Windshields Polycarbonate VS Acrylic
Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Jun 2010
Posts: 9,332
Likes: 3,873
From: Upstate New York
I've had four H-D polycarbonate windshields on my bike. EVERY ONE cracked around the screw holes. The first lasted 10 years, the second three years, the third cracked in three months and the forth cracked after a month! Always at the same place. The lowest two screw holes. $140 is a lot to pay for a windshield that lasts only a month.
Last edited by Uncle G.; May 26, 2013 at 07:09 AM.
Road Captain
Joined: Dec 2011
Posts: 703
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From: poof
Could this be a sales point?
If that is straight-up acrylic in the demo it will shatter. I believe many aftermorket shields use impact modified acrylics now days. Polycarbonite is the toughest and I'd prefer to have that in front of me. Yet, how many have heard of incidents dealing with broken shields?
p.s. notice the shield is rigidly mounted, rather than how it is mounted on a bike.
If that is straight-up acrylic in the demo it will shatter. I believe many aftermorket shields use impact modified acrylics now days. Polycarbonite is the toughest and I'd prefer to have that in front of me. Yet, how many have heard of incidents dealing with broken shields?
p.s. notice the shield is rigidly mounted, rather than how it is mounted on a bike.
Club Member
Joined: Feb 2007
Posts: 16,320
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From: Boynton Beach, FloriDuh
Many acrylic, DOT approved windshields for use in the US, are actually Impact Modified Acrylic and do not shatter as demonstrated in that video.
This from Memphis Shades:
Memphis Shades uses Lucite L which is a premium grade cast acrylic which has excellent optics, is harder and more rigid, has a high impact resistance, has a surface hardness about the same as aluminum, and because it requires no surface coating, small scratches can be polished out. Lucite L has several times the impact resistance of plate glass, and is much lighter, but with sufficient force it can break, generally into a few odd pieces. It does not shatter like glass. Lucite L was developed in the early 80’s by DuPont to meet the requirements of certification for the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS), National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators (AAMVA), American National Standards Institute (ANSI), and the Department of Transportation (DOT). Each Memphis Shades windshield is stamped with “DOT 309”, which is Memphis Shades’ registered number, and “AS 6”, which denotes compliance with the section of the American Safety Standards Code that pertains to motorcycle windshields.
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This from Memphis Shades:
Memphis Shades uses Lucite L which is a premium grade cast acrylic which has excellent optics, is harder and more rigid, has a high impact resistance, has a surface hardness about the same as aluminum, and because it requires no surface coating, small scratches can be polished out. Lucite L has several times the impact resistance of plate glass, and is much lighter, but with sufficient force it can break, generally into a few odd pieces. It does not shatter like glass. Lucite L was developed in the early 80’s by DuPont to meet the requirements of certification for the Federal Motor Vehicle Safety Standards (FMVSS), National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Code of Federal Regulations (CFR), American Association of Motor Vehicle Administrators (AAMVA), American National Standards Institute (ANSI), and the Department of Transportation (DOT). Each Memphis Shades windshield is stamped with “DOT 309”, which is Memphis Shades’ registered number, and “AS 6”, which denotes compliance with the section of the American Safety Standards Code that pertains to motorcycle windshields.
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Seasoned HDF Member
Joined: Jun 2010
Posts: 9,332
Likes: 3,873
From: Upstate New York
I've been running a Memphis Shades Replacement for two years now with no issues. The holes in the Memphis Shades shield were precisely drilled and smoothly finished, then lined with plastic inserts.
I watched the video, but I refuse to believe you can shatter an acrylic shield by throwing a pebble at it, unless your name is Kenny Powers. Since it was made by a company trying to sell a product, I call shenanigans on it.
Last edited by Uncle G.; May 26, 2013 at 12:24 PM.
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