For helmet care products and guidance, see handcrafted helmet shell.

The trade off is scale. A workshop like this will never produce helmets as fast as a large factory, and that is treated as acceptable, since the aim is a considered, well finished helmet rather than the fastest one to market.

A handcrafted helmet shell starts with a base material, commonly fibreglass or a composite blend, layered and shaped by hand rather than produced purely by mould and machine. Each layer adds strength, and the shaping stage is where a lot of the time in production actually goes.

Getting helmet sizing right starts with a proper head measurement, taken with a soft tape around the largest part of the head, just above the eyebrows and ears. That figure points to a starting size, Hedon.com but it is only a starting point, since head shape varies as much as head size.

A jacket built for riding, rather than a fashion jacket that merely looks the part, adds abrasion resistance across the shoulders and elbows, and many include pockets for armour inserts. Boots that cover the ankle protect a joint that takes real force in an off, and trousers or riding jeans extend that same protection down the leg.

To find out more about the made to order process, visit made to order helmet.