Asking for advice.....

[in2it]

I need to replace the windshield on the 1500 ... I have been lurking around the web at different manufactures of different makes... F4 claims to be scratch resistant but that comes with a cost more than others... is that claim true??? .... like to hear from the group what they like and what worked for them... also... is the vent worth it??? does it work as in extra air when you want it or is that just wishful thinking... I could see that it could work... but ... is it little air or a blowing hurricane ... just looking at justifying the extra cost

[AZgl1800]

the F4 and a couple others have that claim.

I am using a Madstad and it IS scratch resistant, read their info, IIRC, they compare it to the hardness of a jet fighter's windshield.

www.madstad.com

for the gl1500 though, their vendor is CycleMax

https://cyclemax.com/inc/sdetail/gl1500 ... eld/332249

I love the adjustability of this windshield. Raise it or lower it on the fly w/o getting off the bike.
they say not too, but I do it all the time....

they also mention that the OEM Honda height adjustments are not used....
they aren't necessary because Madstand had a huge amount of adjustment available.

BUT, the OEM adjusters still work, you can raise lower the inner Black windshield if you need to.

depends on Wx conditions as to what I want.
I can raise it high enough to look through it,
or it will lower almost down to the dashboard +4 inches.

Found the Hardness comparison:

FYI, the canopy of the F/A-18 Hornet supersonic combat jet is made of cast acrylic. If acrylic is good enough for a military fighter jet it should be good enough for your motorcycle!

[tfdeputydawg]

Yes the F4 is scratch resistant. Yes the vent is worth it. It will be the last windshield you need to buy! You can clean it with windex and paper towel.
Mines the F4+4 tinted and vented.
Well worth the money

[in2it]

Yes the F4 is scratch resistant. Yes the vent is worth it. It will be the last windshield you need to buy! You can clean it with windex and paper towel.
Mines the F4+4 tinted and vented.
Well worth the money

thank you for your reply...

[in2it]

the F4 and a couple others have that claim.

I am using a Madstad and it IS scratch resistant, read their info, IIRC, they compare it to the hardness of a jet fighter's windshield.

www.madstad.com

for the gl1500 though, their vendor is CycleMax

https://cyclemax.com/inc/sdetail/gl1500 ... eld/332249

I love the adjustability of this windshield. Raise it or lower it on the fly w/o getting off the bike.
they say not too, but I do it all the time....

they also mention that the OEM Honda height adjustments are not used....
they aren't necessary because Madstand had a huge amount of adjustment available.

BUT, the OEM adjusters still work, you can raise lower the inner Black windshield if you need to.

depends on Wx conditions as to what I want.
I can raise it high enough to look through it,
or it will lower almost down to the dashboard +4 inches.

Found the Hardness comparison:

FYI, the canopy of the F/A-18 Hornet supersonic combat jet is made of cast acrylic. If acrylic is good enough for a military fighter jet it should be good enough for your motorcycle!

Thank you for the reply and info... will check it out and see

[tfdeputydawg]

FYI, the canopy of the F/A-18 Hornet supersonic combat jet is made of cast acrylic. If acrylic is good enough for a military fighter jet it should be good enough for your motorcycle!

Not a good comparison to motorcycle windshields.
Acrylic has to be one of the worst choices for a motorcycle windshied. Very easily scratched and starts deteriorating in just a relatively short time.
F4's are made using polycarbonate, one of the strongest "plastics" known. Then a proprietary hard coat is applied.

[in2it]

FYI, the canopy of the F/A-18 Hornet supersonic combat jet is made of cast acrylic. If acrylic is good enough for a military fighter jet it should be good enough for your motorcycle!

Not a good comparison to motorcycle windshields.
Acrylic has to be one of the worst choices for a motorcycle windshied. Very easily scratched and starts deteriorating in just a relatively short time.
F4's are made using polycarbonate, one of the strongest "plastics" known. Then a proprietary hard coat is applied.

After looking at the other windshield... having a hard time wrapping my head around the logic due to the way its offset from the fairing.. looks like it would allow rain to come in between you and the fairing.

[kwthom]

After looking at the other windshield... having a hard time wrapping my head around the logic due to the way its offset from the fairing.. looks like it would allow rain to come in between you and the fairing.

The air (and the rain) will be directed over you, if windshield is properly adjusted.

Laminar flow works.

[Corkster52]

Yep, the F4 with a vent is great! Doubt I will ever buy anything different in the future

[keithg64]

The opinions on windshields are like tires and oil, it's what that person is using or has at that time.
With that said, I do like the stock windshield with the vent. I have also used a taka curved shield with the vent and now have the madstad and really like it. These are from my 1800.

The 1500 shield that I loved was the, I cant remember what brand, but it was not an F4 but it was a plus 4 height with a plus 4 width that I cut off the plus 4 in height, with a vent.

[in2it]

After looking at the other windshield... having a hard time wrapping my head around the logic due to the way its offset from the fairing.. looks like it would allow rain to come in between you and the fairing.

The air (and the rain) will be directed over you, if windshield is properly adjusted.

Laminar flow works.

Call me a wuss... I do thank you for your input and thoughts ... but the thoughts of modifying the fairing to accommodate a windshield scars me ... yes.. I'm a wuss

[keithg64]

On the madstad there is no modifying anything, especially the fairing. The windshield comes with a lower shield and a modified mounting system for the upper shield.

[WingAdmin]

One of the main benefits of polycarbonate is that it BENDS instead of breaking into sharp edges. If you hit something, you ARE going through the windshield. Would you rather it bend out of the way, or shatter, leaving sharp edges for you to travel across?

This has been posted here many times before:



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[in2it]

One of the main benefits of polycarbonate is that it BENDS instead of breaking into sharp edges. If you hit something, you ARE going through the windshield. Would you rather it bend out of the way, or shatter, leaving sharp edges for you to travel across?

This has been posted here many times before:



   Never miss a video: Subscribe to the GoldwingDocs YouTube channel today!

Enough said WingAdmin.. the video is worth a million words... thank you for pointing the way

[CrystalPistol]

Yes the F4 is scratch resistant. Yes the vent is worth it. It will be the last windshield you need to buy! You can clean it with windex and paper towel.
Mines the F4+4 tinted and vented.
Well worth the money

X2 The F4 is a hardcoated GE Lexan MR-10, NASCAR uses the stuff, it is that good. https://www.polymerplastics.com/transpa ... mr10.shtml … You'll read this line "Due to its mar-resistant coating, this product cannot be cold-formed and is intended for flat applications only." The F4 is not a flat sheet, it is formed hot.
The vent not only lets a breeze hit you, it reduceas buffeting of your head by currents over the windshield as it greatly reduces towards eliminates that low pressure area where you sit ansd it goes a long way towards eliminating fogging & misting up.

I trimmed my F4 because I like to look over the windshield top edge. I did a test with a strip, bent as far as it would bend, let go. No break.

I've also tried all sorts of cleaning methods on the left over pieces, no scratching.

I added my own vent taken from a GL1800 Tulsa discarded for scratches, nice vent Honda.

[in2it]

Yes the F4 is scratch resistant. Yes the vent is worth it. It will be the last windshield you need to buy! You can clean it with windex and paper towel.
Mines the F4+4 tinted and vented.
Well worth the money

X2 The F4 is a hardcoated GE Lexan MR-10, NASCAR uses the stuff, it is that good. https://www.polymerplastics.com/transpa ... mr10.shtml … You'll read this line "Due to its mar-resistant coating, this product cannot be cold-formed and is intended for flat applications only." The F4 is not a flat sheet, it is formed hot.
The vent not only lets a breeze hit you, it reduceas buffeting of your head by currents over the windshield as it greatly reduces towards eliminates that low pressure area where you sit ansd it goes a long way towards eliminating fogging & misting up.

I trimmed my F4 because I like to look over the windshield top edge. I did a test with a strip, bent as far as it would bend, let go. No break. bent MR10.jpgbent MR10 snap back to curve.jpgI've also tried all sorts of cleaning methods on the left over pieces, no scratching. Bike with F4 wshield at Puffenbargers.jpg

I added my own vent taken from a GL1800 Tulsa discarded for scratches, nice vent Honda.DSCI0021 (640x353).jpg

I have to admit that F4 is the windshield to get... thanks for your input... now make my credit card bleed

[newday777]

One of the main benefits of polycarbonate is that it BENDS instead of breaking into sharp edges. If you hit something, you ARE going through the windshield. Would you rather it bend out of the way, or shatter, leaving sharp edges for you to travel across?

This has been posted here many times before:



   Never miss a video: Subscribe to the GoldwingDocs YouTube channel today!

I like the shotgun test!!!!

[MasterDaniel904]

Gone through a half dozen windshields in 20+ years of riding my GL1500 in all weather, in Chicago winters, in New Mexico Monsoons, and cross country at least once a year, and 5 years ago I bought a "National Cycle V-Stream Windshield W/Vent Opening 25.75 GL1500" (see Amazon) and have not a scratch on it since. It does NOT come with the vent installed, you have to find one elsewhere (there is one on Amazon, I got mine from Cyclemax I think). It's 2/3 the cost of the F4. I'm 6'2" and it works for me. Three things to keep in mind: 1) There is a bit of distortion right along the edge that initially is rather distracting due to its shape. The road lines make a rather alarming shift as you ride along! 2) It does not easily slide up and down. It's a bit thicker than the OEM and other replacements I used and the fairing clamps it pretty tight. I just set it for eye level when sitting ramrod straight and have been fine since. 3) Put the damn vent in BEFORE mounting it on the bike! Tiny screws, narrow work space, hunting for dropped screws in the engine (found them all!) make it a nightmare to install after!
Finally, as for the vent. I use it about once a year, just because it's there. As I ride year around, in the high desert, it's a blast furnace for 8 months of the year, fire extinguisher cold blast 3 months, and barely useful the other 2 weeks in the spring and 2 weeks in the late fall. Personal opinion and all that, but if I ever get another windshield or bike, that vent is not a requirement for me.

[4given]

If you like looking over the windshield the vent is not as important. If you like looking through your windshield then the vent becomes much more important. It then makes a huge difference especially in warmer weather.

[Greenwinger]

Back in 2016 I purchased an Optic Armor windshield from Cycle Max and have since put several thousand kilometers (lots of miles ) on my bike, to Wyoming, Montana and the dreaded NASSIR 9 and a lot of places in between And this baby is still as clear as the day I installed it. I have only ever used Windex and a micro cloth to clean it, and sometimes 3 or 4 times a day depending on the weather. There are a few stone chips but that's the price for riding. If it got really mucked up I would rinse it with water to get the chunks off before the Windex, as grinding road grit into any windshield will scratch it.
I highly recommend this shield as it has worked well for me.

[Ravyn]

Well, I just watched the video. It clearly shows how much better poly is over acrylic . Yet the Madstad is made of Acrylic. Guess I wont be buying a Madstad.

[in2it]

Like to thank all of you who suggested and the advice from experience, using different shields ... and what worked for them

[kwthom]

Well, I just watched the video. It clearly shows how much better poly is over acrylic . Yet the Madstad is made of Acrylic. Guess I wont be buying a Madstad.

Gee, isn't the OEM windshield acrylic (Lucite is a trade name for the same material)?

[in2it]

Well, I just watched the video. It clearly shows how much better poly is over acrylic . Yet the Madstad is made of Acrylic. Guess I wont be buying a Madstad.

Gee, isn't the OEM windshield acrylic (Lucite is a trade name for the same material)?

I believe your right

[WingNoob]

Well, I just watched the video. It clearly shows how much better poly is over acrylic . Yet the Madstad is made of Acrylic. Guess I wont be buying a Madstad.

Gee, isn't the OEM windshield acrylic (Lucite is a trade name for the same material)?

I believe your right

I've been running a Madstad screen on my KLR650 for years (same basic system). It's taken way more abuse (roost from other bikes/vehicles on gravel roads and trails) than any Goldwing is likely to see and it's still in perfect shape. The only thing that video shows is that you should avoid smashing your windscreen with a baseball bat. If you need a video to tell you that.... The reason that poly bends when struck is because it's softer. Sure that makes it more impact resistant, but there is a price to be paid for that. Has anyone tried cleaning polycarbonate safety glasses, or their helmet visor for that matter? Any little bit of debris just etches right into the surface of the plastic if you're not really careful.

I just got my Wing this winter and with the current global situation I haven't had a chance to get much seat time. In the little bit of highway riding that I've done there was a lot of buffeting. I'm going to try some height adjustments but if that doesn't work I'm going straight to Madstad. Sure, you could pay less and get a fixed screen that might work (or that you can cut down to make it work, thus voiding any warranty), but you're likely to get into the same situation that many others on this site seem to have experienced; moving from one screen to the next time and again just trying to find one that works. Why not just pay a little extra up front for a screen that WILL work for 99% of all riders?

Anyway, that's my logic and it served me well on my KLR. To each their own.

Stay safe all.