Frame slider, "naked"

[Phil B]

Side comment first: I'm surprised there isnt a "garage/tech" section here, like some other forums.
So I guess I'll just post my question in general...

lost my left side frame slider, plus actual metal support thingie, along with my left side fairing.
This is on a 2006 GS500F

I'm considering riding with a half fairing , and just getting the frame slider put back on, to save money for a while.

but.... I'm wondering if there is some kind of important lateral stability or something, that it gets with the fairing. Since normally, the metal support thingie it is on, it goes "through" the fairing?

Should I be worried about using it if I dont also have the lower fairing on?

[Phil B]

Well. huh.
I just learned something VERRRY important from the wiki:

Therefore, if you want to keep your fairings intact, the only option for frame sliders is to mount them to the bolts that hold the fairings on. However, in the event of a crash, this will put enormous stress on the attachment brackets, and will most likely damage them. For low-speed or zero-speed drops, however, they should be fine.

http://cgi.stanford.edu/~sanjayd/gs500/Upgrades/FrameSliders

D'AWWWWWW.... I had the wimpy sliders.
So I suffered fairing failure on a "real" drop

[bombshelter13]

As far as riding with one sided fairings, I can imagine that it could be pretty bad in a sidewind blowing in from the unfaired side - seems like wind would tend to get 'cupped' inside the fairing and probably pull you a lot harder.

[adidasguy]

Suzi has the R&G sliders. They look pretty good and protect her in case of a slow drop or falling over (which she did once and no damage at all)