windshield ideas

[Jester]

Hey folks,   

I'm getting a little cold up here with just my sport cruiser windscreen.  I'm thinking about making my own windscreen this season and was wondering if anyone has tried this before.   The vacuum former for the project is easy to make with a cost of around $50 bucks.  and plastic is relatively cheap.   Give me some ideas guys!   

[Curtis_Valk]

What material are you considering?  Acrylic (plexiglas) is more scratch resistant and less expensive, but can shatter into dangerous shards upon impact.  Polycarbonate (lexan) is more shatter proof but prone to scratching in its uncoated form.  Lexan with scratch resistant coating on both sides is what most motorcycle windshields are made of but not cheap at around $400 for a 4' by 8' sheet.

To get a factory edge on Lexan (may work on plexi too, I haven't tried it) after you have done the cutting and sanding, wipe the edge with a rag soaked in MEK (methy-ethyl-keytone).  If the desired edge finish is not obtained on the first wipe, wait until the MEK is completely evaporated before wiping again or you will just smear the finish.  The windshield must be held edge down during this process as any MEK that dribbles on the shield will instantly ruin it.

Curtis

[hootmon]

The only suggestion I have is some of the newer windshields have two indentations that vee out from the bottom and head toward the upper corners, then also have a little flip up at the top to force the air up and over..
You may want to look at websites such as http://www.aeroflowscreens.com/

[Jester]

The screen that is on my bike now is made of acrylic and has a DOT stamp on it.  Methyl-Ethel-BADSTUFF  has been found by the state of california to cause cancer   .   I haven't worked with lexan.  I would be curious as to how the heat would affect it's overall performance and opacity.   What would you use for a mold?  I was thinking high density foam but that may leave a rough surface.  I suppose the first step is to build the forming device.

After doing about 2 seconds worth of research I found an establishment that will sell a  1/8"X4'X 8' sheet of clear lexan for $140   sounds like it would be easy to work with also.  

[dgc67]

I paid about $140 for my wind shield.  I don't think you will do it better or cheaper than what you can buy one for.  Not for a full coverage model like you are wanting.
I have made a small one for summer riding that works PERFECTLY for me.  It is, however, not the prettiest.  I plan to polish it up or maybe cut me a whole new one for next summer.  I used a piece of plexi-glass I had laying around in my garage and then used the mounting brackets from my slipstream.
I will post a pic if you promise not to laugh TOO hard.   

[dgc67]

[hootmon]

Looks like a diamond in the rough!!! 

[Curtis_Valk]

The screen that is on my bike now is made of acrylic and has a DOT stamp on it.  Methyl-Ethel-BADSTUFF  has been found by the state of california to cause cancer   .   I haven't worked with lexan.  I would be curious as to how the heat would affect it's overall performance and opacity.   What would you use for a mold?  I was thinking high density foam but that may leave a rough surface.  I suppose the first step is to build the forming device.

After doing about 2 seconds worth of research I found an establishment that will sell a  1/8"X4'X 8' sheet of clear lexan for $140   sounds like it would be easy to work with also.  

MEK?  I put it in my coffee!  (not really).  Yeah, it's bad stuff if mishandled.  I figured I could trust you to read the MSDS though.  Just put it in a long line of stuff that is known to be a carcinogen (including used motor oil and I've had my hands and arms soaked with that stuff many times).

My tinted Cee Bailey's shield is also DOT acrylic and C.B. also makes aircraft windscreens.  I would imagine there are different grades of acrylic.  My Tulsa is sratch resistant coated Lexan.  It's the second one I've had and both have given good service.  My first Tulsa was taken out by my rib cage when I went over the bars in an unplanned get-off in '05.  I'm glad it wasn't acrylic (I think).  Parking in summer sun in Dallas has not affected the Lexan in any way that I can tell.

The piece of Lexan that I experimented with was not sratch resistant, but it was just a trial so I didn't care.  I build a jig from the thin wood from an old closet door to establish the curvature I wanted.  I merely laid the shield on the curve and stuck it into the oven.  I can't remember what temprature I used, but I think I found it in my internet research.  It is hot enough to relax the Lexan but not hot enough to "imprint" the mold onto it.  It worked like a charm and put the desired curve in the lexan.  Problem is, my oven is not big enough for a full size shield.  Here's a pic of the shorty I was experimenting with:


I really was serious about making shields for a while, but my interest waned before anything came of it.  Short attention span, I guess.

Curtis

[MarylandMagnav45]

I paid about $140 for my wind shield.  I don't think you will do it better or cheaper than what you can buy one for.  Not for a full coverage model like you are wanting.
I have made a small one for summer riding that works PERFECTLY for me.  It is, however, not the prettiest.  I plan to polish it up or maybe cut me a whole new one for next summer.  I used a piece of plexi-glass I had laying around in my garage and then used the mounting brackets from my slipstream.
I will post a pic if you promise not to laugh TOO hard.   

Which is why I still run around naked....$140 for a windshield .  Something's on motorcycles seem to cost so much more than they should.

[dgc67]

After doing about 2 seconds worth of research I found an establishment that will sell a  1/8"X4'X 8' sheet of clear lexan for $140   sounds like it would be easy to work with also. 

Comfort is kinda like speed, how comfortable do you wanna be??  LOL.  My point is by the time you buy a piece of lexan, mold it (providing you do it perfect the first time) and buy mounting brackets for it you are going to be in the hole close to $200 not to mention the time to make it.  I got mine off of ebay by the way and that was money well spent in my opinion.

My little flat screen is really functional though.  Keeps just the right amount of wind off of me.

Curtis,
I would like to make another for next summer the same size, maybe shaped a little different and with a curve.  What thickness was the acrylic you used??  I am pretty sure mine will easily fit in my oven.  I am going to find out when I get home, I am sure wifey will find THAT interesting to say the least!  LOL

[lragan]

 Methyl-Ethel-BADSTUFF  has been found by the state of california to cause cancer   .  

All sorts of everyday chemical compounds have "been found by the State of California to cause cancer", so I generally ignore that warning from the land of fruits and nuts.

HOWEVER, Methyl-Ethyl-Ketone is genuine bad stuff that needs to be handled in a well ventilated area with gloves that it won't dissolve (if such indeed exist).  When I started in the electronics business, we used it to clean circuit boards, remove solder flux, all kinds of things -- along with other carcinogens such as Tri-Chloro-Ethylene.  Shortly thereafter, this stuff was removed from all areas that were not ventilated with a laminar flow air hood followed by an activated charcoal filter -- and not just in California, but in TEXAS, next to Louisiana the most hazardous chemical tolerant state in the nation.

Personally, I would leave the windshield edge unpolished before I would touch the stuff. 

Just my 2 cents worth.

[hootmon]

When I started in the electronics business, we used it to clean circuit boards, remove solder flux, all kinds of things -- along with other carcinogens such as Tri-Chloro-Ethylene. 

I had the same experience with both of the chemicals you mentioned.. I used to handle it all the time in an open area in a pump despenser  ..
Probably explains a few things about me, now that you mention it..
What was I writing about??? 

[Curtis_Valk]

Curtis,
I would like to make another for next summer the same size, maybe shaped a little different and with a curve.  What thickness was the acrylic you used??  I am pretty sure mine will easily fit in my oven.  I am going to find out when I get home, I am sure wifey will find THAT interesting to say the least!  LOL

Yeah, you might not want wifey to catch you doing that or using the dishwasher for parts either!

I didn't work with acrylic, I used polycarbonate.  It was 1/4" thick, but that's just because of what I could salvage for free.  If I were buying, I'd go with 3/16".  I don't think the 1/8" stuff that Jester mentioned would be stiff enough for a full size shield, but would be fine for a small one.

Oh, here's plans for an oven I found on the www: http://www.phy.olemiss.edu/~peter/docs/oven.pdf

Curtis

[Charles S Otwell]

Since a Memphis Shade replacement shield is only around $60.00 the biggest job it seems would be fabbing a decent looking frame and mounting brkts. Any kind of chroming would run the cost up also. It might take a little digging around, but maybe a busted up windshield (free or extremely cheap) and a replacement shield?

[Jester]

It may be more expensive to make one or two shields.   But when you guys see how kickass of a job I do, you'll ALLL want one.  maybe...  maybe not...  no?   I just need to collect a whole bunch of large tools (i.e. vacuum former) so I have an excuse to give my wife as to why I just HAD to rent some shop space.  We'll see what happens over the winter.