Windscreen comparisons...

[EdC]

I spent a few minutes looking and didn't find a post about windscreen comparisons. I think the stock shield is a bit less than I want for wind protection. I see three options

V-Stream
Parabellum
Wunderlich

Any common wisdom about the differences between these options?

Thanks all.

[EdC]

Hearing no wisdom hereabouts I went with the Vstream.

Compared to changing screens on older bikes, what a sweet deal this bolt-on screen deal is, I look forward to installing the new screen....

[Stu]

Which size did you go for?

[Capt Sisko]

I've got a Wunderlich Marathon screen and it's great for cooler & bad weather days, but it's way too protective for the warmer summer days (even allowing for what we in the UK call warmer). I've also got a 'sports' screen which is great for the said warmer summer days, but doesn't offer enough protection at motorway speeds. It's also very noisy. So looking for something that's a happy medium I've just ordered a Z-Technik Vstream as well. It'll arrive on Wednesday.

I've gone for the standard height (Z2350 version) rather than the taller one as the Wunderlich screen will provide all the protection I need for the winter, but hopefully the Vstream with provide a happy medium for the bulk of the year.

[Steve398]

I bought a Werks Quiet Ride Screen 2nd hand, having tried several others including the BM Sports screen and Puig’s offering.

Since fitting it I’ve not bothered trying anything else, it’s entirely successful in all seasons, weathers, and conditions, whether you pooling around in traffic or riding quickly. My patient pillion also gives it the thumbs up too.

Thoroughly recommended if you can find one, as I think they’ve stopped production.

[Capt Sisko]

Thoroughly recommended if you can find one, as I think they’ve stopped production.

They were never readily available in the UK even when they were being made. I also believe that the best alternative, Aeroflow have ceased trading.

It’s unusual that two competitors ‘go bust’, (if indeed that was the case so closely together), but maybe it’s an indication that bike manufacturers had finally learned to get OEM screens right which has caused a decline in aftermarket sales?

[EdC]

The V-Stream which is two inches taller than stock (26" I think that is?) arrives tomorrow. Speedy shipping!

[Ed Harley]

I have had V-Streams on R1100RT, R1200RT and K1600GT - I liked them a lot.

[Stu]

@EdC have you tried the vstream yet? If so any good?

[EdC]

Installed the V-Stream and once again, holy cow what an easy install compared to, say, doing an aftermarket screen on a 1986R80RT back in the day, an hours long affair that involved much cursing, drilling, perilous bending, and etc.

Pity no aftermarket screen I looked at includes the "vent" option I had back in the day for airflow on hot hot days...

Haven't driven with the V-Stream yet. Next up: I read about people breaking their windscreen mounts and having to install aluminum arms. Does that actually happen often? I would have thought by 2011 year they would have fixed any consistency issue with such breakages...the design having been the same for the 1100 and 1150, right?

[Stu]

How does it compare height wise to the stock one?

Be interested to know if it's easy to see over it and that you're not having to look through it all the time

[EdC]

Had it out today for the first time. New shield report....

Impressions: Not the vast improvement I was hoping for. The additional two inches in height? At similar raise (requiring less "up button" push than with shorter OEM shield, of course) little difference at head level (makes sense) but notable improvement in shoulder wind and wind sort of swirling at chest height. Cool day and could tell the "but a big shield makes me too hot in summer" comments are for real. Switching back to OEM shield = super easy, barely an inconvenience so in the hot hot months might do that.

Raised up enough to require looking through, some improvement at head height and much improved side to side as per medium raise.

I believe that in most cases I will not need "max raise" to receive improved riding experience and can ride with it and look overtop edge.

Stu, it is as easy to see over as the stock shield depending on your height and where you set the raise of the shield. I'm about 5'10" but short legged, so equiv torso height of someone 5'11 or so. Your mileage may vary.

Edit: Several hours in on the new screen, though only a few minutes at highway speeds. I continue to like the V-Stream; definitely less shoulder buffet and slightly better head air, and as I said good performance at less than full height (still at "lookover height"). Pretty good for the price leader in the category. But also true that as others note in the warm months I can already tell (as noted above) that too much coverage might be an issue.

[Capt Sisko]

A bit of a coincidence two of us getting the same screen so closely together but for what it’s worth here’s my pennies worth. First off when I bought my ‘18 R1250RT in ‘22 it came with a short sports screen so before anyone asks, I can’t give you a comparison between any of the following and the standard OEM screen.

That sports screen was fine for pootling around, still is, but not much use at motorway speeds and very noisy on the helmet, so I bought one of those Wunderlich screen deflector thingies. That helped with the helmet, wind, noise problem, but with an SS1000 in the pipeline still not really enough protection for a 24hr stint, so I ordered a Wunderlich Marathon screen. And it’s great, in fact sometimes too great.

In what us Brits call summer there just ain’t enough air reaching you, and that’s me, at 6’0” and riding with the seat in the high position. Shorter riders and/or those that use the seat in the lower position or indeed a low seat, well you figure it out. It also had an annoying trait in the rain of water flicking off the top of the screen right onto my visor/helmet, and the said water then running down (and sometimes inside the visor) rather than blowing off. It meant to keep the visor clear I had to lower the screen to get a blast of air which kind of defeating the object of having a barn door size piece of perspex in front of you in the first place. That sounds like I didn’t like the Marathon screen, far from it, I’ve done 20,000miles, three SS1000s and numerous 500mile days sat behind it. In the cold weather it really is what you want, but for summer it’s just too effective. Hence me looking for something else and settling on the VStream Z2350, (the shorter of the two sizes available).

First thoughts, this thing is bigger than I thought it would be and I checked the size just to make sure they had sent me the smaller size. They had. I think this may be due to the fact it's more vertical than the Marathon screen, so whilst it is shorter the angle it sits at makes it almost as tall. The second was just how good the clarity of the polycarbonate was. Okay it was a brand new screen, not a mark on it, but it really was clear. As quick spin around the block, then the heavens opened up an that was it for the day. Yesterday I went out for a proper ride, so 150miles later here are my thoughts.

It’s good. At it’s lowest setting I’m getting enough air to make a difference, and it’s noticeably smoother air than you get from the Marathon screen fully down. There is an increase of air hitting my forearms & elbows, but as well as being shorter the VStream is narrower than the Marathon screen so it’s to be expected. It’s not obtrusive and a few miles into the ride almost forgotten about. Screen raised a few inches and that sweet spot of air over the helmet, quiet with no buffeting but still looking over the top was easy to find. In fact riding with it a tad lower, helmet's internal sun visor down, main visor up gave a pleasant amount of gentle air hitting my face. If there were any unpleasant eddied & swirls or low pressure spots behind my back being created, which I’m sure there were, I couldn’t feel them.

Screen three quarters of the way up and I’m start to look through it, all the way up and it’s well high. Unless you’re Lanky, you know the one the other Severn Dwarfs don’t talk about, I would honestly question if you need the taller version. The temperature yesterday varied from about 13 to 17c, not hot in anyone’s books, but a common enough Spring and Autumn temperature here in the UK, and if you live in Scotland, the top end of that scale is called Summer!

It didn’t rain yesterday, well it did, I just happened to miss all the showers and only time will tell how effectice it'll be, but it can’t be any worse than the Marathon in the rain for flicking rain off, hopefully better. As for the next test, I’ve got another SS1000* in a couple of weeks time and based on yesterday I think the VStream will be a comfortable place to be sat behind for a 1,000miles.

One last observation, my RT regularly returns near a damn it 60mpg on the type of A & B roads I was on yesterday. With the new screen 63.1! I don’t think I was riding any different to normal, but the traffic was quiet so maybe I was holding my speed better and riding more smoothly, but if it is returning an extra 5% more mpg it'll take it.

*Anyone else here doing the RBLR Iron Butt ride in June?

[SimonD]

I fitted a V-Stream (the lower one) to my 2010 RT a few months ago. I've also noticed a significant increase in air flow around the lower arms and a reduction around the shoulders.
The original screen only offered clean air around my head at the very top of its travel and even then a wind direction change could take that away. I've noticed that the V-Stream makes more difference to head buffeting over a wider range of adjustment. At it's best I'm not sure that it is any better but it does offer a wider range of positions that make a difference.
I'm 6ft 0in and use the seat in the high position. I didn't want a huge screen for cosmetic reasons and the fact that I don't like looking through it. I've also picked up cheaply another screen (not sure of brand) to try that is taller with a flipped up top edge because I was interested to see the effect it would have - I'm afraid that hasn't made it out of the packaging yet.