LS2 FF808 Stream II Helmet – Fury Black/Red

Fury runs hard angular blocks back from the visor aperture in red over gloss black. It is the sports-bike graphic of the range and makes no apology for it.

Four stars from SHARP

Independent test results are rare on affordable helmets, which is what makes this one worth stating plainly: SHARP, the UK Department for Transport's helmet programme, rated the Stream II four stars out of five in September 2024, testing the ECE 22.06 version.

SHARP's method is destructive and anonymous — helmets bought at retail, thirty-two per model, five zones, three speeds. The Stream II scored the maximum across every zone at the two lower speeds. At 8.5 m/s the crown and front held their maximum while the sides scored three. Read against the rest of the programme, that is a strong result for a helmet in this bracket.

Read the full SHARP result for the LS2 Stream 2

About the Fury Black/Red finish

Red does the shouting, black carries the surface, and the gloss coat keeps the edges between them crisp — on matt the blocks would soften into one another and the drawing would lose its snap. The panels are cut steeply enough that the helmet looks like it is moving even on a shelf. Gloss black also cleans up in seconds, which matters on a graphic with this much dark area.

Multi-density EPS — the part you never see

The shell is KPA, a thermoplastic, but the interesting part is underneath it. The Stream II uses multi-density EPS: the polystyrene liner is not one uniform block but several densities bonded together, softer where the impact needs to be slowed gently and firmer where it has to be stopped.

Twin Visor: two screens, one shell

A drop-down tinted sun visor is fitted as standard. It is the feature riders miss most when they move from a helmet that has one to a helmet that does not, and on a low winter sun it is worth more than any amount of shell material. Deployed on a slider, stowed completely inside the shell.

Laser-cut foam

Inside, the padding is laser-cut, which is what allows the interior to be shaped precisely rather than approximately. The practical result is a fit that stays consistent: die-cut foam distorts at its edges from the moment it is made, laser-cut foam does not.

What the ECE 22.06 plaque actually means

Worth a paragraph, because most shops leave it as a line in a table. ECE 22.06 tests up to eighteen impact points where 22.05 tested five, uses more than one impact speed, and — the substantive change — measures rotational acceleration through an oblique drop onto an angled, abrasive anvil.

Straight-line impact was always the easier problem. Rotation is what a real crash usually delivers, and it is what damages the brain at energies a shell survives comfortably. The standard also brings the visor and every fitted accessory into the test, and has been mandatory for new helmets sold in the EU since January 2024.

Fit and shell sizes

3 shell sizes cover XXS to 3XL. On a helmet built around a single shell, the smallest size carries a mid-size shell's worth of polystyrene: it looks oversized, it weighs more than it should, and the EPS is thicker than the size needs. Splitting the range across 3 tools avoids that at both ends.

Airflow

Air enters at the chin and the crown and leaves through the rear exhaust port, with a breath deflector behind the chin bar keeping exhaled air off the visor. It is a straightforward layout — the Stream II does not claim ducted EPS, and we are not going to claim it for it.

The Pinlock question

Pinlock preparation is built in: pins fitted, screen cut for a 70 MaxVision lens. The insert itself is a separate purchase, part DKS521, and it sits in the accessories below. An anti-fog lens is the difference between seeing and guessing at a set of traffic lights in November.

Holding on

A ratchet buckle, a reinforced strap and a reflective patch built into the shell. The patch is the detail worth noticing — most manufacturers supply reflective stickers and leave it to you; here some of the conspicuity is permanent.

1550 grams

1550 grams (±50 g), mid-size shell, no accessories — the industry convention, so the number is comparable with any other manufacturer's. What it buys you is fatigue: neck strain over a long ride is a function of mass, and a hundred grams that mean nothing in a showroom mean a great deal at the end of a four-hour stint.

Within our own LS2 line-up only 5 helmets are lighter, and each of them costs more.

On noise

Nobody publishes a decibel figure for this helmet and we are not going to invent one. What can be said is where the noise comes from: turbulence at the base of the shell, air entering under the chin bar, and open vents. A chin curtain is fitted as standard, and it is the single most effective piece of quiet in the box — provided it stays in the helmet after you clean it. The Stream II carries a sun-visor housing, which widens the shell slightly at the temples compared with a helmet that does without one.

The rest is not the helmet's doing. A tall screen that pushes dirty air straight at your head will make any lid loud, and a naked bike at 130 km/h will beat the best-sealed helmet on the market. Earplugs remain the cheapest upgrade in motorcycling.

Where it sits in our LS2 range

Eight LS2 full-face models are listed here. The Stream II is the only one of them carrying an independent safety rating.

When something wears out

Worth knowing before you buy rather than after: everything on this helmet that wears out can be replaced individually. Liners in all eight sizes seven replacement visors from clear to iridium, both the clear and the tinted sun visor, the ratchet mechanism, nose guard, chin curtain, chin strap cover and vent covers in five finishes.

The interior is the part that decides how long the helmet stays honest. Sweat and hair oils break down the foam, the fit loosens, and riders conclude the helmet is finished when the shell is untouched. The full parts list is in the FF808 Stream II Kit.

In the box

• LS2 FF808 Stream II helmet — Fury Black/Red
• Carrying bag
• Reflective stickers

Specification

• Shell — KPA, three shell sizes (2XS–S / M–L / XL–3XL)
• Weight — 1550 g (±50 g)
• Sizes — XXS to 3XL (eight sizes)
• Homologation — ECE 22.06
• Independent rating — SHARP 4 out of 5 stars (tested September 2024)
• Impact liner — multi-density EPS
• Retention — ratchet buckle, reflective safety patch
• Visor — scratch-resistant, UV-stable, quick-release system
• Anti-fog — prepared for Pinlock® 70 MaxVision™ (insert not supplied, part DKS521)
• Sun visor — Twin Visor System, integrated and tinted
• Ventilation — top intake, chin intake, exhaust port, breath deflector
• Liner — maximum-comfort interior, laser-cut foam, hypoallergenic, removable and washable
• Chin curtain — included
• Intercom — prepared for the current LS2 Bluetooth system
• Finish — Fury graphic, gloss