Bell Tater Child Helmet

For 2014, the Bell Tater has an improved fit but has lost its inbuilt flashing back lights.

A few years ago my children owned helmets to beat all others. The reason for their pride was that their helmets flashed. I was happy with the added visibility (not that they often went out after dark) and they hadn't been so pleased since Clarks put LEDs in their shoes that lit up with each footfall.

I was therefore, quite disappointed to discover that the new Tater helmet has lost ir flashers. Where they once were are now little reflective stickers - a poor substitute. The new 'improved' version even costs £5 more than the old one.

Bell has improved its chin fitting device in this new model, ditching the padded buckle for a sliding ratchet, design that's finding its way on to several kids and youth helmets out this year. The ratchet system avoids the perennial parental problem of getting your little darling's flesh caught in the buckle and gives a snug fit that is easily adjustable. In the swap they have lost the chin pad, leaving the plastic exposed straight on to skin, which could be made more comfortable.

The Tater uses Bell's OneStep fit system. Instead of the straps being adjustable behind the head and under the ears, Bell have gone for an elasticated back strap and flexible plastic which in theory puts the ear and chin straps in the right place every time. This works best towards the upper end of the given head circumference range of 47-53 cm, as the elastic then has a good degree of tension in it to hold the helmet securely on your child's head.

The plastic straps are able to be adjusted by snapping them into and out of a series of holes to give an overall larger or smaller fit. I'm not saying that I didn't read the instructions, but this feature wasn't clear unless you looked very carefully at the inside of the helmet. I am also not convinced at the longevity of the plastic once it has been clicked in and out of place a few times.

The Tater's padding surpasses that found on all the other children's helmets I've come across. It has a juicy, deep feeling and stretches around the forehead without threading through plastic holders like most other makes. The padding is covered in mesh and does a great job of soaking up sweat and giving a comfy feel to this quite large and heavy helmet. With only seven vents it can get quite sweaty and weighing 285g on our scales (published weight 295g) it is one of the heaviest kids' lids we've had in to test this year. In addition to the weight, the Tater looks quite chunky and has a moulded peak which extends a full 5cm from the child's forehead. This adds to the oversized look and made our mini-tester look rather top-heavy.

The Tater is available in four colour schemes - two monster themed, one under the sea and the tested helmet which had pink chihuahuas riding bikes; our tester liked the brightness of the helmet she was wearing. In fact, she was happy to wear it both on the bike and in the house while watching TV, which I'm taking to mean it was comfortable to wear.

This helmet's stated size is for heads ranging from 47cm to 53cm in circumference. In practice, this worked out to fit children about 3-6 years old, but always measure your own child's head before buying.

Verdict

Comfortable but slightly bulky helmet for a little person