windshield woes

[greenbarn]

I spent some time e-mailing some of the windshield companies, to tell me exactly what I would need to either fit a mount to my w/s or vice-versa.  Hopefully I'll come up with the best solution, and it won't cost an arm and a leg.

[greenbarn]

I'm not really experiencing huge difficulties that I'm aware of from the gap above the headlight- Just wondered if there any problems from it I should be looking for.

That, and I think it would look better lower.

[pcarrell]

Ratman, just think of me as your American Ambassador!

As I've mentioned before, I have the Fire & Steel Nomad style shield, and I don't have any spacers or washers to deal with.the bolts go right into the threaded mounts and that's it.  My shield is in the halfway up position and I have a 1 1/2" gap between the shield and the headlight.  There is virtually no gap between the shield and the spotlights, but I did the No-bar light bar trick, so that explains that.  If I'd have used a proper light bar, I'd have loads of room for sure.

I don't seem to have the problem that you're talking about with the gap over the headlight and air flow.  I wonder if that's because I have a small leather storage bag on the inside of my shield that is diverting the air?  Could a solution be that simple?  It sits right down on the risers.  Here's a pic of the bag mounted. 

[greenbarn]

at least you have 2 boys to ask for a extra hand
.........

Yea, but they're NEVER around...  except meal time

[CDNRatMan]

there are 1/4" spacers between the windscreen brackets and the fork mount.  That's not much fun trying to thread bolts through the bracket, then through a spacer, then into the threaded mount - all 4 of them - while trying to hold the windscreen with the other hand

I have 2 spacers, and I thought it was just me who had issues with doing it alone, at least you have 2 boys to ask for a extra hand and I know your lovely missus would like to help you out.......I need to train my fish to help me out.........

I would ask PC but not sure if he is allowed across the border.........

[moosewing3]

Will probably give the adjustment you need with the proper mounts, definitely easier to get off and adjust but they are rather pricey if it doesn't give you what you need.

[greenbarn]

Thanks for all of the input on this, I appreciate the feedback.  Looks like I have a few options.

I had originally thought of just cutting down the top of the screen, as the cheapest/easiest. But it's already down as far as it will go on the mounts, and it's against the spots, and there is still a big gap between the headlight, so if I cut off say 3" and then moved it up a little to get it off the spot lights, I'd have an even bigger gap.   One more thing I haven't mentioned- to make this fit on the mounts, there are 1/4" spacers between the windscreen brackets and the fork mount.  That's not much fun trying to thread bolts through the bracket, then through a spacer, then into the threaded mount - all 4 of them - while trying to hold the windscreen with the other hand.   So I'm kind of thinking about changing something to help this situation too.

That leaves me with either A) buying National Cycle fork mounts and use the windscreen I've got, or B) buy a new original-style windscreen w/ brackets and keep the existing mount.   Is one of these options inherently better than the other??   Does either one have a quick mount or something making it easier on/off?    I guess option B gets me brand new glass with no scratches.  The current glass is in pretty good shape- some scratches on the top 3" but they might clean up or might get trimmed off if I kept it.

[LarryInSeattle]

You can cut it down with a gig saw and then sand the edges with a sanding block and it will look just like a factory cut shield.

I cut mine windshield off my Goldwing down and it looked great.  It was very easy to do.

Use some 3 inch wide blue masking tape to cover the edge of the shield so that it doesn't get scratched from the gig saw frame.  Use a piece of cardboard to trace the original curve.  Sit on the bike and look though the windshield.... and look down the road and imagine you are looking at something 50 yards away.  Mark that spot on the shield.  Now, you can adjust to your liking below that mark on the shield.

Trace that cardboard with a sharpie onto the masking tape and cut away.

Note:  Use a hard rubber sanding block and add your own sand paper.  Do not use one of the foam sanding blocks.  You will benefit the use of the hard rubber sanding block as it will act as a straight end in taking out any high or low spots from your cut.  If you use the foam sanding block it will just conform to your cut and won't take out those spots.

You must post pictures of your cut windshield when you are done.

Also, if you do decide to buy a different windshield rather than cut yours down, just buy the windshield blank.  You don't need to buy all of that expensive hardware again.  I broke my shield off of my C50 Suzuki and I bought a replacement blank for $40.

[aralph]

My 1500 came with a National screen, but it is a 2 piece. The lower portion is adjustable to allow for a nice even fit around the headlight. Also it was a bit to tall for my liking so I had it shorten by 3". It is similar to model # N2220. I just wish there was a quick connect setup for it.

http://shop.nationalcycle.com/perl/cycle/results2.html?search_model=ka-042

aralph

[chief]

I had the F&S shield and replaced the plastic with a Rifle... but here are some options for you...

http://www.vulcandrifterriders.com/reviewpost/showcat.php?cat=23

[moosewing3]

I had the National Cyle Shorty on my Classic same problem with the gap around the headlight, but tbh the stock Drifter shield I have has pretty much the same amount of gap. That also looks like you have the NC shield mounted on the stock brackets, most NC shields mount with fork tube mounts so perhaps that would explain your lack of proper adjustment. Below are the actual mounts NC makes for the Drifter 1500.

http://www.cruisercustomizing.com/national-cycle-heavy-duty-wide-mounting-kit-kawasaki-vn8001500-vulcan-classic-drifter/part/NC-KIT-JF

http://shop.nationalcycle.com/perl/cycle/large_photo?mv_session_id=TStxJXYE&mv_arg=KIT-JE&search_model=ka-042

[pcarrell]

There is also the Fire & Steel Nomad style shield like I have.  It fits the headlight / spots and with it's height adjustment you can easily adjust it to the height you need.

[jmbo]

The standard is 21".  You can also get them in 19", 23" and 25".  Mine is standard and I ordered it from http://www.ceebaileys.com/kawasaki/drifterws.html

[greenbarn]

Jmbo, what brand and size did you end up with?

[jmbo]

There are three different heighths availabel for the Kawi classice and Drifter. My PO innstalled the taillest of the three but unfortunaly it was tinted. It looked cool but at night it was like riding with sunglassees. I replaced it wtih a shorter one tha I can see over.

[CDNRatMan]

  ok not like mine, so not sure, but you can cut the top off if need be and you can fill that gap with  a piece of canvas like in the old days.....

[greenbarn]

I'm wondering if I need a different wind screen?  It sits up higher than I want, making me look through the top 3-4" of the glass at the top.  I tried lowering it, but I've got it all the way down, and it's still 3" above the headlight.  Wouldn't it be better fitting tighter to the headlight?   It looks like a lot of air goes through there....   Also the bottom of the screen is down against the spotlight bar and also touching the spots, so even if the bracket would go lower, the screen could not due to the light bar.

The only thing I can think of is to cut off the top of the screen about 4", but then I'm still bottomed on the mount, and still have a big 3" gap above the headlight.

Any thoughts?  This is apparently a National Cycles wind screen, from the emblem, Is there a screen that fits better??   The 800 fits much lower - don't know what brand it is either.

sorry about the poor pics - I should have rolled it outside, but I think you can get enough detail to see what I'm talking about.