LS2 FF808 Stream II Helmet – Solid Nardo Grey

Nardo grey is the shade that reads as a decision rather than as an absence of colour — cool, slightly blue-leaning, and the easiest thing here to put on a motorcycle you already own.

Four stars from SHARP

Four stars out of five from SHARP, tested September 2024 in ECE 22.06 form. That deserves unpacking, because it is the reason to read the rest of this page. SHARP buys helmets at retail rather than accepting samples from manufacturers, then destroys thirty-two of each model across five zones at three impact speeds.

The Stream II returned the maximum score at every zone at 6 m/s and 7.5 m/s. At the programme's hardest 8.5 m/s impact the crown and front still scored five; the sides dropped to three, which is what kept it from a fifth star. Very few helmets at this money have been tested at all, let alone come back with this.

Read the full SHARP result for the LS2 Stream 2

About the Solid Nardo Grey finish

Gloss Nardo shifts between silver and slate depending on the light, which is why it works across so many bikes. It hides road film far better than white and looks considerably less severe than matt black, while the clear coat gives the shell's curves something to catch. If you want a helmet that will still suit the next motorcycle, this is the one to buy.

Multi-density EPS — the part you never see

Under the KPA shell sits a multi-density polystyrene liner. That is unusual at this price: most entry-level helmets use one density throughout because it is cheaper to mould. Several densities bonded together means the liner can be soft where a slow crush absorbs best and firm where it must not bottom out.

Twin Visor: two screens, one shell

The Twin Visor System is exactly what the name says: two screens on one shell. The outer visor takes the weather; a tinted inner screen drops down with a slider when the sun does and retracts fully into the shell when it does not. No swapping visors at the roadside, no sunglasses under a helmet.

Laser-cut foam

Laser-cut foam is not something entry-level helmets usually carry. Cutting the padding with a laser rather than stamping it gives precise, sealed edges — the padding sits truer against the head and compresses more evenly over a season than crushed die-cut foam does.

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 shells, XXS to 3XL. It is the sensible middle ground: not the six-shell extravagance of a race helmet, and a long way from the one-size-fits-all moulding that makes small helmets look inflated and heavy.

Airflow

Two intakes and an exhaust port, with a breath deflector to keep your own breath off the screen. A simpler system than the Storm III's, and one that does what a commuting and back-road helmet needs. Exhaust ports matter more than most riders realise: without an outlet, intakes move very little air.

The Pinlock question

The visor is prepared for a Pinlock 70 MaxVision insert but does not come with one. The insert is part DKS521 — it also fits the FF820 Rapid III — and it is the first thing worth buying for this helmet if you ride in cold or wet weather.

Holding on

The chin strap uses a ratchet fastener rather than double-D rings: for a helmet you take on and off several times a day that is the practical choice, and it adjusts in small increments so the strap ends up genuinely tight. LS2 also fit a reflective safety patch as standard.

1550 grams

The scales say 1550 g (±50), taken on a mid-size shell with nothing added to it. Weight is the specification riders under-rate at the counter and over-rate after a long day — a helmet is a mass on the end of a lever, and the lever is your neck. Wind load at motorway speed compounds it.

Placed against the rest of our LS2 range, only 5 models undercut it, all of them more expensive.

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 — Solid Nardo Grey
• 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 — Solid Nardo grey, gloss