Just installed a MEMPHIS SHADES detachable windshield on my sportster for highway and longer type rides.
I’ve read what I could on “sizing” and proper placement and “wind buffeting”. In fact this is the 2nd Memphis Shades Windshield I installed.
The 1st one was a 15” and was to short which I could tell on my 1st ride as my head was pounded by the wind.

The current shield is a 19” and feels so much better. BUT……. On my initial ride I noticed that now the WIND seems to grab my shirt around my neck in an almost choking force. The VIEW up to around 60mph seems fine but once over that the bike seems to vibrate more and highway signs seem BLURRY. ( so much more than without any windshield at all )

The shield is one of the “SPORTSHIELDS offerd and the HEIGHT seem good but the WIDTH of the shield puts it between the bars.

Thank you !!

The question to those experienced with windshields or who face similar problems is this….

Would a WIDER shield solve some of the BUFFETING PROBLEMS or do I need LOWERS ??

Are bikes with WINDSHIELDS always going to VIBRATE at higher speeds due to wind resistance or do I just need to find the RIGHT SHIELD?

 

This is the 1st shield showing a TOO low profile --New 19" shield is same width ?

 

I haven't had Memphis Shades..so cannot comment on your other questions, but to this one here...no not all vibrate at higher speeds. I only see them vibrate at low speeds....idle at stoplight, etc. I have a SlipStream SpitFire windshield..comes on or off in under 20 seconds. Quite small, very low...so I easily see over it, never through it unless I'm trying to look forward/down at my front fender.

I've seen them priced from 65 to 85 bucks online.

 

My wife has the short HD shield on her fatboy and it works for both of us, and I am a good 7-8' taller than her. No buffeting or vibration of any kind. I prefer to ride w/o it most of the time, but it is a godsend on a long ride.

Good luck with figuring out your problem, sounds like a miserable way to ride.

Shakey

 

I have a little bit of buffeting with my Memphis Shades windshield but that's to be expected. It's rock solid, I've noticed no vibrating at speed. It's really spoiled me.

 

I have a Memphis Shades Sportshield, the narrow Rio Grande.
It tends to vibrate slightly, but that is only noticeable if I focus on the top edge. The view through it is clear & it is about nose high & sized to look over. The vibration does not seem to transfer to the bike.
It helps on a long ride by cutting the direct force of the air, but my eyes are in the airstream until I hit 80 mph, not a practical cruising speed in my neighborhood.
The turbulence I realize comes from between the windshield & the front of the gas tank. Yesterday it was blowing off my new, ill fitting sunglasses.
I too am considering lowers, so thanks for starting this thread.

 

IMO, the Memphis Shades is a better windshield than OEM HD, it is a little thicker and doesn't move hardly at all while riding. On your sporty, you'd probably want a 17", I've got a 19 on my Low Rider and it is to tall, I should of got the 17" because then I would have room to play with the clamps, up or down on the fork tubes for my height.. Unless you're a midget, your gonna get wind buffet. Unfortunately, in what ever size you get, your stuck with the width they come in.

Also, I've never had a windshield that I didn't have buffet, or more wind coming at me that comes from down below and or up from under the windshield itself! Lowers would help. Also, for correct positioning in height of windshield, you want the wind to hit, or break, at about the top of your forehead and goes over your helmet.

 

I bought my 19" windshield at the dealership, I know how many here feel about dealerships, but it is my first bike and I didn't want to screw anything up. The parts guy helped me pick it out and it was the best think I could've done. It is detachable, but I only took it off once to clean it! I hardly notice any buffeting. It seems I notice it more on windy days for some reason, but most of the time it is a nice ride. Good luck, I hope you find something that works.

 

I put the detachable HD sheild on my 1200C felt weird at first but I like it. On or off in 1/2 minute.

 

My son bought a Memphis Fats windshield for his 2004 XL1200C. We go a few times a year on road trips of 3-7 days and he wanted the windshield for the added protection in case of rain and just to help with less fatigue over the course of the trip. He bought the Fats model because it was the biggest and if he was going to use it for traveling he wanted all he could get. He's had the windshield since 2005.

The last 2-3 trips we took he left the windshield at home. He experiences the same tugging at the neck with his t-shirt. But the biggest problem is the updraft that he gets blowing up his nose that seems to come from under the windshield. He says it's pretty much unbearable, causing his eyes to water more than he can stand. The answer from Memphis Shades is some type of aftermarket lower fairing that attaches to the lower fork leg.

He's never had a problem with vibration.

I don't believe this situation is unique to Memphis Shades. If you go to XL Forum, there's quite a few stories from riders with the same experience.

I put a Klock Werks Billboard Flare on my RK and it's an amazing piece of hardware. Go to their web site and read about it. The do offer the Billboard Flare for the Dyna and XL line but it's designed to fit the H-D hardware that comes with the windshield sold in the H-D P&A catalog. I don't know if this would solve the updraft problem but it might be worth a call to Klock Werks.