MRA Vario advice

[Staylo]

I finally got a chance to put some highway miles on the bike after installing my MRA Vario screen, and while it is much better then the factory screen in terms of buffeting, I'm still getting quite a bit of wind noise because the airstream is hitting the helmet instead of passing over it. I'm 6'2" tall. After fiddling around for a while with the spoiler position and moving the screen up-and-down I finally decided to scrunch down a little bit to see what that would do.  I only had to scrunch down about 2 inches to find dead calm and quiet air space behind the wind screen. It was wonderful back there!  Now I'm trying to figure out how to get into that magical bubble without having to ride hunched over.  I checked MRA's website hoping they might have a taller version of the Vario screen, but no joy there. I'm not so sure I want to go as drastic as getting a lower seat because I'm on the taller side, and I would hate to spend that kind of money and find out it didn't get me to where I need to be. Has anyone else found themself in this situation and discovered a solution?

[seagiant1]

Hi,
        Matt, turned me on to the MRA Vario and I love it on a few levels!

I'm about 6'7" and I have no problems?

Of course I want to keep the bike sporty and hate the look of a tall screen on this bike!

Maybe my love of the MRA is I really can't find anything better to get the same benefits!

There's no sweet spot for me, but I'm used to that, on this Planet!!!

[mattchewn]

Scott,
I'm 6'4 and have not had any significant noise issues using my Vario. Usually I have it all the way down and smooth quiet air. Maybe that extra 2 inches i have on you is making the difference in volume. I ride with a NeoTec modular.
Matt

[Staylo]

I should clarify, it's not any noisier than riding my Ducati was, but since that had virtually no windshield I guess I had expected riding an ST to be much quieter.  Now that I've discovered how quiet it would be if I were 3 inches shorter it would be really nice on longer trips to have that peace and quiet .  I wear an Arai. I think they're supposed to be pretty good on noise. I'm considering cutting holes in my stock screen to match the two holes in the MRA to see what the results might be.

[AmphibSailor]

There are two versions.  The Touring is ~500 mm and the X-screen, which is ~610 mm.   That's approx 4 inches difference. 

Touring<--Click

XScreen<---Click

[seagiant1]

Hi,
        Here's a pic of my 2012 C14 (The Beast!)

There is no better screen out there, to me!

Yea, I know something's missing!!!

[AmphibSailor]

Another thing that may help is the MadStad Brackets. ,<---Click  They work great for me.  The brackets give the shield more adjustability. 

[Staylo]

There are two versions.  The Touring is ~500 mm and the X-screen, which is ~610 mm.   That's approx 4 inches difference. 

Touring<--Click

XScreen<---Click

I saw the add-on version of the X-creen and thought it was only available as an add-on. I missed the full screen version. I'll look st that.

[AmphibSailor]

Read the review on the Madstad brackets used in conjunction with the XScreen. It's posted at the bottom of the page (Twisted Throttle XScreen link, above).That rider had same or similar symptoms that you describe... I use the brackets with  the shorter touring screen...albeit, I am only 6 ft.

[Mikes14]

Slightly off topic but has anyone tried one of these mounted on an OEM screen?:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Adjustable-Clip-On-Windshield-Extension-Spoiler-Deflector-Motorcycle-Light-Gray/252758760351?_trksid=p2045573.c100033.m2042&_trkparms=aid%3D111001%26algo%3DREC.SEED%26ao%3D1%26asc%3D41451%26meid%3D6d80f9d28fd049ac96b52acac6194adb%26pid%3D100033%26rk%3D5%26rkt%3D8%26sd%3D332188483905

For $35 I'm almost tempted to try it...thoughts?

Mike

[Arabian Red]

This is my set up and it works great.

[Texas Concours14]

The weak link in the windshield system is the flimsy pair of black plastic "holder plates" (to use the terminology in the manual) that secure the windshield on the bike. If you use the vario, I recommend checking the holder plates periodically for cracks. I had a handful of these plates crack around the two screw holes even before installing the vario and got in the habit of carrying spares on trips. After reinforcing the plates with glue and wire in the cavities on the backside of the plates they did not crack anymore. When I installed the vario and they cracked again, rather quickly. This was frustrating because the vario provided my helmet clean air for the first time (I am 6'5"). To allow continued use of the vario I employed large metal washers bent to conform to the plastic plate (along with longer screws since the screws were no longer sitting in the plate's screw recesses). This served to distribute mechanical forces over a larger surface area of the the plates. No plates have cracked since.

[Staylo]

 Thanks for the heads up.

[mattchewn]

Texas Concours,
If you are having issues with those plates cracking then something is not fitting correctly or you are over-torquing the screws. I have run all sizes of screens for tens of thousands of miles and not cracked a single one. I have no knowledge of anyone else having that issue either. FYI: I work on these bikes for other members as well and none of them have reported these pieces breaking or cracking.
The part that commonly breaks from large screens it eh retaining piece for the windshield track mechanism inside the front nose. This requires replacing the entire screen mechanism which is something like 600$.
Matt

[Texas Concours14]

Matt,
I appreciate your comments and perspective. I recall a few postings a few years back about folks having problems with the plates cracking (one guy fashioned aluminum plates) but admit there are not many. I don't know why I have had this problem except for perhaps one thing I neglected to mention - I replaced the OEM shield with a Cee Bailey Ultra Tour Dome, which is about 4.5 inches taller than stock. That is when the plates started to crack. The Vario is attached this the Cee Bailey shield, so it stands tall.

I torque the screws to the recommended 5-8 INCH-pounds (as per Cee Bailey instructions) and they are fit correctly on the bike.  When one considers the relatively small surface area of the pressure points where the screws secure the plates to the windshield, I was not surprised that they cracked. But this seems to be more my problem rather than widespread a problem.
Steve

[mattchewn]

Wow!
5-8 inch pounds? I torque those screws much much tighter than that. Maybe that is the issue? Too much flexing allowed? I also know I am one of the "supposedly" high speed bunch that has "supposedly" run well into the 160MPH range "supposedly" multiples of times with no screen issues.
HEHEHEHE

Matt

 

[Texas Concours14]

My apologies for side-tracking this thread with my initial word-of-warning post.

Yes Matt, that does not seem like much torque and I usually take it to 8 and then give it another turn to 10 (not that this matters much). I have a vague memory of calling Cee Bailey when I bought the shield about 4 years ago to confirm the torque specs and they cautioned that the shield would likely crack if over-torqued so I followed their advice (I had to buy an inch-pound torque wrench since I had never previously torqued so lightly before). I don't notice excessive movement of the shield but don't have a point of reference. No doubt with the large washers in place I can get away with high torque settings and will probably go that route based on your comments. I am curious if other Cee Bailey owners torque to spec or have problems similar to mine. As to speed, the plate cracks occurred at normal highway speeds. One last point - I did not find torque settings in the 2010 manual for the OEM windshield plate screws. Thanks for your comments.

[mattchewn]

TC14,
You do have all the rubber spacer gaskets in place right? (4 of them total) Also the center bolt with the nylon washer under it? I am really interested in figuring out what is happening here since I use multiple screens in a year and have zero issues with any of them.
Matt

[Texas Concours14]

Matt,
Yes, the four rubber gaskets (figure 1 from manual; and parts 19161A and 19161 in figure 3 from Ron Ayers website) and two center bolts with nylon washers (labeled "A" in figure 2 from manual) are installed. I take the windshield off the bike a couple of times a year for cleaning and other reasons, and I am certain these parts have always been in place. Prompted by your inquiry I removed the shield tonight and confirmed that the four rubber gaskets and center screws are in place. All the parts shown in figure 3 are on the bike.
Steve

[smithr1]

I also have a lot of issues with those cover plates cracking and or flying off.   I have tried several times and ways to have it be better.   I can't remember what I have shield wise.  Came with the bike used.  It is taller.  Its not just you.

[Staylo]

Back to the original topic, I have taken my stock windscreen and cut holes in it to match the holes that the Vario screen has. I'm going to run that configuration on a trip I'm taking this weekend and see what the results are. I'm assuming that, at the least, the buffeting from the stock screen will be gone as this mod will somewhat also mimic the design of the new style factory screen which has the vent in it. If the holes do eliminate the buffeting and give me smooth clean air then I'm hoping that the taller height of the stock screen will get me closer to the quiet air I'm after. If I'm not quite there yet then step 2 of my plan will be to mount the spoiler from the Vario onto the stock screen to see what that result might be. I'll report back after this weekend.

[connie_rider]

Couple of thoughts.
Can you contact Twisted Throttle or Vario and ask if their X-creen will attach to the same holes as your touring MRA?
   If so, that seems like a good solution.

On the stock shield, the lip at the top may be causing some of the buffeting...
I just compared my stock shield to my Vario.
   It appears that you can remove about 2" off the top lip, still be higher than the Vario, and install either of the deflectors..

Mikes14, that might work, but the single clamp might be a bit weak at elevated speeds..

TC14, are you sure you have the correct rubber pieces under the correct plastic covers, and are they installed at the correct location?  I ask because they can be installed incorrectly..

Ride safe, Ted

[Texas Concours14]

I also have a lot of issues with those cover plates cracking and or flying off.

Good to know that I am not the only one!

TC14, are you sure you have the correct rubber pieces under the correct plastic covers, and are they installed at the correct location?  I ask because they can be installed incorrectly.

Thanks for the suggestion. Yes, they are installed in the correct location and orientation.

I don't have the problem anymore with the fixes I implemented. The Vario has been a great farkle - hope the OP finds it gives him clean air.

[Staylo]

On the stock shield, the lip at the top may be causing some of the buffeting...
I just compared my stock shield to my Vario.
   It appears that you can remove about 2" off the top lip, still be higher than the Vario, and install either of the deflectors..

If the holes alone don't get the job done then I'll make sure when I attach the spoiler I mount it up on the flare because if that doesn't solve the problem I think I'm going to follow up on your idea and cut the flare off and remount the spoiler on the flat area and try that.  I'm trying to avoid spending any more money since I just bought the Vario. Hopefully the stock screen with the holes, and maybe the spoiler, will get me where I'm trying to go. if not, the Vario was great in terms of clean smooth air. Just not as quiet as I had hoped.

[currenv]

+1 to AnphibSailor's advice to consider the Madstadt brackets.  I don't have them on my Connie but I do have them on my KLR.  They give loads of adjustability and I bet you'll be able to adjust the vertical angle of your screen to get the air to pass over your helmet.  That was what happened on the KLR -- a little steeper angle and the buffeting was gone.

Re: Matt and Steve's exchange about the cracking plastic bits, I have a Cee Bailey and it's one of the few things I don't use a torque wrench on.  I just snug those screws plus a bit more.  The screws are going into wellnuts so you can only get them so tight.  But the screws have to be tight enough to compress the wellnut behind the bracket or they're not going to hold. Also, are the wellnuts still soft and flexible?  I've found they get old, hard, and crack so they don't work so well after a while.  I ordered a couple of boxes of them from McMaster Carr -- they were cheap -- so I replace them when they start to get that way.  And also, my Cee Bailey hasn't cracked yet with the likely greater torque I'm applying.  Of course, tomorrow is a new day so I may have just jinxed myself.

Vinnie