Spotted in Ontario - Curious about your GIVI screen & wind noise!

[Bagman]

Hoping you're on this forum - whomever you are.

I spotted you on the QEW - through Burlington, Niagara bound. Riding a Fazer8 in gray with blue wheels. White luggage tied down. You also had the R77-D exhaust (my exhaust - like it!), and what looked like to be a smoked GIVI Windscreen.

I am very curious to know your thoughts on the your aftermarket screen - even if not the GIVI one. I commute from Burlington to Toronto, and I am want to quiet down the commute. I want less wind noise. How tall are you? I ask about the height, because I read off MRA's FAQ site (FAQ - MRA) the following:

A vacuum occurs behind the screen. When the air flow at the end of the screen meets the vacuum, the air swirls. The larger the screen, the larger the vacuum and the larger the resulting turbulence. There is normally no problem for larger drivers because the turbulence is not around the helmet area. Smaller drivers are therefore better off behind a lower screen. It is a common misunderstanding that the windscreen should force the wind over the driver. This is only possible in seldom cases (e.g. Goldwing). It is ideal for the air to flow lightly off the helmet.
If turbulence occurs then the screen is generally, as described above, too high. To determine the ideal length, one can do the following: During the journey, edge slowly upwards until the turbulence is gone. The distance upwards is to be divided by two. The result is the amount by which the screen must be shortened. Example: If during the journey, the driver edges up and after 10cm the turbulence clearly subsides, then the screen should be shortened by 5cm.that the taller the screen the larger the turbulent area of wind directly behind the screen. MRA actually provides a simple calculation, and bottom line, if I actually sit up higher or raise myself off the seat a bit the wind-noise quiets down.


I am 5'7". My guess is that with the OEM screen my head is just at the edge of the turbulent air off the screen, because if I sit off the seat a bit higher the wind noise goes away quite a bit. With the above in mind, I'm thinking a Puig screen might be better than a larger touring screen, but I'm still curious about what you have.

FYI - whatever screen you have looked very nice on the Fazer 8.

 

[Bagman]

Bumping....

 

[Fazer 8]

At first I thought you might mean me, but I don't have a Yosh exhaust or any white luggage tied down to my bike.

I also don't have the Givi touring screen, although I was considering getting one. I do have the Puig sport screen replacement for the stock bit. I think it's slightly taller and mostly just looks cooler, being dark smoke and having an interesting shape.

 

[Bagman]

That's the other screen I am considering, however. Thanks for replying. How tall are ya? Do you find the ride less noisy on the highway with the Puig screen?

 

[Fazer 8]

I don't think it's noticeably less noisy. It's hard to say, I'd have to swap it with the stock one and ride them back to back. It might even be a little noisier since it's slightly taller and pushes the turbulent air range up a little.

I'm 6' 2 or 3"

 

[Bagman]

... I'm 6' 2 or 3"

6'2 or 3", eh? Depends on what heels you're wearing? lol. Thanks for input.

 

[Fazer 8]

Well, I'm somewhere between 6'2 and 6'3. I may have shrunk a little since I was 18, nearly 30 years ago, lol.

Here's what the screen looks like on my bike. Taken to demonstrate the bugs I accumulated, so it's not the prettiest.

 

[Blackfin]

I have the Puig dark-smoke as well, on my black 2011 FZ8S:

I think it makes the black bike look cooler. Any changes to the air flow quality or sound levels aren't really discernable, at least by me.

I will say it makes GoPro video shot from the top of the tank very dark

 

[Bagman]

Blackfin, where are you located?

Fazer 8 is in Hamilton. I am in Burlington. We gotta arrange a ride. I just need to get the Puig Screen so we all match.

I have a blue Fazer8. The only other blue one I've seen was parked on Duncan St. with an older gentleman rider beside it. Here is mine before I installed the Yosh R77-D.

 

[Blackfin]

I'm in the KW area.

A couple of more recent pics of mine:

I love my R77. Without the insert it sounds just right

Also have EBC rotors and HH pads front and rear, Akra header, PC-V, modded airbox, Pazzo shorty levers. Unfortunately, the bike is down at the moment with a messed up clutch cable:

Waiting on a replacement for that. Took the opportunity while it's apart to install a left-hand switch assy from a UK FZ1 meaning I now have hazards and flash-to-pass

 

[Bagman]

Nice. I'm pretty sure the Fz8 itself has at least the hazard button on the left-hand assembly. Envious. I wonder how much new from Yamaha. Hmm - maybe something to order while I'm in Holland this fall. I am thinking of doing the Guhl's flash next year, but honestly, the bike is fast & smooth as it is....

 

[Blackfin]

Nice. I'm pretty sure the Fz8 itself has at least the hazard button on the left-hand assembly. Envious. I wonder how much new from Yamaha. Hmm - maybe something to order while I'm in Holland this fall. I am thinking of doing the Guhl's flash next year, but honestly, the bike is fast & smooth as it is....

The North American FZ8s and Fazers, as far as I know, have a "blank" where the hazard button is on bikes sold in other markets.

Here's my "new" one:

On my OE (and yours I suspect) you just have a depression/hole with a black filler piece in behind. (Or do you have a hazard button?)

You can add the switch and wire it up inside the switchgear without too much hassle. It's been done elsewhere.

The NA housing doesn't have provision for the flash-to-pass feature; there's no cutout for the switch and, as far as I know, there's no boss inside the top cover for it.

This is why I searched for Euro switchgear that had it all already. I only had to do a minor bit of electrical work (splice a couple of wires inside the switch and transfer the clutch switch connector from the OE harness to the new one); it's otherwise plug and play.

 

[TorontoAlex]

Isnt that the turbo button???

How does one destroy a clutch cable like this?

 

[Fazer 8]

One suspects that either the aftermarket lever itself did something to cause this, or that the cable end was damaged in the process of installing it.

 

[Blackfin]

One suspects that either the aftermarket lever itself did something to cause this, or that the cable end was damaged in the process of installing it.

Yep, completely my fault. At the time of installation I inadvertently put a little "bend" -- not a kink, just a bit of a bend -- in the cable right where it's failing now. That setup a stress point and the rest is history. A moment of carelessness on my part.