Wind Noise - PLEASE HELP

[gblawler]

I ride a 2003 F650GS Dakar. Last year I replaced the stock windshield with a ZTechnik made specifically for that model. Made a significant difference. The stock Dakar windshield is 12" high, the ZTechnik is 16". The main thing, though, is the stock windshield has a curled lip at the top which I believe actually creates turbulence. The ZTechnik is not that much taller, but it is a smooth continuous curve. No turbulence with the ZTechnik. I still wear earplugs, but I now use the permanent kind that do not cut as much sound. I previously used the disposable foam earplugs, but could not hear the engine much at all with those, which left me with a kind of disconnected experience on the bike. These permanent ear plugs are on a string I can hang around my neck, they cut out just the right amount of sound. I can still hear the engine, but the wind noise is reduced to a whisper. With the ZTechnik, the wind is smooth air without buffeting.

ZTechnik, by the way, only sells through BMW dealers and makes most of the BMW OEM windshields, which explains why the ZTechnik looks like it belongs on the bike. Some of the other aftermarket windshields look a bit out of place.

 

[alfabc]

Well, the Laminar Lip showed up. Finally, it was to be delivered on Friday, got here on Monday (5/24/10). So much for 3 day mail...

I've been trying to adjust the height of the lip on the windshield, and still haven't found the position that offers what I want as far as reduction in noise. If I hunch down a wee bit, the noise drops to what I want. But if I put the lip up that high, it doesn't work very well. If I lower it, the noise gets better, so I'll continue to try and fine tune the up/down. There seems to be a critical space needed between the lip and windshield. I might have to look at the Cee Bailey screen if this doesn't work. I'll keep trying to adjust the Laminar Lip. So far, it's about 50% of what I want in noise reduction.

The Noz helmet skirt does work. I keep the chin zipper open to prevent fog. Yes, it's that chilly still here in the North Wet.

More to follow.

Bill

 

[wmubrown]

I don't recommend the saliva on earplugs either, because it will evaporate and the plug will stick to your ear canal and cause irritation. Get some oto-ease, makes insertion of the plug much easier, forms a terrific seal, and won't dry up which will keep your ear canal moist.

Sounds like your windscreen needs to be lowered - you may have to consider breaking out a Dremel and modifying it.

 

[robertklee]

It's a motorcycle not a car...shouldn't you have some wind noise? I don't have a windshiled. Doesn't seem to bother me.

 

[alfabc]

It's a motorcycle not a car...shouldn't you have some wind noise? I don't have a windshiled. Doesn't seem to bother me.

Yes, some noise is acceptable. The problem is that it's starting to cause serious long lasting tinnitus. I'd still like to hear valves going bad when I'm old...

Bill

 

[alfabc]

I forgot to mention that the Givi screen, although very well made and looks great on the bike, didn't do much to help the wind noise, buffeting situation. I'm tempted to try the Cee Baily and/or a new helmet. The noise is the worst on the F650GS, worse than on my Kawasaki W650 and the Ninja.

Bill

 

[alfabc]

Well, I just got off the phone with Cee Bailey. I ordered the 19" screen and it should be here in about 10 days. I'll keep you all posted. I am really hoping this does the trick. I love the bike, but I don't want to have permanent hearing loss due to riding it...

Bill

 

[cheesewhiz]

 

[akbeemer]

Have you tried Paul's suggestion of using tank panniers to reduce the flow of air from the area of the faux tank. It works.

The windscreen that seems to be most effective in reducing noise and buffeting is the Parabellum. It attaches on the handle bars and is much closer to the rider, hence the better protection and reduced wind related problems. It's appearance is, well ah, an acquired taste and tallish riders tend to bump their heads when mounting/dismounting. It is not suitable to any off pavement riding as standing up while riding would be difficult. But they seem to work for what you are complaining about.

 

[slimdog]

I use a Cee Bailey mid-height windshield and Koss noise reducing ear buds. Make sure the ear buds are installed properly and your noise issue will disappear.

 

[ultracyclist]

Perhaps a different helmet would help, too?

I had 2 Arai Quantum II's. NIce and quiet. Then I recently switched to a Shoei Modular Flip up because i wear glasses. Bad move as the modular helmet is far more noisey.

I will ultimately go back to the Q-II.

 

[pmdave]

You're right that it's the wind noise that's causing the problem. Wind noise is very loud, but a very low frequency, and it fools the brain into thinking it doesn't really hurt. But yes, it can damage hearing. And if you're being bothered by the noise while riding, it's REALLY loud.

What's typically the problem is that the wind curls around the front of the machine and collapses behind any big areas rather than moving around smoothly. The collapsing (buffeting) air slams into the rider's head. I'm not aware of any helmets that attenuate wind noise, but some helmets have various "vortex generators" that smooth out the airflow. And the junction between faceshield and helmet can also cause buffeteing. I have added some additional air dams to the flip front of my Nolans using RTV sealer, to block off the air entering.

My suggestion is to feel the wind as you are riding along. move your hand around, not only the edges of the windshield, but around your head. You might discover that the buffeting is occuring around the lower back of your helmet, or at the sides of the windshield.

As Paul mentioned, air swirling around the lower edges of a windshield, instrument pod, etc. can be the source of the buffeting. One way to smooth out the airflow is to cut a vent in the bottom of the windshield, to allow a boundary layer of air to move up the inside of the shield. Another way is to add fairings to the areas where the wind is curling around. I made plexiglass wings for my 1150GS to redirect the air flow so it wouldn't come up under the bars and into my face.

As it happens, the turbulent air can collapse just behind the rider as well as behind a windshield. You might experiment with strapping a cardboard box on the saddle behind you to see if that changes anything.

My suspicion would be that your shield is too tall, pushing the buffeting air just into your helmet elevation. You might find that a lower shield that allows your helmet to penetrate unspoiled air would be quieter. For a test, take off the windshield and ride that way. Experiment with holding your hand at various elevations to see where buffeting starts.

It's relatively easy to cut off the top of a windshield with a bandsaw. Just figure out what elevation might work, tape off the area with masking tape to protect the plastic, and saw to a line. You can sand the edges to make them smooth, or just scrape the edges with a sharp knife.

Here's another approach I use on my R100. The wing on the top of the windshield is hinged and can be adjusted to different angles.

pmdave

 

[157990]

You need to experiment some as noted above. Different bikes/different riders and you'll have different results (based on height, gear, etc. etc.

The worst bike I ever had was an '07 FJR Yamaha. You got buffetting and windnoise. After 5 windshields I finally got rid of the buffetting, but the windnoise was THERE for me. My old '95 Ducati SS was VERY quiet with the same gear on, go figure?

Anyway, on my '01 Dakar with an Arai Corsair I find it fairly quiet. The wind is actually hitting right at the top of my helment and I'm completely out of the turbulance. I can slide back on the seat, inducing some "forward lean" and it gets very quiet as I'm "below" the shield. I'm 5'11".

Good luck and don't give up. The little F bike is the Most Fun I've had on a motorcycle in years, and I've had a Bunch of bikes!

 

[alfabc]

Thanks for the suggestions. My Shoei RF1000 is supposed to be a good, and fairly quiet helmet. I've actually been doing some experimenting this week (when it was dry enough out for a ride). I've found that with the Laminar Lip on the bike, set fairly high on the Dakar windshield, the noise went down about 1db. If I tuck under it, it was much less noisy, and if I hunched my spine down, I got under the noisy air flow. I also found that if I sat VERY tall in the saddle, the noise level got better. The windshield(s) do have a bit of a gap between them and the instrument pod. I've tried no shield, still noisy, and I've tried both the Dakar and the Givi with and without the U shaped spacer. I'm tempted to cut the Givi down to a fly screen size like on the newer F650GS's. Not sure what that would do though. I'm tempted to go to the local dealer and ride a new F650GS with the small screen and see what the noise levels are. That would give me a good place to start with the screen trimming idea...

I believe I have the tall seat option on the bike and have ordered a regular seat from eBay. I am hoping with a regular height seat, which is about 1 1/2 inches lower, and the one of the various windshields I have, I can beat this thing. I think I need to get "under" the turbulence from I can tell with my experimental seating positions. I am waiting on the Cee Bailey windshield to show up in about 7 days. Once the regular seat shows up, I'll try all combos of windshields - Givi, Dakar, Daker with Laminar Lip, and the Cee Bailey. I would have to think somewhere in there lies the solution. I hope to have the solutions soon, as I can't really ride the bike and enjoy it right now : (

Cheers,

Bill

 

[bmwgsrider]

I have tried many shields and I have been happy with the Ermax shield as it diverts the wind around you... diverts it over your head and around your arms and shoulders.

This isn't the original height of the shield as I am shorter and has been cut down for me:

 

[bmwgsrider]

I believe I have the tall seat option on the bike and have ordered a regular seat from eBay.
Cheers,

Bill

What makes you think you have a tall seat? Are you sure your getting the right seat your wanting off of Ebay? Did you verify the seat you have?


BMW Lower Seat 52 53 7 652 635 (orange)
52 53 2 345 736 (black) +0 mm 780 mm 750 mm 830 mm

BMW Single Seat 71 60 7 653 838 +20 mm 800 mm 770 mm 850 mm Refer: DHP Solo Seat and DHP Solo Seat 2

BMW Higher Seat 52 53 2 345 735 (black) +40 mm 820 mm 790 mm 870 mm

 

[alfabc]

I have tried many shields and I have been happy with the Ermax shield as it diverts the wind around you... diverts it over your head and around your arms and shoulders.

This isn't the original height of the shield as I am shorter and has been cut down for me:

What was the difference you felt going from the original shield to the Ermax shield? Which shield did you start with, and what were the problems you found with it, and how well did the Ermax fix those issues? As you can tell, I'm really REALLY trying to beat the noise turbulence issue.

Cheers,

Bill

 

[cycleman2]

I don't have an F bike but my R1100r is noted as being a head beater with the stock windshield. Some things that I've tried:


I'm not sure if you can raise the bottom of your windshield out on its bottom mounts. If you can its worth a try. Doing so allows more wind to get in behind the shield & even's out the airflow over the top. The Laminar lip will help reduce buffetting but maybe not the noise. ( I run with a Laminar lip ) I also built a small air deflector that picks up air from between the headlight & windshield & deflects the air up. You can also try using a spacer & moving the top mount out rather than the bottom one. It' s really a trial & error game

I don't get any buffetting, and the noise is fairly good with or without ear plugs. Lmainar Lip, bottom of windshield out about 1/2" & winddeflector over the headlight.

 

[alfabc]

What makes you think you have a tall seat? Are you sure your getting the right seat your wanting off of Ebay? Did you verify the seat you have?


BMW Lower Seat 52 53 7 652 635 (orange)
52 53 2 345 736 (black) +0 mm 780 mm 750 mm 830 mm

BMW Single Seat 71 60 7 653 838 +20 mm 800 mm 770 mm 850 mm Refer: DHP Solo Seat and DHP Solo Seat 2

BMW Higher Seat 52 53 2 345 735 (black) +40 mm 820 mm 790 mm 870 mm

I was told by the previous owner that it's the taller seat. My seat is show p/n 52537651959 which doesn't match any of your numbers called out... Oh the plot thickens.

The eBay seat is claimed as the standard seat. Either way, my seat came with a small rip in it, so the eBay seat for $100 is still a welcome addition. High, low, or medium, it will still look better


Bill

 

[jstrube]

Took my wife's CS for a ride today & forgot the ear plugs. Man, was it noisy... I wasn't at freeway speeds, only in town up to 40 or so, but it was enough to bug me...