Using your V2 Sponge safely.
We do our best to keep abreast of all developments in the European visor market that could affect your use and enjoyment of our V2 Sponge product, but as the market changes constantly and quickly we do recommend the end-user takes a cautious approach and always tests the product on a small non-critical area of their own visor to ensure their satisfaction before pressing the product into day-to-day use.
The only issue still on our radar at this time (2022 start) are some legacy AGV products from the period 2008-2018 that did ship with a coating on the OE visor called "NFS" (No-Fog Shield). The NFS coating is notoriously fragile, sometimes even delaminating in dealers showrooms before sale (see pic for NFS logo and example of delaminating. (For full details of the NFS coating, see bottom of page)
Currently (2019 end ) we believe there are no new AGV helmets being shipped with non-compatible coatings for use with a V2 Sponge. As with ALL helmet visors we recommend testing the product on a non-central, non-critical area first to make sure you are happy with the result. Our product is benchmarked to work with visors that comply to the abrasion test which forms part of the ECE-22-05 helmet standard.
The last UK models we are aware of that had the NFS coating were the K3 and AX-open and AX-8 MX lids. The Pista GP had double NFS coating, but only on the inside, which should be fine as the V2 Sponge is clearly labelled and recommended for use on the outside of ECE-22-05 (or equivalent standard) compatible visors only.
Other UK models have moved to Pinlock for their anti-fog protection, and the visor coatings on those as with all previous AGV visors should be fine for use with a V2 Sponge.
Pinlock provision varies country by country, and the NFS stayed in widespread use on the continent and in other markets after the UK moved to Pinlock.
Every previous AGV replacement visor we have tested without Pinlock provision (no NFS) was ok.
NFS coating - the full story.
The NFS coating was AGV’s response to the demand for OE visor anti-fog functionality in the market in the mid 2000’s, but sadly represented a cost-cutting departure from the usual methodology of using an abrasion resistant coating on the outside and and a separate anti-fog coating on the inside.
Introduced simultaneously to AGV’s low and middle end production being moved to China in the middle of 2008, the NFS coating was applied to both sides of the visor on the basis that it could fulfil both tasks. Sadly, the way anti-fog coatings work by flattening water beads invariably created a softening of the coating. When softened the abrasion resistance disappears - users have reported a single wipe of a glove on a wet journey to have permanently degraded the coating and our own experience when testing mirrors this. Sadly the abrasion resistance of the coating is adequate when dry, which is how it squeezed through the ECE 22-05 standard’s abrasion test conducted with dry sand being dropped onto a moving visor.
We met with David Viale, AGV product manager in October 2008 at Intermot on Cologne on this subject and in spite of initially helpful contact, the responses to our messages which contained serious real-world user feedback along with the requests to remove the coating from production eventually failed to solicit any kind of response.
We keep a close eye on the AGV range and to this day provide product warnings in three places in each V2 Sponge pack. The coating has gradually been removed from the range as pinlock provision on their visors extends into most all models and relieves the NFS coating from duty.
Our recommendation will always remain - "ALWAYS TEST FIRST"
Safe riding!
Paul B
Director
Visorvision Ltd.
