HJC Sy-Max

[Dexx]

don't know how I missed it thanks

[Mike McNaney]

Ive had my HJC symax for three years. I love it!! I put a light smoke shield on it and even ride at night with the tint. No problems.
The flip is the only way to go. I dont ride in the rain so I dont know about the leakage issue.
If you drop it, it chips easily. Not unusual really.

I recommend it.

[Rocketman]

Here's a very nice link comparing 7 flip up helmets. I found it very interesting.

http://www.motorcyclecruiser.com/accessoriesandgear/flip_face_helmet_comparison/

[Dexx]

yeah, I read that article when it came out in the magazine, but it was quite awhile ago. I have had one other brand of helmet in between all my HJC's and it made me go back to HJC, so I'm probably going to look at these first. I like the Nolan set up with the tinted strip across the top of the shield, but not in my budget. The KBC seem reasonably priced and I think I read that they have a metal on metal latching system, which I think would be a plus, but there are no local dealers for them around here. Helmets are one of the things I'm not willing to mail order.

[Road_Clam]

Well I noticed a few posts on HJC Helmets and such, and when I was going to buy mine, didn't find a review here on it. I got to ride about 120 miles this weekend with my new lid, so here goes.

I really wanted a flip up face shield helmet this year. I have heard all the talk about how they aren't Snell approved, they aren't as safe and what not, but I don't care- it's worth it to me to have the luxury of the flip up face shield. I find that anything that makes my riding more comfortable also in turn makes me a safer rider, and having the ability to flip up the face shield and shake some of my claustriphobia is a good thing.

Anyway, on to the helmet itself. I got it from a small Harley shop down the road. The guy does lots of stuff for me for my snowmobile and he gives me great deals. Even though he had to order it, he only charged me $229. That is with the silver paint. It took him an entire day to get it, I had to wait a whole 24 hours!! The quality looks great. The finish is fantasic, all the trim is fastened really well and the face shield is solid. I put it on and evaluated the fit. I've been using HJC helmets for the snowmobile for years, so I knew it would fit me well. The liner is really nice, it's that DuPont Cool Max mesh and looks like it will be comfortable in the summer. The face shiled is actuated by a single clip in the front, and makes audiable clicks ot wide open or closed. After 3 times of opening and closing the chin bar, it has become like second nature. The face shiled can be removed with out any tools, and I can actually do it while it's on my head- it's that easy. I will be getting a yellow tint sheild for overcast days and a dk smoke shield for sunny days. I never got other shields for my Shoei helmet becasue I couldn't see myself changing the shield often, it was too much of a pain. With the helmet came a couple of extra ear pads to lessen the noise level if desired and a really nice helmet bag with a cinch cord. I will be carrying that with me all the time as I don't want this helmet to end up looking like my old, chipped, beat up Shoei.

On to the road test, as that was what I was most concerned with. I had heard people say they are noisy at speed and seem to catch the air and casue neck pain. I experienced none of that. It was quieter than my Shoei and seemed very areodynamic. A few runs at 90mph with no fairing proved all I needed to know- it was fine at speed. Very quiet and comfortable. I was able to wear my regular sunglasses no problems whatsoever and even found that I could use my cell phone ear bud and boom mic with no discomfort at all. Very cool.

The biggest surprise was the lack of fogging. I bought this model partly becasue I know HJC makes a breath deflector for it. The guy I bought it from had one in stock, so I told him to hold onto it while I test out the helmet. I've had fogging problems like you wouldn't believe on every helmet I've owned- generally if it is cooler than 60 degrees, I'll have to either use a breath deflector or keep the shield open, and I have very sensitive eyes, so the latter is not good for me. Anyone who has used a breath deflector knows how much they are annoying, they take some getting used to and even then aren't ever comfortable (I'm a little claustriphobic, can you tell?). This weekend I left the house and it was 40 degrees out. I experienced virtually no fogging of the face shield. The helmet seems really well designed in this way, the vents on the chin bar are directed to ports just underneath the visor and pointing straight up. My Shoei, a $400 helmet, wasn't this well thought out- the vents just point straight to your mouth, and don't do anything to prevent fogging. There is also a vent on the top of the helmet that controls two ports that vent the upper cavity of the helmet. Both vents were really easy to use even while riding and with my gloves on- my Shoei vents are hard to use while the helmet is off and you don't have gloves on!

Overall I would give the HJC Sy-Max two huge thumbs up. Fit, finish and function are all better than expected for a sub $300 helmet, and the engineering behind the venting system is perfect. I love it. I agonized over this decision for quite some time, as I was so unhappy with my $400 Shoei that I was afraid of the same thing happening this time. I tried on the following models of flip up chin bar helmets- Shoei, Nolan, Bell and a few others I don't remember becasue they were cheap and didn't fit right. This one fit me the best and I liked all the features.

One last note to anyone shopping around for these- HJC now makes a less expensive version of the Sy-Max called the CL-Max. It just came out this year and retails for around $179. The difference seems to be that the CL-Max is a thremoplastic shell helmet, the Sy-Max is a fiberglass shell. The weight is a little less on the Sy-Max. I feel better with the fiberglass anyway, and the fit and finish of the Sy-Max seemed better.

I love my new brain bucket!

I just bought a CL-Max, almost the same helmet, just slightly lesser quality. I mainly bought it for out on the ice this winter. It should prove to be a true 4 season helmet as the CL-Max can be swapped from street to snow in no time. So far I am very happy. Quiet, warm, and very simplified features, that's all I need.

[Jethro]

As I believe, the only difference with the CL-Max is the Sy-Max is a fiberglass composite shell, the CL-Max is thermoplastic. Mostly a weight thing, but some reports are mixed as to what is a safer material. Some say the cheaper thermoplastic shells actually perform better, some say the fiberglass is better in a crash. I guess I'll spend my efforts trying not to crash instead of worrying about my choice of helmet.

[dpep]

Been riding for 40+ years and always with a 3/4 helmet with a five snap flat shield. It is getting harder to find those shields, but as of now I still can.

There is one reason why I would like to go to a full face or modular helmet, and that is noise. I do a lot of highway riding and while the wind in my face is refreshing, the wind in my ears is not. I do in fact have a mild case of tinnitus, and I prefer that it not get a lot worse.

I became even more aware of what a beating my ears are taking after I started listening to mp3 on my trips. The volume I need to hear things on the road is so much higher than the volume level I need around the house. If I forget and leave it at road volume when there is no wind noise to overcome it actually hurts my ears.

I guess I would prefer the modular style if it can be as quiet as the regular full face. I wish there were a place that sold helmets that had a wind tunnel you could sit in to try it out. I wouldn't care what it costs.

My other consideration is that my head is not an easy fit. I will probably need some extra padding to customize the inside a bit.

Does the HCL have good noise characteristics and allow for pad-to-fit?

Also I note that the price for the full face helmet shields are 5-10 times what my old flat shields cost. What can I expect to pay for an HCL shield and how well do the hold up in normal street riding?

[Dexx]

My current HJC i've had about 5 years now with the original face shield on it, usually clean it with straight amonia and an old t-shirt. sometimes touch it up with mcguires clear plastic polish. Only considered swapping it out last season when it refused to stay part way open like I like. the quote i got for the replacement was around 25 bucks i think.

[GregM.]

Thanks Dexx for resurrecting this 2 year old post. I've done some shopping on this subject the last few months... and the sy-max is the one I liked as well. So, it's cool to read all this detail now... it confirms that my choice sounds like a good one.

And dpep, I agree, wind noise reduction is a very big deal to me too. I hope the sy-max is quieter than what I have now. A Shoei RF-800, a full-face helmet... which should normally be a quiet helmet - I'm sure they are very good. But unfortunately mine is too big, and that's why it's probably also noisy.

What about ear plugs... anyone use those? What works and what doesn't?
I understand lots of high mileage rider's use them.
Thanks :-D :-D

[Jethro]

I ride with earplugs religiously. Once you start, you will not be able to stop. It's so nice. I use the foam roll up ones. They are awesome.

[Joe Nardy]

Thanks Dexx for resurrecting this 2 year old post. I've done some shopping on this subject the last few months... and the sy-max is the one I liked as well. So, it's cool to read all this detail now... it confirms that my choice sounds like a good one.

And dpep, I agree, wind noise reduction is a very big deal to me too. I hope the sy-max is quieter than what I have now. A Shoei RF-800, a full-face helmet... which should normally be a quiet helmet - I'm sure they are very good. But unfortunately mine is too big, and that's why it's probably also noisy.

What about ear plugs... anyone use those? What works and what doesn't?
I understand lots of high mileage rider's use them.
Thanks :-D :-D

Greg,

My wife and I just bought new helmets so I've done quite a bit of research lately. I looked into flip-ups but decided to go with a standard full-face HJC. Cathy really wanted a flip-up so we did a lot of looking and shopping. One thing we found is that most of the Flip-up helmets use plastic hinges and latches. Nolan uses stainless steel for both on its N-102 helmet. It also has a cool flip-down sunshade that can be easily removed if desired, an anti-fog shield that attaches to the inside of the visor, and a clip type strap. Cathy tried them on at the bike show last weekend and liked them. I found them online at Motorcycle Superstore for $251 with free shipping: http://www.motorcycle-superstore.com...101&division=1

Ear plugs? Definitely!. Like Jethro said, once you use them you'll never stop. The soft roll-up kind are nice as are custom molded silicone plugs. You can get the custom molded kind for $20-$40 at gun shows and probably other places as well. Cathy and I have custom molded earplugs with built-in speakers. We have an intercom and play XM radio or MP3 players through the intercom. It makes riding a lot more enjoyable.

Thanks,
Joe

[Road_Clam]

I ride with earplugs religiously.

Thats just because you don't want to listen to Skip and his drag-n-brag barking throughout the day's ride.

[Bert Patterson]

I became even more aware of what a beating my ears are taking after I started listening to mp3 on my trips. The volume I need to hear things on the road is so much higher than the volume level I need around the house. If I forget and leave it at road volume when there is no wind noise to overcome it actually hurts my ears.

Don, I always wear earplugs on any rides out of town, but a few years ago I was going on a ride to NY/VT. Because so much of the trip is droning straight hideous I90, I wanted music. I didn't have an mp3 and a CD wouldn't work with the high frequency vibes, so I used a tape walkman. I bought a pair of earphones from Aiwa called The Plug. They were about $20-25. Incredible. I could ride on the interstate (with just a Wes Cooley fairing and full-face Shoei) and at 80 mph I didn't have to raise the volume any louder than at a dead stop. They were just incredible.

[jpaul]

I have been riding with the CL Max for two years now. Went with it due to the price, since it was either buy the less expensive model or not ride. My dad has had the Sy Max, and I think it is a better helmet. After using the helmet for a couple of months, the latch doesn't work quite as smoothly. It still holds, but it seems a little notchy (if that's a word). I think it is due to my habit of lifting it at lights on hot days, and slamming it shut after I get rolling again. I pay attention to make sure it latches solidly, and will replace it if I question whether or not the latch is holding well.

[Jethro]

I found it annoying to listen to music over the wind noise, and I had to crank the mp3 player way up when on the highway. So I pretty much gave it up. Then someone (I can't remember who- a GSR member, might be Skip) suggested using my regular ear plugs WITH the headphone setup. The ear plugs work like speakers that pretty much transfer the sound. It's almost like listening to tunes in the car. I use cheap headphones with pretty big speakers and broke them off the headband, then velcro'd them in my helmet. Very comfortable, great sound.