- This topic has 14 replies, 9 voices, and was last updated 8 years, 7 months ago by Windshield repair Houston.
To windshield or not to windshield – that’s the question.
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July 20, 2010 at 5:57 pm #4124Ursula AlusruParticipant
I’m trying to both talk myself into and out of putting a windshield on my bike – I know, the inner conflict is exhausting. I hate the way they look – I guess some love the aesthetic? They look great on big ol cruisers, but I cant imagine it looking like it belongs on my ’81 Suzuki GS850. I’m not so big, I’m sitting high on the flat seat and I find I’m (my person not the bike) getting blown all over the place on the high way. I’m planning a 2000km trip in the beginning of August and I’m wondering if it might make me more comfortable (I’m sure I’d also have less bugs in my teeth). Anyone have any before and after tales?
July 20, 2010 at 9:04 pm #27630eonParticipantYou will get plenty of committed advocates on both sides of the fence, but I have read multliple accounts of those who went “naked” and then wondered why after they added a shield. I cannot recall ever reading of someone who took a windshield off and loved it. My scoot had came with the shield attached and I took it off one day when the temps got up to 100′. I put it back on as soon as I got home. Plus, I cannot imagine all the shit that gets stuck to the shield being on me. That would be gross even by my low standards
Only thing to watch out for is sometimes it can be a challenge finding the right shield for you. Get one at the wrong height and it can cause more problems than it solves.
July 20, 2010 at 10:17 pm #27633JackTradeParticipant…who remove windshields and are happier, mostly due to wind buffeting issues you cite.
I can’t imagine riding a bike with a big windscreen myself, but then again, I’m not touring on mine. Still, I’ve done some 100+ mile trips, and didn’t feel unduly fatigued afterward, and only a few bug stains on me…
July 20, 2010 at 11:36 pm #27635Gary856ParticipantI bought a Givi A603 windscreen for my GS500, used it a few times, played with the adjustments a lot and finally decided to take it off. It added a lot of wind noise and buffeting without giving much wind protection. A taller/bigger windscreen may work better functionally, but I haven’t tried it, partly because a huge windscreen does not look good on a GS500, and partly because I don’t ride lnog distance on the freeway on the GS500.
For long distance and high speed (over 75 mph), having better wind protection does make a big difference. You have to experiment to find the right screen size/shape for your bike and your size. Many people feel a small windscreen is just for looks, and a mid-sized windscreen (like the Givi A603) just doesn’t work well because it directs the high pressure air right at your helmet so it gets freaking loud and tiring. On the other hand, the factory fairing and windscreen on my YZF600R is not that tall, but it’s the right shape aerodynamically and it gives me pretty good wind protection at high speed.
July 21, 2010 at 2:57 am #27648Ursula AlusruParticipantI rode out to my bike friends toady to visit, drink tea, and eat toast and beans after I posted this this morning and wouldn’t you know it – they had windscreen that was on a GS500 hanging around in the garage. It’s medium sized and will fit, I just need something grippy and squishy to put between the brackets and the handlebars (the brackets are a bit too big). It kind of seems like it might do exactly as you said Gary856, and direct it all at my forehead, but I’ll try anything twice, so I’ll give it a shot and report back. I also made out with a new pair of boots – who knew that being pregnant makes your feat grow!? All in all it was a great day.
July 21, 2010 at 5:05 am #27653madjak30ParticipantWhen I bought my GS500E, it had an aftermarket windscreen mounted to the handle bars…after a couple of rides, I took it off…the bike looked much better without it…I rode it around town for the weekend, but when I hit the hiway and went over 80kph (50mph) for the first time since removing the windscreen, I noticed that the bike was getting buffetted more than it used to…when I got home, I put it back on and went for a ride to see if it was jus the wind that day…turns out that the windscreen stabilized the bike at speed on the hiway, and the bike felt more solid/planted. I don’t know if that is the case for all windscreens, but that is what I have found with mine and I have gotten used to the look now…
Now I think the bike might look wierd to me without it.
Later.
July 21, 2010 at 6:33 pm #27669Ursula AlusruParticipantI will most definitely do the before and after test to see how it feels. The bike actually feels really stable, it dosn’t get too blown around, just me. I find the same – that about 80km/h is about where I start to get blown around. The mounting brackets seem to have a quick release so it’s easy to take the screen on and off… I could see leaving it off unless I was planing a long highway haul.
July 24, 2010 at 8:10 pm #27738dashParticipantI have been debating whether to get a small windshield for my small dual sport. My hope is that it would be less cold to ride on winter mornings and that my head would feel less like a bobble head doll at freeway speeds. My fear is that it would make the bike harder to ride on windy days (of which there are many in San Francisco). I notice that Honda doesn’t offer a windshield as one of the accessories for this bike. Is that a bad sign? Any guidance before I take the plunge?
July 24, 2010 at 9:59 pm #27741TrialsRiderParticipantI remember wishing I had ace bars when I rode my enduro on the highway, crouching down real low and using the passenger pegs seemed like the only way I could get it wind slippery, but that left my throttle arm way out in the wind blast.
Also remember digging it out of a huge snow drift so that I could ride home at the end of the school day, then thawing my hands on the cylinder head so I could move my fingers again … I musta been nuts when I was 16. ( i know, i know i still am
If you do get a shield, make sure you mount it very low and way far forward, if you pop a wheelie they tend to decapitate you.
July 28, 2010 at 4:33 am #27804Ursula AlusruParticipantI got the wind screen. I rode with it today which didn’t really make much difference because the air was dead still and humid as hell. I was also too busy paying attention to my turn signals that stopped working when I ever so gently nudged the wires to the signal box when I tightened up the clamp for the screen…Sigh.
July 29, 2010 at 1:59 am #27831Jeff in KentuckyParticipantIf you get a good windshield (proper height and shape), it will help quite a bit at 60 mph, and much more at 75 mph. Your arms get less tired from holding your chest upright in less wind, and there is less wind noise. I like a windshield that is the size of my chest and at the same angle as the front forks, and I look over the top of it instead of through it, especially when it is foggy. I also wear a full face helmet to block the wind above the windshield.
July 29, 2010 at 2:15 am #27860RabParticipantYes, it’s only at speed that you really need a windshield.
You’ll probably have to experiment with height and angle quite a bit before you’ll get it set just right for you.
July 29, 2010 at 3:18 pm #27843Ursula AlusruParticipantI cant get the damn thing to sit symmetrically on the bike and the electrical tape I used to pack the gap between the clamp and the bars (they were meant for bars of a greater diameter) is slipping. And now I have the turn signal problem. So I’m off to the place down the street to the place that services my bicycle to see if they have any rubber kind of strips I can use, then to cycle salvage to see if I can get a new (new to me) signal switch, and then to the chiropractor – what a day. I’m riding on 6+ lane highways every day to get somewhere a little more scenic to ride. In the fall I’ll be taking in 100km to work and back and I’m planning a 2000km trip next week, so it’s highway riding for me!
July 29, 2010 at 4:03 pm #27847TrialsRiderParticipant… thicker than electric tape and it won’t float around on the adhesive goo Cork also works, but nobody has it laying around any more.
September 9, 2015 at 6:10 am #29839Windshield repair HoustonGuestNice information …Thank you
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