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HJC F70: HJC’s fiberglass sports touring full face helmet review.
The HJC F70 is designed to be a great all-rounder sports touring helmet.
It’s got a fiberglass shell – chosen to improve strength (see safety section) and slightly reduce weight over their usual polycarbonate shelled helmets. It’s also been given a slightly wider, Pinlock ready shield, (unfortunately no Pinlock included in the US), along with a drop down sun visor.
Unusually though, HJC has forgone the usual quick release shield and replaced it with an old style visor held on by a screw each side.
But on the plus side, not only is it a great looking helmet, but they’ve also added bluetooth integration in there in the form of HJC’s own Smart Intercom systems (developed by Sena).
So, the HJC F70 looks to be a mixed bag of the old and the new.
If you’re interested in finding out more, we’ve pulled together every possible nugget of information from around the web to help you make your most informed decision when buying your next helmet.
And we’ve added a few recommended alternatives at the bottom of the page too.
- Fiberglass full face helmet
- Sports touring oriented
- SHARP 4 star safety rated (ECE helmet)
- Pinlock-ready shield
- Drop down sun visor
- Double d-ring fastener
- Integrated comms unit ready
- Weighs around 3.4lbs (1.55Kg)
- 2 shell sizes
- Fitment sizes XS-XXL
- Expect to pay
- $280-$330 fiberglass
- $430-$480 carbon
- $280-$330 fiberglass
Looking to buy an HJC F70?
Please click below to visit the HJC F70 helmets pages at our recommended stores – all checked for great online ratings. And if you buy from any store, we get a small sum from the sale at no extra cost to you – a massive THANKS! (it’s how we finance the site).
Safety
(more about helmet safety)
In terms of safety features, the HJC F70 looks to be reasonably basic.
If you dig deeply enough into HJC’s blurb – and scour the web enough – it turns out there’s a slightly wider shield on the F70 to help with improved all-round vision and awareness.
And they’ve also used a tried-and-tested double-d ring strap to keep it safely fastened. They’re strong and safe fasteners – a bit more fiddly than micrometric straps if you’re new to helmet buying – but they do the job well and have been around for decades.
But that’s about it – other than the all-important helmet shell.
It’s a fiberglass shell – or Advanced Fiberglass Composite as HJC call it. If you know anything about helmets, you’ll know fiberglass has been used for aeons to construct strong and reasonably light weight helmets.
HJC makes the shell of the F70 in just two shell sizes (the smaller shell for sizes XS-M and lager shell covering L-XXL) – which is a bit poor these days.
For a mid-priced helmet like the F70, you’d expect three or more shells to be produced as they help optimize fit, looks and safety a little better (read about helmet shell sizes).
And weighing in around 3.4lbs (1.55Kg) it’s a smidge heavier than the average fiberglass helmet.
That shouldn’t cause any weight problems when you’re wearing it. Just that lighter helmets have an edge in managing energy during an impact.
OK, onto safety stats.
Unfortunately, the F70 hasn’t been independently safety tested by Snell.
Over in the UK, the independent helmet testing bods at SHARP have tested 8 ECE rated fiberglass HJC helmets. All of those helmets scored either 3 or 4 stars (out of 5) for safety (average score of 3.25).
They’re OK scores overall – but not amazing.
The good news is that when SHARP tested the F70 at the end of 2021, it scored a solid four stars for safety (out of five), meaning we reckon you can put a good amount of faith in the F70’s protection levels.
But don’t forget, these scores were for ECE certfied helmets so they may differ from the DOT versions (we just don’t know).
Of course, if you’re buying an F70 in the US, it’ll be designed to meet the DOT safety standards so it should give a good base level of protection.
But it’s always nice to be wearing a helmet that’s independently shown to offer outstanding protection.
If you want to see a range of helmets that are either Snell certified or scored four or five stars in SHARP tests – take a look at our Safest motorcycle helmets pages.
Helmet Noise
(more about helmet noise)
It’s always difficult to advise whether a helmet is noisy or quiet. That’s because it’s always dependent on a multitude of factors: how fast you ride, how good your hearing is, whether you’re behind a screen, how quiet your last helmet was – the list goes on and on.
We do sometimes come across helmets that are universally praised as quiet – and you’ll find these on our quietest helmets pages.
But with the HJC F70, we really did find opinions across the board – all the way from whisper quiet to noisy as hell.
So, it’s really going to be a question of sucking and seeing if you buy an F70. And fingers crossed you’ll be pleasantly surprised.
Ventilation
(more about helmet ventilation)
For ventilation, the F70 uses what HJC calls ACS or its Advanced Channeling system.
Essentially, that’s similar to systems you’ll find in most other helmet brands – where air is taken in through the helmet shell and directed towards the head using venting channels moulded into the EPS (expanded polystyrene) shock absorbing liner.
In the case of the F70, that involves a couple of crown vents – both covered by sliders – which direct the air through the shell and into a pair of front-back channels inside.
They then route air through to the rear exhaust vents located in that fancy moulding to the rear of the shell.
In the chin bar, there’s actually a pair of separate vents in there too.
The bottom vent is a slider and directs air around the chin and around the side of the jaw. The upper vent is opened/closed using a tipping panel to direct air onto the rear of the shield to help with demisting.
From our research, we’ve found quite a few owners commenting that venting’s good on the F70, with practically no one complaining about it except in terms of the occasional shield fogging. But that can happen with every helmet in poor conditions of course – and fitting a Pinlock should stop most of that.
Face Shield
(more about shields)
Unusually, HJC has opted to make the F70 without a quick-release, toolless face shield. Instead, you need a cross head screwdriver to remove a single screw either side to pull off the shield.
It’s no great hardship to remove, just a bit fiddly and means you have to go hunting for a screwdriver if you want to swap the shield out which might be a pain if you’re on the road.
It’s more baffling than anything, because it’s the first time in years we’ve seen a road helmet launched without a quick-change shield.
A couple of useful links…
– Quietest helmets on the market –
– Great helmets for glasses wearers –
On the plus side though, the F70’s delivered with a Pinlock-ready shield though unfortunately, if you do want the Pinlock insert, you’ll have to pay around $30 extra as it’s not included with the helmet.
Also, it has an opening tab on the bottom of the shield at either side which is good, meaning you can easily open the shield with either hand. That’s something most helmet makers don’t bother adding but can come in really handy on the road.
The shield itself works on a (soft) ratchet and HJC quote that it protects from 95% of UV rays.
That’s nice to know – though because shields are made from polycarbonate, it’s an inherent property of all shields on all helmets.
Finally, HJC has widened the shield and sun visor on the F70 for improved peripheral vision. That’s always worth having on a helmet as it’s better for safety and makes for a slightly more involved ride.
And it’s an improvement many F70 owners appreciate as we found several owners commenting that it’s got an excellent and wide field of view.
Sun Visor
(more about sun visors)
Like the main shield, the sun shield is also slightly wider than normal. And HJC quotes 99% UV protection.
If you’ve been reading any marketing blurb on the F70, you’ll have read that HJC has a patented One Touch sun visor mechanism that makes dropping and raising the sun visor super easy.
Turns out that when you drop the sun visor using the slider on the bottom left edge of the helmet, that One Touch system is just a slight detent on the slider mechanism. So when you pull the slider back to drop the sun visor down, there’s a slight bit of resistance you have to overcome – before the sun visor easily slides down.
Same for returning the sun visor back up – with that slider resistance ensuring the sun visor doesn’t drop down on its own.
And it seems to work well, because like the great field of view of the main shield, from the number of positive comments we came across, the sun visor seems to be one of the best liked features of the HJC F70.
Note: the F70 comes with a really large removable breath guard built in. The sun visor drops down to meet the breath guard so, if you remove it, you’re going to have a large area of bright light coming underneath the sun visor. That’s something quite a few riders find a real pain.
Comfort and Sizing
(more about comfort and sizing)
The HJC F70 has a medium oval internal fit. In general that means it should be suitable for most riders’ head shape.
It uses HJC’s Multicool interior which is a nice liner that’s very comfortable and pretty good for wicking sweat away. It’s antibac too and it’s fully removable and washable.
A few owners have commented that the cheek pads in the F70 can be pretty tight when you first get the helmet. This is something you’ll find in many HJC helmets. If you buy an HJC and it squeezes your cheeks lots, don’t be alarmed: they do tend to wear in quickly and get comfortable.
And if they do stay too tight, you can buy thinner replacement cheek pads from HJC to tailor the fit better.
Inside the helmet, there’s a pair of deep speaker pockets (with cutouts to take the wiring) and there’s also a couple of glasses grooves in each side too, so it should be comfortable wearing the helmet with glasses.
Finally, the fastening strap has plenty of padding on it and there’s a popper to secure the end and stop if flapping around when you’re riding.
Looks & Graphics
The HJC F70 is definitely a nicely designed helmet and with its streamlined fighter pilot inspired looks, I reckon it looks pretty cool.
Having said that, one or two owners also said that it was a bit bulkier than they expected in the flesh – I guess it looks a little more compact in pictures than it might do when you pull it out of the box?
HJC seems to agree as the range of graphics are fairly minimal, letting the form of the helmet speak for itself rather than smothering it in decals.
As well as the usual gloss/matt blacks, pearl white and stone grey solid colors, at the time of writing there’s just the Feron and Mago graphics around – each in a number of different colorways.
There is also to be a nice matt blue and new graphic called the Samos on the way though. When they’re available, you should be able to find those and any others that have been recently launched by clicking through to our recommended retailers below.
Best places to buy an HJC F70?
Please click below to visit the HJC F70 helmets pages at our recommended stores – all checked for great online ratings. And if you buy from any store, we get a small sum from the sale at no extra cost to you – a massive THANKS! (it’s how we finance the site).
HJC F70 Video
Here’s a detailed 11m look around the F70 from Chapmoto.
Other stuff – audio, chin curtain, warranty
The HJC F70 will fit most 3rd party bluetooth headsets. It has been designed to integrate with HJC’s own Smart Intercom system – either the 10B or 20B (developed in conjunction with Sena).
In fact, on paper it looks to be one of the best integrations yet with internal pockets for speakers, microphone and hollowed out sections for the wiring to snap into place.
The F70 comes with both a chin curtain and breath guard. That rubber breath guard is one of the biggest we’ve seen and should really help with shield demisting. It’s easily removable too.
Finally, the F70 comes with a decent 3 year guarantee (or 5 years from date of manufacture – whichever’s soonest).
Overall/Summary
The HJC F70 is a well liked all-rounder sports touring helmet.
It’s got most of the features you’re probably looking for in a touring helmet – namely nice wide Pinlock-ready shield, a drop down sun visor and good bluetooth headset integration.
There’s inevitably a slight question mark over whether it’ll provide class-leading impact protection simply because it’s not been independently tested yet by Snell – though the ECE version of the helmet was tested by SHARP where it scored an excellent 4 stars out of 5 for safety.
With its tried and tested venting system and comfort liner, a useful (and well liked) drop down sun visor and its attractive price point (like most HJCs) the F70 should be a trustworthy helmet that’s a comfortable and a great value buy.
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Good Alternatives to the HJC F70?
There’s a stack of full face helmets out there that have been reviewed, highly rated and safety tested. Here’s a small selection we reckon you should look at – though you might also want to check out our top 10 full face helmets list too.
First up, the Shoei RF-SR. It’s a Snell certified full face with EQRS that’s comfy, has great build quality and ventilation.
Or how about Scorpion Exo’s top flight sports touring helmet, the ST1400. It might be their top helmet but it’s only a smidge more expensive than the F70 and it’s got a sun visor and EQRS.
If you’ve got a bit more cash and want a top brand, Arai’s Signet-X is a Snell certified (and SHARP 5 star) sports touring helmet with Pinlock that’s ideal for slightly longer oval head shapes. It’s more money than the F70 though.
For slightly less than the HJC, you can have the SHARP 4 star rated (ECE version) Shark Skwal 2. Pinlock included, sun visor, 5 year warranty – and it’s got fancy built-in LEDs if that sort of thing floats your boat.
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Looking to buy an HJC F70?
Please click below to visit the HJC F70 helmets pages at our recommended stores – all checked for great online ratings. And if you buy from any store, we get a small sum from the sale at no extra cost to you – a massive THANKS! (it’s how we finance the site).
