OK, ya'll... put in 100 miles today on the new screen. On a scale of 1 to 10, I guess I rate it about an 8. Im satisfied with it for the most part, but it could be better in some respects.
You can actually adjust it while riding, by grasping the middle of the spoiler and "clicking" it up and down with a bit of a twisting motion.
I tried it in all 6 positions. The lowest (#1) cuts the windblast smoothly and was best at high speed, but I still had to tuck in a little.. The next 3 positions (#2,#3, and #4) caused some buffeting in different areas around my helmet and shoulders, and also created pockets of less intense air space. It depended on what position I was in, tucking or slouching, but there was always a little pocket I could find for my face shield to occupy.
Position #5 smoothed it out, but still couldn't sit all the way upright and keep my face shield in the "pocket". The highest position (#6) afforded good protection with no turbulence, and the least amount of air pressure overall.
The thing is, it doesn't really create any totally "dead" airspace, it more or less "dilutes" the blast down to a lot less intense level. In other words, instead of having a 75mph wind in your face, you have a 25mph wind in your face. Which is ok with me, it gives me some fresh air in my helmet vents and cools me off when I flip the shield up. And I can flip the shield up at 80mph now.
It does reduce wind fatigue by a substantial amount, I feel like I can ride a lot longer now without getting tired. It's very comfortable compared to the stock screen.
The best thing is how much more
QUIET it is... I can actually hear the engine now. It sounds great. I wear a modular hemet, and the noise around my ears is just a whisper now.
The screen itself is shorter than I expected. If you took the spoiler off, it's only about 1" taller than the stock screen. But the spoiler seems to work in mysterious ways, so to speak... it does a lot more than it looks like it would.
I guess if you were looking for total protection, like having a "bubble" of dead air around your head and shoulders, then you might want to try the taller 1-piece Touring screen... but I'd be concerned about buffeting. You could add the Laminar Lip onto the Touring screen to reduce the turbulence though.
That spoiler really is the key to the whole thing... I'm suprised at how well it reduces the noise and buffeting. I'm thinking when it's cold or nasty, or I'm riding long distance, I'll put it at the #6 position. But on hot days just blasting around the countryside the #1 position gives you smooth, aerodynamic air.
George, I don't know what to tell ya... this screen will eliminate your problem of windblast trying to tear your helmet off. But it's not going to give you the kind of "bubble" that your Gold Wing gives you. Like I said, it does great at reducing the intensity of the wind, but it doesn't eliminate it entirely. Personally, I like it. The only reason I don't give it a 10 is because it's a few inches shorter than what the advertising led me to believe.
It also helps a lot with bugs and raindrops, but doesn't eliminate them completely. I did get a couple bigger bugs bounce off the top of my helmet, but my face shield remained pretty clean. In the short cloudburst I encountered today, the bigger drops were hitting the top of the helmet, but I still got moderate misting and intermediate drops on my shield. Not near as bad as with the stock screen though, and they didn't whack me as hard.
So the bottom line for me is: It's a keeper. For now, anyway, unless something better comes along. It does the job, and suits my needs. It's a great improvement over stock, and I know I'm going to appreciate this windscreen all the more as I venture out on longer trips, and encounter varied conditions.
The best thing about it? It's versatility. The different adjustments really work, and are going to come in handy, not just "set and forget". It really is named the "Vario" for good reason.
Here's what she looks like with the new screen from the seat:
And from the side:
The lip comes attached to the screen already. Shown is the highest position.
It looks pretty good too, ya think?:
