fine-tuning the new Cee Bailey's screen

[xprof]

The new Cee Bailey's screen is the best screen that I've tried yet. But I can't help fiddling with things, so: this morning I cut two 1/2" (12mm) pieces of aluminum tubing and put them as spacers under the lower bracket hook. This lowered the top edge a bit, and brought it a bit closer to my face. For me: perfection!!! It is now just the height I wanted, and the airflow is smooth up to 115mph (I didn't have a chance to go faster). The moral is: this screen is easily tinkered with to adjust to your individual needs. And I stuck a roundel on the nose so the folks I'm overtaking can see what is about to blow their doors off. It looks good, too!

[M249Joe]

How tall are you and what size did you order?

[xprof]

I'm 6'1", and a bit long-waisted. I ordered the 25" shield.

Today the weather was blue skies and around 60°, with a blustery wind, so I went out and did a 100-miler. The new shield worked beautifully, this time up to 120mph (indicated), and with an open-face helmet at that. And here's the weird thing: the bike seemed to run a bit better, quieter, smoother and more aerodynamic with this shield. Can it be? Am I hallucinating? Anyhow, I'm quite enthusiastic about it!

[daveyator]

I don't know how accurate this observation is but my new CBs doesn't pick up a lot of bugs which makes me think it has decent aerodynamics. For reference the BMW screen is usually covered with them after just a short ride.

[SDMAX]

Local pal has the new Z tecknik screen for his current model year R1200R; they just tooled up for the new bike. He uses their hardware and screen. Their hardware completely replaces the BMW mount.

He says it's terrific. It comes down like a fairing on both sides, way down lower than the triple clamp; which to me would mean maybe they've gotten rid of the air flow issue over the top of the triple clamp and under the original and Cal Sci screens?

I gotta call the Z guys as I don't think they make a similar screen and mount for my 2007 R1200R

http://www.ztechnik.com/products/index.html

Otherwise, Mike is generally right on .... but, he says the Don C block is too much...so it is going to take some fiddling.

Just went down to the Man Cave and measured the current Cal Sci what is on the bike with the Don C....the Cal Sci is 25"...but I also measured the Don C block and it is one inch in height, which results in a lot of kick back. Also I don't think the Cee Bailey mounts as low. So it might be effectively higher.

As noted many times before the Don C kicks the top edge of the screen back so it is effectively lower.

For me. Taller is better; I'm about 90% ready to order the new Cee Bailey in 25". Also I note somewhere in the four pages of development on the new CB screen that he left more of an opening at the bottom of the screen to allow the air coming over the triple clamp somewhere to go?

Also, note, Mike rides open face helmet which I believe to be more quiet that full face. Go figure.
John

[SDMAX]

What I meant by Mike is generally right on.....if I'd read his posts before I started buying windshields I'd have at least three less in the Man Cave.

Until this new Cee Bailey....the Cal Sci with the Don C was the answer. Mike's been riding that way for at least 2-3 years so if he says CB is the bomb; I'm ready to sign up.

[SDMAX]

Have to ask my son the psychiatrist why I'm replying to myself. Anyway: Maybe Don C could make a fancy block at 1/4 inch and another at 1/2 inch. I'd sure pay for both to see what worked better, nothing or one or the other blocks. Looks like Mike found goodness at 1/2".

Plan next: In a couple of weeks I'll run north to Cee Bailey and see which height works best. They are only a couple of hours north from San Diego. [114 miles door to door from me]

This is going to be a lot cheaper than an RT and might make my plan to ride to Denver in the late spring via Arizona and Utah a lot more comfortable.

[deilenberger]

This is going to be a lot cheaper than an RT and might make my plan to ride to Denver in the late spring via Arizona and Utah a lot more comfortable.

Hmmmm... I'm heading the other way toward Copper Canyon.. then on to CA hopefully.. same time of year. Just hoping all the passes are open..

[xprof]

Well, I rode to work today in the rain (yes, retirement is on hold for a semester as I cover for an ill colleague), warm, dry and visible in my bright yellow BMW Motorrad rainsuit. The new CB shield worked well, but rain streamed off the top edge into my face shield. I missed the SAENG edging on my old shield which prevented that! I got home, searched my workbench and found exactly the right length of SAENG edging (15") to pop on the top of the new shield. Now I just have to wait for more rain to try it out. if it works I'll just carry it with my rain gear and pop it on or off as the weather dictates.

[R12RnHouston]

OK, way off topic Mike… but what course are you teaching this semester?

David

[xprof]

Off topic indeed! I'm teaching Human Anatomy and Physiology. It's just like motorcycles: You learn the parts, you learn the functions of the parts and how they work together, and you learn how to wrench it.

[R12RnHouston]

Off topic indeed! I'm teaching Human Anatomy and Physiology. It's just like motorcycles: You learn the parts, you learn the functions of the parts and how they work together, and you learn how to wrench it.

Didn’t think you would mind an off topic question. You probably get them from students from time to time. Have a great semester! And that new Cee Bailey’s screen looks mighty nice.

[GHBuck]

Has anybody tried the new Cee Bailey w/s designed for the Sport bracket?
Thank you

[xprof]

More to report:

1) Night riding reveals no "light-pipe" effect, so no need to black off either the lower or the upper edge of the screen. There is, however, an annoying reflection of the top of the light; using black tape on the top rim of the lens took care of that.

2) Don C made me a 1/2" block for under the lower mount. That tilts it just right, mounts it up nice and firm, and looks like "factory." Thanks Don C!

3) Still loving it!

[objectuser]

Mine came in this morning. Just installed it. Planning a ride with my wife tomorrow, so hoping I can tell a significant difference. It is much narrower than the gen 1 screen. I'm hoping not to modify it at all.

[objectuser]

Took my bike out today and rode at my typical 70 to 80 mph on the highway. This gen 2 screen is a substantial improvement over the gen 1. There is no buffeting unless there's a cross wind and even then it's reduced. I experienced it a couple times going on overpasses. Straight into the wind, I can feel the stream of air come in the vents of my helmet, but no buffeting up there or anywhere else. Lots of wind around my torso, some up around my chin.

So this screen is a winner for me.

[deilenberger]

Mine arrived today - will report on it when I have some time on it (just got in a brief ride today with it..) I did notice almost no sail effect on passing trucks and in side gusts, which is a good thing. Also has more belly up higher which makes it easier for me to tip my GPS so I can see it (mine is mounted on a cross-bar I made for the touring mount.)

More report when I have more hours on it.

[objectuser]

Also has more belly up higher which makes it easier for me to tip my GPS so I can see it (mine is mounted on a cross-bar I made for the touring mount.)

I noticed the same thing. With the gen 1 screen and the tilt block, I lost some room for the GPS (mine is mounted to the side). This gave me more room to put it where I like it.

[deilenberger]

Ummm.. well, I have more time on the shield - with two different mounts.

Overall - I had hoped to be more impressed.

That said - I've been quite happy with my early CB shields mounted to a modified BMW touring mount that tips the mounting position back to about where a 1-1.25" DonC block would put it. I've haven't felt the need of putting the largest of my CB shields on (a 20") this winter since it hasn't been THAT cold in NJ, and I've grown fond of the 18". My 16" is out on loan to a friend who has been waiting for the new shield to be released.

With that background, Chumley and I have been PM'ing, and I think my PMs from the past few days to him pretty much sums up where I am with it at the moment:

John,

It arrived today - spotted it on my porch when I got back from a lunch ride. Immediately installed it on my modified bracket (which leans back about the same as a 1" DonC block does..)

Impression on that mount.. not so hot. There was a good breeze (probably about 20 MPH) from the west. Found some buffeting. Noise level wasn't bad, but wasn't really much different from the 18" old CB screen on that mount. Buffeting was worse. Also the top edge did some dancing around. Did a big loop, with local riding and some highway (up to around 75MPH) with the wind behind me.

Came back and swapped mounts (takes a few minutes since my GPS mounts to my mount)..

Impression on a non-modified BMW touring mount. Better - but jury is still out. Did the same loop as the first ride. It is a bit tall for me, and I suspect the top of my helmet is ending up just about at the top of the wind envelope, so any buffeting is going to be quite noticeable. The top edge of the windshield was rock solid, so that was an improvement. Noise level was fine, buffeting - dunno - might have been the wind - so jury is still out on it.

I did try lifting myself out of my seat a few times to raise my head up 2-3 inches. I got more air on my helmet - and it did seem to help with buffeting. I suspect the shield may be a bit too tall for people with my build (5'7" with 27" inseam, on a low seat - ie - dwarfs, fat dwarfs...)

I don't mind air around the helmet (even when temps get into the low 30's) as long as it's laminar and not turbulent. The Shuberth helmet is very quiet in clean air. I know I'm getting less air to the helmet with the height of the new windshield since my faceshield started fogging up, and I had to run with the faceshield cracked about 1/2". Usually the wind would just close the faceshield - but with this windscreen, it stayed open, so less air is getting to my head.

As I said - jury it still out. It's supposed to get colder the rest of the week, but I should still be able to get out for a few hours with it. I want to try it on a day when there isn't a big wind. I also want to try it without my tankbag (which may be the reason the original CB shield worked well for me once I tipped it back, it might deflect some of the air coming up from around the fork leg openings.)

From the looks of it (I asked for the shortest one) it looks as if Joe could easily trim 2-3" off the top edge and still keep the basic shape. As it is - it would might be too much shield for me in the summer (where I run the 16" old CB) - might be too hot. This time of year I have been running the 18" old CB, which despite giving me lots of air in the face, the air was smooth enough that that wasn't bothersome, and kept enough air off my body so I could ride down into the 30's. The 18" is 4" lower (I measured it.)

One good thing - I noticed very little sail effect, which is noticable with the 20" old CB that I have. Passing cars/trucks or going sideways to the wind - it was barely noticeable. That's a big plus to me.

Then I wrote:

More thoughts after spending about an hour with it.

It's got more turbulence then the (old) 18" screen on my modified (tipped back) mount. There is some turbulence off the top, but much more off the sides. When riding along at around 70-75MPH, if I put my hand near the opposite shoulder I can feel it, and follow it right to the extended edge part of the shield. It hits my shoulders which causes enough shake in my head to slightly blur my vision.

Noise isn't bad, probably a bit quieter then the 18" screen. Turbulence has always been my bug-a-boo.. it really gets annoying on a long ride, much more so to me then wind noise (which good earplugs take care of.)

Dunno if that would be any different if the shield was shorter, I rather doubt it since it's coming off the sides. Other shields suffer from turbulence coming off the top edge - not so much with this one. There might be a bit - but it isn't at an annoying level for me. I did some more truck passing - and there is some sail effect, probably about the same as when I run the 20" old style CB screen. It's noticeable but not scary.

The top edge is a bit higher then I usually like - I can look over it easily enough, but if I scrunch down in the seat at all I'm looking through the top of the screen. In a normal sitting position, I'd guess I look over it at about 40' up the road.

Nice things about it - no light piping that I could see (it was getting dark when I got home last night) it's just far enough behind the headlight lens so this doesn't seem to be a problem. The additional belly near the upper mount points makes it easier to pivot my GPS so I can easily read it.

OK -- so that's the Cliffs notes version. I should note that my bike isn't "standard" - but then I doubt if many bikes owned by forum members here are standard. Things that might be effecting my results:

1. I run a tankbag - all the time. From comments people had about the early CB screens, this may be an advantage with the early screen. It may not be an advantage with the new screen. I've got to take it off and go for a ride, only thing that's delaying me is figuring out how to keep the front straps/buckles from flapping around and beating up the tank (or jamming the steering head.)

2. I have an EZPass mounted on my touring mount(s) - it mounts right above the headlight on the cross-bar above the bottom mount point of the touring mount. It is tipped so it should channel air up behind the screen. This may be helping with the older CB design, not certain how it would effect the new design since it is more exposed with the higher up bottom of the new design. The EZPass is a 1/2" thick transponder about 3" x 4" in size.

3. I have my GPS mounted on a cross-bar I install between the two uprights for the touring mount. It's a BMW Nav-III, so it's somewhat bulky and I'm sure it changes the air pattern going up on the inside of the screen. It's possible this is causing the side turbulence.

In order for a screen to work for me - it has to work with the three items above. The older CB design does, and once tipped back it's been quite acceptable. I should also note that I like air around my head/helmet, as long as it isn't turbulent.

The new CB screen is about as tall as a 22" one in the old design would have been (the top edge is 4" higher then the top edge on my 18" old screen.) That is really higher then I like. I don't like looking through the screen even for closer then 10' from the bike, and I think it blocks too much air for me. Once I learned how to keep my head warm in cold weather with wind hitting my helmet (balaclava), I saw no reason not to have air around my helmet. The old CB does that nicely when tipped back without any real noticeable turbulence.

I mentioned I tried the new shield on two different mounts. The results above were mostly with the unmodified stock BMW touring mount. As mentioned earlier, I have a modified mount that tips back the screen more (probably about 10 degrees or so..) I tried the new screen with the modified mount. I didn't leave it on for long. The comment about turbulence - about the same. It seems to be coming off the sides of the screen not the top. I did notice the turbulence was enough to actually cause the top edge of the screen to start a rhythmic dance when "at speed" (around 75MPH.) It was noticeable and seemed to be in beat to the turbulence I was feeling.

I think we've learned how well any screen works for someone depends on LOTS of variables.. not only the accessories you might have on the bike, but also the relationship in height of the screen and the riders head, and what the rider deems important in a screen. I really hate turbulence, and it's been the problem with almost every screen I've tried on the R12R. It seems to be greatly minimized (to eliminated) with tipping the screens back more then the stock mount puts them. In the case of the new CB screen, I didn't see this effect - I suspect because the turbulence isn't coming off the top of the screen, it's coming off the side "wings". I think the belly design is good - it puts the shield airflow about where the old design was on a tipped back mount.

I'd love to try this shape (with the belly it has) with less height, and less straight area (the "reverse curve") above the belly, and perhaps without the upper wing bumpouts. Just as a WAG - I think that might work quite well.

I'm rather tempted to take a saw to the screen and start whittling away at it - but before I do, I'm going to ask a few friends to try it out and let me know what they think. They're different heights then I am, so it will be interesting to see if it works better for someone taller then me.

I'll also be taking it out for some more rides this weekend - trying it with the GPS moved and the tank bag removed - and you never know - that might change my opinion of it radically. In looking at where my GPS mounts - it must block some air coming up behind the screen, and that might be causing the turbulence off the sides of the screen. I'll move it so it allows air to travel up the screen unencumbered and see if that, or removing my tankbag, or both make a difference.. so you can expect to see an update, probably by Sunday.

I want to thank Chumley for arranging for me to get the screen to try out... that was much appreciated, and I also want to thank Joe at Cee-Bailey for not only really making an effort to solve our screen needs, but also for providing a test screen. I have discussed this review with Chumley who encouraged me to post it.. he promised to post his review shortly.

So - right now - I'm still "ummmm.." but gonna try a few more things. The early CB screens didn't work as well as they now do for me without some modifications.

As usual - it's my opinion only - and I may be a raging baboon or a complete lunatic.. YMMV,

[deilenberger]

Sunday update..

Had some time to spare, and it was 36F so it's riding weather. Took off my tankbag and used painters tape to tape the straps to the tank. Took my GPS and rotated it so it wasn't blocking the inside of the shield. Went for a ride, including some super-slab at around 75MPH, in both directions so wind could be factored in (the slab runs west-east, and our predominant wind is out of the west, today was not very windy at all..) Then did some local riding and filled the tank and back to home.

My results were the same. Using the standard BMW mount (no DonC block, not tipped back, not my modified mount) - the air coming off the top of the shield is quite good. Very little turbulence. Unfortunately - the air coming off the upper wing like side sections IS turbulent, enough that it causes my helmet to shake a bit and that blurs my vision just a bit.

Also - the shield at least for me blocks a bit too much air since I'm not looking for an RT type ride (same complaint I had with the Cal-Sci shield, even after we got it working..) This may be due to my size and my riding position on the bike (low seat, NO bar-backs, 5'7" with 27" inseam.)

As has been evident from all the wind-screen threads, it really IS a case of YMMV, as may your wants/needs. This screen as it is doesn't work for me. If it was shorter by about 2-3" it might, but I'm still concerned about the turbulence I'm feeling off the side wings. I'm really critical about turbulence, and that has been the problem with almost every shield in my large collection of shields.

I'm going to be giving it to another member here (John M) who uses a regular height seat, and is considerably taller then I am to see if it works for him. I also have another R12R owner who wants to try it out, but that has to wait for him to get back from Florida in about 3 weeks. So we should have more reviews on how it works for different people.

My suggestion to CB - don't toss out the original R12R screen molds. They do work for a number of people once the mount is tipped back a bit. They work for me, and my mid-size 18" one is going back on probably tomorrow.

YMMV, as may your screen satisfaction..