Duchinni D606 budget flip-front motorcycle helmet review.

They might sound Italian, but Duchinni are a Chinese helmet maker, known for making lower priced polycarbonate helmets.

The Duchinni D606 is their latest flip up helmet, designed as an all rounder, so needs to work anywhere from your daily commute all the way up to a more serious multi-day tour.

Obviously, that low price point is a very attractive feature of the D606, and when SHARP UK tested it and awarded it a remarkable 4/5 star safety rating, then it really grabbed our attention.

Four stars is a great rating – especially for a helmet at this price. So we thought we’d take a closer look and find out what the Duchinni D606 offers for the money. And while there’s not a ton of information out there, we try and discover what owners around the web think of their D606s.

• Thermoplastic Modular Helmet

  

• SHARP 4 star safety rated (yay)
• But low 30% chin guard lock score (boo)
• Drop down sun visor
• Micrometric fastener
• Not DOT certified (US)
• ECE certified (Eu)
• Sizes XS-XL
• Expect to pay around $100
  

[xyz-ihs snippet=”Duch-multi-quick”]

Safety

(more about helmet safety)

OK, first up – note, the Duchinni D606 isn’t DOT certified so not legal for use in mandatory helmet states.

If that’s not an issue for you (or you live outside the DOT zone) then the next thing to note is that the Duchinni D606 is obviously built to a budget. But to be legally sold in the ECE zone (that’s Europe, Australia and a few other countries) it’s still had to undergo (and pass) the same batch of safety tests that all helmets need to pass.

ECE 22.05 testing in Europe means that the budget D606 has passed the same range of tests that even the most expensive premium helmets have had to pass. Which also means, if you buy a 606, you’re guaranteed at least the same minimum level of protection as you would with every other helmet on the market.

But beyond that, it was picked up by the independent SHARP helmet testing labs in the UK too and subjected to their batch of 32 tests.

It’s only produced in one helmet shell (most helmets these days are produced in multiple shell sizes). But, to its credit, it scored a massive four star rating. That’s better than lots of premium and expensive helmets can manage once SHARP gets to work on them.

Obviously, that’s fantastic.

But before you get your credit card out, that’s not the whole story.

SHARP also notes how often the chin guards unlock during testing. It’s a modular helmet and that means the chin guard needs to give protection as well as the shell. And it if the chin bar opens during an impact, it’s probably not gonna be able to do that, right?

Well, during SHARP testing, the D606 chin guard stayed locked a mere 30% of the time. That means 70% of the time it became unlocked: not necessarily becoming fully open (they don’t indicate that), but it became unlocked nevertheless.

And you probably don’t need me to tell you: THAT’S NOT A GOOD THING!

OK, if that’s not enough to convince you to move on and look for a different lid (maybe by checking out our recommended alternatives at the bottom of the page), then here’s some of the other safety features you can expect from the D606.

There’s not a massive amount really. There’s a micrometric fastener – they’re fine and easy to use. And they’re safe, as long as you readjust them from time to time after the chin strap stretches (which it will naturally through use).

If you’re looking for a modular you can (legally in the ECE zone) use with the chin bar up like an open face, then you should look at our dual-homologated modular pages, because the D606 is only legal to ride in with the chin bar down.

Of course fitment is key to getting a helmet that gives great protection. In fact it’s probably the most important factor; wearing a loose helmet will significantly reduce the ability of a helmet to absorb energy – and protect you – during an impact.

And in the worst cases, your helmet might well come off – so follow our fitment guide and always make sure you’re wearing a correctly fitting helmet and ensure your helmet’s tightly done up.

Helmet Noise

(more about helmet noise)

There’s not a massive amount of info out there as to how noisy the D606 is. Modular/flip front helmets are always a bit noisier than the similar full face helmets, so expect to be a bit disappointed.

Having said that, the opinions we’ve found around the web rated the D606 as reasonably quiet for a modular.

Ventilation

(more about helmet ventilation)

There’s a pretty typical configuration of vents on the Duchinni D606.

That means a single, central chin vent and a couple of crown vents.

All vents can be opened/closed, although those top two vents work separately and use slightly small, slightly fiddly sliders to independently close them.

The top vents both route air through the helmet shell and into channels in the polystyrene lining to take air towards the scalp. And there’s a rear exhaust vent at the back of that small spoiler, to let the warm air escape.

The vents are OK – though the chin vent isn’t enough to keep the shield from steaming up if things get wet/cold – but then few vents on any helmets are good enough to keep things clear on their own. They need an anti-fog solution to help them out otherwise they mist up.

Unfortunately, there isn’t a Pinlock anti fog insert available for the Duchinni.

Shield

(more about shields)

Like all shields, it’s an anti-scratch shield that gives 90%+ UV protection too. That’s not unique to Duchinni – it’s a common property in all polycarbonate shields.

The shield has a couple of opening points only – it’s either closed, half way open or fully open. So, if you like riding along with a ‘cracked open’ shield to demist, you’ll struggle with the D606. That’s a bit of an oversight for a helmet that doesn’t have a Pinlock available too.

The shield is quick release, so you should be able to quickly remove it to wash or replace it. Only… apparently it doesn’t come with instructions on how to remove it. From the pictures, it very much looks like you should open the shield, pull the red spring-loaded slider and the shield will pop out. But that’s a guess based on how other similar shield systems work (and there isn’t an official Duchinni website to tell us otherwise!).

Sun Visor

(more about sun visors)

The D606 has a built in drop down sun visor. It’s operated by that big red slider on the bottom left rim of the helmet.

That’s usually the most convenient place to put it – unless you’re looking to mount a bluetooth communicator to your helmet in which case, it’ll be right in your way!

The sun visor can be positioned anywhere between fully down or fully up, giving you a bit of welcome flexibility (some allow fully-down only).

Overall, the sun visor on the D606 seems to work just fine.

Chin Guard

(more about chin guards)

Owners seem to like how the chin guard on the D606 operates too. It can be a bit clunky at first, but apparently it smooths out over time and is generally nice and easy to use.

That’s helped by the one-button operation, making it simple to press the button (located on the inside of the chin bar) and open the chin guard in one movement.

What’s not so great – as detailed in the safety section above – is that 70% of the time during SHARP testing, the chin guard came unlocked. It’s possible that one-button movement isn’t helping the D606 out; they tend to be a bit easier to unlock than multibutton chin guards.

But either way, that 70% figure is very poor for a piece of protective gear. It’s not the worst we’ve seen though: step forward the now obsolete Marushin M401 – that scored a staggeringly poor 83%!

And of course, the Duchinni D606 is only ECE certified to be ridden with the chin guard down (check out our dual homologated helmet reviews if you’re after a flip-up helmet that you can legally use with the chin guard up -Europe-relevant only).

If you’re looking for the best safety rated modulars, visit our smart filters page and choose ‘modular’ and ‘safest’. Otherwise, it’s worth noting that all of the SHARP tested Nolan’s modulars have scored 100% for their chin guards staying locked and closed during testing – with AGV in second place.

And of course you can visit our top 10 Modular helmets page!

Comfort and Sizing

(more about comfort and sizing)

Obviously the D606 is a budget modular helmet. But that said, owners seem to think that the interior is of decent quality.

It doesn’t have any fancy fabrics in there but owners say it’s comfortable enough (providing you follow a decent helmet fitting guide to get the right size in the first place).

It’s also removable and washable.

Looks & Graphics

You can have a Duchinni D606 in any color you want – as long as it’s either plain black or white!

Hmm. Not ideal, but to be fair they’ve probably covered the most popular colors!

In case they release any others, please feel free to click through to our partner retailers’ Duchinni helmets pages using the links below – where you’ll find any new graphics and deals/offers.

[xyz-ihs snippet=”Duch-multi”]

Other stuff – weight, build quality, warranty

The Duchinni D606 weighs around 3.5lbs (1.6Kg) which is slightly lighter than the average of 3.7lbs (1.68Kg) across all modulars.

Taking into account that it is very much at the entry-level, budget end of the market, owners say it’s got a decent build quality with a solid feel and materials that don’t feel overly cheap. One owner said the vent openings were a bit flimsy but other than that, most comments are OK.

All Duchinnis only come with a one year warranty.

Overall/Summary

As with most budget helmets, you have to judge it in the context of that low price tab.

And for the money, you’re getting a lot of helmet with a decent build quality, drop down sun visor, multi-point ventilation and a modern design.

As a helmet for the daily commute, it should be OK. You can’t ride with that chin guard up of course (your helmet needs to be P/J certified for that) and the limited visor positions might become a bit of a pain. Oh, and it might fog up when it’s cold in the morning due to a lack of anti-fog. But, it should be comfortable enough and isn’t too noisy.

And while it scored a remarkable SHARP 4 star safety rating, that chin guard only stayed locked 30% of the time, which we’d find a big worry. But if you don’t, then for not very much money, you’ll get a decent, usable flip-front helmet.

[xyz-ihs snippet=”Link-to-guides-page”]

Good Alternatives to the Duchinni D606

Having said all that, there’s plenty of alternative modulars out there with better safety ratings and without all the foibles of the Duchinni.

First off you should check out the Caberg Duke – a SHARP 5 star rated modular with Pinlock and sun visor. It’s dual homologated too.

Or how about the 4 star rated HJC IS Max II – integrated sun visor, low price – and the chin guard stayed locked 100% of the time, which is always nice to know when you’re sliding down the road!

And for a bigger name (but with a bigger price tag too) there’s the AGV Compact. That’s a SHARP 4 star safety rated, dual homologated modular that’s comfortable and with good ventilation.

[xyz-ihs snippet=”Duch-multi-quick”]

[xyz-ihs snippet=”mod-helmets”]

Star Ratings