The Fox Mainframe helmet is at the budget end of the Fox helmet line up, so keeps features to a minimum yet still packs in MIPS protection.
Brand: Fox
Product: Mainframe MIPS helmet
From: foxracing.com
Price: £79.99
Tested: by Hannah for 2 months
Three things I’d change
- More wrapping of the EPS foam with the outer shell
- A light mount for night riding would be handy.
- Nope, I don’t need anything else really.
Three things I liked
- MIPS at this price.
- It just fits without any faff.
- You get the features you need, but not those you don’t
This Fox Mainframe helmet keeps things simple: the visor is in a fixed position, the fastening is a standard plastic buckle – no magnets, and it makes no claims for having eyewear or goggles stowage. What is does have is MIPS. So your money is going head (and brain) protection rather than any functional accoutrements.
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The Fox Mainframe is constructed from EPS foam with a hard outer shell. As with many budget helmets the shell does not full encase the EPS, leaving it exposed around the edges – so take a little extra care not to accidentally dint the foam. The helmet is fitted securely via a dial and flat plastic cradle that tightens as you turn the dial. At the back of the helmet you can adjust the height of where the cradle sits.
The straps attach into the helmet body outside the cradle, keeping the straps nice and clear of your glasses, hair or buff. There’s no way to adjust how high the jaw pieces sit, but you can shift them fore and aft through plastic Y attachments. The chin strap is separate to the straps joining the Y to the helmet, making adjustment nice and simple – I’ve had helmets where each strap is all one piece, creating a sort of Mobius loop when you start trying to adjust the fit. The chin straps join with a simple plastic buckle.
There are 13 vents on the helmet, and a fixed peak. Coverage around the head is pretty extensive, though there is quite a large cutaway around the dial for adjusting the fit. It’s claimed the size Medium weighs 390g, my scales said 370g.
Fox Mainframe – On The Trail
Despite the apparent lack of features, this has quickly become by go-to helmet for just riding along riding. On my head it is instantly comfortable, with no pressure points or bits where I have to get my glass/hair/helmet arranged just so. I just put it on and ride. It feels light on my head, and plenty ventilated – it really is a fit and forget helmet.
I wear glasses to see – and if I’m wearing contacts I’m really careful about getting grit in my eyes so still prefer to wear glasses of some sort – so I rarely get the benefit of any eyewear stowage or goggles port. That means I didn’t miss the absence of such features here.
I do occasionally like to adjust the position of my peak – in low sun or windy conditions perhaps – and there were a couple of times it would have been nice to adjust it, but on the whole I didn’t mind the fixed peak. It’s in the right place for most of my riding – just in my peripheral vision but not in the way – and the fact that it’s fixed means it doesn’t annoyingly come loose on a descent because a bolt needs tightening.
I haven’t used this helmet for night riding as the MIPS fits quite closely to the helmet and doesn’t allow me to thread any of my velcro light straps through. If you one of those fittings that sits in a vent, you’d have to have your light off centre, as there’s no central vent.
Fox Mainframe Overall
This may be pared down on the feature front, but what features it has are done well. I do think that the exposed EPS foam will reduce the lifespan of the helmet over some more expensive ones, but aside from that I can’t really think of any reason why you wouldn’t buy this helmet. If your head is the same sort of shape as mine, I think you’ll find it comfortable and functional. It’s got the minimum features I want: MIPS and comfort, and I’m happy to keep reaching for it for all open face riding duties.
