bodgers windscreen

[tendays]

I was getting blatted by the wind on fast roads on the way to the trails on the DRZ, so started lookin for ideas. The old GS650 Dakar screen makes for a good bolt-on but they're difficult to find. So...

I bought some 4mm clear lexan (polycarbonate), a cheap heat gun and some M6 nuts and bolts. The lexan is the kind with UV resistance so it won't go yellow. It's very tough, so you can belt it with a hammer without breaking it, and thermo formable, but not scratch resistant. So I did all bending and drilling before removing protective films. And then scratched it anyway, bejesus.

No photos of WIP but basically I made a cardboard mock-up, cut the shape out of lexan using a hacksaw, sanded the edges a bit and gave it a quick polish with an Aldi dremel (thanks Kymmy). Then ruled a few lines for bends, had a quick practice with an offcut (which bubbled shortly after going bendy) and started bending around an olive oil bottle (taller with a smaller radius than wine bottle). The sharper bends at the corners were done with a borrowed workmate and two short skirting board offcuts. And the lip using an offcut of kitchen cornice with a curved edge.

Then I drilled the screw holes, going slowly to avoid melting. I screwed this up (sorry bad pun) quite badly so screen isn't mounted exactly symmetrically. But not too bad for a first go.





As you can see there are only two mounting points so the screen can be tilted well forwards for offroad decapitation avoidance, or back for less drag / turbulence.

In future I might add some brackets to handlebar or forks to make it more rigid but for now I'll see how it goes.

Costs:
£15 lexan
£0.59 nuts n bolts
£17 heat gun

[Snaphappy]

Nice job


its screaming for stickers though
a nice Dakar in etched look would suit applied from the back for ease of cleaning

[tendays]

good idea sir

[veodoble]

perfect, man!

I think I'll borrow your technique, since a similar idea has been circulating my mind as well, but hesitated about the procedures. Now I know how-to!

congrats!

[Yahoo]

Quick question: Where did you buy the clear lexan stuff? Can you get it in any old diy store?
And permission to copy your idea sir, see the missus's (mine really) drz needs some wind protection and yours is a most splendid idea, Whot whot!

[jasonbc]

Absolute top quality bodging

[Paul-S]

Fantastic job

[tendays]

lexan from fleabay.
3mm might be better than 4 if i was doing it again.
/td

[stuart]

nice job , I've never managed to bend Lexan without bubbles.

[StumpyFingers]

Nice, it looks more professional than a bodge