: Ol’ big ‘ead
When I can't find what I want, I make my own. That Mavic cap looks just like the sun hat I made from a white hanky. I started off using knotted hankies, then sewed up one into the same shape to save keep tying the knots.
“I'm not upset that you lied to me, I'm upset that from now on I can't believe you.”
― Friedrich Nietzsche
― Friedrich Nietzsche
Re: Ol’ big ‘ead
The Mavic(and all I've seen) skullcaps are very stretchy.I've never seen a stretchy hanky.axel_knutt wrote: ↑14 Jun 2021, 6:10pm When I can't find what I want, I make my own. That Mavic cap looks just like the sun hat I made from a white hanky. I started off using knotted hankies, then sewed up one into the same shape to save keep tying the knots.
You can pick these type of skull caps up for as little as £3.Why bother to bodge your own for the sake of a couple of quid
