I’ve done a lot of reading on this forum, other forums and the internet at large regarding windshields. Not being able to get past the looks of the Madstad, and went the route of traditional sheilds.

I had a Clearview on my old Street Glide and it was fine, but nothing to cheer about. I read reviews on Windvest and they sounded good, but reviews on Freedom came out more positive so I ordered a few. Loved the looks of the Klockwerks sport flare, read mostly good, but mixed reviews and added that to the mix.

Here is what I ordered to test:

• 14 Inch Klockwerks sport flare, dark smoke
• 12 Inch Freedom touring, dark smoke
• 13 Inch Freedom,touring dark smoke
• 13 Inch Freedom touring, medium smoke

About me:

• 5’10 32 inch inseam, but can sometimes do 30, depending on brand of jeans
• 2016 Road Glide Special, stock seat, suspension and stereo

Each test was the same 2 miles in the city, 5 miles on freeway 60-80 mph, stereo on


Test 1: Freedom 12, Dark smoke

In the garage it was comfortable to see over both sitting up straight, and slightly slouching, which tends to be how I ride. In the city there was a moderate difference from stock, but that was only 35 mph -so hard to really tell. On the freeway there was a huge difference from stock, I could hear the stereo fairly well, though still had to be full volume, still got some wind, but was comfortable. Felt a lot like my older SG with the 6 inch shield on it, if that’s of any help. Got hit with some crosswinds and was unaffected.

Pros:

• 12-inch height was perfect for me
• Blocks a lot of wind, while still allowing enough to make me feel I’m on a bike
• Can hear the stereo far better
• Side view looks good on the bike
• Dark smoke tint goes with the bike nicely
• Fit and finish are excellent

Cons:

• Front view is a little dorky looking
• Smoke tint has a warmer-brown than the colder-grey of the stock smoke. Not sure how I feel about that yet, but not a big deal
• In direct sun I could see through the dark smoke OK, at night it will be a different story though can see over fine and don't ride much at night, so not really a con.

Test 2: Klockwerks Sport Flare 14, Dark smoke

Right from the get-go this looked really cool, even sitting in the garage, side, front, in the saddle views, all looked great. I really wanted this one to work. At about 30 mph I could tell this was not going to block the wind as well as the Freedom 12 I had just taken off. In the city is was fine, better than stock, could hear the stereo. On the freeway just past 60 mph I started to loose the feeling of any protection. At 75 I seriously couldn't tell if was that much better than stock. Please keep in mind there was heavy traffic and crosswinds. When the cross winds hit, it effectively turned off the stereo until they stopped. I forgot the stereo was even on until i slowed down to 50 taking the freeway exit ramp.

Pros:

• Looks great
• Smoke tint is cooler (true back variation) vs warmer (browner) of the Freedom
• The ‘hips’ on either side open up the view to the road better for greater visibility

Cons:

• Just did not do the job for me
• Did not block nearly the same wind as the Freedom
• Could not hear the stereo much of the time

Test 3: Freedom 13, medium smoke (did not bother testing the 13 dark)

As soon I as mounted this and sat on the bike I knew it was too tall for my height. Strange that only a one-inch difference made it seem like like it was actually 4 inches higher than the others tested. I also had an immediate dislike for the medium-tint and front-view in terms of appearance of the bike. On the freeway, it did, of course, block a little more wind, but for me, not enough to outweigh the appearance, could not see over it comfortably, and maybe blocked a little too much wind.

Pros

• Blocks a little more wind

Cons

• Did not like the appearance
• Did not like having too much wind blocked
• Medium tint made it look more like a bolted-on windshield as opposed to the dark tint which looked like it was an intentional part of the bike.

Conclusion

I took the protective coating off the 12-inch Freedom Touring shield, hit it with the Plexus and installed it. Looks good, and from the initial test, works well. If it ever stops fricken raining I’ll give it a much, much longer test. Will it be the only shield I own?

Probably, barring I get past the way the Madstad looks. I have read great reviews about them, but just cant get passed their appearance. However, I also used to say that about the Road Glide shark-nose fairings, too and now I have one. For now, the more traditional looking Freedom 12 inch does the job I want it too and looks good doing it.

Good luck in your search for the perfect windshield.

Pics are below.


In the group pic on the left is the 12 inch Freedom in front, Stock to the left of it, with the 13 Freedom dark smoke behind stock. On the right of the Freedom 12 is the 14 Klockwerks and the Freedom 13 medium smoke behind it. The group pic on the right has Stock first, Freedom 12 behind, Klockwerks 14 next followed by the Freedom 13s.

 

Wow, that's a lot of shields bought. I am assuming they were all returnable. Good review, thanks for sharing.

I would be very curious what your thoughts on the 12" KW pro touring would have been. It sits a bit more than an inch higher than the sport that you tried and is more vertical. That is what I ended up with, and am very happy with it.

I had the Klock Werks 15" pro touring, the 12" pro touring and the 12" freedom, and settled on the KW 12.

 

I have the 14" KW Sportsflair and it's perfect for me.
I'm 6' tall and the wind just goes over my helmet.
I can also hear my audio much better.
Womack

 

They were returnable' less the shipping costs, worth it to me to get the right shield. I imagine the klockwerks pro touring would be similar to the freedom 12, as neither of them have the flare. Would probably work for me too. Glad you like it.

A

 

Yeah, I think I read your review on the roadglide.org forum. That's actually why I tried it! For whatever reason, the KW just didn't do it for me. Sure looks cool. Glad it's working for you.

 

My two cents: Demo the Windsplitter 12" and 15" at a Harley dealer. I ended up buying the 12" for my 2016 RGS without even testing the 15", and overall, I'm very pleased. Of course, in all honesty laziness may be a factor, as I didn't want to get involved with shipping, returning, etc.!

 

Yeah the shipping expense and waiting is a factor. I looked at the wind splitter on line, dealer did not have any in stock. Went with the Freedom as it had the tint and coverage I was looking for. Glad you're happy with the splitter.