Windshield Woes

Whenever I speak to someone about windshields on a motorcycle, I find that I often have the minority opinion. Most, it would seem, prefer to ride without a shield, just to better feel the wind in their hair. For awhile I rode without a windshield on my old Suzuki. During that short stint, I realized why others not only prefer a windshield, but find it to be indispensable.

It would seem that those who do not like to have windshields on their bikes often ride what are referred to as "bar-hoppers". In other words, these bikes are not ridden great distances or in the country. Most people will take these bikes out for a night on the town but not much further. For them, the utility of a windshield is not apparent. It changes the style of the bike and adds a few pounds of weight to the front end. 

My mother and father colluded to buy me a windshield for my Suzuki for Christmas one year. They secretly placed the order to JC Whitney for a style of shield that would match the style of bike and surprised me on Christmas day. I was absolutely thrilled!

After using the shield for awhile on the Suzuki, I was appalled at what it collected. It did not take long for the shield to incur it's first chips and gouges. Aside from the rocks and road debris, the shield amassed an assortment of bugs, the likes of which I had never seen. All in all I realized that if not for this piece of Plexiglas, I would have eaten a lot of bugs. From that point on, anything I rode needed to have a shield.

The issue then boils down to style. Which shield fits best for a given application? When browsing online through all the aftermarket and even official parts catalogs, a few things will become apparent. One, windshields are somehow very expensive, two, the bracket for mounting is rarely ever included, three, there are numerous styles that drastically change the look of the bike itself and finally they come in a variety of colors and tints. 

I must also say that I am not a fan of fairings. In my opinion, the fairing, be it batwing style or shark nose, makes the front of the bike look too bulky. I understand why people prefer them and can see their use in housing additional instruments and sound systems, but it seems like overkill. It's not that I think no one should have them, they just aren't for me. 

The bike I purchased, luckily, already came with a windshield but more importantly, came with the quick release bracket system attached. This bracket and hardware are almost universal, allowing it to be used with many styles and brands of shields. The style of shield on the bike was interesting. It could be described as a spade shovel look, with a skinny outline that provided most of it's coverage in the center of the rider. It also had a tinted black center section that was meant to blend with the cell that encases the headlight. 

I really didn't care much for this style of windshield. It looks... odd. Especially on a wider bike equip with saddlebags and crash bars. The shield drags the lines of the bike up and makes it appear as though it is wearing a hat that is too small. I've always been a fan of what I call the FLH style windshield. This isn't the exact term, but I've had difficulty finding exactly what they were called. Essentially this style is about 21 inches tall and 23 inches wide, making it appear a bit chubby. This style, being about 4 inches wider than the other, provides more protection while stylistically matching the bike itself. The shield never really comes to a vertical point, making it appear more oblong than it's counterparts. Obviously this is all personal preference.

Not horrible but not my style. The shield that was on the bike when purchased.

In my constant crusade to save money, my uncle provided a new windshield that matched the style I was looking for. This was a very interesting shield. It was an official HD shield that was adjustable! It just had one small problem. Well, actually 2 large problems. The shield had two major scratches across the center and was a bit worn from age. The little research I could do on this shield told me it was a Screamin' Eagle (the HD high performance brand) windshield that never really became popular, so it was discontinued. My wife and I were determined to find a way to fix this and use it. The final results left us very disappointed. Hopefully the following story and advice can save you from this same heartbreak. 

The shield my uncle gave to me before we ruined it. Notice the cloudiness and scratching across the top. 

Want to repair a windshield? Just don't. 

We began this repair attempt like all home remedies, a trip to the internet. I was unable to find any information on "how to remove a scratch from a windshield" or any other related searches. All that was retrieved were forum posts informing me to "not even bother". Foolishly, I did not heed these warnings and instead insisted on finding a method that would work, 

The shield pulled apart before we completely ruined it. 

We found a YouTube video of a man offering a solution for headlight repair. The idea was it would remove scratches and yellowing and restore a nice clear finish to the headlight. For the method to work you needed 400 grit sandpaper, 600 grit sandpaper and finally 2000 grit sandpaper. Further, you would need rubbing alcohol along with a specific Rustoleom product that was essentially a non-yellowing clear coat. 

The idea was simple; wet sand the area/s down with finer and finer grit sandpaper, clean it with alcohol and the spray a nice thin clear coat over it. This would fill the holes made with the sandpaper and make the plastic shine.

All the required materials.

The consideration we did not make was the application. In other words what works for a car headlight will not work so well for a windshield. What we ended up doing was putting a very unclear, somewhat cloudy coat over the shield itself. The issue of visibility was immediate. Essentially, we would not be able to see well because of the pattern the spray paint put out. The little dots from the clear coat caused a mosaic pattern to be displayed when light was shined upon it, creating a very dangerous driving situation. 

The shield as it appeared after completing all three sanding grits.

That is not to say the method does not work for what it was intended for. We did end up removing the deep scratches across the shield and it did remove the cloudiness caused by the sandpaper and aging. In fact if my headlights yellow, I will absolutely use this method to fix them. It just won't work for something that requires you to be able to see out of.

The shield with a layer of clear coat. Notice the shine from the basement light creates an opaque area.