Screens again

[celticus]

I got it to work. Boy is that inexpensive! Makes me think "What's the deal?"
Mark

[deilenberger]

Had one on my R65.. it looked pretty nice, but it's not exactly BMW quality. The mounting is rather crude (bent steel brackets), and the top of it liked to wobble in the wind (I eventually made brackets going to my bars to stabilize it..)

It broke in a garage tip-over, I took it off and never bothered putting it back on. Dunno if it will clear the instruments - there is a small shelf inside at the top of the plastic part (where the windshield mates to it) that might hit the back of the instruments. Also - the hole in it should be checked. It was just the right size for the R65 which used a smaller headlight than most BMWs use..

It was cheap - I paid $30 for it on sale..

[BigEasy]

Cheap is the operative word here. I learned as a young starving hot rodder that if a part had JC Whitny on it, it wasn't going on/in any of my gear. It's amazing how a bad experience will ruin a guy for a looooong time. Just my opinion though

[Phillo]

Is there anything decent available which will bolt on to the existing mini / sport screen frame that my bike came with.

[TWI]

Is there anything decent available which will bolt on to the existing mini / sport screen frame that my bike came with.

No.

[TWI]

I almost started a new thread, but what the heck...


I received a Parabellum replacement windscreen (24") the other day. Today was my first chance to ride with it.

Below 50 mph there is some noise. Actually, I can hear the engine a lot more since the screen reflects the sound. BTW, I always ride with earplugs.

At about 50 mph I get mild buffeting at the top of the helmet and some back pressure. This increases till 70 mph, then stays like that for higher speeds.

I was at first upset by the buffeting. Two observations have me now on the fence as to whether this is the right screen for me:

1) The noise level at all speeds is less than with my helmet in clear air. I stood on the pegs several times to confirm this. So, energy in different frequencies, but less overall.

2) If I shift forward on the seat the buffeting is markedly reduced. I don't mean crouch, which would be a pain after a short time. Just move forward a bit.

The air from the sides of the screen is just touching my shoulders. This screen makes the air too still for the temps today (mid-80's F), but great for cold weather.

Maybe I'm happy.

For reference, I am 6'1" with a 34" inseam and 36" sleeves. Seated on the moving bike my line of sight is about 2" above the top of this screen.

[Caroanbill]

Can't resist putting in my 2 cents ... [rant]

The Wunderlich Trohpy is too slavish a copy of the c*ckpit fairing (BMW's name for the R90S screen and its progeny) for my eye: while the Daytona sunburst (oops, can you tell I've owned some vintage Gibson guitars?) paint scheme is gloriously retro, the tank argues with the fairing. I had a c*ckpit fairing for my R80 - where its lines integrated seamlessly into the bike - the Wunderlich doesn't really get there. Parabellum Scout and the other fairings don't come close (and I presume the Scout is 'glass, given the edging). As for cheap, it's - well - cheap. Why bother spending BMW $ to tacky it up (ouch).

To my eye, the best of the look-alike c*ckpit fairings is the Wudo. It has the lineage of the original dingle screen, with a bit of edginess to match the scultping on our R12R tank. I think it would come up a treat in Crystal Grey. A smoke or daytona sunurst might work spectacularly .. or fail spectacularly.

If you want a faithful "reproduction" bike, I don't think the R12R is it, whatever fairing or screen you use. The Triumph Bonnevilles and Ducati GT1000 ranges get much closer. The R12R is more a "lineage" design: it has the aesthetic of the traditional bike, with a contemporary twist (eg the visible rear wheel). I tend to think any fairing or screen for the R12R should do the same (just wait'll I rule the world).

[/rant]

Personally, I'm still off in the big-clear-screen direction. I find it sympathetic to the bike, especially by sticking to the OEM bracket, and it tends to leave the bike more visually 'original'. The Cee Bailey is better than the Parabellum to my eye, but I will need more function if I'm to realise the more laid-back touring aspects of the roadster. I want to motor on on open roads, whatever the weather throws at me (I have my F650CS for tight-road fanging). I wish I could tolerate the handguards .. they're fine on a black bike but not on the Crystal Grey one, and when I visualise colour-matching them it screams "twee!" at me.

So my path will be .. Parabellum 22" for long trips and cool-weather riding, with Wunderlich foot shields below. I'll keep my 16" Cee Bailey, or swap it for the BMW touring screen - or even no screen - for shorter summer runs. With a changeover of 6 bolts (Parabellum appears to have two lower bolts on the headlight bracket) and 10-15 minutes, it should be the best of both worlds for me.

PS the software here will only let me call the fairing "c*ckpit" .. just as well this isn't a plane or yatch site ...

[motorradguy]

Hmmm. Put on the BMW tall screen today (REALLY EXPENSIVE!!!) and was , well....not that impressed. Had alot more buffetting than the sport screen, although my chest and shoulders were in the clear. The wind blast hit me straight on the face of my helmet. I'm 6-0 with a 30" imseam. Have the reg. seat and the tall seat and with the reg seat on it was worse. Not sure what to do. Maybe swap out for a taller Cee Bailey?? Anyone want to swap plastic for a spell??

[deilenberger]

Hmmm. Put on the BMW tall screen today (REALLY EXPENSIVE!!!) and was , well....not that impressed. Had alot more buffetting than the sport screen, although my chest and shoulders were in the clear. The wind blast hit me straight on the face of my helmet. I'm 6-0 with a 30" imseam. Have the reg. seat and the tall seat and with the reg seat on it was worse. Not sure what to do. Maybe swap out for a taller Cee Bailey?? Anyone want to swap plastic for a spell??

Ah - too bad you hadn't asked first. The Cee-Bailey is a better solution for the majority of us who have tried different shields.

As a guess - at your height, with the regular seat - you'll want the tallest one they make - the 20" one. Less than that will leave you with some unpleasant buffeting.

I have two C-B screens now - one for hot weather (16") and one for cooler/cold weather (18") - and the two cost less than the one BMW "Touring" shield did. Just switched to the 18" one today..

[celticus]

If anyone has The Wunderlich Trophy dingle and subscribes to caroanbill's rants (his word) and would like to get ride of this dingle pit. (I love saying that word), then I would be happy to buy it. I hope the wind coverage is good because I want the dingle pit anyway. I really like the way it looks. Maybe I'm just built funny but I like the stock BMW sport shield pretty well. Perhaps I will change my mind or at least moderate my stance when it gets cold here. Then I can put my GIVI screen back on. If I don't sell it first. It really doesn't do much for me in the way of looks and as I've only used it in hot weather it's effects of blocking air has left me unimpressed and hotter. The large slabs of lexan however utilitarian make a fun as hell bike look ugly and cobbled in my perspective. Although I do tour on my bike I would rather it look like a hoodlum bike dressed up for touring than a naked bike with lexan sails.
Does this qualify as a rant?
Mark

[Caroanbill]

Does this qualify as a rant?
Mark

Nup. You're still too articulate and reasonable. Try a little more "huffy".

One o' the great things about a 'blank canvas' bike is that you CAN take in a few directions. If I dig deep down, I have to confess that there's a tiny (tiny, please, tiny) element on choosing the Parabellum to go with the colour-coded panniers of (oh, no) white 75/5 meets (oh, the shame) early Road King (no, no, I can't believe I said that aloud). In my deeper lfights of fancy I think driving lights would enhance the image (yes, I've truly lost it). But then it all comes off and the 16" Cee Bailey (or even BMW stock screen) turns it back into a modern naked bike (phew).

A key reason for the Parabellum is the use of the standard bracket to make changes for season (or style) easier. I've never had a 'perfect' screen (noise vs buffet vs weather vs heat) so swapping about for the best compromise for a given ride seems good to me ...

[celticus]

PS the software here will only let me call the fairing "c*ckpit" .. just as well this isn't a plane or yatch site ...

I see how right you are. You can't say Caaaack pit indeed! Or a chicken fighting site for that matter. Can you say Paris Hilton? I've seen software that won't let you say that.
Mark

[Caroanbill]

Parabellum arrived yesterday - it only uses the four bolts of the BMW bracket, so changeover is dead easy.

I'm planning a 3-way test today with another R12R rider who saw the Cee Bailey on my bike at the dealership. If he wants the 16" CB, I might wind up with the original BM screen and the Parabellum ... whichever way, I'll write up a comparo ...

... but then, Saturday's forecast is 32C and high winds ... Mark's wee jibe about a lexan sail might come true (last we saw of him, Constable Plod, his bike lifted right off the road and flew thataway ... )

[UVARIDER59]

General Messages:

I am the Product Line Manager for ZTEchnik. Feel free to contact me at [email protected]. I am not hiding here on this forum, pretending not to be a vendor. I do own an R1200R, an R90S, a K75 and most of the parts for several others. I have been rider BMW's and other bikes for more than 40 years. I joined the site to learn from other riders. However, when the subject of one of my products comes up, I want to learn from that too. Here are some of my thoughts:

To the gentleman who has had buffeting issues with his ZTechnik shield. Please contact me. We are releasing a new R1200R shield. It is taller and wider than the current model, and should relieve your buffeting issues better than the laminar lip.

To the gentleman who believes that we see ourselves as the 2nd coming. I will have to use that in our marketing materials, but it might offend some people. We make a great line of products. However, there is no one product that will satisfy everyone. We try to come as close as we can. Isn't it better to have a bracket that is overbuilt than the BMW touring shield bracket, which is not designed for anything more than a 12" shield, supporting other vendors' 20"+ shields? It can be installed in 15 minutes with 2 people or 30 minutes with one. I thought at first that we should design something similar to BMW's mounting system with larger tubing, but this didn't look good on the bike.

[Airhawk1]

I have the Cee Baily 20" and the BMW Sport Shield. The Cee Baily is mounted on the OE Tall bracket, so changing between the two takes less than 2 minutes! Unscrew the two bolts that attach the mount, switch to the other and re-torque the two bolts and off you go.

The Cee Baily comes with the rubber washers already in the windscreen, so when you receive it from the factory, all you have to do is attach the four bolts and steel washer caps to secure the screen to the tall mount.

Keeping the two screens connected to their mounts allows you to do the quick change that I descibed in the 1st paragraph. I usually run with the "Sport" screen on hot days and around town, but when you want to go for a long ride it only takes a few minutes to make the switch.

[Caroanbill]

OK, vale Cee Bailey 16" ... another rider liked it so much I broke down and sold it to him.

On with Parabellum 22".

At 5'8", about 29" inseam, and on the low seat, I see more through than over. Initially this was a problem, but I got used to it on 300km of tight, steep, short visibility roads yesterday. The plus is that it collects the bugs instead of my helmet visor, and even when it gets coved with dead bugs, I can still see above it (just).

It is definitely quieter that the Cee Bailey, I can ride with my visor part open, and / or the chin air vent open, without being deafened. The wind doesn't close the visor (does on the Cee Bailey over 80km/h).

It also improved fuel consumption - at least on this first tank.

One problem. The US indicators appear to be on longer stalks than ours, so the cut-outs actually (just) touch my indicators instead of just clearing the stalks. I will have to expand the cut-outs to suit (saw, file, sand, polish).

I did like the Cee Bailey. Better quality than OEM, but I wanted mroe coverage for cold and wet, and less for quick rides. I will get the BMW screen for day-jaunts, I think (or drop a Christmas hint)

Pics when I've modified the indicator cut-outs.

[qgaex]

Hi Right Hand Drive

Thanks again for sending the GIVI screen.
I've done a few thousand km with it by now and found that it is quite a very good compromise between size and protection.
And it does fit the lines of the R12R quite well.

(Note the extremely fast crystal gray colour!)

Cheers

qgaex
*screened*

[Right Hand Drive]

Hi qgaex,

glad the screen has worked out for you. It does look very good on your bike. It looked good on mine as well. I hate to say it but it appears to look a bit more suited to the bike than the Cee Baileys 20" I have now. The Bailey's is ok, imho the Givi suits the bike a bit better though.

[AllanCook]

I saw a ZTEchnik screen the other day at Gulf Coast BMW in Houston. It is certainly the most complementary screen for the lines of the R1200R, it looks well made and as though it would keep off a lot of wind. The mounting hardware is very sturdy, if a little roughly finished. Pretty heavy, too. I think it would look better if it were finished a little more smoothly and in a nice semi-gloss black. Or redesigned to mount to the OEM tall windshield hardware.

Although I've gotten along for years with a fly screen on my 1150 and now my 1200, I may nevertheless try the ZTEchnik to see if it works better for me. If I do it, I will give a full report here.