Quick review of the DefNder relative to the Isaac and HANS.
Fitment was easy peasy. I used the same holes that previously held my HANS anchors (and prior to that the Isaac anchors). Install was easy too as the helmet anchors use the same inner "washer" as HANS anchors so all I had to do was unscrew the external HANS mount and screw in the DefNder ones. I don't know that it could have been any easier.
I did go ahead and add in the littler washer/spacer things that come with the kit so that the yoke was a touch wider. I don't have a large neck by any stretch (16.5" shirt neck IIRC) but the extra clearance made it a bit easier to slide on.
Since I'd be using it in 2 different cars, neither of which are mine, I didn't have the ability to get all OCD with adjusting the straps before the race weekend (Daytona Chump). I test fit it in one of the cars the day before the race and the tether lengths felt spot on so I didn't bother messing with them at that point. The directions are pretty detailed on how to measure/adjust the tethers if you need to do so. In reading the steps, it's definitely a job for 2 people and I could see it taking 30-45 minutes of testing, measuring, adjusting, etc.
Putting the DefNder on was the same routine that I used with the HANS. Attach the yoke to the helmet and slide the yoke around my neck as I'm lowering the helmet onto my head. No better, no worse than a HANS here. Easier to do than blindly putting the pins in the Isaac once you're in the car but that was never a big deal either way, IMO.
Visibility was at least as good as a HANS and comfort was, IMO, better. The HANS was never what I'd call "uncomfortable" but I could definitely feel/notice the pressure from the CF yoke on my collar bones/chest. The DefNder can't be felt at all once the belts are cinched down as the yoke is made of webbing with plastic only at the ends. Belt routing during the driver change was a little tougher than the HANS b/c of the additional retention lips the DefNder has... it didn't really slow stuff up but it was a bit more difficult to get the belts in place. Bonus was that, once they were in place, I didn't have any problems with them slipping off while getting everything cinched down.
Visibility versus the Isaac was a touch better. One thing that I prefer with the HANS/DefNder over the Isaac is the lack of "rattling" when you turn your head. Since the Isaac is all metal, I would hear it pretty regularly when I moved my head. With the sliding tethers, it's silent.
Egress with the DefNder attached is comparable the HANS which are both worse than the Isaac. No surprise here. A nice feature of the DefNder are the 2 "quick release" straps that attach to the tether mounts. If you're getting hung up by the yoke assembly (or think you will), it's easy to pull these and disconnect the yoke from your helmet. Way easier than trying to unlatch the "regular" attachments that the HANS uses (especially if you're wearing gloves).
I felt safer with the DefNder vs. the HANS as one of the cars has a winged seat and the other doesn't. Neither car has a right side net. The extra lateral protection and belt captivity seems like a good idea given these aspects of the cars...
Price on these is very attractive, IMO. I picked this one up "never used" from someone on the forum here... came with the carrying case, hat, instructions, etc. The NecksGen is under $600 new so there's a definite price advantage over a new HANS (even if you find a used HANS, they still seem to go for ~$500-700+ pretty regularly). If you're lucky enough to snag a cheap HANS off eBay then maybe there's a good reason to go HANS but, otherwise, yeah...
The last advantage to the DefNder/NecksGen is that it's not a HANS.
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