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Too much Turbulence on my 88 RS windscreen

have an 88 Rs stock and had an 84 with a taller aftermarket screen. Both are/were awful noise wise without earplugs. I have a 78 rs also with a real tall WS of unknown provenance and RT like bars, so tall that the WS is OK but it ruins the looks of the bike. I am 5'7".. Read somewhere that the best solution was to use the stock WS and cut it down an inch or two to get clean air to your helmet w/out buffeting/noise and without affecting the looks of the bike much. Have not tried it but after all other combinations I have had and not liking any of them I might go for it. I hate to "cut" though.:doh
 
I found the best combination for me [5'10" RS bars or K100S bars] was the factory stock windshield with a Laminar Lip attached. The lip really alleviated a lot of the turbulence yet it is easy to remove if you want to be in the wind on a really hot day.

PS: BMW rivets are not necessary. There are no data to show that any one has ever been killed or injured by bolting a windshield properly. Nylon hardware that prevents over torquing is advised so that the plexiglass is not damaged and they breakaway in the event of a go-through.
 
There is simply no such thing as bolts/nuts that will break away in the fashion the rivets will. For sure you won't find them at Home Depot. You could walk up to an RS with the proper rivets and yank the windshield off by hand with very little effort.

BTW, it's good to know that the "windshield" is not a windshield--rather it's a clear piece that completes the styling of the fairing. I suppose if you were pretty short, you could duck behind it on a high speed run just like a "racer."

On the RS I rode I fitted one maybe 2 inches taller (but same styling) simply so I could see underneath to the clock and voltmeter. A tinted Luftmeister.

IMHO there's nothing dumber looking than an RS with a stand up vertical "windshield." Talk about unclear on the concept. Kind of like putting a Camry label on your Porsche.
 
Having had three of them, I've always thought that helmet level turbulence was just part of the RS experience.

And I'm not going to put an aftermarket windshield on, and spoil the lines. Or seat, for that matter. :ha
 
Well I guess I spoiled the lines on mine. The humanity! OH NO!!! :laugh:laugh:laugh

I put bar backs on it, RT style larger mirrors and mirror extenders so I could actually see what's behind me and a tinted Parabellum medium height windscreen which actually works quite well. She slips down the highway real nice.
 
All this being said, is Max BMW or another outlet the best place to get an oem shield? Can you get these tinted or clear? My current ws is screwed on rather than being riveted so I'll see how that goes. Are the k75S bars the ones to get, I see a couple pr for sale on ebay?? Thx
 
IHMO I prefer to leave the original screen as is. (I'm 5ft 11) Buying new screens can be a real suck it & see unless you have determined the desired shape for you. I recommend to other riders they first get an idea of where they need to make screen changes then cut some stiff cardboard & duct tape it onto their screen & go ride, test, trim, re-test till you get a shape that works - Then go shopping.

Many years ago, we lapped Australia on my RS. Back then I fitted a 3" rise to the original screen (2 small screws & duct tape & a lip). Worked a treat! Today however I have an even simpler solution. Now this is not a plug but rather is one example, we have a Wunderlich part called an Vario Ergo Screen Extension - attaches (clamps on) in two minutes via 2x S/Steel grub screws with a rubber pad to not mark the screen - great idea, range of positions & would do what I did 20 years ago with out drilling. Plus you can take it off & there is the original bike.

I am about to test this part on my 04 950 Adventure Kato as I get turbulence at about 65 mphr when wearing a peaked ADV helmet. Holding 4 fingers above the screen lip at that speed resolves the problem. My first RS (the 78 that lapped Oz) is in full restoration but will arise as a 76 copy. The Rennesport solo seat now on it makes a big difference for me ! The standard screen is fine as with this seat you are dropped lower into the 'Integral Cockpit' (BMW marketing back then) The problem I had originally was riding 2 up & therefore sitting more upright & closer to the screen. Hope this info assists your fix ...Cheers RTO:thumb:b
 
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shield

I have a 83 R100Rs with stock tinted screen, K75 bars and Schuberth C3 helmet. I'm in heaven!!!!:p
 
+1 on stock shield

I've ridden an rs for over thirty years and have tried all heights and the stock shield with the edging on it is the best.

In the last few years I have gone to ear plugs and a better quality helmet than the ones I used to buy at walmart in my younger days.

Stock shield, ear plugs and a quality helmet will be the best and look the best; putting a taller shield on an rs just doesn't do it for me.
 
There is simply no such thing as bolts/nuts that will break away in the fashion the rivets will. For sure you won't find them at Home Depot.

The nylon nuts and bolts that come with the Parabellum, Clearview and other mfg 's are easily obtainable at any hardware store. The reason that they are used is to prevent cracking plexiglass by over-tightening and because they will breakaway when needed.
 
Well I guess I spoiled the lines on mine. The humanity! OH NO!!! :laugh:laugh:laugh

I put bar backs on it, RT style larger mirrors and mirror extenders so I could actually see what's behind me and a tinted Parabellum medium height windscreen which actually works quite well. She slips down the highway real nice.

That's what I have on my current RS and the S in RS clothing before her. It works well for me, too.
 
FWIW

I'm 6'4" - My R90/6 has no fairing & is the quietest ride of all - providing I use a neck gaiter to seal the area between my shoulders and the bottom of my Arai (and other full face) helmet(s).

My R1100RT and K1200LT with stock fairings both give me an intolerable roar which is due to blow-off from the top of the firing hitting my helmet forehead. I arranged for a vibration expert where I work to analyze what is happening. He showed that the turbulent windstream hitting the forehead made the helmet bottom vibrate in the bell mode - i. e. the sides go in and out together while the front/back goes out and in together (read that again), at about 80 Hz. That explained why it sounded like the noise was coming from the very center of my head.

What to do? - I'd like to try to increase the damping of that mode of vibration using an old helmet by epoxying a constrained layer damping ring all around the bottom of the helmet. This would use a ~3/4" wide ring of ~1/16" thick damping material (google Soundcoat) with a metal ring bonded to the outside of everything.

Then my wife threw out all my old helmets & that was the end of that. I decided that maybe earplugs are the most practical solution.

There are three sources of helmet noise. 1) the bell mode of vibration, 2) shoulder gasket (for unfaired bikes), and 3) general beating around of the helmet shell with random gusts.

I considered the possibility of active noise suppression such as are used in aviation headsets, and suggested the same to Headsets Inc, but was unable to get a response. The Headsets Inc scheme is analog - not digital - which is the only way to approach our random noise problem. They are limited though to below about 200 Hz and the reduction is only about 10 to 20 db. I don't think that is enough reduction to allow us to remove the ear plugs.

Which is where I started. Different helmet manufacturers don't seem to make much difference. They all claim silence and none of them are.

It is an interesting problem.
 
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