How To Install Tear Off Posts

I thought I'd take the time to write a tutorial on visor tear offs or tear aways as they're sometimes known, as there isn't a lot of information on the interweb. Many may be well versed with the subject; this article is aimed at those unfamiliar with tear offs.

First off, who am I and what makes me so smart? Not much. I'm little more than a hack, but with some open wheel car racing experience, can provide some first hand insight.

So what is a tear off, exactly? A tear off is a thin, plastic film, usually clear, applied to the exterior of the helmet visor. When the visor becomes dirty, the rider pulls or tears off the film leaving a clean visor beneath. Tear off, get it? They are most commonly used in racing applications, for both motorcycle and open wheel car racers. MX racers are well familiar with tears offs, but theirs are specific to their goggles. This article deals with installation on a typical full face street motorcycle helmet.

Sounds good, but why bother? Indeed, most riders are content with stopping and cleaning the visor with conventional means, such as paper towels and water, wet naps, commercially available sprays, etc. Tear offs, on the other hand, offer an instant "no stop" solution, and also appeal to the boy racer in all of us. Tear offs might be particularly beneficial to those with the high dollar and very delicate mirrored visors.

Tear offs can be applied to any visor, regardless of tint, as long as the visor is equipped with tear off posts. Some Arai, Shoei, and HJC visors, among others perhaps, are available with posts, while some AGV and Shark helmets are so equipped right out of the box. The HJC RPS-10, and possibly others, can accommodate both tear offs and a Pin Lock anti fog insert through a shared post and pin assembly. For visors where posts are not available, one could install a generic set, but you'd do so entirely at your own risk. The visor must be thick enough to support posts and placement is absolutely critical.

Tear offs should be applied only to 2D visors, that is a flat one without a compound curve. The tear off(s) must lay flat across the visor, thus a visor curved from top to bottom is not suitable.

Application is simple and straight forward. The tear off has a pull tab on one end. The user must decide which hand he'd prefer to use to remove it. For us motorcycle riders, I suggest pulling with the left. The tear off is mounted over the post on the right side, then pulled across and mounted over the left post. Most posts are attached in an eccentric fashion, so slight tension can be applied by rotating the posts to ensure the tear off lays flat and snug across the visor. There must be no wrinkles.

One could leave it at that, and ride away happily…but only for a moment. Once up to about 30kph or more, the tab will beat against the helmet and make a most unpleasant and annoying racket. This continuous beating will eventually shred the tab leaving little for the rider grasp.

The solution is to cut the tab short and apply a small piece of 200mph tape (duct tape, right?) which can be used as a "handle". If installing more than one tear off, the taped tabs should be folded over with the edge tucked under the post. When a tear off is removed, the tab of the next one will pop out.

As for the subject of litter, racers simply let 'em fly, but I'd rather not leave my crap behind me on public roads, so I stuff the used ones in a pocket. Pull it off at a stop light or at sixty miles per hour, it makes no difference.

Depending on optical quality, the tear offs can be stacked. Two or three conventional style tear offs are the most I will stack during the day, and certainly not more than two at night. Optics will be slightly compromised, more so at night. I notice twinkly headlights in the dark from oncoming traffic.

When riding in the rain or dense fog, ditch the tear offs. Water will accumulate between the visor and the T/O, compromising one's vision.

A box of 200 conventional tear offs costs about $25.00. Laminated tear offs, available in stacks of three, seven, or ten offer much better clarity but are considerably more expensive and difficult to find.

City riders will likely scoff at the use of tear offs, but when riding in rural areas, particularly during bug season, they are well worth it. One all day tour or a spring ride at night will prove their usefulness.

As tear offs aren't widely used in street motorcycle riding, they can be a challenge to obtain. Some motorcycle shops might help, but most won't have a clue what you are talking about. The internet or auto racing speed shops are your best bet. Here are several examples:

www.bicknellracingproducts.com, www.racingoptics.com, www.southwestspeed.com, www.pitstopusa.com

Before and after photos:

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The illustrated instruction tutorial. We'll use my HJC RPS-10 to demonstrate. The tear offs are for an old Simpson RX, but luckily they fit the HJC visor rather well.