Summertime Comfort on an Airhead RT

[khittner1]

I just installed a vented Clearview replacement shield on my '84 R100RT, and its vent does significantly improve riding comfort with the increased cooling airflow it allows---I can wear a riding jacket up to about 80F, whereas before the Clearview, I was bailing out of the jacket in the low 70s.

Another sweltering Midwest summer like this past one, however, could have me considering a complete fairing-ectomy, though nothing beats an RT fairing when the weather is cooler, wetter, etc. Does anyone have experience with running a MUCH shorter "summertime" windshield on an RT---I'm thinking of one cut down to about the height of the mirror tops? I'm trying to do several things simultaneously:

1. Have my head and upper body in fairly "clean" (ie: not too much noisy/fatiguing buffeting), cooling airflow that makes wearing more skin protection than SPF 70 comfortable;
2. Maintain use of the RT's upright OE handlebars with their associated wiring, brake hoses, etc.;
3. Have a reasonably pleasing "finish" to the top of the fairing, and;
4. For the same reason as 3., I'd prefer to leave the lowers on---to my eye, at RT or RS without its lowers looks like a bike without its pants on.

I think I'd like to swap my new Clearview for this shorter "summer shield" seasonally, as the weather warms up in June, and then back to the Clearview when Fall arrives. Apart from buying an un-faired bike (a great idea, but the CFO says "no"), what have others done to make an RT fairing tolerable in the summer months while wearing protective clothing? Will a shorter shield simply generate an intolerable amount of wind buffeting and noise?

Thanks, in advance, for your insights.

[guy]

I have a normal height clearview with vent installed for cold weather riding. I also have a shorter windshield made by cutting 3" from the old shield that the clearview replaced. It is much cooler with the shorter shield but also has more wind noise and turbulence.
Guy

[Garnet]

I'd get some scrap or seconds plastic and do a couple of mock-ups first. That way you can get the right look and height. As Guy said, the wrong height will make a thunderin noise that no earplugs will block.

After you get it right you can cut down a good windshield.

[SteveD]

Fwiw, here's a view of the RS screen with some loose "data points".
The green line represents where the oem screen goes to. Buffet city! The pink line represents where the wind flow hits the helmet.
The blue line is where the wind flow now goes to. It could be even lower but it's much better than previous. In it's current position, if I sit up a little taller (I'm 186cm), it's quieter again. I suspect K75S bars would do this.


The R100RS without & with the lowers. Cooler by some amount but a very low screen helps quite a bit more.

[khittner1]

Thanks, Garnet---I'll be sure to use that technique tip. Steve and Guy---thanks for the data and observations. I'm only about 5'8" (170 cm), so I'm thinking more radically, maybe taking about 10 inches off of the top of an 18 inch OE RT shield to get it down to the mirror tops. Who's tried this, and what results?

[Chuey]

While I'd agree that the bikes look good (better) with the lowers, they make a LOT of difference in super hot weather. My main ride each year turns out to be through Las Vegas, Salt Lake City and Pocatello, Id. in the Summer. Two years ago, wearing vented pants, I got home with a second degree burn right above my boot on my right leg. This last year, same heat, same pants, but on a bike without lowers, no burn and not even a threat of one. It still was hot and the vented pants don't vent all that well but the heat concentrates so much with the lowers that it's reasonable to take them off when you know you are in for a long super hot ride.

Just my opinion and experience.

Chuey