DIY windscreen for about $20

[dry_humor]

My fiancee loves her GS500 to death. Rides it every day. As some of you may remember, I mentioned that the only "gripe" she really has about the bike is that she gets quite a bit of buffeting on the highway since there is no windscreen. Long story short, it makes her neck sore, yada, yada, yada.

So I got the idea to get her a windscreen, but after looking at some of the prices for simple ones, I decided to go about making one for her myself with parts that are easily obtained from hardware or auto parts stores.

here is what i used.
- 1 small piece of lexan plastic (12x10 i believe)
- 2 small "L" brackets
- 2 6" metal tabs (pre-drilled on both ends)
- 6 bolts that will fit the holes and hardware to fasten everything down (washers and lock/crush washers)

everything was purchased from our local home depot.

the pictures are pretty self explanatory. The only "work" that you need to do is drill the holes in the lexan and remove the headlight from the bucket to mount the tabs to the headlight bracket. here is what I ended up with....







(idk why they are rotated. photobucket is being retarded)

if it looks unfinished, thats because it is. the brackets will be painted black to match the head light bucket. the lexan will also be shaped up as well to look like more than just a rectangle. you could probably also use a solid color piece of plastic in place of the lexan. all of the points where it is mounted allow it to be adjusted to the users preference.

updated pics will follow after I trim and paint everything up.

let me know what you think ladies and gentlemen.

[codajastal]

Looks weird at the moment but I cant wait to see it when finished.

[ThatOtherGuy]

does look weird, but then all good ideas have to start somewhere.  I reckon a bit of paint and a shaped screen (those corners look too sharp) will make it look OK.  being clear makes it less intrusive on the eye.

[DoD#i]

Being from the "will go down - again" branch of ridership, (as opposed to "will go down", whom often think of themselves otherwise) I'd be very uncomfortable riding without a whole lot of sharp corners getting seriously removed from that thing. I don't like mounting me-openers on the bike.

I'm also extremely dubious that it will stay put at highway speeds. The whole sheet is pivoting on two bolts...as is the whole thing below that with even more leverage. Nothing is triangulated. Tighten them until the bolts nearly snap and they will still pivot, I'm fairly sure. There is a crapload of force at highway speeds.

[ThatOtherGuy]

Have you seen the MRA wind shields?  I have one on my naked GS500.  They have only a small ball pivot joint with two small allen key bolts to tighten.  The "Highway Shield" screen (shown in picture) is also far larger than this screen so has many forces upon it.  They are balanced fairly well which is all I would suggest for this one.  Mine also cost about 7 times more than this effort.  I'll admit the vain part of me wouldn't make one like this, but I can afford an MRA windshield, so I own one.

[dry_humor]

thanks for the input. it's currently not on due to the fact that it is unfinished; i just wanted to get everything on there to see what the situation was. considering what else needs finishing, i'd say that the project is halfway done.

it was a less expensive option, so if it comes down to it, i'll just take it off and look into other stuff.

[DoD#i]

far larger than this screen so has many forces upon it.  They are balanced fairly well which is all I would suggest for this one.

Balanced well is huge.

You have two pivots in the middle with mounts that go back to the handlebar, by the look of things. That makes a world of difference to the mechanics of it. The wind isn't trying to rotate it around the pivots, since the wind force is balanced on each side of the pivot (taller to the top, but wider to the bottom.) Mounting to the bar means most of the mount force is pushing back, while mounting to the headlight shell means a long lever arm is trying to pivot backwards.

Adding something from the bar to this one would help - otherwise it's going to wind up pushed against the gauges, possibly with enough force to not be good for the gauges (they are all floaty-rubber-mounted to keep from being vibrated to death, so they are less robust than you might think at first.)

Might also want to pull out the hairdryer and put some positive curvature into that flat sheet.

[BockinBboy]

I think you should just try it and see what works.  Looks to be secure, albeit the single bolts may act as a pivot.  It looks like the only place it could move is back on a pivot like mentioned, but it doesn't look to be 'unsafe' to the rider under testing conditions.

If you do run into a pivoting problem, you can just add a set screw/pin to the brackets to eliminate that...
It just seems this is being over-thought by some.  No sense in debating the hypothetical when you already has something fabbed up and ready to try out.  I say earn a degree in trial and error, and you tell us what worked out. 

- Bboy

[burnchassis]

  that won't work!!!! ....at 40 mph it will be leaning up against the speedo,and tach. and if the wind gets under it ,and that plexiglass breaks it's a guillotine ,AND YOU DIE!
WELL MAYBE NOT DIE ,BUT the cuts or crash would be horrific,and NOT worth the chance.
The payoff= IF it even blocks any wind at all..or just diverts it to your face
No bugs in your teeth.
The downside
death..crash..broken stuff,and the humility of the square plexiglass windshield.
sigh..just take it off..save 20 bux and buy a real 1 if you need 1 that desperately.
-CS

[lee500]

that won't work!!!! ....at 40 mph it will be leaning up against the speedo,and tach. and if the wind gets under it ,and that plexiglass breaks it's a guillotine ,AND YOU DIE!
WELL MAYBE NOT DIE ,BUT the cuts or crash would be horrific,and NOT worth the chance.
The payoff= IF it even blocks any wind at all..or just diverts it to your face
No bugs in your teeth.
The downside
death..crash..broken stuff,and the humility of the square plexiglass windshield.
sigh..just take it off..save 20 bux and buy a real 1 if you need 1 that desperately.
-CS

+1 I'm afraid. I'd look at the time spent on it and factor that into the cost also. Would mush prefer a puig screen.

[cbrfxr67]

I want to see how it comes out.  It might work perfectly.  It reminds me of a giant microscope slide right now.  DW!  Hope it comes out good!

[Big Rich]

Dry humor : when you go to heat it and shape it, try finding something that has similar contours that you like. I've seen old gas tanks used for their shape. Then a blanket or something underneath the plexiglass to separate the two (no scratches on the screen). I forget the optimum temperature though - I'm sure a quick Google search would yield plenty of results.

And I think you'll find out rather quickly if the mounts are going to hold up.

[dry_humor]

so its been a while now and the windscreen project is 99% done now. the brackets are all painted and the lexan is shaped to how she wanted it. i must say it turned out rather well. the 1% thats left is to simply trim the edge of the lexan with rubber to clean it up just a little bit more.

here's how it looks at the moment.







pretty spiffy.

as for those wondering about the screen moving at high speeds.... it doesnt. at all. i've personally gotten it up to about 65 and its solid as a rock. my fiancee says she's been upwards of 80 without any problems either. the proper combo of washers, lock washers, nuts, and bolts did the trick just fine. believe it or not, i did think things through before trying to tackle this little mod

soooo.....



lol. thanks for the input though ladies and gentlmen.

we also just got back from tennessee yesterday, and the roads there make me wish florida never existed  . we've come to the conclusion that we're probably going to move to an area like that when she's done with school.

[cbrfxr67]

very nice good sir 

[ThatOtherGuy]

look much better now. little more pro'.

[codajastal]

Excellent work 3 thumbs up 

[utzguy]

Looks nice. I don't think I would put rubber trim around it as long as the edge is good and smooth.

[ThatOtherGuy]

maybe get an offcut of window tinting and smoke it.

[Big Rich]

maybe get an offcut of window tinting and smoke it.

Using rattle-can spray paint on the inside of the plexiglass will black it out entirely (since it's so small, I doubt it would block the field of vision).

[ThatOtherGuy]

maybe get an offcut of window tinting and smoke it.

Using rattle-can spray paint on the inside of the plexiglass will black it out entirely (since it's so small, I doubt it would block the field of vision).

or even colour match it to the tank?

how many variations can we come up with?